PREPARING FOR THE SUMMATIVE CONFERENCE. A discussion of the teacher’s Student Growth Rating will take place during a summative conference that occurs as part of the broader teacher evaluation and professional growth process. The final step of the SLO process prepares for that discussion to take place. Evidence of SLO attainment, including any required assessment data, will be given to the evaluators. Preparing for the summative conference may include self-scoring the SLO, determining a preliminary Student Growth Rating and self-reflection. In preparation for the summative conference, evaluators review teacher-submitted SLO evidence to establish a preliminary Student Growth Rating. To provide sufficient time to prepare the summative evaluation, principals establish timelines for evidence submission. A preliminary rating, with appropriate feedback, will be provided to the teacher in advance of the summative conference. The teacher will be given sufficient time to review the evaluator’s comments and gather any additional data necessary to reference during the summative conference. Recommended Method to Determine the Student Growth Rating A teacher’s Student Growth Rating quantifies the impact a teacher has on student learning during the instructional period. Once SLOs have been established and student growth has been measured between two points in time, the teacher’s Student Growth Rating is assigned, based on SLO goal attainment. Performance relative to the student growth measure is classified into one of three performance categories: Low Growth, Expected Growth, or High Growth. Figure 9: Student Growth Performance Categories PERFORMANCE CATEGORY DESCRIPTION Low Growth The teacher’s SLO is less than 65 percent attained. Expected Growth The teacher’s SLO is 65 to 85 percent attained. High Growth The teacher’s SLO is 86 to 100 percent attained.
PREPARING FOR THE SUMMATIVE CONFERENCE. The final evaluation of student growth is just one component of determining teacher effectiveness. A discussion of the teacher’s student growth rating and final teacher effectiveness rating will take place during a summative conference at the end of the year. To prepare for the summative conference, teachers should assemble, organize and deliver to the evaluator all evidence of student growth. To provide sufficient time to prepare the evaluation, evaluators may establish deadlines for submission of the student growth evidence. Determining the Student Growth Rating Once the SLO has been developed and the evidence has been collected to support growth, the teacher’s student growth rating is determined based on the extent to which goals have been accomplished. The Custer School District is adopting the South Dakota model that recommends a scoring method that classifies a teacher’s impact on student growth into three growth categories: Low, Expected or High. The recommended scoring process is outlined in Figure 8. Additionally, an example of an SLO target and expectations of growth are displayed in Figure 9. Figure 8: Recommended Method of Determining the Student Growth Rating GROWTH CATEGORY DESCRIPTION Low (1) The teacher’s student growth goals were less than 65 percent attained.
