New Jersey task force recommends rolling back SGO paperwork, creating working group to overhaul teacher evaluations

Chairwoman Lampitt convened the Assembly Education Committee for testimony on recommendations from the New Jersey Educator Review Task Force, which members said aim to ease paperwork and refocus evaluations on professional growth and student learning. The task force presented a 150‑page report with 15 recommendations that the committee described as largely consensus‑based.

The task force’s chair, David Adderall, superintendent of West Windsor‑Plainsboro Regional School District, told the committee the current evaluation regime traces to TeachNJ statutes and Achieve NJ regulations and that many burdens result from regulatory translation and guidance. "SGOs have become a compliance‑based activity," Adderall said, arguing the requirement consumes teacher, administrator and student time and, in some districts, encourages use of “meaningless assessments” to show growth rather than improve instruction. He said the task force recommends targeted regulatory changes, greater use of commissioner‑approved activities and a workgroup to develop exemplars and practical…