Understanding the Student Learning Experience (SLE) Report

1. Understanding the Student Learning Experience (SLE) Report Federal Grant Programs Conference June 6, 2019

2. What does the SLE Report calculate? • The SLE Report compares the rates at which groups of students have been assigned to different types of teachers by calculating a risk ratio. • A risk ratio shows the difference in the rate at which a historically disadvantaged group has been assigned to a teacher with the given characteristic (experienced, highly rated, in-field), compared to students not in that group. • Students of Color • Economically Disadvantaged Students • Students with Disabilities • English Learners

3. Why does equitable access to educators matter? • Highly Rated: Students assigned a teacher earning an exemplary evaluation accrue about 18 to 24 additional weeks of learning relative to those assigned a teacher earning an unsatisfactory evaluation. • Experienced: Typical third-year teacher produces 4 additional weeks of learning per year as compared to the typical novice teacher. • In-Field: Research shows that a teacher’s subject matter knowledge is related to student achievement.

4. What is an equity gap? • A Risk ratio of 1.50 means that the historically disadvantaged group has shown to be 1.5 times, or 50%, more likely to be assigned to a certain type of teacher. DESE deems risk ratios of 1.5 or higher as equity gaps.

5. Example of an Equity Gap • 1) What does 18% mean? • 2) What does 27% mean? • 3) What does 1.52 mean?

6. Example of an Equity Gap • Does the equity gap of 1.52 mean that this district has a shortage of experienced teachers? Why or why not? • Does the equity gap of 1.52 mean that that 52% of ELs are taught by inexperienced teachers? Why or why not?

7. Frequently Asked Questions • Which students are included in this data? • Students enrolled in your district in the selected school year (the most recent update is October 2018-19) • What does 3 Years of history mean? • This means the report incorporates students’ learning experiences for the last three years. If school year 2018-19 is selected with three years of history, the students’ experiences from 2016-17, 17-18, and 18-19 will be included.

8. Frequently Asked Questions • Where does this data come from? • Effectiveness – June 2017-18 – Educator Evaluation Data collected through EPIMS • Experience – October 2018-19 – EPIMS • Qualifications – October 2018-19 – course name from Student Course Schedule (SCS) data collection and EPIMS; licensure information from October 2018-19 ELAR data; DESE’s License Mapping Tool is used in combination with SCS and ELAR data to determine whether a learning experience is in-field or out-of-field. • Student Demographic Information – October 2018-19 – SIMS data collection

9. Frequently Asked Questions • How are gaps for out-of-field determined? • A learning experience is considered to be with an out-of-field teacher if the teacher does not hold the license for the course they are teaching. For example, a licensed physics teacher who teaches chemistry would be considered out-of-field for the chemistry class. • See the “Out of Field Teacher Assignments (SE 821)” Report in Edwin Analytics for a breakdown of out-of-field teaching assignments

10. Next Steps after Understanding and Analyzing the SLE Report • 1) What additional data should you analyze to help determine the extent or impact of equity gaps? • 2) What are potential causes of equity gaps? • 3) What are potential strategies you can use to close equity gaps? DESE Resources: http://www.doe.mass.edu/educators/equitableaccess

11. How does this appear in the FY20 federal grants application? • The application will indicate whether the district has any equity gaps based the most recent update (June 2019) • Question: What steps is the district taking to address any identified gaps? If the district is choosing to prioritize particular equity gaps, please explain why.

12. Questions about the SLE Report? • Email federalgrantprograms@doe.mass.edu