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Educator Quality and Professional Development

Educator Quality and Professional Development

Educator Evaluation Glossary

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W XYZ

A

Announced observation/school visit

An observation or school visit where an educator has prior notice of when the observation or school visit will occur.

APPR

Acronym for Annual Professional Performance Review; refers to educator evaluation plans approved under Education Law §3012-d prior to its amendment in 2019.

Approved student assessment

A student assessment approved by the Commissioner for inclusion in the Department’slist of approved student assessmentsto measure student growth for use in the required subcomponent and/or for use in the optional subcomponent of the Student Performance category.

  • Approved assessments in grades K-2: Traditional standardized assessments in grades K-2 two shall not be on the approved list. However, an assessment that is not a traditional standardized assessment shall be considered an approved student assessment if the superintendent, district superintendent, or chancellor of a district that chooses to use such assessment certifies in its educator evaluation plan that the assessment is not a traditional standardized assessment, and that the assessment meets the minimum requirements prescribed by the commissioner in guidance.

Approved teacher or principal practice rubric

A rubric approved by the Commissioner for inclusion on the State Education Department's list of approved rubrics in teacher or principal evaluations.


B

Building principal/principal

A building principal or an administrator in charge of an instructional program in a district or BOCES.


C

Classroom teacher/teacher

A teacher in the classroom teaching service who is a teacher of record, except evening school teachers of adults enrolled in nonacademic, vocational subjects, and supplemental school personnel.
Collectively attributed SLO

An SLO based on a student population across multiple sections of the same course or across multiple courses where more than one teacher either directly or indirectly contributes to student learning outcomes.

  • School- or program-wide results: This measure relies on the growth of all students enrolled in a school or program who take the applicable assessments in the current school year.
  • School- or program-wide group or team results: This measure relies on the growth of students in a group/team of teachers’ courses in the current school year.
  • School- or program-wide linked results: This measure relies on the growth of students enrolled in the teacher’s course in the current school year taking assessments in other grades/subjects.
  • District-or BOCES-wide results: This measure relies on the growth of all students across buildings/programs in an LEA who take the applicable assessments in the current school year.
  • District- or BOCES-wide group or team results: This measure relies on the growth of students in a group or team of teachers’ courses across buildings/programs in an LEA who take the applicable assessments in the current school year.


E
Educator evaluation

New York State teacher and principal evaluation under Education Law §3012-d, as amended by the Chapter 59 of the Laws of 2019, and Subpart 30-3 of the Commissioner’s regulations.

Evaluator

Any individual who conducts an evaluation of a classroom teacher or building principal.


H

HEDI

Acronym for the educator evaluation rating categories that stands for: Highly Effective, Effective, Developing, Ineffective.


I
Impartial Independent Trained Evaluator

Impartial independent trained evaluators are trained and selected by the LEA. These evaluators may be employed within the LEA but may not be assigned to the same school building as the teacher or principal being evaluated. This could include other administrators, supervisors, department chairs, or peers (e.g., teacher leaders or principal leaders on career ladder pathways).

Please note that “school building” shall mean a school or program identified by its .
Independent Evaluator Hardship Waiver

A waiver offered annually to eligible LEAs permitting the LEA to waive certain requirements for teacher and/or principal observations on a showing of sufficient grounds. Such waivers are granted for a single school year and are renewable upon re-application.

Individually attributed SLO

AnSLO based on the student population of a course for which the teacher directly contributes to student learning outcomes.

  • Teacher- or principal-specific: This measure relies only on the growth of students enrolled in the teacher’s course or the principal’s building/program covered by the SLO.
Input model

A measure of student performance where effectiveness is measured by the actions educators take to improve studentoutcomesand to achieve set goals.
Inter-rater reliability

Refers to theextent to which independent evaluators produce similar ratings in judging the same abilities or characteristics in the same target person or object. Within the context of educator evaluation, inter-rater reliability requires all evaluators trained in the observation/school visit process reach independent consensus on observable behaviors to ensure the accuracy, consistency, and precision of the implementation of the chosen evaluation rubric(s).  It also requires administrators to analyze and track educator evaluation data and ensure that observations/school visits are being completed with fidelity.  An LEA’s inter-rater reliability process may include, but is not limited to: 

  • Data analysis to detect disparities on the part of theevaluators;
  • Periodic comparisons of a lead evaluator's assessment of the same classroom teacher or buildingprincipal;
  • Monthly calibration meetings; and
  • Annual calibration meetings.


L

Lead evaluator

An individualprimarilyresponsible for conducting and completing an annual evaluation of a classroom teacher or building principal. To the extent practicable, the building principal, or their designee,shallbe the lead evaluator of a classroom teacher. To the extent practicable, the lead evaluator of a principalshouldbe the superintendent or BOCES district superintendent or their designee.
Live observation

An observation conducted by an evaluator in real time (e.g., in-person or in a virtual setting).


M

Material change

Any change to an approved educator evaluation plan negotiated by the parties and submitted for approval by the Commissioner. Any change to the substance of an educator evaluation plan must be made through the material change process.


O
Observation/School Visit category

Portion of an educator evaluation that is based on classroom observations for teachers and school visits for principals that is aligned with the NYS Teaching Standards and Leadership Standards, as applicable. The observation/school visit process provides educators with an opportunity to receive timely and actionable feedback based on evidence aligned to research-based standards, which can both leverage expertise and support continuous improvement.

Optional subcomponent

For the Student Performance category: A secondary measure of studentperformance. An LEAmay collectively bargain a second measure that shall be applied in a consistent manner, to the extent practicable, across the district based on a State-created or administered assessment or State-designed supplemental assessment. Suchsecondmeasure shall be either:

  • A second SLO, provided that this SLO is different than that used in the required subcomponent of theeducator’sevaluation;
  • a growth score based on a statistical growth model, where available, for either a State-created or -administered assessment or a State-designed supplementalassessment;
  • a measure of student growth, other than an SLO, based on State-created or - administered assessments or State-designed supplementalassessments;
  • a performance index based on State-created or administered assessments or approved studentassessments;
  • an achievement benchmark on State-created or administered assessments or approved studentassessments;
  • [for principals only]four, five, or six-year high school graduationrates;
  • [for principals only] an input model where the principal’s rating shall be determined based on evidence of principal practicethat promotes student growth or achievement related to the Leadership Standards; or
  • any other collectively bargained measure of student growth or achievement included in the LEA’s evaluation plan as approved by the Commissioner.

For the Teacher Observation/Principal School Visit category:One or more observations conducted by a trained peer teacher/principal who received an overall rating of Effective or Highly Effective in the prior school year.
Other courses For the purposes of an LEA completing Tasks 2 and 3 of their educator evaluation plan, "other courses" refers to courses that do not fit into the traditional core course configurations provided in the first chart of measures and assessments (e.g., teachers of art, music, and physical education, etc.).


R

Recorded video observation

A classroom observation conducted by an evaluator by viewing a prior recording of a lesson.
Required subcomponent

For the Student Performance category: Therequired subcomponentof the Student Performance category for all teachers is aStudent Learning Objective (SLO). Principals will have either an SLO or aninput model.

For the Teacher Observation/Principal School Visit category:The two required components must be comprised of:

  • At least one observation/school visit conducted by a principal/supervisor or other trained administrator; and
  • At least one additional observation/school visit conducted by one or more impartial independent trained evaluator(s) selected and trained by the LEA.
  • At least one of the observations/school visits must be unannounced.


S

State-designed supplemental assessment

A State-designed supplemental assessment is defined in Education Law §3012-d(2)(d) as “State tests or assessments developed or designed by the State Education Department, or that the State Education Department purchased or acquired from (1) another state; (2) an institution of higher education; or (3) a commercial or not-for-profit entity, provided that such entity must be objective and may not have a conflict of interest or appearance of a conflict of interest. This may include tests or assessments that have been previously designed or acquired by local LEAs, but only if the State Education Department significantly modifies growth targets or scoring bands for such tests or assessments or otherwise adapts the test or assessment to the State Education Department’s requirements.”

State-designed supplemental assessments must be approved by the Department through the process.
Student growth

The change in student achievement for an individual student between two or more points in time.

The minimum growth targets for SLOs under the Required subcomponent of the Student Performance category must represent at least one year of expected student growth.
Student Learning Objectives (SLO)

Academic goals for an educator’s students that are set at the start of a course, except in rare circumstances as defined by the Commissioner; provided, however, that the selection and use of the assessment for the SLO shall be subject to collective bargaining. SLOs must be specific and measurable, based on available prior student learning data, and aligned to the New York State learning standards, as well as to any other school and district priorities. An educator’s scores are based upon the degree to which their goals were attained. For more information on SLOs, please visit our SLO Resources page.
Student Performance category

The portion of an educator evaluation that is based on student outcomes and broken into two subcomponents: one required, and one optional.


T

Teacher Observation/Principal School Visit category

Portion of an educator evaluation that is based on classroom observations for teachers and school visits for principals that is aligned with theNYS Teaching Standards and Leadership Standards, as applicable. The teacher observation/principal school visit process provides educators with an opportunity to receive timely and actionable feedback based on evidence aligned to research-based standards, which can both leverage expertise and support continuous improvement.

The teacher observation/principal school visit category broken into two subcomponents: one required, and one optional.
Teacher of record

A teacher who is primarily and directly responsible for students’ learning activities that are aligned to the performance measures of a course.
Traditional standardized assessment

A systematic method of gathering information from objectively scored items that allow the test taker to select one or more of the given options or choices as their response. Examples include multiple choice, true-false, and matching items. Traditional standardized assessments are those that require the student (and not the examiner/assessor) to directly use a “bubble” answer sheet. Traditional standardized assessments do not include performance assessments or assessments in which students perform real-world tasks that demonstrate application of knowledge and skills; assessments that are otherwise required to be administered by Federal Law; and/or assessments used for diagnostic or formative purposes, including but not limited to assessments used for diagnostic screening required by Education Law §3208(5).


U

Unannounced observation/school visit

An observation or school visit where an educator has no prior notice of when the observation or school visit will occur (e.g., a walkthrough).


V

Variance

A variance allows LEAs to develop and implement new and innovative approaches to educator evaluation, upon a finding by the Commissioner that the approach demonstrates how it will ensure differentiated results over time and how the results of the evaluation will be used to provide personalized professional learning opportunities to teachers and principals, while complying with the requirements of Education Law §3012-d. Please see Educator Evaluation Variance Guidance for more information.