It’s about the conversations.

A Guide To Educator Evaluation in CPS

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Canton Public Schools September, 2019

Updated 9/18/19

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Updated 9/18/19, see next slide

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September, 2019

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This guide to the MA Educator Evaluation system provides a condensed overview of how the evaluation process works in the Canton Public Schools. We hope that educators and administrators alike will find the guide helpful in navigating the evaluation process.

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First, the governmental backdrop: Based on laws written by the MA Legislature, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) developed regulations that each district must take into account when crafting its own evaluation process. Canton Public Schools has sought to interpret and implement the regulations in a way that makes sense for our educational community.

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One of the ways we can ensure that educator evaluation takes place in a way that works for us is by emphasizing what we believe is most important in the process: the ongoing, reflective conversations that take place on multiple occasions between educators and evaluators. If we keep our focus throughout the ed eval process on these reflective conversations, then we will improve our practice and create even better learning opportunities for all of our students.

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As this guide is intended as an overview, it does not include the many details that contract language, ratified in June 2019, includes for every step of the process. We encourage all educators and administrators to become familiar with that language and have included links to the contract document throughout this guide.

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We want to hear from you about the ways in which this guide is helpful and the ways we can make it even better. Send your comments and suggestions to Assistant Superintendent Patricia Kinsella at kinsellap@cantonma.org.

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Respectfully,

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Jennifer Fischer-Mueller, Ed.D.

Superintendent

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Acknowledgments

Some language and graphics in this guide have been copied verbatim and/or have been adapted from materials produced by DESE, the Boston Public Schools, and the Massachusetts Teachers Association. The guide includes original language and graphics developed here in Canton, as well.

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Revisions to this document

While we will be making revisions to the online version of this guide throughout 2019-20, revisions to the educator evaluation language in the contract must be agreed upon with the Canton Teachers Association.

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DESE produced a new overview and guide to the Educator Evaluation process in September 2019, which we encourage evaluators and educators to review.

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Revisions to this guide

9/18/19

• Slides 13-15: Dates for 2019-20 timelines corrected; had previously shown 2018-19 dates.
• Slide 13: Week and month for Developing Educator Plan: Goals and Plan Development should have read Third Friday in Oct. (not Second Friday), as listed in narrative portion of contract language.
• Slide 16: Chart with minimum number of observations by type of plan: names of plans added, slide 16.

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The most powerful component of the ed eval process in Canton is the �ongoing, reflective conversation �that educators and evaluators have �with each other.

Conversation

is what matters.

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1. Standards and Indicators for Effective Teaching Practice
2. Rubrics that define Standards and Indicators
3. Three categories of evidence
4. A performance rating scale with four levels
5. Four types of educator plans
6. A five-step evaluation cycle

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key features of the MA ed eval framework

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1. The student impact rating is gone. Impact on student learning is now embedded as an indicator in Standard II: Teaching All Students.
2. The new student learning indicator is the way that student learning is embedded within Standard II.
3. When developing an educator plan, educators and evaluators must have a conversation and come to an understanding about anticipated learning gains, which are clear, realistic, and ambitious expectations for student growth. Educators and evaluators must identify a mechanism for measuring the growth for each anticipated learning gain.
4. District Determined Measures has been eliminated as a phrase
5. Common assessments is the new DESE description for assessments used by multiple educators. Change from the prior DDM language are below in blue:

Common Assessments shall mean identical or comparable assessments of student learning, growth, and achievement...used by educators in the same role across the district. These assessments may be commercial assessments or district developed, and may include, but are not limited to: portfolios, pre- and post-tests, unit and course assessments, performance assessments, and capstone projects.*

*Educator Evaluator Regulations, 603 CMR 35.00, Revised 2/28/17

Based on Commissioner’s Memo: Amendments to the Regulations, 3/10/18

There were major changes �to ed eval in 2017.

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No matter which plan an educator is on or the length of that plan, the evaluation cycle always follows the five steps below.

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The cycle begins with a self-assessment and ends with a summative evaluation.

There are five steps in �the evaluation cycle.

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The Standards describe broad categories of professional practice and establish a statewide understanding about what effective teaching looks like.

Each of the Standards is broken down into 3-6 core Indicators.

There are four Standards for Effective Teaching Practice.

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DESE has developed rubrics that “translate” the Standards and Indicators into descriptions of educator practice at every level of performance.

Educators and evaluators should use the rubric most appropriate to each educator’s role.

By regulation, a district may use either the rubrics provided by DESE or rubrics that the district has developed and which have been approved by DESE.

Classroom educators in Canton use the updated classroom teacher rubric available on the DESE website.

During the 2019-20 school year, the district will collaborate with educators in non-classroom roles to select, adapt, and/or create rubrics specific to their roles.

For more information about rubrics, see the DESE Guide to Rubrics and Model Rubrics for Superintendent, Administrator, and Teacher.

All educators use rubrics throughout the evaluation cycle.

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There are four types of educator plans.

For details about each type of plan, see pp.3 and 8 of the contract language.

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The timeline for the five-step cycle is different depending on the type of plan an educator has.

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The following pages include a timeline for each type of plan as outlined in contract language. Specific dates for the 2019-20 school year are in red. All the timeline charts come from pp. 21-23 of the contract language.

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Please note that timelines for Directed Growth Plans and Improvement Plans are established by the evaluator.

Each type of plan has �a different timeline.

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*PTS educators on Self-Directed Growth Plans of one or two years must have at least one unannounced �observation per cycle.

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The chart below outlines the minimum number of observations that must take place for each type of plan.

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Please note: Evaluators may conduct more observations than the minimum outlined below.

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For the more information, including the number of observations, see pp. 11-12 in the contract language.

Evaluations include observations of the educator’s practice by the evaluator.

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The performance of every educator is rated against the Standards for �Effective Teaching Practice. All educators earn one of the four ratings below.

There is a performance rating scale with four levels.

when performance has not significantly improved following a rating of Needs Improvement, or performance is consistently below the requirements of a Standard and is considered inadequate, or both

Exemplary

Proficient

Needs Improvement

Unsatisfactory

exceeds the already high standard of Proficient; reserved for performance of such a high level that it could serve as a model

fully satisfactory; the rigorous expected level of performance; demanding, but attainable

below requirements of a Standard but not Unsatisfactory at the time; improvement is necessary and expected*

* For new educators, Needs Improvement can be understood as “developing” in cases where the educator is “on track” to proficiency within three years.

To achieve an overall rating of Proficient or Exemplary, the educator must earn Proficient or Exemplary in Standards I and II.

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Progress towards goals

Student Learning

Professional Practice

Proficiency in Standards

1. Curriculum, Planning, and Assessment
2. Teaching All Students
3. Family & Community Engagement
4. Professional Culture

Every educator is required to have a minimum of two goals: a student learning goal and a professional practice goal. When the evaluator considers progress towards goals, they consider the progress across all goals.

For example, if an educator exceeds their projected target on their student learning goal and makes significant progress on their professional practice goal, the evaluator may determine that overall goal attainment is met goal.

Evaluations include seven ratings: �two on goals, four on Standards, �and one overall rating.

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When it comes to �evidence, quality counts.

Quality, not quantity

It is always better to select several pieces of high-quality evidence that yield significant insight into student learning and/or educator practice than it is to upload many pieces of lower-quality evidence.

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Guidelines for evidence

• Include at least three pieces of evidence overall:
• one piece of evidence per standard and at least one per goal and,
• please note that some pieces of evidence may relate to more than one goal and/or Standard.
• Educators interested in using standardized assessment data should be sure to discuss this with their evaluator because of limitations with both the data themselves and the timing of the data arrival.

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There are three �categories of evidence.

1. Multiple measures of student learning, growth, �and achievement:
1. classroom assessments, comparable within grades or subjects in a school;
2. student learning goals from the educator plan;
3. statewide growth measures, where available, including MCAS and ACCESS (discuss limitations with your evaluator);
4. common assessments (i.e., assessments that educators in similar positions use with their students)

During development of the educator plan, the educator and evaluator discuss not only which measures will be used, but also the anticipated student learning gains for each.

• Evaluator judgment of products of practice
• artifacts of practice and observations of practice
• Additional evidence
• relevant to one or more Performance Standards, including student feedback. (See the Quick Reference Guide on Staff & Student Feedback and the contract language for more information.)

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The Summative Performance Rating is the final step of the 5-Step Cycle.

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Evaluators consider the the educator’s progress towards their two goals and the evidence of practice in relation to the four Standards. Then the evaluator applies their professional judgment to assign one of the four possible ratings to the educator.

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The DESE chart below shows how evidence and professional judgement together lead to a summative performance rating.

The evaluation cycle ends with a Summative Evaluation.

To achieve an overall rating of Proficient or Exemplary, the educator must earn Proficient or Exemplary in Standards I and II.

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The most powerful component of the ed eval process in Canton is the �ongoing, reflective conversation �that educators and evaluators have �with each other.

Conversation

is what matters.

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We want to hear from you!

Questions?

Comments?