Integrating Student Standardized and Interim Assessments with National Board's

1. Integrating Student Standardized and Interim Assessments with National Board's Teacher Development Process The Eleventh MARCES/MSDE Event October 20, 2011

2. Session Goals • Overview of how National Board assesses teacher practice and provides standardized feedback based on the Five Core Propositions • A case study of integrating both student standardized and interim assessments with teacher professional development • Bringing together the results of teacher and student assessments to enhance teacher practice and student learning • Considerations for taking these lessons to scale

3. A Way Forward • The U.S. educational accountability movement has not yet delivered desired results • U.S. performance on the OECD’s PISA* • 14th in reading • 17th in science • 25th in math • We need to support teaching practice – the tools and methods of our learning communities (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Programme for International Student Assessment)

4. Over the last 20 years, the nation’s focus on measuring educational results has grown and intensified • Historically, two separate conversations • Student outcomes • Teacher evaluation • NBPTS has always believed that the success of teachers in promoting student learning should be a defining measure of an accomplished teachers • Teacher demonstration of student learning is integral to becoming an NBCT

5. Balanced Focus Policy- Outcome Practice - Input Student Learning Teacher Growth • Student Achievement • Teacher Evaluation

7. The Challenge How do we leverage accomplished teacher practice to address the societal need of graduating well-educated students?

8. Provide states and school districts whole school transformation tools and processes that are: NBPTS’ Approach • Successful • Systematic • Scalable • Sustainable

9. Take One! Whole School Transformation • Validate a process to improve teaching effectiveness and student learning in low-performing schools • Assess NB’s Take One! professional development feeder pattern approach in strengthening teacher effectiveness and student outcomes • Determine feasibility of taking to scale • Compare two feeder school systems, using one as a control • Through December 2013 • Initial year, 2010-11, funded by the Gates Foundation

10. To better understand appropriate measures of teacher practice linked to student performance, NBPTS convened a task force of educational experts in assessment, reform and measuring teacher quality.

11. Task Force Members Lloyd Bond, University of North Carolina, Greensboro Peggy Carr, National Center for Education Statistics Linda Darling-Hammond, Stanford University Doug Harris, University of Wisconsin, Madison Frederick Hess, American Enterprise Institute Robert Linn (chair), University of Colorado, Boulder Lee Shulman, Carnegie Foundation

12. Clarity in Language Greater clarity will net better outcomes for college and workforce preparedness • Student achievement is the status of subject-matter knowledge, understandings and skills at one point in time and is commonly measured by standardized tests. • Student learning is the growth in subject-matter knowledge, understandings and skills over time. Learning is gauged by comparing student mastery at successive points in time.

13. Recommendations for Teacher Evaluation • Be grounded in student learning, not student achievement • “The only defensible way to determine teacher effectiveness is to focus on the gains that students have realized over the period during which the teacher provided instruction.” • Employ measures of student learning explicitly aligned with the elements of curriculum for which the teachers are responsible • “Tests may need to be differentiated to address the needs of the groups of students being taught, including students with disabilities or language-acquisition needs.”

14. Criteria for Large-Scale Standardized Tests As a measure of teacher effectiveness, they must meet the following minimum conditions • Curriculum-related scale with equivalent unit of measure along a considerable continuum of achievement • Information on validity of tests for assessing special populations • A data system that tracks students and links to teachers • Alignment between tests and state curricula

15. From Learning to Measuring What is Tested Does Count, But Much of What Counts Is Not Measured What is formally tested in core subjects only Knowledge and learning that can be measured All classroom learning

17. Why Jefferson County School District??

18. Factors That Make The Difference • A Structured Approach • Buy-in that Creates a Shift in School Culture • Clarity of Roles • Feeder Systems

19. A Structured Approach: Alignment of Teacher Tasks

20. Buy-in to Change School Culture • Critical Mass of Teachers • Works collaboratively with peers around a common purpose • With colleagues, addresses issues across the feeder system • Focused dialogue and peer support • Teacher Leader • Augments principals with instructional leadership • Facilitate collaborations, structured discussions, feedback and support • Principals • Demonstrated leadership through changed interactions with teachers • Structure of environment that supports focused collaboration • Serves as key instructional leader • School District • Superintendent involvement & presence • Deployment of human capital • Alignment of resources supportive of implementation

21. Project Approach • Train-the-trainer model • Project Director and Coordinator provide leadership and support to principals who will meet once monthly to receive training on guiding their faculty. • All-participant group meetings • Hostfour meetings to build professional learning communities among the feeder school system meetings will focus on, for example, reflective thinking. • Small group meetings • Twice monthly, principal and facilitator will meet with faculty to guide the process, lead peer reviews, and provide teacher support.

22. Feeder System • Permits a systems approach, creating more feedback loops during the entire K-12 experience • Facilitates a more long-term connection to students, enabling teachers to preview & follow-up about students • Strengthens collaboration among teachers at different schools to build connections, strengthen practice & resolve issues • Enables early identification of student issues, while successful intervention is meaningful • Enables principal cohort & learning community focused on instruction & classroom improvements

23. Feeder System Characteristics • Eight low-performing schools • 63% of schools receive Title I funding • 58% of feeder pattern’s students receiving free/reduced lunch • High school has failed to meet AYP for the last 5 years • 210 teachers participating – 70% of all teachers

24. Measures

25. Portfolio Assessment Center Student Work Exercise 1 Exercise 5 Whole Group Video Entry 3 Exercise 3 Exercise 4 Small Groups Video Entry 2 Documented Accomplishments Exercise 2 Exercise 6 Take One! One Entry of NBPTS’ Certification Process

26. Port. #1 ε Teaching Skill Port. #2 ε Port. #3 ε ε Port. #4 AC #1 ε ε AC #2 ε AC #3 Content Knowledge ε AC #4 AC #5 ε AC #6 ε NBPTS’ Certification Assessment 2-Factor Confirmatory Factor Analysis

27. Summary of Standardized Feedback – Year 1

29. Learning Community Engagement and Leadership SurveyFormative and Summative Administration Engagement Perceptions About the Learning Community • Principal • Students • Parents • Certified Staff • Classified Staff • Community Members Leadership 360 Perceptions About the Principal’s Behaviors • Principal • Supervisor • Peers • Certified Staff • Classified Staff

30. Leadership Behaviors Mapped to the Standards in Behavioral Language

31. Cross-Rater Items

32. Questions to Respondent Group “Teachers present materials at a level our students can understand.” “I present materials at a level our students can understand.” “Teachers present materials at a level my child can understand.” “My teachers present materials at a level I can understand.” “My teachers give lessons at a level I can understand.”

33. Pre-post Reporting

34. Benefits of Student Measures • Longitudinal results • Guide student development • Positions college as a viable opportunity

35. Alabama Reading and Math TestThe 4th & 5th grade teachers are new

36. How Are We Doing?Some Interim Assessments What is formally test in core subjects only Knowledge and learning that can be measured All classroom learning

37. Interim Integrated Classroom Evaluation

38. Know Students and Subject Area The Architecture of Accomplished Teaching • Areas to know about your students • Where they are intellectually, socially & emotionally • Whether they have special learning needs • How they feel most comfortable learning • What they know & do not know • What they can & cannot do • What they are interested in • How any issues or event taking place in their lives may affect learning • Resources • Personal observation of students • Interest inventories & surveys • Student work products • Report cards • Records from previous schools • Standardized tests scores • IEPs • Student extracurricular activities • Results from diagnostics testing • Previous teachers • Guidance counselors • Family members • Students themselves Step 1: Know Students and Subject Area

39. Interim Integrated Classroom Evaluation

40. Evaluate Student Learning The Architecture of Accomplished Teaching • Analyzing Your Video • Extent of classroom involvement • Extent of student engagement in lesson • Evidence of student learning • Student success in meeting learning goals • Types of questions you asked • Opportunities for students to ask questions • Adjustment in lesson so learning goals achieved by every student Step 4: Evaluate Student Learning Following instruction, evaluate student learning to see if goals were met.

41. Interim Integrated Classroom Evaluation

42. Reflect on Teaching Practice The Architecture of Accomplished Teaching • Step 5: Reflect on Teaching Practice • What would I do differently? • What are my next steps? • Reflection • Link reflection to knowledge of your students • Link reflection back to goals of lesson • Cite specific strengths and weaknesses • Describe appropriateness of your instructional choices • Provide clear, consistent & convincing evidence & examples of student learning • Discuss how you continue with your instruction • Discuss any modifications to advance student learning 5th

43. Take One! Submission Rate Comparison Take One! Whole School Transformation 80% General Population 50%

44. Participation Increase

45. Status Preliminary reactions are positive • Teachers - talking, planning, and communicating with each other • Teachers - excited to have the opportunity to work with others in their field from across the feeder pattern, an atypical experience • Principals - connecting with teachers in new ways through Take One! • Principals - communicating about student support • Superintendent – encouraging his central office staff, principals, teachers and other staff to build on the success • Everyone -- Identifying strengths and weaknesses across the schools in the feeder pattern • Everyone - seeing the students as “their students,” a collective responsibility

46. Where Are We Going? • Refined year one and building year two • Developing a structured process with a supporting suite of tools that: • Defines the elements for success • Road-tested and readily available • Is affordable to implement & sustain • Facilitates continued school growth – multi-year • Is research-based • Gettingthe word out • Department of Education • Alabama publications

47. Evaluation and Modification of Program Year One Year Two Teacher evaluates data and selects lesson to support area of student need Identify and train school-based teacher leaders to build capacity In-school cohort meetings • Teacher selects favorite lesson to teach • External experts support teachers after school • After school cohort meetings

48. Measurement is only part of the story Moving from measuring teacher effectiveness to… Building teacher capacity

49. Move from 30% teachers based on student achievement to 100% teachers based on student growth Provides the ‘how to’ for developing a sustainable a teacher evaluation and support system that delivers learning for all students