Professional Development: Hawaii

Retaining Effective Teachers Policy

Goal

The state should require professional development to be based on needs identified through teacher evaluations.

Meets goal in part
Suggested Citation:
National Council on Teacher Quality. (2011). Professional Development: Hawaii results. State Teacher Policy Database. [Data set].
Retrieved from: https://www.nctq.org/yearbook/state/HI-Professional-Development-9

Analysis of Hawaii's policies

Hawaii articulates that the evaluator must discuss and review the final evaluation with the teacher. The state also says that the evaluator "may require or provide teachers in need of assistance, support including but not limited to peer mentoring; recommended or proscribed coursework; or professional development activities." However, the state does not specify that professional development activities be aligned with findings from a teacher's evaluation.

Citation

Recommendations for Hawaii

Ensure that professional development is aligned with findings from teachers' evaluations.
Professional development that is not informed by evaluation results may be of little value to teachers' professional growth and aim of increasing their effectiveness in the classroom. Hawaii should ensure that schools utilize teacher evaluation results in determining professional development needs and activities.

State response to our analysis

Hawaii had no comment on this goal.

Research rationale

For evidence of the benefits of feedback from evaluation systems, and the potential for professional development surrounding that feedback, see T. Kane et al, "Evaluating Teacher Effectiveness." Education Next. Vol 11, No. 3 (2011); E. Taylor and J. Tyler, "The Effect of Evaluation on Performance: Evidence from Longitudinal Student Achievement Data of Mid-Career Teachers." National Bureau of Economic Research (2011).

Much professional development, particularly those that are not aligned to specific feedback from teacher evaluations, has been found to be ineffective.  For evidence see M. Garet, "Middle School Mathematics Professional Development Impact Study: Findings After the Second Year of Implementation." Institute of Education Sciences (2011).

For additional evidence regarding best practices for professional development, see "The Deliver, Financing, and Assessment of Professional Development in Education: Pre-Service Preparation and In-Service Training." The Finance Project (2003).