William S. Hart Union High School District teachers won’t be evaluated based on results from districtwide testing, according to a memorandum of understanding approved at last week’s governing board meeting.
The MOU will be in effect through the end of the 2024-25 school year, and the provision could be included in the next collective bargaining agreement, which is currently being negotiated.
“Information and scores regarding assessment results will not be linked to or reported as those of a specific teacher for any purpose, results may be used only as an aggregate of subject, site, and/or district,” reads a section of the MOU.
According to Collyn Nielsen, assistant superintendent of human resources, the MOU clarifies that benchmark testing is to be used to further conversations surrounding student achievement, rather than using results to evaluate teachers.
Students are given tests each year to assess their mastery of academic standards, with those then used to determine what areas need to be looked at more closely, according to the MOU.
“The MOU is to ensure that district benchmark assessments are used by teachers to analyze student performance in order to inform teaching practices and are not to be used by administrators to evaluate teacher performance,” reads a prepared statement from Megan Botton, lead negotiator for the Hart District Teachers Association and an English teacher at Saugus High.
There was no discussion on the item by the governing board and it was approved via the consent calendar.
