The Effects of Teacher Evaluation Policy on Student Achievement and Teacher Turnover: Leveraging Teacher Accountability and Teacher Development.

This article examines the effects of two Tennessee teacher evaluation policies—assigning teachers to effectiveness levels (Levels of Effectiveness, LOE) as an accountability measure and assigning more formal classroom observations as a developmental measure—on student achievement and teacher turnover. Using regression discontinuity designs on three years of administrative data, the study finds that assigning teachers more observations does not improve student achievement or reduce teacher turnover and may even lower achievement for the least effective teachers (LOE1). Assigning teachers to lower effectiveness levels generally does not affect outcomes, except that it may modestly improve achievement for the least effective early-career (Apprentice) teachers without increasing turnover. The findings suggest that in Tennessee’s low-stakes evaluation context, observation policies as implemented do not enhance teaching effectiveness, and issuing effectiveness scores acts as a limited form of accountability primarily for early-career teachers, with implications for policymakers considering evaluation reforms in similar settings.