Blueprint for Change in Alabama: State Teacher Policy Yearbook, 2010
Author: National Council on Teacher Quality
Date: 2010-00-00
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: Teaching (Occupation),Elementary Secondary Education,Educational Policy,Teacher Evaluation,Teacher Effectiveness,Teacher Improvement,Tenure,Teacher Dismissal,State Government,State Regulation,Academic Achievement,Educational Improvement,Teacher Certification,Alternative Teacher Certification,Needs Assessment,Yearbooks,Retirement Benefits,Educational Change,Teacher Education,Special Education Teachers,Elementary School Teachers,Middle School Teachers,Educational Objectives,Comparative Analysis,Public Schools

The 2009 &quot;State Teacher Policy Yearbook&quot; provided a comprehensive review of states' policies that impact the teaching profession. As a companion to last year's comprehensive state-by-state analysis, the 2010 edition provides each state with an individualized &quot;Blueprint for Change,&quot; building off last year's &quot;Yearbook&quot; goals and recommendations. State teacher policy addresses a great many areas, including teacher preparation, certification, evaluation and compensation. With so many moving parts, it may be difficult for states to find a starting point on the road to reform. To this end, this paper provides a state-specific roadmap, organized in three main sections. Section 1 identifies policy concerns that need critical attention, the areas of highest priority for state policymakers. Section 2 outlines &quot;low-hanging fruit,&quot; policy changes that can be implemented in relatively short order. Section 3 offers a short discussion of some longer-term systemic issues that states need to make sure stay on the radar. In the 2009 &quot;State Teacher Policy Yearbook&quot;, Alabama had the following grades: (1) Delivering Well Prepared Teachers (C-); (2) Expanding the Teaching Pool (C+);   (3) Identifying Effective Teachers (D); (4) Retaining Effective Teachers (C-); and (5) Exiting Ineffective Teachers (C-). Alabama has an overall grade of C- for 2009. In the last year, many states made significant changes to their teacher policies, spurred in many cases by the Race to the Top competition. Based on a review of state legislation, rules and regulations, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has identified a recent policy change in Alabama. The state has replaced its PEPE (Professional Education Personnel Evaluation Program) teacher evaluation system with the new EDUCATEAlabama system. Under EDUCATEAlabama, every teacher is observed at least twice, and both observations are unannounced. One observation must occur in the fall (October-mid December), and the other must occur in the spring (late January-March). A post-observation conference follows each formal classroom observation. States were asked to review NCTQ's identified updates and also to comment on policy changes that have occurred in the last year, other pending changes or teacher quality in the state more generally. Alabama confirmed that the identified update represents a complete and accurate list of recent policy changes. The state added that EDUCATEAlabama is formative rather than summative. It represents a collaborative effort to support quality practice, and the process is entirely electronic and transparent. Individual sections contain footnotes. (Contains 5 figures.) [For the related reports, see &quot;Blueprint for Change: National Summary. State Teacher Policy Yearbook, 2010&quot; (ED515614) and &quot;State Teacher Policy Yearbook, 2009. Alabama&quot; (ED511892).]