SLTs
1. Where can exemplar SLTs for technical school subjects, art, band, counselors, and librarians be
found? People are looking for more guidance in these areas.
There are currently 33 SLT examples on the DOE’s website at the following link:
http://www.louisianaschools.net/compass/student_learning_goals.html. We will be working to add
to these exemplars over the coming weeks.
2. Can an SLT be written to increase the 9th grade retention rate? If so, what is the evaluation tool?
An SLT focused on 9th grade retention could be appropriate for a counselor or a principal, though not
likely for a teacher.
3. On the Common Assessments sheet, why is there is nothing listed for grades 4-8?
This list was originally intended for teachers in non-tested grades and subjects. Now that in tested
subjects will also be writing SLTs, we do need to expand the list. This is great feedback!
4. Does an inclusion teacher still write SLTs, even they do not assign students a grade for the course?
Yes, if a teacher is working day-to-day with a specified group of students, they should write SLTs.
5. One district is trying to organize the SLT scoring plan the same way as VAM. Would we
recommend this?
 Insufficient attainment-10%
 Partial attainment-40%
 Full attainment-40%
 Exceptional attainment-10%
The SLT process is actually not designed to give teachers a percentile rating like the VAM scores will.
The scoring of SLTs should be based on the extent to which students met, exceeded or fell short of
the goals set for them by teacher and evaluator. I would not advise that the VAM scale be applied to
the SLT process.
6. If two teachers are co-teaching, how would SLTs work for them (whole class, subgroup, etc.)?
This depends upon the context. If these co-teachers both work with the entire class of students on
the same content, they may set the same SLTs and establish them collaboratively. If they split
content or work primarily with specific groups of students within the class, then they should set
their own SLTs accordingly.
7. Technical schools offer various curricula ranging from nursing, EMT trainings, automotive,
welding, etc. Can you provide some guidance or resources to demonstrate how to establish
baselines for coursework where the final assessment/evaluations are for certifications in these
specialized areas of study? In addition, are there examples of SLTs from other piloted districts that
support a technical school?
For technical courses, in which the student has not had previous instruction, baseline data should be
gathered by assessing students’ mastery of key prerequisite skills. This may include reading and
interpreting instructions; completing a basic performance task after learning some introductory
1
skills in the course; or completing a set of math problems, aligned to the type of work students will
be doing in the course. If students have had some previous instruction in the content, then the
process of gathering baseline data should focus on assessing the skills and knowledge they’ve
retained from their previous coursework. There will be SLTs forthcoming in the areas mentioned
above. Our exemplars in these areas were developed by teachers of these courses.
8. Why are STAR tests not on the list of Common Assessment list?
At the time we were creating the Common Assessment list, we were not able to find peer-reviewed
research about the STAR assessments, which was one of the criteria we looked for in the
assessments we included. We’re working with Renaissance Learning to review additional research
that may be available and will consider adding STAR, if we find it meets our criteria. It is important
to note that teachers are not bound to the assessments on the Common Assessments list, these are
only recommendations. They are free to use other assessments if their evaluator agrees that they
are rigorous and appropriate.
9. Why are ACT, PLAN, EXPLORE not on Common Assessment list?
The Explore, Plan, ACT series was not among the initial set of assessments we considered. We will
likely be adding these to the list in the near future.
10. What do SLTs look like for teachers on block schedule? Can they do both SLTs in the fall semester
and get it over with? Or do they have to do one in fall and one in spring?
Teachers on a block schedule need to develop a minimum of two SLTs per year. It is at the discretion
of teachers and evaluators to determine how these SLTs should be set. They may both set goals for
the fall or spring semester; they may set one goal for each semester.
11. How do teachers in alternative schools and SSD set SLTs? Their population of students is ever
changing.
Teachers in alternative settings will certainly have some unique challenges in setting SLTs. Like other
teachers, however, they should work with their evaluators and colleagues to use their professional
judgment to set rigorous, appropriate goals for their students, given the circumstances in which they
teach them. For example, these teachers might set goals related to the average growth they'd
expect to see with students each week or month they're with them. They could also set goals for
specific groups of students they know they'll work with for a given period of time. We’re working to
get some alternative setting exemplars up on the website soon.
12. Would it be advisable for a district or facility within SSD to create an over-arching SLTs for their
teachers with the consideration when writing the SLT being the underlying goal for continued
education of adjudicated students?
It could very well be appropriate for a district/facility to provide guidance relating to how SLTs for
students in these settings could be written. This would likely be helpful to teachers in these settings.
However, professional judgment of teachers and evaluators should always be taken into account in
determining appropriate goals for specific students or groups of students.
2
13. Is there a minimum number of days for a teacher to be with a student when considering writing of
an SLT?
There is no minimum number of days a teacher needs to be with a student in order to write an SLT
incorporating that student. Districts may provide additional guidance on this. Absent a local
requirement, teachers and evaluators should use their professional judgment to determine when
teachers should set SLTs for which students.
14. When considering whether or not to update an SLT, what its considered a significant change on
the number of students?
A significant change in student population would be one that makes the original SLT unreasonable.
Evaluators and teachers are going to need to rely on their professional judgment to determine when
this is the case. Some examples might be when the teacher is asked to teach a different course;
when she gets an influx of students who significantly above or below the level at which her original
group of students was performing; or the number of students a teacher instructs becomes
significantly higher or lower than it originally was. (This necessitates a change to the SLT if it were
set on a particular number of students out of the total.)
15. How do teachers and evaluators monitor progress toward learning targets?
Teachers should identify and use formative assessment strategies that allow them to monitor
students’ progress towards their SLTs over the course of the year. This will help teachers to
understand how to adjust instruction to help students met the goals they’ve set. Teachers and
evaluators should look at the available formative assessment data regularly, to determine if
students are on track to meet the goals, and if not, discuss what interventions may be needed.
16. If a teacher has 5 classes of English, can she set an SLT based on just one of those classes of
students? Or would she have to include all 5 classes of students?
The only requirement is that she set two SLTs for the year total. She should try to cover the majority
of her students between those two SLTs. So, I would suggest that if a teacher has multiple sections
of the same course, she consider setting a target that covers more than one section. However, it will
be at the teacher and evaluator's discretion to determine if this is appropriate.
17. Please clarify what 2 SLTs would be written on a 4 x 4 block for a teacher teaching Alg 1, Alg 2, Adv
Math - term 1 and Alg II and College Alg - Term 2?
This would be at the discretion of the evaluator and teacher involved. Since the teacher teachers
two sections of Algebra II, it would be advisable that she set at least one SLT aligned to that course,
as it is likely to include more students than the others.
18. SLTs are ideally to be developed by the teacher and principal. To what degree will most districts
use directives from the central office in preparing their SLTs.
This will vary based on local context. We’ve heard from a few districts which plan to provide
additional guidance to teachers relative to setting SLTs, but the extent to which this is the case
across the state remains to be seen.
3
19. Will speech therapist, OT, PT, school psychologists set SLTs?
These personnel will only be required to set SLTs if they provide direct instruction or instructional
support to a specified group of students. It will be a local level decision as to whether the job
responsibilities of these individuals fall under that definition or not.
20. Does the SLT come from the PGP which must relate to the school improvement goals of ELA and
Math?
Not necessarily. It is advised that these goals be aligned, but they do not necessarily have to be one
and the same.
21. How do we handle SLTs when teachers are in a virtual school setting?
In virtual settings, the teacher of record (the virtual teacher) should set SLTs for students. The
facilitator, responsible for monitoring instruction, does not need to set SLTs for the course.
22. If a teacher/Counselor monitors LVS are they required to write an SLT? If it is a VAM subject do
they receive the VAM scores?
If the teacher/counselor is only monitoring a classroom of students who are learning from a teacher
delivering instruction through a virtual setting, then no, they do not need to set an SLT. They will not
receive a VAM score either, as they are not the teacher responsible for delivering instruction to
those students in that course.
23. Teacher/Evaluators set SLTs and this is great but we are missing a part of the team - the student.
We must inform them and allow them to take ownership in this process, too.
Great feedback! Providing students the opportunity to take ownership of their own learning goals is
a great way to invest them, and also to give them an understanding of how to make good choices to
advance their own learning. (A practice which aligns nicely with the descriptions of Highly Effective
practice in the Compass Teacher Rubric!)
24. Should districts establish policy for artifacts from teachers to evidence SLTs have been truly met?
This is a local level decision.
25. As an instructional leader I must have knowledge in instruction, curricula, classroom management
and assessment; however for subjects I have never taught such as Chemistry, Calculus, Civics, etc.
How can I make a judgment fair enough for SLT in these subject areas? How will I know if the
assessment is rigorous or not?
This is a question that leaders across the state are grappling with. Where possible, we’d recommend
that leaders utilize the expertise within their faculty or across schools within the district to
understand rigor for content areas with which they are not familiar. For example, the leader may
convene all of the chemistry teachers to decide upon an assessment and framework for establishing
SLTs in chemistry that they all agree is rigorous. This provides some additional validity to the
individual chemistry teacher’s claim to rigor on his/her own.
26. Can the teacher do the two SLTs in fall semester and get it over with?
Yes, they could conceivably do this. This will be at the discretion of the district and the teacher’s
evaluator.
4
27. I have a teacher who starts then leaves in October, a new teacher starts. Will the new teacher
make her own learning target or continue with old teacher’s SLT?
The new teacher and his/her evaluator should determine which approach is most appropriate in this
situation. (The new teacher is not required to continue with the old teacher’s SLT.)
Observations
1. Can a lesson be recorded in addition to scripted?
This is a local level decision. Teachers and evaluators should ensure that they have permission to
capture students on video before implementing this strategy.
2. Can informal observation data be collected over time?
Evaluators should collect as much evidence as possible in each observation and rate each of the five
components in the rubric for each observation, using the evidence gathered. If evaluators find they
have not gathered enough evidence to rate each of the five components, they can re-do the
observation.
3. Can evaluators, over the period of the year, still have informal observations that add to the
evidence in the formal evaluation?
They can do additional informal observations, but if they are going to use the evidence from those,
they should record ratings for each of the five components on each of the observations at the time
they are conducted.
4. What is the guideline for how many days you have to do a post-conference?
Bulletin 130 does not define how many days evaluators have to provide feedback after an
observation. Every teacher should receive feedback after every observation, but there aren’t a
specific number of days outlined in the Bulletin – there is only specific guideline for after the final
evaluation results and that is 15 days.
5. How can you see student leadership in a classroom of students with significant disabilities? Are
these teachers at a disadvantage when it comes to earning Highly Effective ratings?
There are ways that teachers can empower students with significant disabilities to make choices
about their learning, but it will likely look very different than it does in a general education
classroom. When an evaluator is preparing to observe a teacher of students with significant
disabilities, they should plan to have a pre-observation conference with that teacher to understand
the way that their students communicate these choices, given their specific disabilities.
6. Does the same person have to do both observations for a teacher? (i.e. Can the principal do a
formal observation and the AP does the informal observation?)
No, the same evaluator does not have to do both observations. So, the principal can count the AP’s
observation rating in the final evaluation. However, in order to do that, both the principal and AP
5
have to be trained and certified evaluators and a record should be kept of who conducted which
observation. The primary evaluator ultimately has to sign off on the final evaluation.
7. Some evaluators were brainstorming about doing multiple observations and only entering the
best one in HCIS. What guidance is there on this practice?
The minimum requirement here is that evaluators do at least two observations on which they rate
all five components on the rubric and record those ratings, so they can be rolled up into the
professional practice score. They may do additional observations for purely developmental purposes
and not required to record the results of these observations. Evaluators have the flexibility to
structure these observations as they see fit, provided they meet these minimum requirements.
8. Is there a comparison document between TAP and Compass? Some schools in transition are
asking.
We have done comparisons, but have not published a document on this. It is something we can
certainly look into making available for districts to use.
9. If an evaluator conducts 2 formal observations and 1 informal for a school year, are they averaged
together?
Yes, if the evaluator conducts three observations and assigns ratings for all of them, all three will be
averaged together to determine the final professional practice score for the teacher.
10. Can teachers request a "re do" of their observation (formal or informal) if there is a serious
circumstance or if a teacher is just having a bad day?
This is a local level decision.
11. Are evaluators required to script the lessons?
No, this is just one recommended way of gathering evidence.
12. Can number ratings other than whole numbers be used to score components? (Example 1.4 or
2.7)
No, individual components should be rated using whole numbers, (e.g. 1, 2, 3, or 4.) When
component scores are averaged to come up with a score for that observation overall, the score can
include up to two decimal places.
13. What is guidance should be given to participants concerning scoring components on the Danielson
rubric? Do we used tally marks for each level? If there is variance in anchors, what is our scoring
approach?
Evaluators should gather as much evidence as possible for each observation they conduct. In
considering that evidence when assigning a rating for a given component, they should determine
which of the performance levels is most strongly supported by the preponderance of evidence they
gathered in that particular observation. They should be sure to take into account all parts of the
rubric in making this determination, (i.e. introductory paragraph for the component; descriptions of
6
each level of performance; critical attributes; and examples of evidence.) They should not consider
the critical attributes to be a checklist teachers must complete in order to earn a particular rating.
14. On p. 6 of the Compass Guidebook it states that teachers may also be observed by other staff for
development purposes to provide feedback. However it further states the ratings will not be used
for evaluation. If the observer is designated by the principal and has attended the Evaluator
Training, will the observer be allowed to rate observations?
Yes.
15. What evaluation instrument do we use to observe and evaluate counselors?
The LDOE has published a model rubric for school counselors as part of Compass, which is available
at the following link: http://www.louisianaschools.net/lde/uploads/20165.pdf. LEAs may use a
different rubric, provided they submit a notification form to the LDOE. Information on this process
can be found at the following link: http://www.louisianaschools.net/topics/ppmltr_waiver.html.
16. What is the difference between a formal and informal observation if we have to evaluate all five
components?
A formal observation must last for the full duration of the lesson and be preceded by a preobservation conference and followed by a post-observation conference. A informal observation
need not last for the entirety of the lesson, and need not include formal pre- and post-observation
conferences, though the teacher should get meaningful and timely feedback on informal
observations as well.
17. What if a teacher gets effective emerging or highly effective in one certain domain the one time
for the formal observation but any other informal observations or walk-throughs—you never see
it again? Do we score HE if we see it one in the formal or do we put all together formal and
informal before scoring?
In each observation that contributes to a final evaluation score, all five components should be
scored. These component scores are averaged to come up with an overall score for each
observation, and those observation scores are averaged to come up with an overall professional
practice score.
18. How do we handle a speech teacher's observation who is working one-on-one with a student
(articulation or language)?
Speech language pathologists are not required to be evaluated according to Compass. However, if a
district has decided to evaluate speech language pathologists according to the Compass Teacher
Rubric, it is recommended that the evaluator hold a pre-observation conference with the SLP prior
to the observation, to understand what scope of a typical lesson looks like for that educator and
how the different components of the rubric are addressed in her work with students.
VAM
1. In middle school, if you have two teachers teaching reading and ELA, how would the VAM data
work?
7
This one’s a little tricky. Currently the ELA test for LEAP/iLEAP has subtests for reading, writing, and
grammar. The reading section has a significant number of items in that test, so we’re able to give
teachers reported as “reading” teachers a value-added score based only on the reading section.
However, the writing and grammar do not have enough items for us to give teachers ONLY writing
and grammar VAM scores, so we’ve given these teachers a score that’s based on the entire ELA test.
With the adoption of Common Core, all teachers should be supporting literacy in their classrooms
and seeing these components of ELA as integrated throughout their instruction. As such, we will
likely be reporting VAM scores based on the entirety of the ELA test for reading, writing, and/or
grammar teachers moving forward.
2. How will honor teachers know to what level they need to get their students to ensure they earn
an Effective: Proficient or Highly Effective VAM score?
Teachers will not be given a specific target for growth required to earn particular VAM scores. In
order to be considered Highly Effective according to VAM, a teacher needs to achieve growth with
his/her students that is significantly above the growth that they typically achieve in a year. Students
who are consistently high-achieving do not typically make a significant amount of growth in a year.
Their teachers are expected to achieve growth beyond that typical outcome.
3. Do districts score VAM SLTs or are they only scored when the teacher is no longer eligible for a
VAM score?
SLTs should always be scored because that’s good instructional practice and they can be used for
teachers to reflect on how they did with their students. Districts will NOT be required to report
those SLT scores, however.
4. In a VAM classroom, does the inclusion teacher get a VAM score when the regular classroom
teacher does?
This will depend on how the teachers’ assignments are reported. They can share a VAM score if they
are co-teaching. If the inclusion teacher is working with a group of students who do not take the
standard state test or a group that is fewer than ten students, they will rely on their SLTs for their
growth score, rather than VAM. In order to get a VAM score, both teachers would need to verify
their rosters following state testing to confirm which students they were responsible for teaching.
5. Will teachers ever be able to know how much students will be expected to grow at what levels?
Teachers will not see the score that the value-added model determines to be typical of their
students at the beginning of the year. This is because part of calculating that score involves looking
at how students with similar characteristics did on the same test in the same year. This can only be
done at the end of the year.
6. Will teachers know "the formula"?
Yes, teachers can learn about the formula through the VAM resources posted on the LDOE website.
7. How can we explain situations such as a teacher of the year who has been rated ineffective based
on his/her data?
8
There are a few key questions we should ask to learn more about this situation. First, did the
teacher verify his/her rosters? This is the most important step to ensuring that his/her VAM data is
accurate. If they did not verify their rosters, then it’s possible the rating was not based on the most
up-to-date data. Second, did they look at the breakdown of their students’ data by subgroups? This
is something they are able to do in the Curriculum Verification and Reporting Portal (CVR). In many
cases, a teacher may have high-achieving students, but may not be moving those students forward
at the same rate they’ve moved forward in the past. Or, there may be another subgroup of their
students that they are not moving forward a rate that’s typical for them. Third, I would encourage
them to seek access to their student-specific data via the LEAP Query system.
12. Will teachers of all students in Algebra I and Geometry receive VAM scores?
No, only teachers of middle school and 9th grade students will receive VAM scores for Algebra I and
Geometry. If students are taking these courses later in their high school careers, we don’t currently
have previous year’s test data for them, which is needed in order to calculate a VAM score.
13. What if teacher doesn’t get a VAM score because she misses too many days will he/she then
receive SLT score?
Yes, if a teacher is ineligible for a VAM score, her student growth score will be based on her SLTs.
14. How do you define "majority of the academic term" (Day 1, Slide 69)
For the purposes of VAM, the “majority of the academic term” is defined as October 1 through two
weeks before testing.
15. Why do teachers have to have the VAM supersede the majority of the teaching day when their
VAM score only represents 1 class of students that they teach and a very small number of
students?
According to Act 54, the value-added measure must be used as the measure of student growth,
where available.
16. Does this teacher receive a VAM score?
 1st Hr. – five 9th grade first time algebra I students (Other students are in other
grades.)
 2nd Hr. – three 9th grade first time algebra I students (Other students are in other
grades.)
 3rd Hr. – two 9th grade first time geometry students ( Other students are in other
grades.)
 3 other preps in PE
The teacher in the example would not get a VAM score because the teacher does not have enough
students to qualify for a score (10). The teacher only has 8 in Algebra and 2 in Geometry.
17. Are repeater students included in algebra I and geometry VAM scores?
Repeaters are not used in Geometry calculations, but they are in the Algebra. We can’t use them in
Geometry because there are so few of them that it leads to unstable numbers because of the low
numbers of students in some variable categories.
18. Deadlines- fall semester for # of students is October 1st. What is the deadline date for teachers
who teach a different subject in the spring semester?
9
For those teaching a fall semester class, the timeline is Oct. 1 to the end of the semester. For those
teaching a spring semester class, the timeline is the beginning of the semester to two weeks prior to
testing.
HCIS
1. Do Professional Growth Plans have to be put into HCIS?
No, this is not required. HCIS does have functionality that allows educators to document their PGPs
in the system, but this is optional.
2. What features will teachers have vs evaluators?
Teachers will be able to record professional growth plans, student learning targets, and selfevaluations (optional). They will also be able to view evaluators’ feedback on observations and their
final evaluation score. Evaluators will be able to view the PGPs, SLTs, observation results, and
teachers’ self-evaluation comments for the teachers under their purview, as well as approve SLTs,
script lessons, enter observation comments and ratings, and complete final evaluations.
3. Can HCIS be used for multiple observations? Will they be able to enter daily walk-through info in
the system? Could they use the journaling function for this?
Yes, HCIS can be used for multiple observations. The system does allow for walk-through or
observation notes to be saved and shared with the teacher without assigning ratings that will
contribute to the evaluation score.
4. In regards to observations and information required to be put into HCIS: are evaluators only
required to enter ratings for each component (p.8 of the observation workbook)? Do the teacher
goals/objectives for the observed lessons have to be entered into HCIS as well?
Evaluators should enter ratings for each component for each observation, along with any comments
they’d like to provide to the teacher. Evaluators do not need to enter the goals/objectives for the
observed lessons into HCIS, unless they deem them relevant to the observation comments.
5. Can teachers change their information in HCIS without the evaluator being notified? This was
asked because they were concerned that teachers would change the information.
Teachers are only able to edit certain pieces of information in HCIS, such as their professional
growth plan or optional self-evaluation. They are not able to edit their observation ratings or
comments and can only update SLTs with the evaluators sign-off.
6. How many people can enter data into HCIS per school?
HCIS will be available to all teachers and evaluators in a school.
7. Will there be an HCIS app for iPads?
10
We are working on creating an HCIS app! In the meantime, HCIS can be used on iPads via Safari.
8. Describe users who will have access in HCIS.
HCIS will be available to teachers, evaluators, other observers, LEA supervisors, LEA-level system
administrators, and LDOE-level system administrators. Each user will only have access to the data
that is relevant to them and/or to the educators they evaluate. Designated LEA-level system
administrators will serve as ‘Super-Users’ for their LEA and will be able to view all data for the LEA.
9. Will the system (HCIS) still time-out after 20 minutes even with continued activity?
No, this was an issue we were able to address, thanks to feedback from our pilot districts.
10. How long will effectiveness data be kept in HCIS where districts have access?
Final evaluation results reported to the state will be saved indefinitely. All other data entered into
the system, (i.e. PGPs, SLTs) will be cleared after each academic year.
11. How soon can we get screenshots from HCIS on key steps and functions?
We are in the process of creating the user guides. These will include screenshots and will be ready
by when we launch HCIS with the LEAs on August 14. In the meantime, please refer to the HCIS
webinar, available at the following link:
http://www.louisianaschools.net/compass/webtraining.html. We are also updating the website this
week which will include a process map, the HCIS@la.gov link, and the data entry requirements for
non-HCIS districts.
12. When will districts receive training on HCIS and what is the length of time required for the
training?
We will start training for LEAs on August 14 and continue training throughout the rest of the month.
Training for LEA ‘Super-Users’ will be one full day in length.
Policy Issues
1. Will we have evaluations for literacy coaches?
We’re focusing on staff members that are providing instructional support to students. Instructional
coaches are part of that, but it’s going to be a local level decision as to which staff fall into that
definition. Like counselors and librarians, if they are working with teachers to advance student
achievement in a given content area over a given period of time, they should set SLTs for how
students in those classrooms are going to improve.
2. Do districts need to submit list of evaluators to the DOE?
No, the LDOE will maintain a list of certified evaluators based upon which evaluators attended and
successfully completed the evaluator training. Districts should have a list of evaluators and who they
are evaluating. (This is the accountability relationships register mentioned in Bulletin 130.)
3. Is July 15th the date that principals need report teachers’ final ratings? I know test scores are
supposed to be available earlier, but how are teachers supposed to sign off when they are gone
for the summer?
11
July 15th is right – that’s in Bulletin 130 and that’s been a practice districts have had to do for a
while. It’s going to be a challenge for teachers whose assessments don’t come in until later, and so
some teachers may need to come in during the summer to sign off on their final evaluation. I would
recommend selecting assessments that they’ll get results on prior to that deadline.
4. A district leader asked about a specific Bulletin 130 question in regards to different language
between performance standards competencies (Bulletin 130, 307, B1) and components of
effective teaching (Slide 30).
Bulletin 130 reads:
The tool for teacher evaluation shall align to the competencies and performance standards
contained within the Louisiana Components of Effective Teaching, which shall henceforth be
called the Louisiana Teacher Competencies and Performance Standards. The tool for administrator
evaluation shall align to the competencies and performance standards contained within the
Performance Expectations and Indicators for Education Leaders, which shall henceforth be called
the Louisiana Leader Competencies and Performance Standards.
Are we using this language or staying with the slide?
We are staying with the slide. The district leader was referencing an outdated version of Bulletin
130. This language was updated in April, but has not yet been posted to the BESE website, as it is
still going through the Notice of Intent process. The new language should be finalized and posted by
the end of August.
5. Can you please provide a concise response to this question: What are the consequences mandated
by law for ineffective ratings?
The first consequence for an Ineffective rating is that the teacher is placed on an intensive
assistance plan. If, after completing the plan, the teacher still earns a rating of Ineffective a year
later, the LEA is required to initiate dismissal proceedings for that teacher. If the teacher earns an
Ineffective rating for three years within a five year certificate renewal cycle, they will not have their
certificate renewed. Beginning in 2013-14, after one Ineffective rating, the teacher would lose
his/her tenure.
6. How will an ineffective score impact teachers for future job appointments?
Districts considering employing a teacher candidate have the right to ask the previous employing
district for the teacher’s evaluation data. In this sense, an Ineffective rating may impact a teacher’s
ability to secure additional job appointments subsequently.
7. Which employees must sign a new job description yearly? Teachers, librarians, counselors, asst
principals, principals??
Districts should maintain signed job descriptions for all employees.
12
8. What about other certificated employees- do they sign new job descriptions each year? Currently,
the district only requires these employees to sign new job descriptions when their evaluator
changes. Is this still acceptable?
Yes.
9. Can HR directors access info from previous district employer? What would protocol be for this?
Yes, HR directors will have access to previous evaluation results for prospective employees, if they
have worked in other Louisiana districts. We are working on a safe, secure protocol for
accomplishing this.
10. Is it true that this year 2012-2013 our practice year? Please explain.
No, 2012-13 is not a practice year. This misconception is likely coming from a provision in Act 1,
which delayed the consequence of losing tenure after an Ineffective rating until 2013-14. All other
components of Compass will be implemented fully in 2012-13.
11. Can you clarify the new policy relating to tenure?
Beginning in 2012-13, the only way a non-tenured teacher can gain tenure is by earning Highly
Effective ratings for five years out of six. Beginning in 2013-14, tenured teachers will lose their
tenure after one Ineffective rating.
12. For a school to earn SPS bonus points for moving 30% of subgroup past their expected outcomes,
is the minimum # required per grade or per school?
Per school.
13. Suppose a teacher takes a sabbatical for the fall semester. The substitute teacher is certified.
Does the substitute teacher have to write SLTs and be observed two times? Then when the
original teacher comes back, does she gather new baseline data and write two new SLTS and be
observed two times. That means the evaluator will observe four times for that class? How does
VAM play into this?
If the substitute teacher is an employee of the district and is tasked with providing instruction to a
specified group of students for an extended period of time, then he/she should set SLTs for their
students and should be observed and receive feedback on their instructional practice. Because this
teacher, like other teachers, will be evaluated based upon their performance over the course of the
entire academic year, they need not set both SLTs or complete both observations in the first
semester. In this case, neither teacher would be eligible to receive a VAM score, as neither taught
this group of students for the majority of the academic term (Oct. 1-two weeks before testing.)
14. If a teacher is ineffective in test scores but highly effective in observations, they are labeled
ineffective. Is that how the law was written or intended?
While it’s unlikely that a teacher would earn a rating of Ineffective according to one measure and a
rating of Highly Effective according to another, it is possible that their student growth and
professional practice measures indicate different things. Bulletin 130 requires that any teacher
receiving a rating of Ineffective in either component of his/her evaluation receive a rating of
Ineffective overall. The rationale behind this policy is focused on ensuring that struggling teachers
13
get the help they need. If a teacher is rated Ineffective in either measure, this is cause for great
concern – either they are achieving growth with their students that is significantly below that which
was expected; or they have failed to demonstrate the basic behaviors needed to effectively drive
instruction, according to the observation rubric. In either case, these concerns should not be
overshadowed by a more favorable rating on the other component of the evaluation. This teacher
should be identified as one in need of intensive assistance, which is the first thing that will happen
when they receive an Ineffective rating.
15. Will a teacher on OFAT/TAT have special consideration? If not, as a teacher moves to a new
assignment do scores or “label” follow and accumulate?
Teachers with Out of Field Authority to Teach or Temporary Authority to Teach will not receive any
special or different treatment as part of Compass, as they are personnel responsible for providing
direct instruction to a specified group of students. They will be held accountable in the same way
teachers teaching within their areas of certification will be held accountable.
16. When will the results for pilot districts be released? May we see data published from pilot districts
to show effectiveness of compass & student growth?
Preliminary results and feedback from the pilot are discussed in our recent webinars on updates to
the Compass process, available at the following link:
http://www.louisianaschools.net/compass/webtraining.html. We are in the process of analyzing
additional data from the pilot now.
17. What is the state’s working definition of rigor?
‘Rigor’ is admittedly, a difficult term to define. We view rigorous goals as those which are
challenging, but attainable to students. In other words, the goal should be a ‘stretch’ for students,
but it should be a reasonable stretch. This will be an important balance to strike with SLTs, and it will
rely on the professional judgment of teachers and evaluators, along with their careful consideration
of the data available on the specific students being addressed.
18. What happens when a beginning teacher scores poorly? How long does he/she have to improve
their evaluation?
Like other teachers, beginning teachers have the right to intensive assistance when they receive a
rating of Ineffective. Their intensive assistance plan should be no longer than one year in duration.
They must show improvement on the subsequent annual evaluation following completion of the
intensive assistance plan, or face dismissal proceedings. (This timeline is the same for beginning and
experienced teachers.)
19. What are the ramifications for teachers who agree to take student teachers?
Teachers who take on student teachers are not evaluated any differently than teachers who do not
take on student teachers.
20. What about school performance score of schools that have student teachers?
School Performance Scores (SPS) is calculated the same way for schools that have student teachers
as it is for those that do not.
14
21. How will Compass ensure that observers are fair and impartial and classes are not stacked in favor
of some teachers? Many principals and central office staff in small parishes have friends, family,
relatives working under them.
The fair and effective implementation of Compass will depend on the actions and professional
judgment of school and district leaders. One way that the system ensures these leaders have the
incentive to make decisions in the best interest of students is by linking principals’ evaluations to
student success as well. In order to earn a Highly Effective rating themselves, principals will have to
be honest with themselves about teachers’ performance and take action to help all teachers
improve accordingly. Additionally, districts are required to have grievance procedures in place to
ensure that disputes relating to evaluation and support are addressed.
22. A teacher is out on sabbatical fall semester. A certified teacher is in her place. Doesn't the
certified teacher taking the real teacher's place have to do the SLTs and be observed twice and the
when the real teacher returns she writes two SLTS getting new baseline data and have to be
observed two times. Am I correct?
Each teacher must be observed twice during the year for their annual evaluation. This means the
teacher on sabbatical would indeed need to be observed twice during the spring semester and write
her SLTs for that semester. If the teacher who covered her class in the fall ends up teaching another
class in the spring, one or more of her observations could take place then. (They would not both
need to take place in the fall semester.)
23. What about long term subs that are certified? Do they go through this process? How many days
do they have to be in the classroom to count for writing SLTs.
Long-term subs who are employed by the district to serve as teachers should be evaluated according
to Compass. The state has not mandated a minimum number of days they must be in the classroom
in order to write SLTs. This is at the district’s discretion.
24. Is all of this high stakes for the 2012-2013 school year?
Yes, Compass will be fully implemented in 2012-13. The only high-stakes provision that will not be
implemented in 2012-13 is the loss of tenure after an Ineffective rating. This will go into effect in
2013-14.
25. How does the teacher who has surgery and misses 45 days get assessed? Or gets locked in Rehab
for 6 weeks for drug/alcohol abuse?
The system does account for excessive teacher absences when it comes to measuring student
growth. For teachers whose student growth scores rely on SLTs, they may need to update them if
they are absent for a significant amount of time, to make the goals realistic for what they will be
able to achieve with students during the time they have with them. For teachers whose student
growth scores are based on value-added, if they have 60 or more excused absences in a year, their
value-added scores will be invalidated.
26. How will you evaluate a computer lab, online teachers, instructional coaches and credit recovery
teachers?
15
These teachers will also be evaluated according to the Compass Teacher rubric, or another stateapproved instrument, and will write SLTs for their student growth measures.
Logistics
1. If we have people come to the training who didn’t register, do we have them stay or tell them
they’ll need to do a make-up training?
We tried to build in enough materials to let in up to 10 people who didn’t register. If more than 10
people come to the training who are not registered, please ask them to register for an upcoming
training session via Coursewhere. (Make-up training sessions will be posted tomorrow.)
2. When will the powerpoint of this training be available on the DOE website? Will the videos used
in the training be made available to districts on the LDOE website?
The powerpoints will be posted to the website this week, (week of 7/30.) They will be found on the
Webinars/Training page at the following link:
http://www.louisianaschools.net/compass/webtraining.html. We’ll also send these out to training
attendees in an email by Monday, 7/30.
3. In the Compass Teacher Rubric, ratings go from ineffective to highly effective left to right; in the
observation workbook, they go from highly effective to ineffective left to right. Is there a reason
for this?
No, this was an oversight. We will update the observation workbook on the website to ensure that it
too, lists descriptions of Ineffective to Highly Effective in the same order as the rubric.
4. Please advise when training will occur for educational leader SLTs.
This training will occur in September. The recent webinar on this topic will be posted to the LDOE
website the week of July 30.
5. Why should district level people take this training when they are to evaluate only school level
administrators?
District-level administrators play an important role in supporting principals as the instructional
leaders in their buildings. It is essential for district leaders to understand what is being expected of
teachers and their evaluators in order to plan and provide support to schools accordingly.
6. Approximately how much time is required per teacher to appropriately address this process? (Did
the pilot districts offer this information?)
We estimate that this process will take 8-12 hours per teacher, per year.
16