District 109 to propose teacher evaluation plan

• Reprints

Updated: March 3, 2012 8:35AM

The Deerfield 109 School Board plans to present a comprehensive proposal on teacher evaluation to the teachers union tomorrow during negotiations.

The proposal calls for continuing to use the current teacher evaluation plan that is in the contract this year and next, while the board, administration and teachers work together on a new plan for the 2013-2014 school year.

“Under the board’s proposal, the district gains an effective tool for improving teacher performance, teachers are protected and the students of our district will reap the benefits. It’s a win-win for everyone,” said Steve Schwartz, a board member on the negotiating team.

Dennis Jensen, president of the Deerfield Education Association, said he found the board’s statement on the district website encouraging.

“Our negotiating team will need to see the actual proposal before I can comment further. We look forward to discussing this with the board,” he said.

The new plan is to be developed by a statutorily mandated evaluation committee composed of an equal number of board and union representatives, said Catherine Kedjidjian, the district’s coordinator of communications and community relations.

The new evaluation plan would meet all newly adopted state mandates established in the Performance Evaluation Reform Act, including evaluating teachers on their students’ growth, she added.

If the committee can’t agree on a plan, the proposal calls for the adoption of the state’s model evaluation plan.

That plan, which is still in development, is expected to be based on the Danielson Framework, an evaluation model widely regarded by education professionals — administrators and teachers alike — as an effective tool, she added.

This model is used by many area school districts and is being implemented and designed for use in School District 113.

The proposal allows the teachers union and the board to continue bargaining over which of the procedural aspects of the plan to incorporate into the collective bargaining agreement in the 2013-2014 school year, Kedjidjian said.

It also ensures that teachers will be acquainted with the plan before it is used, she added.