AGENDA
Measuring Educator Effectiveness:
Scaling Up and Providing Support in Implementation of Educator Evaluation
Systems in the Context of Statewide Comprehensive Reform Efforts
June 2-3, 2014 | Marriott City Center | Salt Lake City, UT
Objectives:
1. To identify and address how states can build coherence across state initiatives internally and
externally
2. To examine resources and strategies to strengthen support for systems change and
implementation
3. To identify technology tools that can support effective and efficient implementation at the state
and local levels
Meeting Rooms: All presentations and meals will be in the Amethyst Ballrooms; breakout sessions as noted.
Monday, June 2, 2014
10:30 – 12:00 Pre Session REL West Alliance Meeting (Sundance Room)
ADE and USOE Alliance Members only
11:30 – 12:00 Registration
12:00 – 12:30 Welcome, Opening Remarks, and Working Lunch (Amethyst Ballroom)
Paul Koehler, Director, WCC
Martell Menlove, Utah State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Marie Mancuso, Associate Director, WCC
12:30 – 1:25
Keynote: The National Landscape : Progress, Challenges and Reflections
Building Coherence and Capacity while Managing Burn Out
Stanley Rabinowitz, Director, Center on Standards and Assessment Implementation
This session will provide reflection and discussion on the state of the states in education
reform: what progress we have made, what lessons we have learned, the challenges and
opportunities that have emerged. Discussion will focus on how we move forward given where
we are.
1:30 – 3:00
Presentation: Using Technology Tools to Support Implementation
Jeff Anderson, Audio Enhancements; Samantha Fuhrey, Superintendent, Newton County School
District; and Michael Moody, Insight Education Group
Several ways technology tools can support efficient and effective implementation will be
highlighted and how one district is using them to make educator evaluation systems more
manageable.
This event is sponsored in part by the Central Comprehensive Center, serving Colorado, Kansas, and Missouri.
3:00 -3:15
3:15 – 4:10
Stretch Break
Presentation: Reflections on Implementation: Viewpoints from the National Education
Association
John Wright, National Education Association
How is the national professional organization supporting its members in implementation?
What is the perspective of the practitioner, and how does successful implementation speak to
a new role for teacher leaders and union leaders? The NEA is working to grow a new
generation of leadership to take on new roles in this and other critical issues facing the
profession. How do these changes impact evaluation systems and the relationships between
and among the stakeholders?
4:15 – 5:15
State Teams Working Session I
State teams discuss how they are building coherence internally as well as externally and what
they can do to strengthen support efforts.
Room Assignments: AZ, Amethyst Ballroom; CO, University Room, NV, Sundance Room;
UT, Gallivan Room
5:20 – 5:30
Brief Share-out and Closing Remarks
Dinner on your own
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
7:00 AM
Breakfast (Amethyst Ballroom)
7:30 – 8:10
Working Breakfast and State Panel Discussion (Amethyst Ballroom)
Todd Petersen, Arizona Department of Education
Katy Anthes, Colorado Department of Education
Dena Durrish, Nevada Department of Education
Sydnee Dickson, Utah Department of Education
8:15 – 9:30
Presentation: Why all the Headlines? Challenges in Courts of Law and the Court of Public
Opinion
Kate Lipper, Education Counsel LLC
This session will examine relevant legal principles that inform the design and use of educator
evaluation systems. Pending legal challenges in a number of states will be discussed. This
session also will explore how the implementation of next-generation educator evaluation
systems may be impacted by developments in other areas of education reform, such as state
legislation on issues of student data privacy and security.
9:40 – 11:45
Breakout Sessions: Professional Learning Modules to Build Capacity
Authored by veteran technical assistance providers and reviewed by experts, the GTL Center's
Professional Learning Modules provide content-rich, train-the-trainer materials. The series
focuses on high-need topics as identified through a review of the GTL Center's technical
assistance requests.
Note: State Teams are encouraged to divide up team members to attend all three sessions
and share out at working lunch.
This event is sponsored in part by the Central Comprehensive Center, serving Colorado, Kansas, and Missouri.
9:40 – 11:45
Breakout I: Preparing Educators for Evaluation and Feedback (Sundance Room)
Lynn Holdheide, Center on Great Teachers and Leaders
Implementing a new evaluation system successfully hinges heavily on the level of preparation
and resources that evaluators and educators are provided to complete the evaluation and
feedback cycle. The Center on Great Teachers and Leaders (GTL Center) developed this
module to assist Regional Comprehensive Centers, state education agencies, and, as
appropriate, districts in designing comprehensive professional learning-based approaches for
implementing new educator evaluation systems. In this session, participants will receive an
introduction to evaluation training approaches, including training approaches for different
types of staff, and will work together in planning activities for designing comprehensive
training plans that fit local needs and contexts. The session will include an in-depth overview
of specific training approaches for ensuring that evaluators can collect and score feedback
accurately and reliably, as well as give educators accurate, useful feedback based on the
evaluation.
Breakout II: Using Evaluation Data to Inform Professional Learning (University Room)
Ellen Cushing, Center on Great Teachers and Leaders
Connecting teacher evaluation data to professional learning opportunities is a critical step in
developing and implementing accountability systems that support professional growth. This
professional learning session is designed to help state personnel understand the key link
between teacher evaluation and professional learning and to ensure that school and district
structures support a teacher evaluation system focused on professional growth. In this
session participants will 1) Discuss the key aspects of high quality professional learning; 2)
Practice using individual and schoolwide teacher evaluation data in planning for professional
learning activities; 3) Identify the essential conditions necessary to successfully connect
evaluation with high quality professional learning, and 4) Explore next steps for creating the
essential conditions at the state, local and school level.
Breakout III: Creating Coherence: Connecting Teacher Evaluation and Professional Learning
Systems to the Common Core (Gallivan Room)
Lindsey Hayes, Center on Great Teachers and Leaders
The Creating Coherence Professional Learning Module is a collection of resources designed to
facilitate discussion around the integration of Common Core State Standards, teacher
evaluation, and professional learning systems at the district or school level. The module leads
teams through a collaborative process to identify direct and indirect connections between the
Common Core, teacher evaluation frameworks, and professional plans, offerings, and
structures; identify gaps in support for teacher’s instruction for the Common Core; and plan
for concrete action to strengthen connections and address gaps. This breakout session will
provide an overview of all activities associated with the professional learning module
including ways that state and regional technical assistance providers can customize and adapt
the materials to facilitate work sessions that lead district teams through a collaborative,
coherence-building process.
Note: Bring Educator Evaluation Observation Instrument to this session.
This event is sponsored in part by the Central Comprehensive Center, serving Colorado, Kansas, and Missouri.
11:45-1:15
State Teams Working Session II (Working Lunch)
State teams discuss how morning sessions can inform their work; how they might use these
PLMs in their settings. CGTL staff will meet with state teams to discuss/plan opportunities for
implementation of PLMs. Kate Lipper will join teams for follow-up discussion.
Room Assignments: AZ, Amethyst Ballroom; CO, University Room, NV, Sundance Room;
UT, Gallivan Room
1:15 – 2:30
Cross State Dialog Sessions: Open Space (Amethyst Ballroom)
States will meet together in groups (role alike or by topic of interest) to discuss session topics
and share insights and state and local efforts/strategies.
Open Space I: Designing Systems for Specialized Instructional Support Personnel (Sundance)
Lynn Holdheide & Lindsey Hayes, Center on Great Teachers and Leaders
Specialized instructional support personnel (SISP) play an important role in ensuring student
success. These educators meet students’ needs through a wide range of services and supports
(e.g. therapy, counseling, nursing, and specialized instruction). This session will discuss the
roles that specialized instructional support personnel (e.g. school psychologists, speech
pathologists, occupational therapists) play in these systems of support and how educator
evaluation systems are being differentiated to account for, reinforce, and support the roles
and responsibilities of SISPs so that high-quality services are provided.
2:30 – 2:40
Refreshment Break
2:40 – 3:30
State Teams Working Session III
State teams will meet to finalize discussion, reflection and next steps.
Room Assignments: AZ, Amethyst Ballroom; CO, University Room, NV, Sundance Room;
UT, Gallivan Room
3:40 – 4:00
General Session De-brief and Closing Comments
This event is sponsored in part by the Central Comprehensive Center, serving Colorado, Kansas, and Missouri.