Value-Added Assessment of Teacher Preparation

Abstract

Broad-based empirical outcomes assessment is an increasingly evident part of governmental services and this trend is particularly apparent in education. The clearest manifestation of this trend in education has been the advent of high-stakes broad-based testing and accountability programs in K-12 education. Although this assessment regime has not yet been used to assess the efficacy of teacher preparation programs, the data management capacity and statistical technology is now emerging to make this possible. This article presents data from the 1st year of a pilot study examining the methodological and practical issues involved in implementing a value-added assessment of teacher preparation based on a massive multivariate longitudinal database. The pilot data are discussed in relation to the literature pertaining to value-added assessments in K-12 education. Selected research needs and practical concerns related to the use of value-added models for the assessment of teacher preparation are discussed.

The Impact of Preservice Preparation and Early Career Support on Novice Teachers’ Career Intentions and Decisions

“…Our results are particularly important for teacher preparation programs to consider in light of mounting efforts to hold teacher training programs accountable for their graduates' outcomes after entering teaching (see, for example, Crowe, 2010;Levine, 2006;Noell, Burns, & Gansle, 2009;The Teaching Commission, 2004). In contrast to prior studies that have utilized either teachers' stated intentions or actual decisions to assess early career attrition, our data enable us to consider both.…”

Are Student Absences Worth the Worry in U.S. Primary Schools?

“…Similarly, Noell et al (2008) controlled for student absences in value-added analyses of teacher preparation programs in Louisiana and found a statistically significant negative coefficient on absences. Using the ECLS-K, Ready (2010) estimated growth-curve models of students' academic performance in kindergarten and first grade paying particular attention to the effects of absences, an SES index, and SES-absence interactions and found a statistically-significant negative relationship between absences and literacy development during kindergarten and first grade that was stronger among low-SES students.…”

Evaluating the Tennessee Higher Education Commission's Report Card on the value-added estimates of teacher preparation programs

“…Their analysis draws attention to the challenges these states face in establishing a "true effect" of a TPP on student test scores. A number of studies also confirm the challenges of estimating the TPP effects in subjects where a large number of students have multiple teachers (Hock & Isenberg, 2012;Noell et al, 2008Noell et al, , 2009.…”

“…Louisiana is the only other state with a longstanding tradition of embracing the full TVASS model to evaluate TPPs (Gansle et al, 2010(Gansle et al, , 2012Noell et al, 2008Noell et al, , 2009. Now on its seventh year of publication, the state of Tennessee's release of this report card in November each year has a wide appeal for the governor and state policymakers who have advanced national and state value-added initiatives for several decades as the mantle of education reform.…”