PPfT Appraisal
September 2018 Newsletter
Dear Teachers,
We hope your school year is off to a fabulous start! We will provide information and details about the Professional Pathways for Teachers (PPfT) Appraisal to you periodically throughout the school year.
September's Newsletter includes pertinent information and deadlines regarding the PPfT Appraisal and will cover the following topics:
- Orientation and Individual Learning Plan Reminders
- Instructional Practice
- Student Learning Objectives (SLOs)
- PPfT Appraisal Resources
PPfT Appraisal Orientation and Individual Learning Plan:
The following activities are required to begin the appraisal process and should be complete:
- PPfT Online Orientation was due September 4, 2018.
If you have not completed this online course, click on the Professional Development tab in the HCP to view your upcoming courses. (You may need to click on "Show All" to view a full list.) Under My Courses you will see PPfT Online Orientation for Teachers. Click on this title to begin the course in BLEND.
- Teacher Orientation (verification of completing the PPfT online orientation) under your Appraisal Plan in the HCP. Please know completing the PPfT online orientation and verifying completion of the online orientation in HCP are two separate activities.
- Individual Learning Plan (ILP) was due September 10, 2018.
* If you have not completed these activities, please do so as soon as possible.*
* Please see directions below or our "Back to School Newsletter" for additional assistance.*
Instructional Practice:
One specific area that PPfT aims to focus on is how to help teachers improve their instructional practice to benefit the students in the classroom. Instructional Practice is the observation part of appraisal which will be observed throughout the school year and accounts for 50% of the total appraisal score.
- Each teacher will have two announced observations (one in the fall, one in the spring) from two different appraisers
- Each teacher will have at least two classroom visits throughout the school year- one in the fall and one in the spring. These visits will not be scored numerically.
- Classroom visits and observations are based on a rubric of seven strands of instructional practice
Instructional Practice Important Dates:
Fall Windows:
- Classroom Visits: September 10- December 7, 2018
- Announced Observations: September 19– December 5, 2018
Instructional Practice Resources:
Be sure to explore the Instructional Practice resources available to you throughout the school year:
- The Instructional Practices Online Resources Site provides a teacher toolkit for each strand of the rubric, a classroom showcase and recommended reading
- Pages 9- 14 in the PPfT Support Guide include teaching strategies and procedures for each strand
- PPfT Instructional Practice Rubric
Student Learning Objectives (SLOs):
The Student Learning Objective (SLO) is a method of measuring Student growth and is worth 15% of your appraisal. The SLO allows you as a teacher to set targets at the beginning of a course in an area of high need for students that can be achieved by the end. Rather than measuring if all students have reached the same attainment level, SLOs assign growth targets for each student to achieve based on a pre-assessment.
Upcoming SLO Important Dates:
Year-Long SLO Timeline:
- Year-long SLO pre-assessment window open- August 27 – October 26
- Year-long SLO student enrollment cutoff date- October 19, 2018
- Complete year-long SLO submission form and submit with pre-test scores for appraiser validation in the online database- October 26, 2018
SLO Fall Semester Timeline:
- Fall semester pre-assessment window open- August 21 – September 28
- Fall semester student enrollment cutoff date- September 19, 2018
- Complete fall semester SLO submission form and submit with pre-test scores for appraiser validation in the online database- September 28, 2018
- All fall revision requests from appraisers must be completed and resubmitted by teachers- October 19, 2018
*Please see the SLO Timeline for additional dates.*
SLO Resources:
The following resources are available to help you throughout the year:
PPfT Appraisal Resources:
The following PPfT Appraisal resources are available to help you throughout the year:
- The AISD PPfT Appraisal Website provides links to resources for instructional practice, appraisal rubrics, timelines and the support guide.
- The PPfT Appraisal Support Guide provides detailed information about components and policies, as well as directions and guidelines for how to complete the appraisal.
- The Instructional Practices Online Resource Site provides a teacher toolkit for each strand of the rubric, links to instructional strategies, links to videos of expected standard and above expected standard teaching, a classroom showcase of AISD teachers and recommended reading for teachers.
- HCP includes appraisal resources, professional development opportunities and access to the Teaching Chanel and Demonstration Classroom Videos.