ON-SITE VERIFICATION PHASE

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education as part of their auditing requirements conducts school based interviews and classrooms observations to gauge specific compliance standards as identified in the English Learner Program Review Criteria and Implementation Guidance. This is referenced as the On-Site Verification Phase.

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education conducts:

• interviews of administrative, instructional, and support staff consistent with those criteria selected for onsite verification.
• interviews of EL parent representatives and telephone interviews as requested by other EL parents or members of the general public.
• a review of EL records. The Department may select a sample of student records from those the district reviewed as part of its self-assessment as well as records chosen by the Department from the ELE student roster. Using standard Department procedures the onsite team will conduct this review to determine whether procedural and programmatic requirements have been implemented.
• surveys of parents of ELs. Parents of ELs whose files are selected for the record review, as well as the parents of an equal number of other ELs are sent a survey that solicits information regarding their experiences with the district’s implementation of ELE programs, related services, and procedural requirements.
• observations of classrooms and other facilities. The onsite team visits a sample of classrooms and other school facilities used in the delivery of ELE programs and services to determine general levels of compliance with program requirements.

OBSERVATIONS AND INTERVIEWS

CLASSROOM AND FACILITIES OBSERVATION

A sample of classrooms and other school facilities used in the delivery of English learner education services will be visited to determine general levels of compliance with program requirements. The Facilities/Classroom Observation Form (ESE Form 3 & 4) will be used by the DESE On-site team members in order to complete this part of the Program Review.

HELPFUL LINKS

Please find below two forms (links) for your review that will be utilized by DESE to support ESL and SEI classroom observations.

• ESE FORM 3: Form being used to support ESL classroom observations
• ESE FORM 4: Form being used to support classroom observations (Program Evaluation Rubric)
• SEI Smart Card: Form being used to support SEI classroom observations

INTERVIEWS

Please keep in mind, that interviews are not to evaluate a staff member's individual performance, but to understand each staff member's experiences in the implementation of various program requirements. Interviews must be conducted in spaces that allow for confidentiality, so schools should plan to accommodate accordingly.

Some of the staff to be interviewed have been identified by DESE. Additional staff will be selected by school leaders in order to meet the total number (staff members) requested for interviewing by DESE.

INTERVIEW AND OBSERVATION SCHEDULE SURVEY will be provided to school leaders on "DATE" and must be completed and submitted to OELL by April 17, 2017. The finalized schedule will then be submitted to the DESE Monitoring Team Chairperson who will then provide the OELL Program Review Coordinator a standard letter and description of the review procedures, which will then be shared with every person selected for an interview.

OELL (Program Review Coordinator) in conjunction with DESE will assist school leaders with any needed clarification with respect to the types and approximate number of personnel involved in interviews, the number and type of observations to be conducted, and the estimated amount of time needed for interviews.

HELPFUL LINKS

• ESE Form 1: LIST OF INTERVIEWEES FOR SE, CR AND ELE contains the titles of possible persons to be interviewed in the ELE portion of the review. Key administrators, guidance counselors, ESL, Two-Way Immersion, TBE and SEI teachers, and any instructional aides working with those teachers, parents, and other appropriate staff can be interviewed. The district, or the Department, may add others to this list who would be able to describe efforts undertaken to implement program requirements.

RECORD REVIEW

DESE will be reviewing 95 student records of which some were reviewed previously by OELL as part of the district's Self-Assessment Phase of the Coordinated Program Review. In addition, a new sample of student records with activities since the start of the new school year were selected as well. Where the parts of a selected student record are situated in more than one location, at a minimum, all of the relevant parts of the ELs student record (see ELE 18) must be brought together in one location for the purpose of the Department’s record review. The folder review will take place at the Bolling Street Central Office location between April 4, 2017 - April 5, 2017. Schools in need of providing folders will be notified accordingly.

The ELE Student Record Review focuses on a sampling of ELE focus areas and students receiving SEI instruction, Two-Way Immersion instruction, and Transitional Bilingual Education instruction or instruction under other ELE education program models to determine whether required procedures are implemented and services are being provided. Standard Department record review procedures will be followed to assess compliance with procedural and program requirements of applicable laws and regulations.

The Department reserves the right to select additional student records for review during the course of monitoring. In many cases, these additional student records supply the missing information needed in order to rate a particular criterion or criteria as” Implemented”.

Note: Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Student Record Regulations provide Department employees with access to all information contained in student records without the consent of parents. [603 CMR 23.07: (4)(d)]

HELPFUL LINKS