Recent Validity Evidence for Value-Added Measures of Teacher Performance

Value-added measures are becoming a common component in teacher evaluations. By the 2016–2017 school year, most if not all states will have implemented a teacher evaluation system that includes the use of value-added measures.1 This shift to include student achievement data in teacher evaluations is not without its critics. However, many of the criticisms prevalent today were levied when value-added measures were first gaining popularity in the mid-2000s. Since that time a number of rigorous studies have addressed these criticisms and provided validity evidence to support the use of value-added measures as a component of teacher evaluation.