109
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES             H.R. NO.              
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                     HOUSE  RESOLUTION

REQUESTING THE DEVELOPMENT OF A METHOD BY WHICH STUDENTS MAY
   PROVIDE FEEDBACK TO TEACHERS REGARDING THEIR EDUCATION IN
   THE CLASSROOM.



 1       WHEREAS, education is critical to individual development
 2   and social and economic progress, and teachers are essential to
 3   the education of children; and 
 4   
 5       WHEREAS, teachers constantly seek ways to improve, and they
 6   value comments about their teaching performance from peers,
 7   administrators, and parents, as well as from students; and 
 8   
 9       WHEREAS, although students are a valuable source of
10   information for teachers, there is no formal mechanism by which
11   students may provide feedback to their teachers; and, 
12   
13       WHEREAS, the Hawaii State Student Council (Student Council)
14   and the Hawaii State Student Conference recently proposed an
15   evaluation of teachers by students that is separate from any
16   evaluations performed by the Department of Education (DOE), for
17   retention purposes; and
18   
19       WHEREAS, if properly developed, feedback to teachers by
20   students provides information about how individual teachers can
21   impact student learning and improve teaching methods; and 
22   
23       WHEREAS, providing feedback may also engender a greater
24   sense of responsibility and empowerment among students for it
25   would give students input regarding the way they are taught;
26   now, therefore,
27   
28       BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the
29   Twentieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session
30   of 2000, that the DOE, in conjunction with the representatives
31   of the Student Council and the Hawaii State Teachers
32   Association (HSTA), is requested to develop a method by which
33   students may provide input and feedback to teachers regarding
34   their learning experience in the classroom; and
35   
36       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that feedback provided to teachers
37   by their students is privileged communication, and the
38   confidentiality of the information contained will be carefully

 
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 1   enforced and will not be forwarded to any administrator,
 2   department chair, or other unauthorized person, and will also
 3   not be kept on file except by the participating teacher; and
 4   
 5       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the feedback process be
 6   voluntarily undertaken by both teachers and students; and 
 7   
 8       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the evaluation of teachers is
 9   solely the responsibility of the DOE and its designees, and the
10   feedback process will not be construed to bear any relation to
11   teacher evaluation, and that parties agree that evaluation of
12   teachers is the proper subject and province of collective
13   bargaining; and
14   
15       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that student feedback for these
16   purposes be limited to grades 9 through 12; and 
17   
18       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the feedback methodology
19   include:
20   
21       (1)  Procedures for conducting the feedback process;
22   
23       (2)  Collecting and analyzing the information; and
24   
25       (3)  Reporting the results;
26   
27   and 
28   
29       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the DOE submit a report to the
30   Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of
31   the Regular Session of 2001 on:
32   
33       (1)  The feedback methodology; and 
34   
35       (2)  The specifics of how the feedback process will be
36            implemented;
37   
38   and
39   
40       BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
41   Resolution be transmitted to the Chair of the Board of
42   Education, the Superintendent of Education, and the President
43   of the HSTA.
44   
45 
46 
47 
48                         OFFERED BY:  ____________________________