This report finds teachers with the lowest scores on the REACH Students teacher evaluation system are overrepresented in schools serving the most disadvantaged students, while teachers with the highest observation scores are underrepresented in these schools. The study uses data from the 2013-14 school year, which represents the first comprehensive snapshot of evaluation scores for Chicago Public School teachers under the new REACH Students teacher evaluation system. This includes value-added scores based on students' gains on tests, as well as scores from observations of teaching practices...

As part of UChicago CCSR's ongoing study of Chicago Public Schools' new teacher evaluation system, this report looks at teacher and principal perceptions in the second year of implementation. It finds teachers and principals remain positive about the new evaluation system, though less so than in Year 1. This brief, a continuation of the work that began in Teacher Evaluation in Practice: Implementing Chicago's REACH Students, draws on survey data from more than 19,000 teachers and nearly 800 principals and assistant principals to measure their views of REACH (Recognizing Educators Advancing...

This report finds that about half of sixth- through twelfth-graders in Chicago Public Schools report using technology for school less than once a week. Between 20 and 30 percent of students report never or rarely using technology for school-at most once or twice a semester. At the same time, the vast majority (92 percent) report having access to the internet at home, signaling a clear divide between how students interact with technology in and out of school. "Given that low-income students are the least likely to be exposed to technology at home, we were surprised and encouraged by the large...