Think of the best teacher you have ever had. She convinced you you could do it. He visited your home when something went wrong. She gave you hard feedback on an essay. He spoke to you with great respect. She engaged and pushed your thinking, and made you "smarter."

How would you want him or her to be evaluated? Educators and policymakers across the country are considering legislation that could make standardized test scores one of the only -- if not THE only-- measures of teacher effectiveness. While I think it is clear that our teacher evaluation system currently does not reflect what we know about good teacher practice, I know that I am not alone in believing this should not be the only measure.

But, it begs the question: what would a better system look like? A national conversation is just getting started on this topic. There was a recent agreement between Superintendent Michelle Rhee of Washington DC with their teachers' union about a new evaluation system; in New York City, there are working groups and studies underway to increase the effectiveness of the system, especially considering that the use of test scores to evaluate teacher performance is linked to billions of Federal dollars through the Race to the Top competition.<!--more-->

If I could design the perfect teacher evaluation system ( is anyone asking principals and teachers to do this?)  I would include: relationship-building with adults and students, grades and test scores, ability to collaborate, reflectiveness and consistent effort to improve, curriculum and unit planning, among others. I would require teachers to self-evaluate yearly, and to provide a continually developing portfolio of their work.

In my opinion, the best teacher evaluation system would ensure that teachers learn how to be reflective enough in their practice that they hold themselves accountable for high standards and high student achievement, just as the best possible outcome for students is intrinsic motivation towards success.

What would you include in a teacher evaluation system? Why?