Great to see:

Responding to criticism from Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and others, state education officials on Friday revised their plans for evaluating teachers so that up to 40 percent of their annual reviews could be based on students' scores on state standardized tests.

A measure passed last year had outlined 20 percent as the standard.

State officials have been developing the details of a new evaluation system for teachers and principals since legislation was passed last year as part of New York's successful effort to win a $700 million federal grant.

The regulations are expected to be enacted on Monday by the Board of Regents, the state's education policy-making body.

"These are not perfect tools by any means," the chancellor of the Board of Regents, Merryl H. Tisch, said. "But that being said, I believe it is important to have an objective system to evaluate teachers on a professional basis. This is the beginning of such a process."

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May 13, 2011