JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors Section One: Professional Preparation INDICATOR

EFFECTIVE

CLASSROOM IMPLICATIONS

a. Demonstrates accurate, up-to-date and extensive knowledge of subjects

Accesses and uses current research, district/school professional development, and professional resources within subject area(s) to increase and apply knowledge in order to teach timely and accurate content

Demonstrates knowledge and use of resources that are supported by CAP (ELD, Guiding Principles, CALI), District, and/or school initiatives Utilizes current research supported by CAP, District, and/or school initiatives to deepen knowledge base Accesses high quality professional development opportunities to meet professional goals Teacher applies and refines knowledge and skills learned through professional development to plan instruction and make instructional decisions

b. Demonstrates knowledge of how to integrate subject matter/disciplines and literacy across content areas

Provides consistent connections and relevancy to literacy skills, other subject areas, previous/successive learning, life experiences, and future careers

Provides instructional strategies that include literacy, numeracy and language development across content areas Students interact with and make connections between prior learning and the current lesson in order to facilitate understanding of content and purpose for learning Interdisciplinary connections and relevancy are addressed/embedded throughout lesson sequence to deepen the learning for students Provides connections which allow students to connect content to real world applications Use materials/resources to design lessons that help students connect to their learning by linking curriculum to prior knowledge, experience, and/or cultural contexts Making explicit connections between intervention instruction and general education classroom are established as appropriate

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JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors c. Implements research-based best practices Purposefully aligns instructional practices with content knowledge in the planning process which accomplishes instructional goals to meet student needs

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Engages students in instruction that is purposeful, direct, explicit, systematic to meet grade level standards Aligns instructional practices to meet class needs (collaborative and cooperative learning structures, purposeful talk, use of technology, anchor charts, multiple sources, hands on learning, etc.) Instruction utilizes research-based practices that are outlined in district resources, such as: -Guiding Principles for Reading, Writing, and Math -Math Framework -District adopted replacement curriculum (i.e. READ 180, Ramp Up) -CALI -C-CAP -ELL support documents -School-wide initiatives (i.e. Thinking Maps, IB, etc.) -Appropriate interventions based on student data

JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors INDICATOR d. Develops lesson plans incorporating effective lesson design

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EFFECTIVE Incorporates elements of an effective lesson design resulting in a coherent, appropriately sequenced lesson including a stated learning goal, guided and independent practices, differentiation, closure and assessment

TEACHER BEHAVIORS Utilizes components of an effective lesson design that are responsive to student learning needs Learning Goals: Develop learning goals that articulate the over-arching ideas and the destination of the lesson (what to learn, how deeply to learn it, and how to demonstrate their learning) Learning goals, essential questions, and/or overarching understandings are stated, posted and/or used and referred to throughout the lesson Learning Structures: Evidence of planning for explicit instructional and time to practice (i.e. gradual release of responsibilities, modeling, guided and independent practice) Activities should be based off of learning goals Uses cooperative structures including meaningful student talk Intentional planning for group, partner, and/or individual work and included monitoring for understanding and application of learning Appropriate balance of teacher talk and student talk Assessment data is used for instructional decision making: Prior knowledge is accessed and connected to new learning Teacher is flexible and responsive by adjusting instruction based on learning behaviors of students, summative and/or formative data collected Differentiation is planned for and instruction is adjusted: Differentiated expectations vary in content, process and/or product Differentiation is planned for based on prior learning, preassessment, formative assessment and the diversity of the learners Instruction is rigorous for all students Closure: Student ownership is evident in closure (i.e. student sharing, student work, class discussion) Closure connects back to stated learning goal/objective to ensure group understanding

JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors e. Plans and implements district-adopted curriculum through alignment of resources and assessments

Consistently utilizes district curriculum and the pacing guide for development of course outline, lesson planning and assessments

f.

Aligns content within own grade level(s)/course(s) with some reference to previous and/or succeeding grade level(s) and course(s)

Aligns content within course and with previous and succeeding grades/courses

Accesses district curriculum with C-CAP (i.e. Big Ideas, Essential Questions, Planning Documents, academic language) and aligning resources and assessments Use of current planning templates or back-mapping to develop plans Applies knowledge of student learning, development, and growth to the development of lesson plans, instructional strategies Collects multiple examples of student work to determine student progress over time Systemic approach to alignment of content to spiral concepts Teacher utilizes student proficiency levels within C-CAP to build off of previous grade level and content learning Purposeful references are made to previous and succeeding grade levels to continually build conceptual understanding

Section Two: Professional Techniques INDICATOR

EFFECTIVE

a. Communicates to students expectations for learning

Clearly communicates learning goals so that students are able to articulate goals

b. Models and facilitates higher-level thinking, creativity and flexibility

Models strategies to promote higher-level thinking for students to interact with the rigorous and challenging content in a meaningful way that elicits thoughtful

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TEACHER BEHAVIORS Establishes learning goal at beginning of instruction and continually and systematically revisits the goal Provides feedback around goal during closure Posted in classroom and referred to consistently Learning goals are in student friendly language, may include pictures Goals match daily instruction including links to prior knowledge Students are able to articulate goal and relevance to their learning Learning goal should reflect the lesson’s conceptual learning rather than activity or task Classroom gains an understanding of the true purpose for the learning as they engage in activities Lesson planning indicates intentionality for including student critical thinking (i.e. flexible thinking, problem solving, different perspectives, etc.) Provides structures to allow for all students to have higher-level thinking opportunities (intentional modeling of expectations, sentence stems, visual representations, scaffolding questions, teacher think

JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors responses from students

c. Adapts instruction to meet the instructional needs of all students

Consistently demonstrates appropriate and varied research based teaching strategies, lessons, and techniques that meet the needs of all students, supporting students to learn to greatest ability

d. Uses a variety of formative and summative assessments to make instructional decisions

Uses a variety of assessment data to modify instruction for all students based on periodic data analysis

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aloud,) Appropriate balance of teacher talk vs. student talk Students use a variety of tools to construct and deepen their thinking Implement reciprocal grouping or flexible groups of students Activities allow student to access their learning in a variety of ways Questions encourage students to think flexibly and creatively from different perspectives Pose open-ended questions that engage students in the construction of their own learning Elicits thoughtful responses from students Teacher facilitates student learning using higher levels of taxonomy (analysis, synthesis, application, evaluation level) Use of data for lesson planning and student grouping is evident Purposeful and flexible student groupings Adapts modalities based on student needs (lessons are auditory, visual and kinesthetic) Uses continuous/informal assessment to adapt instruction in the moment Utilizes verbal and visual scaffolds (i.e. graphic organizers, picture cues, etc.) Remediates and /or accelerates content (what students are learning) Presents instruction that actively motivates and engages students Independent work is purposeful and differentiated Teachers utilizes plans (IEP, ALP, ILP, LSP, 504, etc.) to guide instruction and adjust grouping and resources to meet student learning goals while maintaining rigorous expectations Differentiate resource use for students based on their needs Teacher uses data to address the full spectrum of learning needs, skill levels, learning styles and are developmentally appropriate Aligns instruction with academic standards and student assessment results to close gaps between proficiency levels Teacher groups students intentionally based on data Formative assessment tools and strategies are evident Refers to data gathered from informal assessments to make instructional decisions

JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors

e. Provides varied opportunities for student demonstrations of learning

f.

Explicitly communicates criteria for student success

g. Provides meaningful and constructive feedback to students

h. Maximizes available instructional time

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Progress monitoring is a consistent practice to inform instructional decisions The summative assessment drives the lesson plans – planning with the end in mind through backward design General ed teacher and SPED teacher plan for small group instruction when working using a push-in model Provides frequent and varied Students are provided with multiple opportunities and varied ways to opportunities for demonstrate their learning throughout lessons and units of study demonstration of student Students demonstrate learning through discussion, written responses, learning collaborative group activities, and/or formative assessments Provides meaningful choice for students to demonstrate their understanding of the concepts Encourages flexible thinking to demonstrate varied learning processes Provides clear performance Performance criterion are used as resources and tools for learning criteria and guidance for Rubrics are written in student language and can be explained by students to determine students performance levels (i.e. rubrics, Exemplars are modeled and analyzed by teachers and used by students exemplars, student selfto guide their learning assessment etc.) Rubrics and exemplars are integrated into the learning process so that student can clearly explain and show the desired outcome(s) Provides opportunities for student to self-assess their work Provides students with timely Oral and written feedback is individualized, timely, explicit, evidenceand meaningful feedback based and provides opportunities for student growth and addresses quality of work Feedback is related to the learning targets, objectives, and/or performance criteria Feedback is provided in various manners (i.e. verbal, written, nonverbal, modeling/example) Feedback offers opportunities for discussion that lead to revision, remediation, acceleration, or celebration Matches appropriate Appropriate instructional time for content: Instructional time for Allocation of time matches grade level expectations and student needs content, incorporates with accommodations/modifications as appropriate appropriate pacing, has Incorporates appropriate pacing: smooth transitions between Maximizes instructional time by effectively prioritizing tasks, organizing

JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors activities, and engages students in learning for the entire time

i.

Develops relationships with students that fosters a culturally responsive learning environment

Builds relationships with students, valuing the importance of student/family background, student selfidentity, as well as student strengths, interests and abilities

j.

Develops a safe and welcoming learning environment

Creates an environment which promotes polite and respectful interactions and does not tolerate negative interactions

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data, preparing materials, delegating tasks and scheduling Smooth transitions between activities: Puts procedures in place to avoid interruption to instructional time Transitional procedures are in place to expedite progression of learning Engages students in learning: Ensures that all students participate with a high level of frequency Appropriate balance of teacher talk and student talk Accesses and employs appropriate materials, services to facilitate student engagement Diversity is acknowledged (i.e. race, ethnicity, gender, religion, capabilities and disabilities, socio-economic, or self-identity) and used to further student learning Instruction reflects and respects cultural understanding of students and demonstrates an ability to adjust to specific student audience Teacher models and uses culturally responsive dialogue and activities in the classroom that honor each individual student Teacher supports and demonstrates a belief that all students can achieve to a high level Students’ trust of the teacher develops based on their perceptions of the teacher’s caring, competence, consistency and respect for students Teacher creates a classroom environment which acknowledges diverse perspectives Relationships with students value the importance of student/family background, student self-identity, as well as student strengths, interests and abilities Consistently has positive interactions with students Use of positive redirection with all students and with intentionality Interactions promote a positive environment for students The classroom environment promotes positive interactions between all students and adults creating a healthy learning environment Inappropriate student behavior is redirected privately Norms that promote respectful interactions have been set and are evident through student behavior

JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors

k. Collaboratively develops, models, and communicates clear expectations for student behavior within a learning environment

Teaches and models behavior and learning standards, procedures, and routines that contribute to an effective learning environment

l.

Implements classroom and building standards, procedures and consequences

Implements classroom and building rules and procedures

Section Three: Professional Responsibilities Page 8 of 9 – May, 2013

Teacher promotes respect by their actions and words Listens to and acknowledges needs and concerns of all students Students approach the teacher and/or are asking questions and the teacher’s response validates the need Teacher has defined availability for student access Teacher tone is respectful and accessible Establishes positive standards for behavior expectations Teacher has a behavior system in place that is followed with fidelity School wide behavior systems are consistently utilized Teacher acknowledges and reinforces expected behavior Inappropriate behavior is attended to prior to escalation Positive expectations are established with evidence of consistent follow through Procedures and routines enhance student responsibilities Routines are clearly established and maximize instructional time Expectations and norms for transitions are established Teacher gives explicit instruction for independent and group work Routines for material use and grouping are established School wide behavior systems are consistently utilized (PBIS, Love and Logic, Second Step, etc.) Holds students accountable for school and/or classroom rules Maintains a safe and orderly environment Clearly communicates standards of conduct and implements and adjusts appropriate consequences Consequences effectively result in a change in student behavior Consequences limit loss of instructional opportunities Consequences are consistent, pre-stated and age/developmentally appropriate In co-teaching models, teachers reinforce each other on the establishment of expectations and norms

JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Teacher and Special Educator Rubric Look-Fors INDICATOR

EFFECTIVE

a. Participates in professional learning opportunities and applies what is learned

Shows clear evidence of learning and applying new skills (ex. lesson plans, reflection journal, professional dialogue with others)

b. Establishes and maintains professional communication which is clear, responsible, and respectful

Uses language that is precise, accurate, and appropriate to the situation and audience

c. Establishes and maintains meaningful twoway communication in a timely manner with students and guardians

Utilizes multiple avenues for communication with students and guardians and proactively communicates as needed

Follows school structures and processes in regards to communication with family Initiates timely communication in order to support students and families Collaborates with families to ensure opportunities for student success

d. Collaborates to accomplish team, schoolwide, and district-wide goals and practices

Actively collaborates to establish and accomplish team, school, and district goals

e. Maintains up-to-date records of student progress according to District policy and school norms

Maintains information on student completion of assignments, assessments, and attendance in an organized, understandable system

Actively contributes and supports teams, staff meetings, dept./grade level, UIP, and committee meetings Promotes and articulates the school’s goals and mission in a positive light Teacher has on-going conversations with colleagues about proactive actionsteps to collaborate on student success (i.e. working with teacher librarian, special ed teacher, para professionals, etc.) Continually update record keeping systems (e.g. CAIN, Campus, progress monitoring systems, etc.) in a timely manner or as required Teacher can easily access and articulate the system in which they use to maintain records Appropriate information is accessible to all stakeholders (i.e. up-to-date assignment calendar, grading, attendance records, etc.) to progress monitor

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TEACHER BEHAVIORS Able to articulate Professional Learning Plan and steps towards professional growth based on continuous feedback Uses feedback from previous evaluation and current school year to improve instructional and professional growth Seeks out, communicates and shares feedback with Master Teacher Instructional Leadership Team to align instructional and professional growth needs Attends and participates professional learning opportunities in addition to the trainings that are required for your specific position/role New skills are visible in classroom Able to articulate how new learning impacts student achievement Follows school, team, dept. communication norms during school day Communication enhances the situation and is productive Communication is clear, focused Contributes positively to the culture of the school