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Teacher Evaluation: Your 10-STEP Guide to Scoring Proficient or Higher

Download a PDF copy of our presentation delivered at the 2016 New Teacher Conference.

CT Approved Teacher Evaluation Plans

State approved educator evaluation and support plans for the 2015-16 school year. The plans are sorted alphabetically.

Performance Evaluation Advisory Council (PEAC) Meeting- September 16, 2015

Training for evaluators is one area that CEA leaders on the Council have previously highlighted as needing attention, and PEAC heard from administrators in the Wolcott Public Schools about their efforts to improve evaluator training.

Requirements & Flexibility for PDEC Decision-Making

All too often, PDECs aren't clear on how the components of their evaluation plans must be included and where they have flexibility in how an evaluation practice will be conducted. This chart lists those areas that most commonly come into question, describe what the guidelines require, and explain what the PDEC can decide about how that component of evaluation will be practiced.

How Does Your PDEC Define 'Mutual Agreement?

While statute requires that teacher evaluation plans be developed by 'mutual agreement' of the PDEC and local board of education, more than 60% of PDECs haven't defined what that term means to them, and how they'll know when they reach mutual agreement. Read more about this simple, yet effective, way of looking at what 'mutual agreement' can mean, and some tips to reaching it in a way that is truly collaborative.

Teacher Evaluation Plan Review and Revision: What Should Your PDEC Do?

It's a good idea for your PDEC to continuously review your teacher evaluation plan and make revisions that can help move toward better practice. This presentation outlines a simple process your PDEC can use to review your plan in light of the teacher evaluation guidelines, and includes links to tools on the CEA teacher evaluation web page that can help you get the job done.

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Plan Review Documents:

CT Guidelines for Educator Evaluation
Teacher Evaluation Plan Analysis
Teacher Evaluation Plan Analysis - Sample
What's Working - What's Challenging (Worksheet)

Teacher Evaluation Plan Review and Revision: What Should Your PDEC Discuss?

As your PDEC reviews your teacher evaluation plan for revisions, questions about the evaluation components and processes can help shape your conversations, drive creative thinking, and lead to more effective and efficient practice.

Plan Review Questions:

· Developing Assistance Plans
· Dispute Resolution Process
· Goals and Indicators
· Implementation
· In-class Observations
· Reviews of Practice
· Structure of the Plan
· Student, Parent, & Peer Feedback
· Summative Ratings
· Training
· WSLI

Teacher Evaluation and Alternative Education Teachers

Teachers who work in alternative education programs face challenges that are often very different from those of teachers in a 'regular' classroom. This presentation will provide some suggestions for building flexibility into the evaluation process for alternative education teachers, so that the process is more meaningful and reflective of what they do with students.

Connecticut Guidelines for Educator Evaluation

These guidelines provide direction to school districts as they develop and adopt new systems of educator evaluation and support. They aim to ensure that districts have common and high expectations that educators are evaluated in a fair and consistent manner, and that employment decisions are based on fair, valid, reliable and useful indicators of a educator's work.

Teacher Evaluation Plan Required Components

This chart outlines what each section of the teacher evaluation guidelines requires in your teacher evaluation plan, including the changes approved by the State Board of Education on May 7. Sample language for each of these sections can be found below in other documents on this web page.

Teacher Evaluation Monthly Checklist

Monthly evidence checklist for educator evaluation.

PRESENTATIONS

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  A Holistic Approach to Teacher Evaluation

  March 30, 2015

  When educators talk about using a holistic approach to teacher evaluation, what do they actually mean? What does such an approach look like in practice? This presentation explains how to use a holistic approach for showing student growth over time,for determining teacher performance, and how to merge evidence to determine an overall evaluation rating. Questions for guiding the decisions are included.

  
  

  PRESENTATION - WITH NOTES (PDF)

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  Dispute Resolution and Remediation Plans in the State Guidelines

  This will introduce you to the language from the state guidelines regarding dispute resolution and will differentiate between disputes and grievances.

  State teacher evaluation guidelines, flexibility options as approved last school year, the language regarding individual teacher remediation plans and definitions of effectiveness and ineffectiveness per the guidelines are also discussed.

  
  

  PRESENTATION - WITH NOTES (PDF)

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  From Statute to Practice: A PDEC's Responsibility

  Statute now requires that districts establish one Professional Development and Evaluation committee (PDEC). Until now in most districts, the PDEC has focused only on developing an educator evaluation plan for the district. But that's a small part of what statute requires the PDEC to do; it's time for each PDEC to expand their practice in districts.

  This presentation will provide you with concrete ideas for your PDEC to discuss so they can clearly establish some working strategies and understand the most important responsibilities they can and should take on.

  
  

  PRESENTATION - WITH NOTES (PDF)

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  Showing Student Growth Over Time : A Holistic Approach for Classroom Teachers

  Using only using a pre- and post-test with students doesn't show growth over time effectively. To get the true picture, multiple types and sources of data must be used. This detailed presentation will explain how to show student growth over time through a holistic approach that uses a combination of student work and standardized indicators. The presentation gives concrete examples of student goals and indicators for a variety of content areas.

  
  

  PRESENTATION - WITH NOTES (PDF)

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  Evaluating Support Specialists : Writing Student-Related Goals & Conducting Observations

  Evaluating support specialists has been a challenge for many districts, as they have gotten caught up in a narrow interpretation of the term 'student academic growth and development.' This presentation will explore the requirements for evaluating support specialists, where there is flexibility built into the teacher evaluation guidelines, and offer suggestions for how evaluation of specialists can be more meaningful and appropriate.

  
  

  PRESENTATION - WITH NOTES (PDF)

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  Promoting Better Practice in Teacher Evaluation Observations

  This presentation explains the changes a PDEC can adopt for using observations of teachers rated Proficient or Exemplary. It gives clear examples of how to use 1 formal observation, informal observations, and reviews of practice as parts of the process for showing growth over time. The focus is on using a holistic approach, and clear, specific questions are included that can be the basis for analyzing evidence and determining an evaluation rating.

  
  

  PRESENTATION - WITH NOTES (PDF)

SAMPLE LANGUAGE FOR TEACHER EVALUATION PLANS

Revisions to your teacher evaluation plan should be easy to understand. CEA offers the following sample language for your Professional Development and Evaluation Committee to consider. The concepts and practices contained in this language align with the teacher evaluation guidelines, including the changes that will be presented to the State Board of Education on Wednesday, May 7, and promote strong collaborative practices in evaluation.

ADDITIONAL INFO

INFORMATION FROM THE SDE TO SUPERINTENDENTS

• Circular letter February 5, 2015

  Information on the 2015-16 educator evaluation plan submission process, process for requesting a waiver from components of the guidelines, and an update on SDE rubric validation work.

• Circular letter September 30, 2014

  Information for district Professional Development and Evaluation Committees about submitting changes to their 2014-15 plans during October.

• Circular Letter May 19, 2014

  Information for districts on evaluation plan submission, process for requesting a waiver, 2014 SEED handbook, 2014 CCT Rubric for Effective Teaching, & evaluation of central office administrators.

• Circular Letter April 28, 2014

  Update on the proposed changes regarding teacher rating terms, use of tests to show student growth, and the dispute resolution process.

• Circular Letter April 10, 2014

  Updates on submission of district plans for 2014-15, evaluation of teachers non-renewed, BloomBoard support

• Circular Letter February 10, 2014

  Update on Flexibilities to the Guidelines for Educator Evaluation

• Circular Letter January 29, 2014

  CCT Review Committee, PDE Committees, BloomBoard

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• 2014 CCT Rubric for Effective Teaching

  For use with classroom teachers.

• PA 13-245 Requires Districts to Establish a Teacher Evaluation and Development Committee

  Read the statutory language describing the composition of the committee and their role in developing a district plan.

• Revised SEED Matrix for Summative Evaluation Ratings

  The matrix used in the 2012 SEED pilot program has been revised in this year's SEED model. If your district used last year's SEED matrix (even if the district isn't using the entire SEED model), CEA encourages you to adopt the revised matrix for this year.

• Building a Teacher Evaluation Plan: District Development Resource Guide

  This is a member-protected resource.

• Connecticut's System for Educator Evaluation and Development (SEED)

  SEED is the State Department of Education model teacher evaluation plan. This copy includes further explanations and comments about the components of the plan and their implementation.

• SEED at a Glance: Connecticut Teacher Evaluation Guidelines

  This is a member-protected resource.

• System for Educator Evaluation and Development (SEED)

  In June 2012, the State Board of Education adopted new guidelines for teacher evaluation to reflect statutory changes passed by the legislature in its 2012 session. The State Department of Education then developed a model for educator evaluation, called the System for Educator Evaluation and Development (SEED). The State Board guidelines, the SEED document, and other related documents, including a FAQ sheet to answer questions about the components of the new evaluation system, can be found at www.connecticutseed.org.

• The Connecticut Common Core of Teaching

  Source from which domains 1 and 4 of the SEED document were taken.

• Charlotte Danielson Framework for Educator Evaluation

  Source from which domains 2 and 3 of the Connecticut domains were taken.