We examine whether one of the most popular observation systems in teacher evaluation—the Framework for Teaching (FFT)—captures the range of instructional skills teachers need to be effective. We focus on the case of special educators, who are likely to use instructional approaches that, although supported by research, are de-emphasized in common observation systems. Drawing on 206 lessons from 51 teachers, we compare FFT scores to an observation system from special education. We find that FFT’s psychometric properties are consistent with previous studies, but the system is limited in assessing the quality of instructional practices used in special education. We discuss implications of these findings for two practical uses of observations—supporting teacher development and informing human capital decisions.

我们研究了教师评估中最流行的观察系统之一——教学框架 (FFT)——是否捕捉到教师需要有效的教学技能范围。我们关注特殊教育工作者的案例，他们可能会使用教学方法，尽管有研究支持，但在常见的观察系统中并不强调。借鉴 51 位教师的 206 节课，我们将 FFT 分数与特殊教育的观察系统进行比较。我们发现 FFT 的心理测量特性与之前的研究一致，但该系统在评估特殊教育中使用的教学实践的质量方面受到限制。我们讨论了这些发现对观察的两种实际用途的影响——支持教师发展和为人力资本决策提供信息。