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The state’s first formal year with its new educator evaluation system is winding down, but results from a recent survey show that many Hawaii teachers are still unclear about key parts of the evaluations and how they affect their jobs.Ìý

Many of the teachers also expressed skepticism over the fairness of the evaluations.

The survey, conducted by the Hawaii Department of Education in conjunction with the Hawaii State Teachers Association, was sent to all 13,500 public school teachers, about a third of whom completed it.ÌýThe survey period ran Feb. 25 through March 11.

The joint online survey aimed to get feedback from teachers on their experiences with the evaluation system to help the DOE identify its strengths and weaknesses. The evaluations were implemented statewide for the first time this school year.

The results show that teachers want more time to prepare for the evaluations as well as more guidance and clarity on how they work.Ìý

DOE Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi said the department will be using the findings “as part of a collective process to help better understand strengths and identify areas for improvement.”

Some highlights from the findings:

• One in five respondents understand the evaluation system very well, while a similar portion doesn’t understand it at all.Ìý
• The classroom observations are the best understood component, while the “student growth model” is the least understood
• Just one in five respondents strongly agreed that the evaluation system has helped them improve their teaching
• Forty-three percent of respondents strongly agreed that “bias will factor into the classroom observations”
• Forty percent of respondents strongly disagreed that “administrators will be data driven and objective when assigning SLO (student learning objectives) ratings”
• More than half — 51 percent — or respondents strongly disagreed that the “working portfolio requirement accurately reflects their professional responsibilities”
• Nearly two-thirds — 64 percent — of respondents strongly disagreed that their “students will put thought and effort into their Tripod Student Survey answers”

Wil Okabe, HSTA president, said the survey reflected what the union has been hearing from teachers: that the evaluation system is “a work in progress” and that “teachers feel that more needs to be done so that the EES can help improve the practice of teaching.”

An executive summary on the survey results can be found .Ìý

Read past Civil Beat coverage on the evaluations:

Educators May Give Poor Marks to New Teacher Evaluation System

What’s Going On With Hawaii Ed Task Force On Teacher Evaluations?

Can Hawaii Kindergarteners Flunk Their Teachers?

Photo: Stock photo of an evaluation. (Courtesy of Fotalia.)

— Alia Wong