Hawaii State Teachers Association President Wil Okabe announced late last night in a video message that the union has selected members for two committees meant to help the state develop a new teacher evaluation system, which is slated for implementation next school year.

The HSTA agreed to the recently ratified teachers contract on the condition that the union be allowed to convene a group to study the system and make final recommendations to the state Board of Education. The Educator Effectiveness System was a major sticking point in collective bargaining negotiations.

Okabe warned that the committees will be under intense pressure to come up with recommendations quickly; state officials have set teacher orientation for the new system to Aug. 5.  

The first committee is a joint committee with four members. It’ll be in charge of studying the system and relaying observations and recommendations to the Department of Education. 

The second one is an advisory committee that will collect information from individual schools and develop a cadre of teacher representatives who will provide input on the system. Those teachers will help guide the joint committee members. 

“The voice of the teacher will be heard,” Okabe said. “The Advisory Committee will be reflecting your experiences and your desires for a system that should focus on improving the practice of teaching that leads to improved student learning and producing real results for students.”

Okabe announces committees in a video message.

— Alia Wong