Education advocates successfully resist push to eliminate teacher assessments

A bill that sparked controversy by seeking to do away with teaching performance assessments in California has undergone significant modifications in response to pressure from education advocacy groups.

Senate Bill 1263, originally championed by the California Teachers Association (CTA), aimed to eliminate the mandate for teacher candidates to submit video clips of their classroom instruction, lesson plans, student work, and written reflections as part of their certification process.

The bill saw revisions in mid-June, now proposing to keep the teaching performance assessments but calling for the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing to establish a task force comprising teachers, education faculty, and assessment experts to assess and suggest improvements to the assessments.

If the new version of the bill is approved, the commission must endorse the task force’s recommendations by July 1, 2025, and implement them within three years. Additionally, the commission is obligated to provide annual progress reports to the Legislature.

CTA Vice President Leslie Littman expressed disappointment over the retention of the assessment but recognized the establishment of the task force as a positive move to address the concerns raised by the union members.

“I think that the way it was going to go, possibly the bill might not have made it out of the Legislature,” Littman remarked.

Teachers Concerned About Assessment

Senate Bill 1263, introduced by Sen. Josh Newman, D-Fullerton, was motivated by the desire to remove barriers to entering the teaching profession. According to Newman, the assessment duplicated other credentialing requirements and added unnecessary burden to aspiring teachers.

Feedback from K-12 teachers on EdSource indicated strong discontent with the assessment, citing its time-consuming nature, anxiety-inducing aspects, and failure to adequately prepare teachers for the classroom environment.

In California, aspiring teachers must pass one of the three assessments – the California Teaching Performance Assessment (CalTPA), the Educative Teaching Performance Assessment (edTPA), or the Fresno Assessment of Student Teachers (FAST) – to obtain a preliminary teaching credential, with each test costing $300 or $150 per cycle.

Advocates Emphasize Assessment Importance

Advocates supporting the teacher performance assessments argue that removing them would eliminate a valuable tool for assessing teacher preparation programs and new educators.

Marshall Tuck, CEO of EdVoice, highlighted the significance of these assessments in ensuring that teachers are adequately prepared to deliver effective education, noting the critical role they play when parents entrust their children to teachers.

Controversy surrounding the bill escalated when authors eliminated the requirement for candidates to pass a test evaluating their reading teaching abilities, which was set to replace the existing Reading Instruction Competence Assessment (RICA).

Opposition Grows Against Legislation

Stakeholders, including the Commission on Teacher Credentialing and advocacy groups like EdTrust-West and PTA organizations, voiced opposition to the bill, prompting discussions within the Assembly Education Committee for potential revisions.

Educational advocates actively engaged in hearings and lobbying efforts, ultimately leading to substantial changes to the legislation by mid-June.

Enhanced Oversight in Revised Bill

Under the revised bill, the Commission on Teacher Credentialing will be required to report on programs with low assessment passing rates and provide support to enhance candidate preparation. The bill also mandates maintaining a secondary passing standard and considering additional evidence of candidate performance.

EdTrust-West (ETW) expressed optimism about the changes, hoping that the revised legislation would improve the administration and outcomes of TPAs, benefiting candidates, especially those from diverse backgrounds.

The estimated cost of the bill is $598,000 annually, with an initial cost of $145,000, under review by the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

Compromise Seen as Positive Outcome

Advocates view the revised bill as a successful outcome of collaborative policy-making efforts, highlighting the importance of stakeholder input in shaping legislative decisions.

Sen. Newman described the compromise as a positive step, emphasizing the need to align teacher assessments with the skills and requirements essential for effective teaching.

Support from key education organizations, including the Commission on Teacher Credentialing and EdTrust-West, signals a shift in their stance towards endorsing the legislation.

The evolving nature of the assessment debate suggests that while the current compromise may satisfy some parties, future legislative discussions on this issue may still arise.