2019 -- H 6099

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LC002575

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2019

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- CERTIFICATION OF TEACHERS

     Introduced By: Representatives Caldwell, Diaz, Noret, Morin, and Knight

     Date Introduced: May 10, 2019

     Referred To: House Health, Education & Welfare

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Chapter 16-11 of the General Laws entitled "Certification of Teachers [See

Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of Education Act]" is hereby amended by adding

thereto the following section:

     16-11-9. New evaluation requirements.

     (a) On or before July 1, 2020, the council on elementary and secondary education shall

implement an assessment and evaluation system that applies to both teachers and administrators,

and is aligned with the state’s standards.

     (b) The system shall be designed to promote growth and development, place student

learning at the center, recognize excellence, set a high bar for professional teacher status, and

shorten timelines for improvement. The system shall include, but is not limited to, the following

five (5) steps:

     (1) Self-assessment;

     (2) Goal setting and plan development;

     (3) Plan implementation;

     (4) Formative assessment/evaluation; and

     (5) Summative evaluation.

     (c) As part of the assessment and evaluation system, the council shall develop model

scoring tools, or “rubrics”, that describe characteristics of practice at different levels of

performance and encompass the roles and responsibilities across all educators including, but not

limited to, superintendents, school-level administrators, classroom teachers, and specialized

instructional support personnel. The rubrics shall be designed to help educators and evaluators:

     (1) Develop a consistent, shared understanding of what proficient performance looks like

in practice;

     (2) Develop a common terminology and structure to organize evidence;

     (3) Discuss and agree upon certain skills and behaviors that may be high priorities

according to that educator's role and responsibilities, as well as to their professional practice and

student learning needs; and

     (4) Make informed professional judgments about performance ratings based on each of

the Rhode Island professional educator standards pursuant to 200-RICR-20-20-1.3.

     (d) The rubrics shall:

     (1) Describe teaching practice;

     (2) Be designed to be applicable to general education teachers from pre-K through

Advanced Placement, as well as teachers with specialized classes or knowledge, including

teachers of English language learners, and special education teachers.

     (e) On or before September 1, 2020, local education agencies (LEAs) shall adopt the

model assessment and evaluation system described in this section for use in their schools.

However, an LEA may revise existing local evaluation systems to be comparably rigorous and

comprehensive as set forth herein with the approval from the board of education to be in

compliance with this section.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- CERTIFICATION OF TEACHERS

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     This act would direct the council on elementary and secondary education to implement a

teacher assessment and evaluation system which emphasizes the alignment of instruction

delivered to the state's standards.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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