A new study by researchers at the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education and the Stanford Graduate School of Education found that a controversial teacher evaluation system introduced in the District of Columbia Public Schools has been a success.
The teacher evaluation system, called IMPACT, is a performance assessment system linking high-powered incentives and teacher evaluations. According to the study, the system has improved the performance of hundreds of teachers in the district and also encouraged some low-performing teachers to voluntarily leave the district’s classrooms.
High-performing teachers earn an annual bonus of as much as $25,000 as well as an opportunity for similarly large and permanent increases in their base salaries. Teachers who are unable to achieve an “effective” rating after two years are dismissed.