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1. What are the activities that should be completed in the third semester of assistance/first semester of assessment? |
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During the third semester of
assistance/first semester of assessment the team leader and the external
assessor should schedule and conduct an informal conference, and observation,
portfolio scoring, and a post observation conference. These activities should
happen within the time frames specified in the calendar of activities. The team summary conference should be
conducted with the team leader and external assessor present. Also, mentoring activities should take
place as directed.
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2. When will assessment instruments for the
third semester arrive at school sites? |
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You should have received them by
March 7,
2005. |
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| Q: |
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Is it possible to receive the assessment instruments earlier? |
| A: |
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Assessment instruments are sent to each school district after team assignments are entered. The state’s mainframe database is read as to the number of forms needed. The forms are sent to each district according to the team assignment information. |
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| Q: |
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Do I need to send in another team assignment form for this semester? |
| A: |
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Team assignment forms are only needed for teachers who are starting the process this semester (first semester of assistance) or for those teachers without an external assessor assignment who are entering their second semester. Remember to send in appropriate forms to indicate team changes such as postponements or resignations. Please refer to principal’s packet for additional information. |
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5. When should assessment take place in this semester? |
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The first visit for new teachers (semester 3) in their assessment semester is March 9 – March 30, 2005. The second visit should take place between March 30 – April 21, 2005. |
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6. Where can i find the advisory instruments? |
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Online. Http://pdbb.doe.state.la.us
login: ebr_lataap
password: password |
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| Q: |
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7. Where can I find an updated strategies book?
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Online. Www.Doe.State.La.Us
Click On Professional Development.
Click On Lataap Resources |
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| Q: |
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8. Will the portfolio be a part of assessment this year? Can it be handwritten? |
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Yes. Beginning spring 2005 any teacher in state assessment will be required to submit a portfolio. It can be handwritten, however, be aware that there is an electronic portfolio that is being piloted by the DOE. |
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9. Should the portfolio be given at the time of the informal conference?
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It can be as a courtesy, but is not mandatory. The last day for submission of the portfolio is April 15, 2005. |
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| Q: |
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10. My school does not have enough mentors. What can i do? |
| A: |
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Please call support programs for assistance. We will make every effort to handle each school’s mentor shortages on an individual basis. The shortage of trained mentors is critical. Please encourage qualified persons at your site to train as mentors.
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| Q: |
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11. I have a teacher that completed her first semester in the fall. She was on leave last semester. Does she have to start the process over? |
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The teacher will be a “2” (second semester) this fall. A teacher who takes leave can resume the process without starting over. |
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12. Should teachers who are in state assessment be evaluated according to the local plan this year? |
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Teachers who are being assessed this year, either in the fall or spring semesters do not have to be evaluated according to the local plan unless there is a performance problem. Teachers who are in their first year of state assistance and assessment must be evaluated according to the local plan. |
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13. When should the professional development plan and conference happen in the second semester of assistance? |
| A: |
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The principal, mentor, and new teacher should meet after the observations have taken place by the mentor and principal. Based on the data collected during the observations, a professional development plan should be formulated. |
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14. A new teacher was hired from out of state for this semester. When is the latest date the lde can receive the previous evaluation information from the previous employer? |
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April 18, 2005 is the deadline for the lde to receive evaluation materials related to the out-of-state exclusion process. Please remind out-of-state exemption applicants to call support programs if they have not received an exemption application. Exemption applications are sent according to information completed by the teacher demographic data form. |
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15. The external assessor list did not list the name of a teacher that retired last year from ebr. Is it acceptable to use that person as an assessor? Why aren’t the names of all retired assessors included? |
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Retired persons who wish to serve as an external assessor must be retired for at least 12 months before they can serve as external assessor without retirement benefit penalties. If you are unsure about the status of a retiree or if you would like to recommend that person as an addition to the list, please call support programs. The list we issued was only a partial listing. We are unable to provide a listing of all trained assessors who are retired. |
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16. I have an assessment semester (3) teacher who is scheduled for maternity leave for April. If she requests a postponement and does not return in August she would have to start the process over. What can be done? |
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Call support programs. We can adjust the assessment visit dates with proper documentation. The teacher can write a letter requesting an adjustment to the date to accommodate her expected leave. |
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17. Who is eligible to serve as the
team leader? |
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The principal or assistant
principal is eligible to serve as the team leader. The team leader has the responsibility
of appointing the mentor and external assessor and serving as the assessor for
each new teacher assigned to them. |
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18. What happens if a teacher does not pass the
third semester of assessment? |
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A teacher who does not pass
their assessment during the third semester is allowed to repeat the process in
the fourth semester. A teacher who does not pass the fourth semester’s
assessment cannot return to the teaching profession for two years and must work
on the assigned professional development plan prior to being re-admitted to the
state assistance and assessment to begin the process over again. |
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| Q: |
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19. How can the status be determined for a
teacher who comes to teach in ebr from another public school in the
state? |
| A: |
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Call support programs. We must verify the status and contact
the previous parish to request release of that person form their database. (please remember to send in a team
assignment for that person) |
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| Q: |
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20. Is it acceptable to call a teacher at
another school in ebr to assess a teacher? |
| A: |
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Team leaders are not encouraged to
use teachers from other schools to assess teachers. While teachers who are trained as
assessors are eligible to assess, this is discouraged because it would take them
away from their primary responsibility, which is their current job
assignment. |
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| Q: |
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21. When scoring the assessment, how are
attribute ratings determined? |
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The assessor should
analyze patterns within the data and determine the attribute rating most
representative of those patterns, taking all practices and behaviors into
account. |
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| Q: |
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22. When scoring the assessment, how are
component ratings determined? |
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The assessor should analyze
patterns of all attribute ratings within that component and assign the component
rating most representative of the pattern.
(note: all practices and
behaviors representative of the component should be taken into account; holistic
approach) |
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| Q: |
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23. Is it acceptable to conduct the informal
conference one day before the scheduled observation? |
| A: |
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Yes, as long as it is agreeable to
both the assessor and the new teacher. |
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24. Should both assessments be done at the same
time of the day? |
| A: |
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The assessments should be done at
different times of the day or with different class periods (if applicable) in
order to observe the teacher with different subject matter or different
students. |
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25. A teacher presented identical lessons to
both the external assessor and team leader. This was not determined until the
external assessor and the team leader met to prepare for the team summary
conference. What should be
done? |
| A: |
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Call support programs. Each of these cases will be resolved on
an individual basis. Usually the
new teacher is directed to prepare for an additional assessment, which is
usually done by the team leader. |
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| Q: |
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26. When should the post observation conference
be held? |
| A: |
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The post observation conference
must be held within 48 hours of the observation. |
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| Q: |
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27. Does the teacher summary report have to be
completed before the team summary conference? |
| A: |
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Yes. The tsr should be completed by the
assessment team using a consensus process.
The team should develop overall component ratings and complete the form
with the certification recommendation.
The team should also discuss areas to be targeted on the professional
development plan. |
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| Q: |
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28. Is it acceptable for a team leader to
appoint a third assessor when the assessment team does not agree? |
| A: |
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No. The team leader does not appoint the
third assessor. Please call support
programs if a third assessor is needed.
W will appoint the third assessor and provide the third assessor with the
forms needed to conduct the third assessment. The team leader will be notified as soon
as the third assessor is assigned.
The team leader should not reveal any information about the assessment
results when assisting the third assessor in scheduling the
assessment. |
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| Q: |
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29. How long should the observation
last? |
| A: |
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In elementary classrooms or other
settings where lessons are usually shorter in duration, the observation should
be a minimum of thirty (30) minutes, even if two or more different lessons take
place in that time. In schools
where there are designated class periods (middle or high schools) the assessor
is to observe for the entire class period.
When the class schedule consists of ninety (90) minute blocks, the
teacher should be prepared to discuss the sequence of activities with the
assessor during the informal conference.
After the discussion, a decision to observe the block for fifty (50)
minutes rather than ninety (90) minutes may be made. |
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| Q: |
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30. When scoring the observation, is it
acceptable to use “+” and “-“signs? |
| A: |
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Yes. They are acceptable to use in the
supported scripted reference area on the observation scoring sheet. |
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| Q: |
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31. What should be done if a mentor/mentee
relationship is not working? |
| A: |
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Please make every effort to
resolve the situation, such as meeting with the mentor and with the new
teacher. If necessary, change the
mentor assignment. |
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| Q: |
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32. Does a teacher have to pass all component
ratings in order to pass? |
| A: |
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Yes, at this time the new teacher
must score a “2” on 8 out of the 11 components. School improvement, technology and
professional development are being piloted. Those scores are not used to make the
certification decision. |
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| Q: |
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33. What should be done when a teacher requests
a postponement of their current semester? |
| A: |
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Requests for postponements must be
submitted in writing from the teacher to support programs. Each request is handled on an individual
basis. |
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| Q: |
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34. A teacher is beginning state assistance and
assessment but was ill and could not attend orientation. What can be done? |
| A: |
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The orientation packet will be
sent to the principal. The
materials should be reviewed and discussed with the new teacher. A signature form will be sent with the
packet for the new teacher to document that they have received the
packet. |
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| Q: |
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35. Will a new teacher orientation be held each
semester for new teachers? |
| A: |
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Yes. |
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| Q: |
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36. When are portfolios given back to the new teacher? Is the portfolio sent in with the assessment documents? |
| A: |
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The portfolio is given back to the
new teacher once a certification recommendation is made, ie.. The teacher has
passed state assessment. If the new teacher does not pass assessment, the team
leader holds the portfolio.
Do not send the portfolio in with assessement documents. |
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