The Leader Evaluation and Professional Growth Program

1. The Leader Evaluation and Professional Growth Program Module 2: Interpreting Performance and Providing Feedback

2. Agenda • Welcome and Connecting (45 minutes) • Welcome • Intended Outcomes • Connecting the Dots to Reach a Summative Rating • Learning (120 minutes) • Characteristics of Effective Feedback • Evaluator Roles in Providing Feedback • A Video Exemplar • Feedback Carousel • Video Practice: Providing Feedback • Implementing (60 minutes) • 360-Degree Survey Options • Planning for Survey Implementation • Follow-up (15 minutes)

3. Welcome and Connecting 45 minutes

4. Welcome • Please share your name, your district, and an update on the principal observations. • How are they going? • What is one big thing you have learned?

5. Instructional Feedback: What the Research Tells Us • Teacher postobservation conferences are a critical link! • Connect evidence and ratings to concrete changes in instruction and their impact on student learning • Crucial opportunity for teachers to reflect and collaborate to identify strategies to improve • Rare opportunity for principals and teachers to engage in an in-depth, highly analytical discussion centered on instructional practice References: Balcazar, F., Hopkins, B. L., & Suarez, Y. (1986). A critical objective review of performance feedback. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, 7(3/4), 65–89; Kluger, A. N., & DeNisi, A. (1998). Feedback interventions: Toward the understanding of a double-edged sword. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 7, 67–72; Shute, V. (2007). Focus on formative feedback (Research report). Princeton, NJ: ETS. Retrieved from http://www.ets.org/Media/Research/pdf/RR-07-11.pdf

6. Instructional Feedback: What the Research Tells Us • Principals vary widely in their skill and ability in providing instructional coaching and feedback; many struggle with: • Asking high-level questions. • Prompting teacher reflection. • Ensuring a balanced or teacher-driven conversation. • Identifying and modeling concrete, actionable changes in practice. • Connecting feedback to individualized supports and professional growth planning. • Principals need training, support, and ongoing coaching to provide high-quality instructional feedback.

7. Intended Outcomes • At the end of this session, participants will know and be able to: • Describe how multiple sources of evidence in the Leader Evaluation and Professional Growth (LEPG) program combine for a summative rating of principal performance. • Construct meaningful feedback aligned to principals’ areas for improvement. • Understand and utilize the tools for the observation process and evidence collection.

8. Module 2: Interpreting Performance and Providing Feedback • Module 1: Principal Observation Process • Module 2: Interpreting Performance and Providing Feedback Participants will review the entire LEPG process that results in a summative rating and consider two options for the 360-degree survey instrument as one source of evidence. We will analyze observation data gathered to date and strategize about how to interpret these data and provide appropriate and meaningful feedback to principals. • Module 3: Making Sense of Evidence • Module 4: Responding to High-Priority Needs

9. LEPG Summative RatingTIF 4 Example • Ineffective: less than 1.5 • Developing: 1.5–2.4 • Effective: 2.5–3.4 • Distinguished: greater than 3.4

10. Connecting the Dots to Reach a Summative Rating Principal’s reflection Professional goal-setting Evidence gathered by the principal and through observations of principal practice Staff perspectives on principal skills and abilities Evidence of progress toward school goals and student learning results Summative rating of performance

11. Learning 120 minutes

12. Setting the Stage “A teacher being critiqued can view the same feedback either as a threat to her core self or as a challenge for improving her abilities … If teachers don’t sense that their core abilities are under indictment, they are more likely to see the conversation as an opportunity for growth. … In the challenge state, individuals feel invigorated and motivated to meet the challenge.” • Myung, J. & Martinez, K. (2013). Strategies for Enhancing the Impact of Post-Observation Feedback for Teachers. Stanford, CA: Carnegie Foundation. Retrieved from http://commons.carnegiefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/BRIEF_Feedback-for-Teachers.pdf

13. Importance of Quality Feedback Targeted, Ongoing Feedback Improved Educator Practice Improved Student Achievement

14. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly • Consider two times you received feedback: • A time when an evaluator, manager, or colleague approached you in a way that left a positive impression. • A time when an evaluator, manager, or colleague did not provide feedback in a way that was effective for you. • In pairs, share your experiences. • Questions to consider: • When thinking about your own feedback experiences, did you tend to focus on those that were negative? If so, why? • Thinking about your experiences, how would you define effective feedback? What does it look like? What doesn’t it look like?

15. Characteristics of Effective Feedback Effective feedback is telling the principal not just the evidence statements you collected but also using those statements to move the principal forward.

16. Characteristics of Effective Feedback • FOCUSED: Feedback should focus on what was observed. • EVIDENCE BASED: Feedback should be grounded in evidence of practice. • CONSTRUCTIVE: Feedback should reinforce effective practice and identify areas for continued growth. • TIMELY: Feedback should be provided shortly after the observation. • ACTIONABLE: Feedback should focus on behaviors that can be changed.

17. Three Roles for Evaluators in Providing Feedback

18. How the Role Varies by Principal Knowledge and Need Knowledge of Learner Level of Support Needed

19. Evaluator as Consultant • The evaluator: • Defines the problem for the principal. • Provides the solution and specific advice. • Consulting occurs when: • A principal needs immediate advice. • A principal is still relatively new. • Consulting is needed as a scaffold to move a principal into deeper conversations.

20. Evaluator as Collaborator • The evaluator: • Defines the problem with the principal. • Co-constructs solutions to the problem. • Shares responsibility for moving the conversation forward. • Collaborating occurs when: • There is trust between the principal and the evaluator. • The principal and the evaluator share a common goal.

21. Evaluator as a Mirror • The evaluator: • Encourages the principal to think about his or her practice. • Paraphrases what the principal says. • Asks the principal questions about identifying problems and finding solutions to those problems. • Mostly listens. • Reflection occurs over time when: • The principal develops the capacity to think critically about his or her practice. • The evaluator learns how to ask questions to get the principal to think deeply.

22. Consider Your Style and Approach • Quick Self-Assessment • Consider a recent postobservation conference with one of your principals. What role did you take and why? • Which role do you usually take when providing feedback and why? • What supports and/or resources do you need in order to adopt a different role? • Turn and Talk • How do different roles meet the requirements for “characteristics of effective feedback”? Remember, characteristics are focused, evidence based, timely, constructive, and actionable.

23. Review of Instructional Feedback Observation Rubric

24. Video I: Effective Feedback from a Principal to a Teacher Video Background: • It shows a postobservation conference between a teacher (John) and principal. • John teaches sixth-grade mathematics. • The lesson observed focused on multiplying decimals. • John’s goal is focused on using multiple assessment strategies to evaluate students’ learning.

25. Video I: Debrief • Thinking about the six indicators, what was your overall impression of the feedback the principal provided to the teacher? • Did the principal demonstrate the characteristics of effective feedback? • What were some specific strengths? Areas for improvement? • Based on what you observed in the video, what role (consulting, collaborating, reflecting) do you think you would take when providing feedback to this principal?

26. The Feedback Carousel Evaluator’s Role: Consulting—Collaborating—Reflecting

27. Feedback Carousel Debrief • How did you feel about providing written feedback for this exercise versus feedback during a conversation? • Which quadrants did you focus on? Why? • What role do you plan to take? How does the role affect which quadrants you focus on? • How does the quadrant affect the type of feedback the principal will receive?

28. Principles of Paraphrasing • Pay attention to body language and tone: both your own and the principal’s. • Listen for major themes of the conversation. • Paraphrase using a statement shorter than the original. • Begin with “So, you” or “You’re” instead of “I hear you saying.”

29. Types of Paraphrasing

30. Video II: Let’s Practice Video Background: • Seventh-grade mathematics teacher • Sixth year of teaching • Teacher’s goal: to improve her use of higher-order questioning • Lesson: development of class grading rubrics

31. Video II: Let’s Practice • Watch the short video segment and jot down evidence from the conversation. • Focus your evidence gathering on the following LEPG Rubric Indicators: • Indicator 3-d. Pedagogical Knowledge: The leader demonstrates knowledge of a range of pedagogy and ensures all adults have the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to support student success. • Indicator 5-b. Relationship Building: The leader builds authentic, productive relationships that foster a collaborative spirit.

32. Instructional Feedback Observation Indicators • 3 • 5

33. Video II: Feedback Carousel Evaluator’s Role: Consulting—Collaborating—Reflecting

34. Video II: Debrief • How would you describe or rate the principal’s performance during the observation in the LEPG Rubric Indicators of focus? • What is the specific feedback you chose to share with the principal? Why? • Looking at the Feedback Carousel, in what quadrant(s) does your feedback fall? • Is your feedback focused, evidence based, constructive, timely, and actionable? • What coaching approach seems the most appropriate for this principal? Why?

35. Implementing 60 minutes

36. 360-Degree Survey Options • Option 1: Survey items based on the LEPG Standard Indicator language • Option 2: Survey items based on LEPG Standard Indicator rubric language • Option 3: Revised National Board survey items • Option 3b: Abbreviated version of the revised National Board items

37. Summary of Each Option

38. Planning for Survey Implementation • Select a 360-degree survey. • Decide who will take the survey (e.g., all staff, all teachers, a sample of staff). • Determine how survey results will be incorporated into principal evaluations (e.g., as narrative evidence, averaged into relevant Standard ratings). • Determine the survey administration method (e.g., paper and pencil, Survey Monkey, other online method). • Identify a survey administration time and venue (e.g., administration window of one week with link sent via e-mail, one-time administration at a staff meeting).

39. Follow-up 15 minutes

40. Reflecting As you think about the process of principal observation and constructing and delivering effective feedback, consider the following: • What are you most comfortable with? • What are your outstanding questions? • What do you see as the benefits of providing this type of feedback to principals? • What will be the greatest challenges?