July 29, 2010 – Washington Post
Error Rates in Evaluation Based on Test Scores

Value-added measures have become all the rage in evaluating teachers.  An emerging body of research has found that these value-added estimates based on a few years of data can be imprecise.

July 8, 2010 – New York Times
New York’s 125K Charter School Teachers

The Equity Project is premised on the theory that excellent teachers — and not revolutionary technology, talented principals or small class size — are the critical ingredient for success. Experts hope it could offer a window into some of the most pressing and elusive questions in education: Is a collection of superb teachers enough to make a great school? Are six-figure salaries the way to get them? And just what makes a teacher great?

July 6, 2010 – Education Research Report
Impact Assessment of Denver’s ProComp

This is the first of two reports detailing possible effects of Denver’s ProComp on student achievement, educator attitudes and behaviors, and teacher retention. This first report describes outcomes that may be associated with ProComp at the program level; a subsequent report (to be released in September, 2010) describes outcomes at a finer level of granularity to better understand differential outcomes of the program’s various elements for educators of various backgrounds.

July 6, 2010 – New York Times
Merit Pay and Test Tampering

Investigations in Georgia, Indiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, Virginia and elsewhere this year have pointed to cheating by educators. Experts say the phenomenon is increasing as the stakes over standardized testing ratchet higher — including, most recently, taking student progress on tests into consideration in teachers’ performance reviews and determining pay.

July 6, 2010 – Learning and Finance
Pittsburgh to Implement Merit Pay Plan

The Pittsburgh Public School District and its affiliated teachers union have recently agreed on a five year contract that includes components of the performance pay model.  Teachers pay will increase based on periodic teacher evaluations and demonstration that the teacher was able to raise student achievement over time.  Teachers will no longer receive a “bump” on the pay scale for earning an advanced degree such as a Master’s degree.  The new pay for performance pay scale will go into effect in the Pittsburgh Public School District starting July 1st 2010.