Uses of Value-added Modeling

As of 2010, a few school districts across the United States had adopted the system, including the Chicago Public Schools, New York City Department of Education and District of Columbia Public Schools. The rankings have been used to decide on issues of teacher retention and the awarding of bonuses, as well as a tool for identifying those teachers who would benefit most from teacher training. Under Race to the Top and other programs advocating for better methods of evaluating teacher performance, districts have looked to value-added modeling as a supplement to observing teachers in classrooms.

Louisiana legislator Frank Hoffmann introduced a bill to authorize the use of value-added modeling techniques in the state's public schools schools as a means to reward strong teachers and to identify successful pedagogical methods, as well as providing a means to provide additional professional development for those teachers identified as weaker than others. Despite opposition from the Louisiana Federation of Teachers, the bill passed the Louisiana State Senate on May 26, 2010, and was immediately signed into law by Governor Bobby Jindal.

Experts do not recommend using value-added modeling as the sole determinant of any decision. Instead, they recommend using it as a significant factor in a multifaceted evaluation program.