Florida

Florida is currently evaluating its teachers using value-added modeling (VAM).  Each school district has created its own model, most based on the Danielson or Marzano models or some combination of the two.  (More information about the models used by each district is available here.)  Starting in 2014, teachers’ pay will be tied to student performance.

Each district is responsible for determining how it will evaluate its music teachers.  Florida’s MEA leaders believe that most music teachers are currently being evaluation on the reading and math scores of the students that they teach (meaning almost all students at the elementary level and the ones enrolled in their music classes at the secondary level).  They have anecdotal evidence that the new teacher evaluations have caused successful teachers to leave schools with low test scores.