October 9, 2013
NEW THIS WEEK
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Share Resources, Ideas, Questions and Insights -‐-‐ Join #NCed Chat!
•
Online Assessments: Using Home Base for Classroom and Benchmark
Assessments
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READY Principals Meetings Provide Educator Evaluation Training
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Northeast Leadership Academy Receives USED Grant
•
READY Animation Sets Tone for Discussions around Changes
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We Want You to Like Us – Really, Like Us!
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
• Educator Effectiveness Webinars
NEW THIS WEEK
Share Resources, Ideas, Questions and Insights -‐-‐ Join #NCed Chat!
#NCed Chat serves as a forum for NC educators to meet virtually once a week in a public Twitter conversation around specific, current topics such as literacy at all levels, inquiry-‐based learning and blended learning. Participants also include educators from other states, New Zealand and Canada. NCDPI staff, LEA staff and
members of our Institutes of Higher Learning (IHEs) serve as current moderators.
This blog will archive resources and chats for future reference if you cannot attend weekly. You may also use the #NCed app to view schedules, topics and provide
feedback. Download the app by visiting myapp.is/NCed on your mobile device. Also reference the attachments for upcoming dates and session topics. Join this
Professional Learning Network (PLN) today!
MORE INFO: Dr. Lynne C. Johnson, Educator Effectiveness, lynne.johnson@dpi.nc.gov.
Online Assessments: Using Home Base for Classroom and Benchmark Assessments
Want to know about online assessment tools available in Home Base? You can this
Thursday, Oct. 10, during a 3:30 p.m. webinar, Using Home Base for Classroom and
Benchmark Assessments. The focus of this one-‐hour webinar will be on creating classroom and benchmark assessments, and the following content will be covered:
-‐ Manual Test Creation;
-‐ Naming Conventions;
-‐ Working Collaboratively on Benchmark Assessments;
-‐ Finding items from the ClassScape System in Home Base; and
-‐ Scheduling Assessments.
To register for this webinar, please go to https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/111263889 .
The webinar will be recorded and posted on the website at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/homebase/resources/videos/webinars/ .
MORE INFO: Visit http://www.ncpublicschools.org/homebase/training/schedule/iis/ .
READY Principals Meetings Provide Educator Evaluation Training
Over the past five years, the NC Department of Public Instruction has partnered with school districts and professional organizations to train principals on the new NC
Teacher Evaluation Process. Over the last three years, much of the training has focused on how to navigate the online platform and the process.
In its Race to the Top proposal, North Carolina pledged to continue this support for principals while also turning to deeper and more specific professional development around the meaning of the NC Professional Teaching Standards and the NC Teacher Evaluation Rubric. With the support of a grant from the national
Cross-‐State Learning Collaborative, the NCDPI is excited to launch a new READY
Principals Initiative that will specifically develop the skills of school administrators in using the NC Teacher Evaluation Process to provide specific and constructive
feedback to teachers.
This initiative will include two rounds of regional meetings for principals; the first will take place this fall (October-‐November), and the second will be held in the spring. While these meetings and supporting resources are part of the State’s READY work, the meetings will represent an opportunity for principals to work in groups and dive into new resources available to support their understanding of the NC
Teacher Evaluation Process and NC Teacher Evaluation Rubric. The structure of the
meetings will be highly interactive.
All meetings will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Following is a list of meeting dates and locations, by region:
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Region 1: Wednesday, Oct. 30, Bob Martin Center, NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, 2900 NC Highway 125 South, Williamston;
• Region 2: Thursday, Oct. 31, Hilton Riverside 301 North Water St., Wilmington;
• Region 3: Monday, Nov. 18, Sheraton Imperial, 4700 Emperor Blvd., Durham;
• Region 4: Wednesday, Oct. 16, Crown Center, 1960 Coliseum Dr., Fayetteville;
• Region 5: Tuesday, Oct. 15, Sheraton Four Seasons, 3121 High Point Road, Greensboro;
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Region 6: Wednesday, Nov. 20, Speedway Club, 5555 Concord Parkway South, Concord;
• Region 7: Friday, Nov. 15, Stone Center, Wilkes County Schools, 603 Cherry St.,
North Wilkesboro;
• Region 8: Thursday, Nov. 14, Crowne Plaza, One Resort Drive, Asheville.
The NCDPI is sending a registration email to principals and human resources directors.
MORE INFO: Kim Simmons, NC Educator Evaluation System Consultant,
kimberly.simmons@dpi.nc.gov
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Northeast Leadership Academy Receives USED Grant
Strong professional development for principals will continue in the northeastern part of the state thanks to a grant awarded to North Carolina State University. The
U.S. Department of Education has awarded NCSU a five-‐year, $4.7 million grant to fund the Northeast Leadership Academy (NELA).
This grant builds on the important work begun by NELA in 2010, largely funded by
Race to the Top. It will support two more cohorts of principals-‐in-‐training, assisting with advanced degrees and licensing. The grant also will fund a weeklong summer intensive professional development academy for current principals (20 principals each summer) to help them build instructional leadership skills for digital learning environments. The principal program also includes individual coaching across the next academic year to help principals apply their learning at their school site.
MORE INFO: Freda Lee, Teacher and Leader Preparation, freda.lee@dpi.nc.gov
READY Animation Sets Tone for Discussions around Changes
The NC Department of Public Instruction has developed an animation for our colleagues across the state to use as they plan meetings, work sessions or conferences involving the READY initiative.
The video works well as a "tone setter" for discussions around the new Common
Core State Standards and Essential Standards, new assessments, educator effectiveness, school/district turnaround and more. It serves as an inspirational reminder about the work we do and the ultimate beneficiaries of that work — the
1.5 million students of North Carolina. It could also serve as a way to remind parents and the broader community about our accomplishments and goals and how they could help support our efforts.
Reaction to the READY animation has been highly favorable. We encourage you to incorporate it into your presentations as you plan your meetings over the coming months. Also, feel free to share it with your colleagues for use in school-‐based meetings and activities.
The video is accessible via youtube at this address: http://youtu.be/HCNYt5_K6CU .
MORE INFO: Michael Yarbrough, Communication and Information Services,
michael.yarbrough@dpi.nc.gov
We Want You to Like Us – Really, Like Us!
The READY Facebook page offers information and points of note that we post on a nearly everyday basis, and that often don’t make the Race to the Top Weekly
Update. For example, if you haven’t liked us, you haven’t seen some really cool artwork from NC students posted this week. So, come on – like us, at https://www.facebook.com/NCReadyInitiative . We tweet, too, so follow us at https://twitter.com/ncpublicschools .
MORE INFO: Michael Yarbrough, Communication and Information Services,
michael.yarbrough@dpi.nc.gov
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Educator Effectiveness Webinars
Do you have questions about Home Base? Can you carve a few hours from your week for professional development? If so, we bring the PD to you. Join us every
Tuesday for a tutorial on the Educator Effectiveness online tool.
For a complete list of our Tuesday webinars visit: http://ncees.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/Upcoming+Webinars
The Instructional Improvement webinars are every Thursday from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.
To register for this webinar go to: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/163326432
For a complete list of Thursday webinars please visit:
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/homebase/training/schedule/iis/
MORE INFO: Cynthia Martin, Educator Effectiveness, cynthia.martin@dpi.nc.gov
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RACE TO THE TOP WEEKLY UPDATE INFO
If you know someone who would like to be on this list, please send their email address(es) to Michael.Yarbrough@dpi.nc.gov.
***LINKS: PC users might need to press the CTRL button when clicking on a hyperlink in this document.
Archived Race to the Top Weekly Updates are available online at: http://www.ncpublicschools.org/rttt/reports/weekly