Video blogger Kate Cohen discusses the “bad teachers” phenomenon. While teacher assessment is a hot debate, it is a fact that there are low performing teachers. Must ineffective teachers be fired? What can be done to improve their performance? Current research shows that it is possible for low performing teachers to improve through methods such as coaching programs! Watch the video to learn more!

Resources to learn more:

Low-Performing Teachers Have High Costs by Eric A. Hanushek:

http://hanushek.stanford.edu/publications/low-performing-teachers-have-high-costs

How to Build a Better Teacher by Ray Fisman:

http://www.slate.com/articles/business/the_dismal_science/2012/07/how_to_improve_teaching_new_evidence_that_poor_teachers_can_learn_to_be_good_ones_.html]

Gates Puts the Focus on Teaching by Joe Nocera:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/22/opinion/nocera-gates-puts-the-focus-on-teaching.html?_r=0

Lifting a Barrier of Mistrust: Wise Critical Feedback to Racial Minorities:

http://homepage.psy.utexas.edu/homepage/group/YeagerLAB/ADRG/Pdfs/Yeager%20Cohen%20-%20Wise%20feedback%20-%207-8-12.pdf

The Effect of Evaluation on Performance: Evidence from Longitudinal Student Achievement Data of Mid-career Teachers:

http://www.nber.org/papers/w16877

Identifying Effective Classroom Practices Using Student Achievement Data:

http://www.nber.org/papers/w15803

http://www.gatesfoundation.org/

By Jonathan Yunger in Teachers on February 10, 2013