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Seattle Times: Wash. Legislature passes teacher evaluation bill

From our news partners at The Seattle Times: The Washington state Legislature approved a bill that uses improvement in student test scores as a factor in hiring, firing and tenure decisions for teachers. By Rachel La Corte.

The Washington state Legislature approved a bill that uses improvement in student test scores as a factor in hiring, firing and tenure decisions for teachers.

The measure passed the House on an 82-16 bipartisan vote late Wednesday. The Senate already had passed the bill, so it now goes to the governor for her signature.

Rep. Bruce Dammeier, R-Puyallup, said that the bill will "put us a strong step forward toward a quality teacher in every classroom and a quality principle in every school building."

Under the bill, starting in the 2015-16 school year, evaluation results would be used as a factor in human resource decisions. Senate Bill 5895 also sets some new guidelines for principals, including a requirement to use teacher feedback in principal evaluations.

Read the full story here.

About the Author

Rachel La Corte at The Seattle Times