OLYMPIA, Wash. — The Washington state Legislature has approved a bill that uses improvement in student test scores as a factor in hiring, firing and tenure decisions for teachers.
The measure passed on an 82-16 bipartisan vote late Wednesday night. The Senate already had passed the bill, so it now goes to the governor for her signature.
Under the bill, starting in the 2015-16 school year, evaluation results would be used as a factor in human resource decisions. Senate Bill 5895 also sets some new guidelines for principals, including a requirement to use teacher feedback in principal evaluations.
The measure builds on the four-level rating system established two years ago by the Legislature. But this time, the state will offer evaluation templates for school district to choose from instead of having local teachers and administrators design the system.
