On November 8, 2010, the Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review (AELR) panel in Annapolis took up the issue of the new teacher and principal evaluations that are being proposed in conjunction with the state’s Race to the Top grant award and the state’s recently passed Education Reform Act of 2010.

MSEA and some legislators questioned the Maryland State Department of Education’s (MSDE) regulation as the student growth component would account for 50% of a teacher’s evaluation. This is in conflict with Maryland state law and circumvents the Council for Educator Effectiveness, which was appointed by the Governor to help develop the criteria for the new evaluation system. The panel voted 12-3 to block implementation of State Board of Education teacher and principal evaluation regulations.

A number of educators and MSEA leaders testified before the panel in a day-long hearing. PGCEA Executive Director Lewis Robinson drove the point home, saying in his testimony: “Specifically, we believe that the Education Reform Act and the proposed regulations are in conflict. The standard of 50% of the evaluation being based on student growth, and the frequency of evaluations prescribed in the regulations, go beyond the Act. These are all matters that, as we understood the law, were to be decided by the local education agencies.”

What happens next? The State Board of Education can withdraw the regulations and start over. Or it can appeal to the Governor to allow it to enact the regulations as they were proposed. What we do know is that the Council for Educator Effectiveness will continue its work to develop a fair and effective evaluation tool for the educators of Maryland and PGCEA and MSEA will continue to fight for the respect our members deserve.