Special Education Teacher Evaluation: Perspectives From Researchers and Practitioners

Historically, evaluation systems have not adequately differentiated teachers. This inadequacy has led to wide support from multiple stakeholders to reform teacher evaluation. However, there are complex implementation challenges, particularly for evaluating special education teachers. In April 2015, Lynn Holdheide of the Center on Great Teachers and Leaders served on a panel discussion for the Council for Exceptional Children with other experts representing the practitioner perspective, the state perspective, and the research perspective. Each panelist reflected on his or her own work by listing three things he or she has learned about special education teacher evaluation, and provided one prediction of how teacher evaluation will look five years from now.