Teacher Evaluation Improves School Performance, Especially in Higher-aAchieving and Lower-Poverty Schools

Chicago Public Schools initiated the Excellence in Teaching Project, a teacher evaluation program designed to increase student learning by improving classroom instruction through structured principal–teacher dialogue. The pilot began in forty-four elementary schools in 2008–09 (cohort 1) and scaled up to include an additional forty-eight elementary schools in 2009–10 (cohort 2).

Leveraging the experimental design of the rollout, cohort 1 schools performed better in reading and math than cohort 2 schools at the end of the first year, though the math effects are not statistically significant.

This paper reports thatthe initial improvement for cohort 1 schools remains even after cohort 2 schools adopted the program. Moreover, the pilot differentially impacted schools with different characteristics. Higher-achieving and lower-poverty schools were the primary beneficiaries, suggesting the intervention was most successful in more advantaged schools.