Case Studies: Overview | Partial Inclusion | Group Awards | Full Inclusion

The following case studies provide examples of how current district initiatives are including teachers and specialists in non-tested subjects in pay for performance systems. These approaches to inclusion are classified in the following ways - (1) partial inclusion, (2) group awards, and (3) full inclusion. Each case study page includes an overview of the approach, a see it in action section with concrete examples, and resources with links to tools and additional information. For a brief overview of each page, see the descriptions below.

Partial Inclusion
Some districts include teachers outside of tested subjects in pay for performance systems but to a lesser degree. For example, when partially included, teachers are awarded according to measures such as attendance, retention, and professional development participation or school and department scores. In grades K-2, some districts have attempted to create or use standard assessments to gauge student progress.

Group Awards
Many districts and states include educators outside of tested subjects in performance pay plans through group awards. Sometimes these awards are offered as incentives for grade level groups or entire school communities. In the case of the latter, it is possible that all teachers in the school receive the same bonus regardless of their contribution, while in other cases, awards are allocated based on faculty input.

Full Inclusion
The only program to date that fully includes teachers outside of tested subjects in all aspects of a performance pay initiative - including individual performance awards based on student growth - is Denver's Professional Compensation System (ProComp). All staff members are eligible to earn additional compensation under all aspects of the model. This page provides differentiated performance standards, rubrics and evaluation forms that can be used to identify and compensate highly effective specialists and teachers outside of tested subjects.

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