A school leader explains why meaningful feedback, shared language, and ongoing data matter more than ratings—and how modern tools can make it possible.
GUEST COLUMN | by Heather Landrum
When I first became an administrator and started doing teacher evaluations, my work was informed by two things: my own experiences with observations as an educator myself and the training I had received around the model we used.
Not exactly a recipe for innovation.
But I was fortunate to have served as a design coach, and that experience exposed me to research on meaningful student engagement. I recognized that a process based on one observation couldn’t capture teachers’ motivation or growth any more than one grade could indicate why a student felt intrinsically drawn to work their heart out on a particular project all weekend long.
‘…a process based on one observation couldn’t capture teachers’ motivation or growth any more than one grade could indicate why a student felt intrinsically drawn to work their heart out on a particular project all weekend long.’
Completing a rubric can’t give us the information we need for a richly rewarding evaluation system that captures how well a teacher is doing, how their students are performing, and what they might do differently to continue to build their professional and personal strengths.
As an administrator, my challenge is using this compliance requirement as a starting point for making meaning in partnership with teachers. We fall short when we generate a rating based on one big observation, because there is so much that could be encompassed. And from a practical standpoint, we need tools that help us collect and utilize multiple sets of data over time.
Where traditional systems fall short
In our industry, every group of students is different, so every year is different. We must continually reflect on how best to improve students’ outcomes even while individual inputs are shifting. A once-a-year teacher observation is not designed to reflect these nuances.
I would love to see a growth-oriented evaluation system that is truly meaningful, one that takes all the variables into account, one that offers a clear, move-by-move outline so teachers can easily see progress toward their professional goals. But we need to be realistic about the time constraints for both teachers and for the administrators, evaluators, and coaches who support them.
Let’s say I do a walk-through at 9 a.m. By the time the teacher has a break, the notification for that walkthrough may be 40 messages deep in their inbox and they need to remember hours back for context. If I need to meet with them, synchronizing our schedules is no easy task. And on top of that, we need to gather all the documentation and resources ahead of the meeting so we can hit the ground running when we finally connect. Having a single system to track notes, feedback, artifacts, plans, and conversations is invaluable.
Innovations that save time and build confidence
Given all the demands on their time, it’s no surprise that teachers might gloss over check-the-box compliance measures that don’t offer a valuable return on their time investment. However, teachers are quick to recognize when an innovation helps their students improve, and they love to have partners in making meaning.
Principals in our district are constantly working to achieve this symbiotic partnership. For example, at Dove Elementary, goal-setting is a theme this year. Rather than meeting one-on-one to go over their goals, we invited our teacher to get together in a collaborative setting. We are also talking with our teachers and students about utilizing AI to work smarter, not harder.
My goal is to practice what I preach, because the more time I spend in classrooms with teachers instead of typing on my computer, the better. Using AI-supported teacher evaluation and instructional feedback tools during the teacher evaluation process has helped me find the right words and build my own confidence. Sometimes principals don’t get a lot of pats on the back, so anytime we receive positive alignment between what we’ve observed and reported on the rubric — including from an AI-powered tool — that’s a win.
Cementing trust
Over the past three years, we have implemented a new coaching plan that helps teachers explain what they are working on, why they are working on it, and their growth so far. In the past, we lacked a common framework for these conversations, but the model we use incorporates a phase-by-phase “waterfall” framework that helps teachers feel validated. Even if they’re working on a goal in the first phase, they can see self-paced growth.
As part of the implementation, a panel of teachers shared what they were working on and how it had impacted their students. Suddenly I was being asked by teachers, “When can I be ‘waterfalled’?” That marked a huge shift for us in recognizing that we are all growing and learning together. Our relationships reflect a level of trust. We can be vulnerable to receiving bilateral feedback. Evaluation ratings are not a “gotcha.”
As a principal, I can see more clearly where the patterns in student data drive our collective professional development needs. I can also have targeted, productive conversations about growth with individuals, and they know these discussions align with my belief that we are all learning.
And indeed, when I look back at myself as a first-year teacher (or as a rookie principal nine years ago) I can see clearly that I am a different person now because I embraced opportunities for growth. We all have areas where we can continue to refine and improve.
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Principal Heather Landrum leads Dove Elementary within the Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District in Texas. Before becoming an administrator, she taught in middle and elementary school classrooms. Her perspectives on nurturing a culture of engagement were shaped by her experiences as a fellow at the Schlechty Center, and she supports edtech innovations such as the use of AI for teacher evaluations.
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