My name is Karen Vocke, an English Education professor at Western Michigan University.  My work has long focused on migrant farm worker education at multiple levels—families, educators, and programming.

Migrant workers are often referred to as the “invisible people” because of their status as one of America’s most marginalized, vulnerable, and undereducated populations. These families’ livelihoods derive from harvesting a variety of crops; they often move frequently in order to remain employed. Migrant farm workers are a resource vital to the nation’s agricultural industry and are part of many rural communities, yet the educational progress of the children greatly lags behind mainstream standards. Services and opportunities for these students and their families are often fragmented, both from an educational standpoint and auxiliary community support perspective.  These children, many of whom speak little or no English, may attend as many as three schools in one academic year as families travel from worksite to worksite. Still other families “settle out,” remaining in a community and working in agriculture-related jobs when they can. Literacy education and language support opportunities are limited for families.  Educational and service programs vary dramatically in resources and services.

Lesson Learned:

Evaluators and researchers need to consider the issues of transiency and culture when working with this population.  Gaining access, whether it be to examine a program or the population itself, is a time-consuming process.  Trust is paramount. My own research has been based on access to migrant families attained by spending weeks in the company of community insiders, visiting camps and educational programs.  Access, based on trust and mutual respect, elicits the most authentic responses to evaluation and research query.

Hot Tips:

Most importantly, access to migrant populations must be facilitated by one of that community, a “gatekeeper” of sorts.  For example, my own visits to migrant camps were always in the company of the school district “recruiter,” a liaison between the school and camps.  Access and participation can only be authentic when a collaborative and culturally sensitive foundation has been built.

Rad Resources:

Learn as much about the unique migrant culture before attempting any evaluation or research endeavor.  Several exemplary programs and informational websites include the following:

• The Geneseo Migrant Center
• The National Center for Farmworker Health
• The U.S. Department of Education Office of Migrant Education

Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluators.

migrant

Hi! I am Don Glass an independent education and evaluation consultant, and a former UDL Fellow at Boston College and CAST. Over the past several years I have been interested in how we can be as inclusive as possible in the gathering and analysis of data, as well as in the sharing and use of evaluation findings. Like our colleagues Jennifer Sulewski and June Gothberg, I am interested in applying Universal Design to evaluation for the purpose of removing barriers, providing access and flexibility, and promoting engagement, understanding, and use for a wide range of stakeholders.

To do so, we are exploring the use of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) as a translational framework for guiding the design and evaluation of curriculum, programs, and materials. The framework moves beyond accessibility to include learning design. UDL provides a research-supported conceptual framework, as well as a well-structured heuristic for guiding inclusive design and evaluation decision-making. UDL prompts for the design of multiple, flexible options to address variability and supports expert learning across the affective, recognition, and strategic neural networks of the brain. I would locate the use of the UDL framework in the transformative evaluation paradigm, and argue that it prompts for evaluation design that aligns with many of the principles of Empowerment Evaluation.

Hot Tips:

• Monitor and evaluate outcomes for knowledge, use, AND values. We typically evaluate participant knowledge and use of an intervention or program. Consider measuring and responding to outcomes that also monitor affect and engagement- initial interest, sustained motivation, self-regulation, relevance, and value to the stakeholders.

• Provide flexible options for data collection and sharing. The same paper survey may not be accessible or appropriate for everyone. Remove physical, cognitive, cultural, and language barriers in your instrument and report design. Provide options for vocabulary, language, and comprehension supports. Present information in multiple ways (i.e., diagrams, stories, tables, explanatory text).

• Support expert learning strategies. Build capacity for executive functions and self-regulation that have value and use beyond the evaluation. Provide the reflective and evaluative strategies for goal-setting and planning, managing information, and acting on formative feedback. Support the development of expert practitioners and expert learning organizations!

Rad Resources

• UDL Guidelines. A digital version of the UDL Guidelines with comprehension supports, examples, resources, and supportive research evidence.

• UDL AA-AAS Evaluation Tool. An interactive online tool that applies UDL to the design and administration of state alternate assessments based on alternate academic achievement standards.

• UDL Connect. A ning group on the topic of applying UDL to evaluation.

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating the Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Populations TIG (DOVP) Week. The contributions all week come from DOVP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.

Universal Design · Universal Design for Learning

My name is Bob Hughes, and I’m an Associate Professor of adult education at Seattle University.  I’ve been researching and evaluating Universal Design for Learning since 1995.  I find UDL to form a critical framework with which to frame my other research interests in preparation of instructors, professional development, providing equitable learning for diverse populations, and the uses of technology in learning.

Hot tips:

• UDL is expanding to other arenas. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an increasingly popular model of developing and delivering instruction in P-12, adult, and post-secondary educational systems. Although UDL began as a model for serving special needs populations, its use has expanded widely.

• UDL intends to create flexibility to meet learning needs.Because UDL synthesizes multiple educational aims and tools, it offers an interesting challenge for evaluators. UDL identifies three principles that ensure access to learning:
  • multiple means of representation of any idea
  • multiple means of expression and action to show learners’ mastery
  • multiple means of engagement to ensure that all learners connect to the content.

This lean toward flexibility underscores UDL’s intent to serve all populations. While UDL implementations are proliferating, models for evaluating UDL have not concurrently emerged.

• Evaluation of UDL includes multiple categories. I propose that an evaluation of UDL implementation must include the following categories of information:

1. Connection to the three principles of UDL
2. Connection to theories of learning (i.e., brain research)
3. Relation to larger fields of study
4. Well defined student outcomes
5. Well defined teacher outcomes
6. Well defined institutional outcomes

• Each of the above elements is interrelated. A model for UDL evaluation cannot look at these as linear elements that can be developed in isolation from one another.  Instead, the model must allow each of these to inform the other in the development and implementation of the evaluation.  Each of these elements generates a focus point with which to inform and shape the others.

The first of the six elements above offers an example.  In considering the ways in which the principles of UDL are implemented, a UDL project needs to look at how those concepts connect to other models of learning, how these elements relate to understandings of how the brain processes information, what specific student and teacher outcomes the implementation seeks, and how the institution will support the implementation.  Similar relationships exist for each of the six categories.

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating the Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Populations TIG (DOVP) Week. The contributions all week come from DOVP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.

Universal Design for Learning

Greeting, I am June Gothberg, Senior Researcher at Western Michigan University. You may also recognize me as the intern Lead Curator for aea365. My AEA internship is ending this month and I will be passing the torch to another. Look for forthcoming details from Susan Kistler.

My colleague, Jennifer Sullivan Sulewski and I co-chair the Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Populations TIG. We also co-authored the Universal Design for Evaluation (UDE) Checklist to assist evaluators to include individuals authentically in the evaluation process, people of all ages and abilities. The checklist is a tool for program evaluators who design, develop, implement, and disseminate evaluations. Today’s post focuses on numbers two and four of the checklist.

Lessons Learned:

• Most evaluators intend to include everyone in the evaluation process.
• In real life design and implementation, many evaluators fail to anticipate the needs of the diverse individuals important to the evaluation.

Hot Tips:

• Design Evaluation using UDE Principle 2: Flexibility in Use. Evaluations that demonstrate flexibility in use accommodates a wide range of individual preferences and abilities. The evaluation plan will show evidence of preparation to:
  • Communicate with participants of diverse abilities, communication styles, and cultural backgrounds. (e.g., second language interpreters, sign language interpreters, readers, large text, and Braille)
  • Address individual needs.
  • Provide alternate data collection tools based on communication preferences and needs. (e.g., written, oral, using smart technology, observation)
  • Include extra time for participants with slower processing or language barriers.
  • Include extra time to observe cultural practices.

• Design Evaluation using UDE Principle 4: Perceptible Information. The evaluation design that provides perceptible information will communicate necessary information effectively to the user, regardless of ambient conditions or the user’s sensory abilities.
  • Sensory issues are addressed. (lower lighting, no flickering florescent lights, minimal noise, seating away from doors and windows, quiet ‘fidget’ toys – think stress ball)
  • Multiple media options are used to present information.
  • All printed publications are available immediately or in a timely manner in alternate formats2.
  • A statement is included in all materials about procedures for requesting accommodations or assistance.
  • Online materials adhere to web accessibility standards.

Rad Resources:

• Universal Design for Evaluation Checklist
• National Center for Accessible Media
• Example of how to provide a descriptive narrative

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating the Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Populations TIG (DOVP) Week. The contributions all week come from DOVP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.e 

checklist · Universal Design · Universal Design for Evaluation

I am David J. Bernstein, and I am a Senior Study Director with Westat, an employee-owned research and evaluation company in Rockville, Maryland. I was an inaugural member of AEA, and was the founder and first Chair of the Government Evaluation Topical Interest Group.

Westat was hired by the U.S. Department of Education’s Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) to conduct an evaluation of the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults (HKNC). HKNC is a national rehabilitation program serving youth and adults who are deaf-blind founded by an Act of Congress in 1967, and operates under a grant from RSA, which is HKNC’s largest funding source.

The Westat evaluation was the first evaluation of HKNC in over 20 years, although HKNC submits performance measures and annual reports to RSA. RSA wanted to make sure that the evaluation included interviews with Deaf-Blind individuals who had taken vocational rehabilitation and independent living courses on the HKNC campus in Sands Point, New York. After meeting with HKNC management and teaching staff, it became clear that communication issues would be a challenge given the myriad of ways that Deaf-Blind individuals communicate. Westat and RSA agreed that in-person interviews with Deaf-Blind individuals would help keep the interviews simple, intuitive, and make sure that this critical stakeholder group was comfortable and willing to participate.

Hot Tips:

• Make use of gatekeepers and experts-in-residence. Principle Three encourages simple and intuitive design of materials to address users’ level of experience and language skills. For the HKNC Evaluation, interview guides went through multiple reviews, including review by experts in Deaf-Blind communication not associated with HKNC. Ultimately, it was HKNC staff that provided a critical final review to simplify the instruments since HKNC was familiar with the wide variety of communication skills of their former students.
• Plan ahead in regards to location and communication. Principle Seven calls for appropriate space to make anyone involved in data collection comfortable, including transportation accessibility and provision of interpreters, if needed. For the HKNC evaluation, interview participants were randomly selected who were within a reasonable distance of locations near HKNC regional offices. Westat worked with HKNC partners and HKNC regional representatives with whom interviewees were familiar. In the Los Angeles area, we brought the interviews to the interviewees, selecting locations that were as close as possible to where former HKNC students lived. Most importantly, Westat worked with HKNC to identify the Deaf-Blind individuals’ communication abilities and preferences, and had two interpreters on site for interviews. In one case we used a participant’s iPad with large print enabled to communicate interview questions.

Resource:

• Apple’s accessibility options

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating the Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Populations TIG (DOVP) Week. The contributions all week come from DOVP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.

accessibility · Blind · Deaf · gatekeepers · Universal Design · universal design for evalution

My name is John Kramer and I am currently a Research Fellow at the Institute for Community Inclusion, University of Massachusetts Boston. My work focuses on research and evaluation of employment outcomes of people with disabilities, participatory research, and aging issues for families of people with disabilities. I am a new member of the American Evaluation Association.

Tip:

• Universal Design Principle 3 is “simple and intuitive”. Incorporating clear, simple language in writing while also providing concrete, every day examples improves access in two ways:

1. it clarifies your intention as a writer and helps you focus on the basic idea you are trying to convey
2. it allows for more stakeholder access and participation.

Hot tips:

• Use plain language. This means substituting simpler words for more complex ones. It also means writing sentences that are free of excessive subordination. Also, try to avoid unnecessary modifiers like “really, totally, very, only, quite,” which may interfere with clarity.
• Use concrete, accessible examples including images when helpful. Try to think of examples to illustrate your writing that are easy to picture and relate to. Using images is a good approach as well when appropriate.
• Use clear, parallel examples in your writing. For instance, if you frame an example as noun, verb, recipient noun, then make sure all your examples use the same order of presentation.

Rad Resources

There are many good resources for how to incorporate plain language and images into your work. A few especially helpful ones around the web are:

• Plainlanguage.gov -A website by the United States Federal government that gives some useful strategies and examples in using plain language.

• Grammar Girl -A website that provides some basic tips and tricks to clarify your writing. Not for cognitive access per se, but elements can be useful in UD.

• Picture Planner – A website that illustrates an example of how pictures can be used to facilitate cognitive access.

• Creative Commons -Here you can find free pictures that you can use, often with attribution, to illustrate your work and writing.

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating the Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Populations TIG (DOVP) Week. The contributions all week come from DOVP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.

creative commons · free resources · grammer · images · Universal Design · Universal Design for Evaluation

My name is Jennifer Sullivan Sulewski, Research Associate at the Institute for Community Inclusion, University of Massachusetts Boston. Most of my research and evaluation work has focused on improving employment and postsecondary education outcomes for people with disabilities. I am co-chair of AEA’s Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Populations (DOVP) TIG and co-author of the Universal Design for Evaluation Checklist. I have also had the pleasure of serving as curator for the DOVP Week.

There are two major Universal Design schools: one is broadly applied and the other specifically to curriculum and learning. Both can help inform evaluators and ensure accessibility for all evaluation participants. Each of this week’s posts focuses in on the concepts of Universal Design (UD)or Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

Hot Tip:

• UD is “the idea that all new environments and products, to the greatest extent possible, should be usable by everyone regardless of their age, ability, or circumstance” (Center for Universal Design). The seven principles of UD are:

1. Equitable Use
2. Flexibility in Use
3. Simple and Intuitive Use
4. Perceptible Information
5. Tolerance for Error
6. Low Physical Effort
7. Size and Space for Approach and Use

• UDL is “a set of principles for curriculum development that give all individuals equal opportunities to learn” (National Center on Universal Design for Learning). The three principles of UDL are:

1. Multiple Means of Representation
2. Multiple Means of Action and Expression
3. Multiple Means of Engagement

Lesson Learned:

• Evaluation recruitment materials and informed consent must be accessible for authentic and ethical participation. In our Universal Design for Evaluation checklist, we demonstrate the importance of Principle 1: equitable use, particularly as it applies to the informed consent process. In my work with people with intellectual/developmental disabilities, I’ve learned how important it is to create recruitment and informed consent materials that are designed to be used and understood by all. For example, in an early project I had separate consent forms for different aspects of the project, and the need to sign multiple forms was confusing for participants. I learned to explain all the expectations and rights of participants in one simple form instead.  
• Here is an example of such a consent form:

• It is also essential when working with this population to understand whether the participants are under someone else’s guardianship; if they are, consent must be obtained from the guardian and assent from the individual.

In the posts to follow, John Kramer discusses how to apply UD Principle 3 to increase access and stakeholder participation. David Bernstein describes applying Principles 3 and 7 to an evaluation involving Deaf-Blind program participants. June Gothberg demonstrates Principles 2 and 4 on flexible and perceptible information. Bob Hughes provides tips on evaluating UDL projects and Don Glass explores the use of UDL to guide the design and evaluation of curriculum, programs, and materials.

Rad Resource:

• Looking for ideas on how to make your project more accessible to people of all backgrounds and abilities? The Universal Design for Evaluation Checklist is a resource for applying the seven principles of Universal Design to evaluation.

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating the Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Populations TIG (DOVP) Week. The contributions all week come from DOVP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.

informed consent · recruitment · Universal Design · Universal Design for Evaluation · Universal Design for Learning

My name is David Brewer, Senior Extension Associate for the Employment and Disability Institute at Cornell University. Professional development isn’t always about listening to a presenter, watching a slide presentation, and asking a few questions.  True learning with measurable student impact in mind involves relationship building

Lesson Learned:

• Creating our own Evidence. You don’t have to be a trained researcher to create evidence for use in improving services for students. The following example highlights how a diverse group of stakeholders can collect data, identify a common area of concern, set targets, plan activities, and reflect on results towards future planning and improvements. The Southern Tier Transition Leadership Group (STTLG) was created in 2001 to improve the number and quality of youth referrals to the New York State Vocational Rehabilitation Agency (VR) for services leading to employment and postsecondary outcomes.  This group, which continues to meet, is made up of VR senior staff, school district representatives, State Education Department officials, a Transition Specialist, and other agency representatives. Three times a year, the regional VR office provided youth referral data by school district to measure progress and plan activities. Below are the annual increases before (245 students 2001-02) and five years after STTLG began meeting (593 in 2006-07).

• Looking at these numbers as a trend line, the three-year average of student referrals to VR before the STTLG was 275 students.  For the three years beginning in 2004-05, the average increased to 557 students – a 103% increase.

Hot Tip:

• Shared Learning. These sustainable results were achieved without grant funding, but with shared ownership of both process and results.  This is not about VR referrals. This is a description of a shared learning and improvement process between professionals, resulting in measurable change for transitioning students.
• Applying Lessons Learned. The purpose behind this initiative was to improve organizational capacity through a process of emergent learning.  Given the complexities of improving student achievement and post-school outcomes, finding the right answers is a collaborative process of reviewing data, setting targets, implementing research-based practices, learning from results — and applying lessons learned to future interventions. The process of emergent learning is a journey that requires a long-term commitment to measurable change.

Rad Resources:

• TransitionSource.org Designed to support educational programs and agencies to advance post-school outcomes of secondary students with disabilities.

• National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center (NSTTAC) Evidence Based Practices

• New York Makes Work Pay — School to Work Transition

New York State Program on Transition to Adulthood for Youth with Disabilities

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating Professional Development Community of Practice (PD CoP) Week. The contributions all week come from PD CoP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.

community of practice · Guskey · longitudinal · Professional Development

Hi! We are Marguerite Dimgba and Sheila Robinson Kohn, Professional Learning Center Director and Policy Board Chair, from Greece Central School District in Rochester, NY.

While Guskey indicates that this level of evaluation cannot be completed at the end of a professional development (PD) session or even multi-session course, we do begin to gather data from participants at this time, mostly as this is when we have easy access to them.  We use an online PD tool with a required anonymous feedback form participants complete after they have finished their courses.

Lesson Learned:

• Utilize Participant Feedback. We collaboratively analyze data with policy board members (teachers, administrators, a university professor, parent, student, and private school teacher), understanding that the intended users of these data are individual instructors and the district as a whole. We then modify feedback forms (i.e. questions, response options) in hopes of collecting even better data to help us continue to make high quality programmatic decisions regarding PD for our district.

Hot Tips:

• Discover Participants’ Learning Use. In addition to questions on participant satisfaction and learning, one question we ask for Level 4 is, “Will you be able to USE what you’ve learned?” As you can see from the graph below, 97% of our PD participants over the last year indicated that that have already applied the content, the content was relevant, or they feel they will be able to apply some of the content to their practice.

It is important to note here, that our online PD tool is not just for teachers. These respondents include any district employee who engages in any type of PD.

•  Discover Participants’ Learning Needs. Our next question asks, “What do you NEED to further APPLY what you have learned today?” As you can see from the graph below, about one-quarter of our participants indicate they do not need further learning to apply the content, but about 70% feel they do need additional learning opportunities.

•  Discover Participants’ Learning Application. We then ask, “MOVING FORWARD: HOW will you APPLY new learning in your practice?” The graph below indicates our participants’ varied answers to this.

•  Discover Participants’ Learning Impact. Finally, we ask participants to indicate how they will measure the impact of what they have learned in the PD experience. Data sets like these serve as important formative evaluation measures for our continued district-wide PD programming.

Rad Resource:

•  We use MyLearningPlan, a professional development management and evaluation system (PDMES), that features “planning, tracking, and evaluation of all forms of professional learning in one comprehensive online system.”  MLP features customizable evaluation forms and user-friendly output (such as these graphs) to help us analyze the effectiveness of our professional learning opportunities.

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating Professional Development Community of Practice (PD CoP) Week. The contributions all week come from PD CoP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.

community of practice · Guskey · Professional Development

I’m Donna Campbell, Director of Professional Development Capacity Building at the Arizona Department of Education (ADE). The Professional Development Leadership Academy (PDLA) is a three-year long curriculum of training and back-home application for school and district teams based on the Learning Forward Professional Learning Standards, derived from research.

Lesson Learned:

• Legislation supports evaluation. I’ve learned it’s easier to train school teams to conduct Guskey Level 3 evaluations of organizational support than to scale this evaluation step to a state level.  The advent of the Common Core Standards (CCS) is raising awareness of the need for ADE to gather Level 3 data.  We are seizing this golden opportunity.

• Understand significant shifts.  The CCS instructional shifts seem to be a catalyst for education leaders to challenge their assumption that if teachers just attend training sessions their instructional practice will change.

• Building capacity is often top-down.  An ADE cross-divisional team is designing processes to build school leaders capacity to provide organizational support to teachers including opportunities for collaboration, time to practice new skills, follow-up, and feedback.  Our challenge: apply lessons learned from PDLA to every school and district in Arizona.

• Teams set the stage. Teams’ attention to strengthening cultures of collegial support sets the stage for monitoring transfer of knowledge to the classroom, Guskey’s Level 4. If complex and large-scale instructional change is to be implemented and sustained, organizational support is essential.  Level 3 has been the missing link in previous standards-based reform efforts.

Hot Tips:

• Teams develop their capacity to design, implement, and evaluate results-driven professional development (PD) to improve student learning. After focusing the first year on data analyses, goal-setting, theories of action, and planning PD to achieve a well-defined instructional change, teams are introduced to Guskey’s five-level evaluation model in year two.

• School teams tend to focus Level 3 data gathering on school-level data.  For instance, we invite teams to annually administer two surveys: Learning Forward’s Standards Assessment Inventory (SAI) for teachers; and Education for the Future’s perception surveys for teachers, students, and parents. Teams analyze teacher survey data to assess perceived collegial and principal support over time. They also compare the amount of time designated at their school for professional learning from their start to finish of PLDA. Some routinely review written records of various teams at their school, checking for shared focus and follow-through. Results show examples of Level 3 progress through markers of increased candor and openness among faculty members or increased teacher participation in the PDLA team work.

Rad Resources:

• Education Minnesota, Thomas Guskey’s 5 levels of professional development evaluation
•  Learning Forward Professional Learning Standards
•  Learning Forward Standards Assessment Inventory (SAI)
• Education for the Future Surveys

The American Evaluation Association is celebrating Professional Development Community of Practice (PD CoP) Week. The contributions all week come from PD CoP members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org. aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluator.

common core standards · community of practice · Guskey · legislation · Professional Development · school level