The Rhode Island Model Educator Evaluation System Working Draft

1. The Rhode Island Model Educator Evaluation SystemWorking Draft Providence Meeting | February 2011

2. The Rhode Island Model aims to ensure every student has an effective teacher and every school has an effective leader. • Research tells us time and time again, that the most significant in-school factor in a child’s education is his or her teacher. This system will help identify and develop effective teachers. • We know that effective teachers need the support of effective administrators which is why they will be evaluated on the same components as teachers. • Our educators deserve an evaluation system that provides them with frequent, useful feedback on their performance.

3. The Rhode Island Model will help educators continuously improve and grow as professionals. • Prior to the first conference, teachers and principals will complete a thorough self-assessment that is directly aligned to the evaluation components. • Teachers and their evaluator will work together to: • Identify individual strengths and areas of improvement; • Set professional growth goals based on those areas of improvement; and • Create an individualized professional growth plan to meet those goals. • All educators will participate in targeted development activities based on their individual professional growth goals. Wherever possible, development opportunities will be job-embedded. • Support and development are directly aligned with components of the evaluation model and reference prior evaluations.

4. Educators from around the state crafted the Rhode Island Model Working Draft. • Educators representing more than 23 districts and organizations developed content and provided input during the design of the Rhode Island Model. • Six working groups designed the major components of the evaluation system. The working groups began meeting in July and concluded the first phase of the design process in October. One member from each working group continues to meet with new focus on implementation issues. • The Advisory Committee for Educator Evaluation Systems (ACEES) reviewed and provided feedback on the content developed by the working groups. • All components of the RI Model will meet the requirements set forth in the RI Educator Evaluation System Standards, adopted in 2009.

5. RIDE will continue to gather feedback on the Model and make improvements for a gradual state-wide implementation. • The Implementation Working Group, comprised of members from the original six working groups and representation from AFT Innovation districts, will continue to advise RIDE on feasibility and proper implementation. • RIDE has convened a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) made up of national experts on assessment, performance management and evaluation systems. The TAC will provide input on technical aspects of the model, including content related to student learning, scoring observation rubrics, and overall system validity. • Public forums will continue to be held in order to gather input from the community. RIDE welcomes your feedback. Email any comments and questions to EdEval@ride.ri.gov.

6. The RI Model will be field tested and refined before state-wide implementation. Content review and refinement based on feedback Field testing of model in select districts and schools Model refinement based on testing outcomes and feedback & training Initial design phase Jun.-Oct. Nov.- Dec. Jan. – Feb. Mar. – May • Testing sites will include a mix of schools and districts of various grade levels and sizes. • Ongoing, regular feedback loops from teachers and administrators to gather information on the model. • Testing results will inform model refinement and plans for training. • Using field testing, feedback from the implementation working group, TAC and others, the Model will be refined and ready for training. • Intermediary Service Providers (ISPs) will begin delivering training to evaluators.

7. The system will be implemented in school year 2011-2012 for teachers and administrators, for information and development only. * While the system is in use, RIDE will study the Model, continue to gather feedback and use available information to make improvements.

8. Evaluation and Development Process The Rhode Island Model revolves around a series of three conferences. Sept.-Mid Oct. Jan.-Feb. May-Jun. • Mid-year conference • Discuss professional growth plan • Revisit student learning objectives • Deliver feedback on performance to date • End-of-year conference • Discuss professional growth plan • Deliver feedback on performance for entire year • Final evaluation rating assigned • Beginning-of-year conference • Self-assessment • Set professional growth goals & create professional growth plan • Set student learning objectives Ongoing feedback conversations based on multiple classroom observations, data collection and targeted development activities

9. Teacher self-assessments are the beginning of the evaluation process. • Prior to the first conference, teachers and principals will complete a thorough self-assessment that is directly aligned to the evaluation components. • The self-assessment asks educators to reflect on: • Past performance • Relevant student learning data • Prior professional growth goals • Professional practice (using the educator-developed rubric) • Professional responsibilities (using the educator-developed rubric)

10. The self-assessment helps the teacher and evaluator engage in productive conversations about practice. • The completed self-assessment will be discussed at the first evaluation conference. • Completion of the self-assessment will lead to 3 professional growth goals and an individualized professional growth plan, which will be the focus of the teacher’s targeted professional development throughout the year. • Together, the teacher and evaluator will finalize specific, measureable goals, with clear benchmarks for success.

11. Under the Rhode Island Model, every teacher will have multiple opportunities to be observed by an evaluator. • Throughout the year, teachers will participate in targeted professional development activities and continue to develop their practice. • Teachers will be observed a minimum of six times per year (one full length, formal observation and five shorter, more informal). Three of these will take place before the mid-year evaluation conference. • Prior conversations about self-assessment and professional growth help evaluators hone in on specific practices during observations.

12. Teachers will receive frequent feedback on their performance. • After each observation, the evaluator will provide the teacher with feedback on his or her performance. • Included in this feedback may be suggestions or resources for differentiated professional development. • After receiving feedback, teachers may want to revisit professional growth goals and their self-assessment prior to any future evaluation conferences. • The goal of the evaluation system is to help Rhode Island educators continuously improve and grow as professionals.

13. Questions?

14. All educators will be evaluated annually based on multiple sources of information. Individual ratings in each of these components will be combined to produce a final, summative evaluation rating of: Highly Effective, Effective, Minimally Effective, or Ineffective. *While this content represents the evaluation process for teachers, administrators will also be evaluated on these three components.

15. All teachers will set 2-4 specific, measureable student learning objectives for their students. • Prior to implementation, RIDE will publish extensive guidance on setting student learning objectives, including examples for various grades and subjects June 2011.

16. Ratings for student learning objectives will be determined based on the extent to which the teacher has succeeded in meeting them. • Prior to the end-of-year evaluation conference, the teacher and evaluator will gather evidence to determine whether each student learning objective has been met. • At the end-of year conference, the evaluator will make a determination about a student learning objective rating based on the extent to which the teacher has succeeded in meeting all student learning objectives. The exact scoring methodology will be developed after field testing and with input from the TAC.

17. ELA and Mathematics teachers in grades 3-7 will receive growth ratings beginning in school year 2012-2013. • The Rhode Island Growth Model will assess student’s growth in NECAP reading and mathematics tests. • Each student’s growth is compared to other students throughout the state who have a similar test score history (“academic peers”). • Each student’s growth is expressed as a percentile. • How much did John improve in mathematics from 6th grade to 7th grade, relative to his academic peers? • If John improved more than 90 percent of his academic peers, then his student growth percentile (SGP) will be 90.

18. Student A’s growth from Grade 6 to Grade 7 is in the 90th percentile of his academic peers (SGP=90)

19. Student B’s growth from Grade 6 to Grade 7 is in the 25th percentile of his academic peers (SGP=25)

20. Median SGP for Ms. Smith will determine her Growth Rating How will individual student growth scores be used to calculate Growth Ratings for teachers? Imagine that the list of students to the left are all the students in Ms. Smith’s class rosters. Note that they are sorted from lowest to highest SGP. The point where 50% of students have a higher SGP and 50% have a lower SGP is the median.

21. What if Student B had a bad day? • A teacher’s Growth Rating will be based on two years of students’ growth data to increase the accuracy of the rating. • A teacher’s Growth Rating will never be based on just a few students. A minimum number of students will be required to calculate a teacher's Growth Rating to increase the reliability of the rating. The decision rules for assigning growth to teachers – including how many students must be tested, minimum student attendance rates, and rules for team teachers – will be published by RIDE in June 2011.

22. Questions?

23. Teacher Professional Practice Overview • Assesses the instructional skills and knowledge that impact student learning and are grounded in the Rhode Island Professional Teaching Standards (RIPTS) • The current draft of the rubric was created after careful review of various model rubrics and competency frameworks • The current draft of the rubric currently consists of 27 teacher competencies divided into 4 domains: • Planning and Preparation • Classroom Instruction • Classroom Environment • Assessment, Reflection and Improvement • Teachers will be rated on Professional Practice as “Exemplary,” “Proficient,” “Emerging” or “Unsatisfactory.” To see complete draft of the rubric, see the working draft of the model: http://www.ride.ri.gov/educatorquality/EducatorEvaluation

24. Professional Responsibilities Rubric Overview • Assesses how well the educator fulfills professional responsibilities and contributes to the school’s professional community. • The current draft of the rubric is grounded in the Rhode Island Professional Teaching Standards (RIPTS), Rhode Island Educational Leadership Standards (RIELS), and the Rhode Island Educator Code of Professional Responsibility. • Competencies are divided into five domains: • Collaborate • Believe In & Advocate for Students • Create a Culture of Respect • Contribute to the School Community • Exercise Professional Judgment • Teachers will be rated on Professional Responsibilities as “Exceeds Expectations,” “Meets Expectations” or “Does Not Meet Expectations.” To see complete draft of the rubric, see the working draft of the model: http://www.ride.ri.gov/educatorquality/EducatorEvaluation

25. Educators will receive an overall score on the Professional Practice Rubric. To see complete draft of the rubric, go to http://www.ride.ri.gov/EducatorQuality/EducatorEvaluation/.

26. Educators will receive an overall score on the Professional Practice Rubric. DRAFT

27. Educators will receive an overall score on the Professional Responsibilities Rubric. To see complete draft of the rubric, go to http://www.ride.ri.gov/EducatorQuality/EducatorEvaluation/.

28. Educators will receive an overall score on the Professional Responsibilities rubric. DRAFT

29. Professional Practice scores and Professional Responsibility scores will be combined using a matrix. DRAFT

30. Teachers with a Growth Model score will have it combined with the student learning objectives score using a matrix to reach a final student learning rating. DRAFT

31. Teachers will receive a final summative rating using a series of matrices which combine scores of each individual component. DRAFT

32. The final summative rating matrix will determine a teacher’s overall rating. This and the other matrices may be revised with feedback from the TAC and field testing *Ratings in any of these cells will trigger an immediate review

33. Administrator will be evaluated similarly to teachers. • Administrators will be evaluated on the same three components as teachers: Student Learning, Professional Practice and Professional Responsibilities. • Student Learning • Administrators will set school-wide student learning objectives. Administrators in schools that serve grades 3-7 will also receive a Growth Model score. • Professional Practice • The Administrator Professional Practice Rubric establishes common expectations for administrators based on the Standards for Educational Leadership in Rhode Island (RIELS). Administrators will be rated on these competencies based on sources of evidence and regular school visits by supervisors. • Professional Responsibilities • Administrators will be rated on the same Professional Responsibilities Rubric as teachers.

34. For more information and to download detailed documents, visit: http://www.ride.ri.gov/educatorquality/EducatorEvaluationQuestions? Comments? E-mail us at:EdEval@ride.ri.gov