SR0774 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0774 LRB102 24166 LAW 33392 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, All students thrive when they are taught by educators who are well prepared to support their academic, social, and emotional needs; and

WHEREAS, Research shows that teacher quality is the number one school-based factor impacting student achievement and that all teachers benefit from regular performance feedback they can use to improve their teaching methods; and

WHEREAS, The Performance Evaluation Reform Act (PERA), which put Illinois' teacher evaluation system in place, is now over ten years old; and

WHEREAS, Both practice and available Illinois-based research indicate that teacher evaluations have significantly improved since the passage of PERA, facilitated more productive conversations between educators and evaluators, and strengthened feedback loops relating to instructional practice and student learning; and

WHEREAS, The value of joint committees to problem-solve and negotiate elements relating to teacher evaluation is clear; and

WHEREAS, The value of thoughtful evaluations also comes with concerns that these more substantive evaluations may be time-consuming; and

WHEREAS, The lack of state-level research and disaggregated data make it challenging to fully understand the impact and opportunities of evaluation elements, such as measuring professional practice or student growth; and

WHEREAS, Any change to PERA and our State's system of teacher evaluation are best addressed comprehensively, rather than through piecemeal legislation or changes; and

WHEREAS, PERA called for the creation of the Performance Evaluation Advisory Council (PEAC) to oversee implementation and training relating to PERA, which uniquely represents a variety of important stakeholders involved in PK-12 education, and is convened and staffed by the State Board of Education; and

WHEREAS, A comprehensive review of the implementation of PERA and the opportunity to consider whether and how evaluation policies might be improved would be timely and beneficial; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the Performance Evaluation Advisory Council (PEAC) to initiate and complete a research study into the implementation of teacher evaluation in Illinois, gather feedback from stakeholders state-wide, review best practice from other states, and use that research to inform a set of policy recommendations that would address any identified challenges while preserving the core benefits of PERA's robust evaluation system with an interim report to the legislature by December 31, 2022 that includes a full timeline for report creation, including a plan for gathering stakeholder feedback, with a final report to be given to the legislature by December 31, 2023; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge the PEAC convene to initiate discussion on this charge by April 30, 2022; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be delivered to the PEAC.