Educator Evaluation Beacon

Events

Moving Ahead with Student and Staff Feedback

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Beginning this school year, evidence used in the evaluation process must include student feedback (for teachers) and staff feedback (for administrators). For more details, please read Part VIII of the Model System or this Quick Reference Guide.

One important decision for districts is whether to use student surveys across the district, educator-selected instruments, or some combination of the two approaches.

Districts also have choices about how to use the survey results. Districts may choose to only allow teachers, and not district administrators, to view survey results.  Teachers would then be expected to incorporate evidence gleaned from the surveys into their self-assessment and goal-setting.

The Collaborative can help with the student and staff feedback in several ways. First, we offer a workshop on the topic November 19. We are bringing outside expertise to the Pioneer Valley.  Aaron Feuer, CEO of Panorama Education, the state’s chosen vendor for survey data aggregation, will speak to our Curriculum Director PLC  September 19 and at the Technology in Education Conference on January 15. In addition, we will provide tech support to districts interested in independently aggregating survey data.

Ed Eval and DDM Trainings Available This Fall

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Because we’re committed to improving instructional practice  and the supporting work of our member districts, we’re offering trainings designed to enhance the quality of the implementation of the educator evaluation system as a whole and student growth measures (DDMs) in specific.sugar maple

Click here to read more about educator evaluation trainings like our seminar for the calibration of administrators. Click here for the principal observation training.

Click here for information about DDM trainings addressing key aspects like revising tasks and rubrics for better alignment with standards and instruction.

REL Northeast Hosts Ed Eval Symposium

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Here is a good opportunity for district leaders to step back and reflect on the effectiveness of the new educator evaluation system. Register here.

Implementation of Educator Evaluation Systems: Examining Problems of Practice

Co-hosted by the Northeast Educator Effectiveness Research Alliance at REL Northeast & Islands and the National Center for Teacher Effectiveness at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, this daylong event will examine the successes and challenges related to the implementation of teacher evaluation systems. NCTE Principal Investigator Dr. Tom Kane will present research on factors related to educator evaluation systems, including capacity, measurement, impacts on practice, and school climate and culture. Through structured Q&A and breakout sessions, the event is designed to build meaningful connections between educators and researchers around the use of research to inform decision-making about teacher evaluation systems.

Thursday, October 23, 2014
9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., ET

 

Waterman Gives DDMs a Human Face

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Craig Waterman brought  a great deal of expertise to Monday’s Office Hours as well as a healthy dose of humor and flexibility. Here are some impressions of the event contributed by Louise Law (Frontier Regional Schools), Gwynne Morrissey (CES), and Diana Roy (Ludlow Public Schools):

  1. DDMs are still a work in progress across the state and DESE wants to see what districts have by June. Districts will have flexibility to revise those DDMs as they see fit.
  2. Teachers shouldn’t be afraid of a few students having a “low” rating on a DDM. However, a teacher getting a low impact rating means that many students were making low growth across multiple measures across multiple years, which is, in fact, worth having a conversation about.
  3. There are creative ways to measure student growth – like using holistic growth rubrics.
  4. DDMs have to allow all students an equal chance for growth, which has particular impact on special education students and English Language Learners.