How should I allocate my evaluation time across all my teachers?
Unequally, and on purpose. The Pareto principle applies: roughly 20% of your teachers will consume 80% of your evaluation effort. New teachers need detailed feedback and clear developmental guidance. Teachers on improvement plans need extensive documentation and support. These are your high-stakes evaluations, and they deserve the majority of your time.
For the other 80% — your solid, competent, experienced teachers — the evidence you've gathered from regular classroom visits gives you everything you need to write accurate evaluations efficiently. You know their practice well because you've seen it dozens of times. The evaluation should reflect that accumulated knowledge, not be based on one or two staged observations.
Planning for this asymmetry from the start prevents the late-spring panic of trying to write 30 equally detailed evaluations in two weeks.
More on Teacher Evaluation
How do I write teacher evaluations that are both fair and efficient?
The biggest efficiency gain comes from a counterintuitive realization: you don't need to write every teacher's evaluation from scratch.
What is the CEIJ model for writing evaluation narratives?
CEIJ stands for Claim, Evidence, Interpretation, Judgment — and it's a structure for writing evaluation narratives that are clear, defensible, and genuinely useful.
How do I handle a negative teacher evaluation?
With extensive evidence, clear communication, and no surprises.
Can teacher evaluations actually improve retention?
Yes — if you reframe them as relationship-building opportunities rather than compliance exercises.
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Answered by Justin Baeder, PhD, Director of The Principal Center and author of three books on instructional leadership.