The executive summary of the report, and perspectives from district and state officials and teacher union representatives who advised on the research and writing of The Widget Effect.
The Widget Effect: Our National Failure to Acknowledge and Act on Differences in Teacher Effectiveness
June 08, 2009
If teachers are so important, why do we treat them like widgets?
Effective teachers are the key to student success, yet our school systems treat all teachers as interchangeable parts, not professionals. Excellence goes unrecognized and poor performance goes unaddressed. This indifference to performance disrespects teachers and gambles with students’ lives.
The Widget Effect is a wide-ranging report that studies teacher evaluation and dismissal in four states and 12 diverse districts and reflects survey responses from approximately 15,000 teachers and 1,300 administrators.
All teachers are rated good or great. Less than 1 percent of teachers receive unsatisfactory ratings, making it impossible to identify truly exceptional teachers.
Professional development is inadequate. Almost 3 in 4 teachers did not receive any specific feedback on improving their performance in their last evaluation.
Novice teachers are neglected. Low expectations for beginning teachers translate into benign neglect in the classroom and a toothless tenure process.
- Poor performance goes unaddressed. Half of the districts studied have not dismissed a single tenured teacher for poor performance in the past five years.
The report gives policymakers and school leaders recommendations for acquiring better information about instructional quality to give great teachers the recognition they deserve.
Executive Summary and Advisory Panel Responses June 08, 2009 > ˅
Studies of Participating School Districts June 08, 2009 > ˅
TNTP conducted in-depth analyses of the human capital policies and practices of each school district that participated in The Widget Effect research.
- El Dorado Public Schools (pdf 540 KB)
- Denver Public Schools (pdf 458 KB)
- Washington STEM Teachers (pdf 1 MB)
- Cincinnati Public Schools (pdf 1 MB)
- Newark Public Schools (pdf 735 KB)
- Chicago Public Schools (pdf 664 KB)
- Los Angeles Unified School District (pdf 776 KB)
- Rockford Public Schools (pdf 343 KB)
- Illinois School District U-46 (pdf 268 KB)
- Jonesboro Public Schools (pdf 475 KB)
- Pueblo City Schools (pdf 686 KB)
- Indianapolis Public Schools (pdf 384 KB)
- Minneapolis Public Schools (pdf 383 KB)
- Springdale Public Schools (pdf 522 KB)
- Akron Public Schools (pdf 730 KB)
Race to the Top Resources November 08, 2009 > ˅
Building on the findings in The Widget Effect, these resources offer guidance on the federal government’s Race to the Top educational funding initiative and takes a critical look at the efficacy of the program.
Toledo Public Schools Teacher Dismissal Data February 01, 2010 > ˅
In June 2009, TNTP released data on teacher dismissals in Toledo Public Schools (TPS) in The Widget Effect. The data, collected in collaboration with the Toledo Federation of Teachers, reported five dismissals of non-tenured teachers for performance concerns and one dismissal of a tenured teacher for performance concerns in TPS during school years 2003-04 through 2007-08.
Following the report’s release, the Toledo Federation of Teachers (TFT) contacted TNTP with concerns about the accuracy of the data. TNTP agreed to work with TFT on a careful examination of the data to reach a conclusion about final figures.
This memorandum provides an overview of the reconciliation process and a summary of our findings.
How Federal Education Policy Can Reverse the Widget Effect February 24, 2010 > ˅
Title II funding, designed to improve teacher quality, is inadvertently treating teachers like interchangeable parts. This policy brief proposes a new vision to focus the funds on improving teacher effectiveness.