The District Evaluation Committee members have requested feedback, questions and concerns. Over the course of the year, the committee will respond to this feedback. The members want to emphasize that the evaluation system is a work-in-progress, and we do not have all the answers at this time. We will be “living in the gray” for a period of time as we try on this new system. Shifting from a one-shot model to a continuous growth model involves many changes. That is why it is so critical for everyone to pilot components of the system this year.
Time and resources for the new evaluation system: When will it get done?
For peer observations, staff may be able to use a varitey of options including release time, prep time, use of substitutes and have site administrators assist in classroom coverage. For other components of the system, teachers will be able to use common planning time, faculty meetings, informal as well as professional meeting times; clear, outcome-based proposals for collaboration will be considered. We know that this new system will take more time for administrators, and they have committed to making this work.
How do we arrange/schedule peer observations? How do we get approval? How do we get compensated?
This year, most of the scheduling will be accomplished through the site administrators. When you wish to do an observation, you will schedule this with your site administrator. Next year we anticipate identifying certain days at each school when substitutes will be provided for peer observations. Teachers may be compensated at an hourly rate this pilot year if they use their prep period for a peer observation.
I am concerned about parent feedback. What parts of it will be included in my evaluation?
Your reflection on the feedback and how your reflection informs your instruction and work with parents will be the focus of this component. Often there may be outlier responses on the survey, but you will be looking for common threads in the feedback which can be useful in future planning. It will be crucial that teachers at all levels pilot this component so that we can ascertain whether the questions provide good information and whether some of them need to be revised or new ones added.
How is parent feedback collected and used and stored? What is a reasonable amount of time to collect the feedback? How can we add additional questions that are relevant to a class?
For K-5 teachers this year, the parent surveys can be sent home and collected by the teacher. At the middle and high school levels, we will be working on using technology to collect the data, and at this time we are exploring possible collection systems. Once the committee has developed the collection system, a window of time will be determined across the district for the collection. Since this is a pilot year, we need to try out the current survey to standardize it and see whether the questions provide good information and whether some will need to be revised and/or new ones added. We encourage teachers to seek additional feedback from parents on their own and to give the committee feedback on which questions you use which provide valuable information to move your practice forward. We are hoping that specialists will work together to develop and pilot a set of questions; their feedback will be important to the committee.
Can we receive a variety of good goal-setting examples specific to our grade levels?
The committee is in the process of setting up a Google site to house all of the evaluation documents which we are currently piloting. In addition, we would like to have good examples of goals on the website. We are hoping that teachers will submit their goals to site administrators and committee members so that we can add a variety of them to the resources on the Google site; they can be added without names. We are hoping that specialists will work together to identify how to develop goals most appropriate to their work. We are very interested in collecting such goals to include in our Google site. As an example of how the committee is working to be responsive, the goal conference agreement sheet has been modified recently based on feedback from staffs.
How will I be evaluated if I don’t meet my goal?
The goal is a focus for teacher growth, which revolves around your reflection and how the results of your reflection inform your teaching practice and future planning. Your goal is one component in the new evaluation system which is a multifaceted process. The new evaluation process emphasizes moving forward as a professional. Very often “failure” can inform growth as much as success, and we want to encourage our students as well as ourselves to take risks and to learn from those experiences.
Where does all the data go? How is it being used in evaluation?
Student data such as STAR test results, common assessments and results of other formative and summative assessments are/will be stored in the district student data system, Data Director. As teachers become more comfortable with Data Director and more proficient users of the system, they will be able to pull out data for individual students over time to see progress and areas for student growth. The focus of the new evaluation process is teacher reflection on the data and how that reflection informs your teaching practice and future planning for instruction.
Is everyone being evaluated every other year? How does the five year plan work?
The committee has discovered that there has not been consistency across the district in implementation of the five year plan. At the present time, the committee will be working on a recommendation for a clear K-12 plan. At this point, the committee is considering the following: once a teacher has been evaluated, that teacher would want to continue pursuing her/his professional growth over the 5 year span and might keep a small portfolio which could include documentation to demonstrate continued growth during the following four years, to share what she/he has been doing to move her/his practice forward.
If I am being evaluated this year, how does the new process affect me?
We are hoping that teachers being evaluated this year will pilot as many of the components in the new process as possible. Teachers may identify components to pilot but decide that they do not want those included in their evaluations; the committee is really hoping that even if you choose not include a component, you will still give feedback on the piloting of that component to the committee.
How will the goals that I develop address all of the 6 Standards for the Teaching Profession (CSTP)?
As teachers develop goals, you will notice that the standards are not discreet entities; if we look at the big picture of teaching and break it down so that we can talk about the parts, those parts are the standards. But excellent teaching is a holistic process in which all of the parts, the standards, are integrated. Most goals will involve all of the standards.
Standard 1: Engaging and Supporting All Students in Learning
Standard 1 is embedded in all goals, since this standard includes engaging all students. In addition, engaging students is a district-wide focus.
Standard 2: Creating and Maintaining Effective Environments
Most goals will involve Standard 2, since this standard talks about setting “high expectations for all of my students” (which is a district expectation), and includes organizing ‘instruction to optimize learning time’ and pacing ‘instruction to accomplish learning goals.”
Standard 3: Understanding and Organizing Subject Matter
Most goals will involve Standard 3, since the Instructional goal is about “developing and using…a repertoire of instructional strategies appropriate to the subject matter.”
Standard 4: Planning Instruction and Designing Learning Experiences
All goals will involve Standard 4, since the Instructional component of goal-setting involves both reflecting “on my successes and struggles and apply what I have learned about effective and ineffective strategies to existing plans for future lessons” and reflecting “on my successes and struggles with the use of curriculum and apply what I have learned to existing plans for future lessons.”
Standard 5: Assessing Student Learning
All goals will include Standard 5, since the Assessment component of goal-setting is about identifying the student learning goal and using “assessment results to monitor my teaching and guide planning and instruction.”
Standard 6: Developing as a Professional Educator
All goals will include Standard 6, since this standard involves reflecting on teaching practice, establishing professional goals, and collaborating with colleagues, a big focus in our shift to the new evaluation process.