Ohio Senate Bill Cuts Teacher Evaluation Requirements

The Ohio Senate has approved a bill reducing the number of state-mandated evaluations required for well-rated public school teachers. The proposal was prompted by educators' concerns that Ohio's new evaluation rules require more classroom observation sessions, reports and conferences than can be reasonably handled by existing staff.  Under an evaluation law that took effect earlier this year, principals must perform two 30-minute classroom observations each year for all teachers. They will then be rated as accomplished, skilled, developing or ineffective. Once the rating is accomplished, teachers can be evaluated every other year. The bill requires accomplished and skilled teachers to be evaluated every three years. It makes other adjustments to intervening evaluation measures.