Reply #23: I'm talking "as a *component*"; not as a single determiinative index.

[Smarmie Doofus]

For all of the reasons you mention. But I vastly prefer organized parental feedback as an element in teacher eval to the "observations" and impressions ( which are usually what the "observations" are in fact) of a principal or assistant principal.

Unevenness in parental ratings should be mitigated by sheer volume of response. That is... anomalous responses OUGHT to be outweighed by perceptive feedback... assuming everyone ( or at least almost everyone) is sampled.

Parents have an E-NORMOUS stake in the quality of the actual product. ( Unlike the school admins who have none.In my school NONE of the admins live in the district... or in any district remotely LIKE it, much less have kids in the schools.) If a teacher is consistently getting panned by the parents, then teacher's pedagogy might be at fault, or... and this is just as likely... teacher has failed to communicate what he/she is doing and why.

Either way it's useful info.