Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Evaluation

There are two types of evaluation in the school setting. The more informal is formative, which are curriculum “walk-throughs” (form attached) and casual classroom visits. The more formal evaluation, summative, is the only thing that is placed in your official file. I have also attached the guidelines for this process. You will each have one evaluator who is responsible for submitting your evaluation to the Board of Education. Additionally, if you are a first-year teacher, you will go through the Teacher Residency Program. Your evaluator, a mentor teacher, and a university representative will all observe you. This observation is for recommendation for you to receive your certification and is not linked to your formal school evaluation. The link for this form is http://www.sde.state.ok.us/Teacher/ResidentTeach/pdf/observations.pdf
Please don’t sweat your evaluation. We do not want to see a dog and pony show and do not expect you to be super teacher your first year. I will give you plenty of head’s up if I am concerned with your teaching before it is formalized in an evaluation.

8 comments:

  1. Don't be afraid or embarrased to ask questions! There are lots of veteran teachers in the building that are willing and eager to share information and resources. The best teachers keep on learning even after decades of teaching!

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  2. Why am I the only person posting comments on the blog??? I just wanted to add a small piece of advice to the really new teachers, even though it's not exactly on the topic. Before the school year gets underway, sit down and establish routines and procedures for your classroom. These are just as important as leeson plans and rules. Your team will likely have a set of common rules, but you need to have an idea of how you want your class to run, and what you want a typical day in your class to look like. Example: will your students keep journals? where will these journals be kept? will someone pass them out when class begins? Will your students have bellwork to do as soon as they come in? How will you end the hour and get ready to go? These are things that can make or break your classroom management, but sometimes are overlooked when we start out. The students need to know what to expect each day, and they need to be taught routines and procedures of YOUR classroom, otherwise it will be THEIR world, and you will just be trying to surive in it. Lisa, White, am I right?

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  3. Sarah I couldn't have said it better myself. The routines and rituals (America's Choice terminology) must be established in each classroom. Otherwise you will experience classroom chaos, and that is difficult to overcome. If any of the new teachers would like assistance in setting up these routines and rituals my room (#212) is always open.

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  4. I haven't done "America's Choice" but am looking forward to learning more about it from what I hear so far!

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  5. You are right, Sarah! You win the veteran teacher award (and the prize is going to be really nifty)--White is close on your heels, though. Solberg, Broadway, where are you guys. Your experiences as new teachers are freshest--jump in there. New teachers, no questions?

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  6. I wrote a really nifty response to this about a week ago that wouldn't post. Now that I'm all figured out on the blog, we've all moved on, but I still wanted to ask a couple things on this thought train. I was about to post my expectations in the classroom when I thought maybe I should wait to see if my 8-2 Team has a set we will all use. When do you think we will have a chance to meet or chat before school begins? Also, do Language Arts teachers at Taft follow any shared or suggested procedures with journaling, bellwork, etc? Thought you could help me with this one Ms. Ross :).

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  7. You should definitely meet with your team soon. Most of 8-2 is new, so you guys might hammer out some common rules. The Language Arts department doesn't use any universal journaling or bellwork. The Language Arts department does focus writing instruction on the "Bing Bang Bongo" model, and tries to utilize a common set of writing terms.

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  8. I think we hit on some of this yesterday talking in your room--but for the sake of others--teams do establish rules for their group. There are some school rules, particulary for the enforcement of uniforms. Bing Bang Bongo is 5 - paragraph essay.

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