Apology to teachers

This week, we sent out an apology to Kentucky teachers. We apologized for the software glitches that teachers were confronted with when they tried to complete the components of the new evaluation system. What happened that warrants an apology?

Kentucky has worked closely with teacher, principal, superintendent, school board and parent organizations to develop a system called the Professional Growth and Effectiveness System (PGES). This system is in response to federal and state requirements to develop evaluation systems that use student growth as a significant factor. The work has been ongoing for almost 5 years now. In collaboration with teachers, principals, and superintendents, KDE designed software to support the new PGES.

For teachers, the new software system provides them with access to content standards, standards rewritten into “I can” statements, lesson planning tools, assessment design tools, student performance, professional development, and the components of the new Teacher Professional Growth and Effectiveness System (TPGES). The effectiveness system components in the software are self-reflection, professional growth plan, peer and supervisor observation data, student growth data, and student voice data. The components are grouped together in our state software system within the Educator Development Suite (EDS). By using the software, principals can keep up with the components of the effectiveness system for each teacher they supervise and teachers are able to manage the evidences of the system without having to keep a paper portfolio (paperwork reduction).

The system was designed by teachers for teachers; however, the last few weeks have been very difficult for teachers and principals. The first component of the EDS was the teacher self-reflection. Teachers are asked to utilize the Charlotte Danielson framework for Effective Teaching and identify areas of strength and areas of improvement. This should have been very easy to use and not require too much teacher time. The reality is that the software had a number of problems. Teachers had difficulty logging in. Teachers, who did not save their work often, lost it. The software did not have an auto-save capacity and the time out restrictions were too tight. All in all, many teachers struggled with the software during the early part of the school year when they had little time to spare.

KDE and the software provider have been working overtime to correct the problems. As of this week, we now have more than 32,000 teachers who have successfully started or completed their self-reflection. Many teachers have now moved on to the professional growth plan, observations, and student growth goals. The data are showing that most of the software problems have been addressed and repaired.

As commissioner, I wanted to offer my sincere apology to the many teachers and principals who experienced frustration with the software that was supposed to make their job easier – not more difficult. I wanted to thank teachers and principals for their patience and persistence in dealing with the software problems.

We have worked almost five years together to develop a system that elevates the teaching profession and focuses on professional growth of teachers and principals. We will continue to monitor the software and the teacher experience with the software very closely. As teachers discover problems or concerns with the software, please let the Help Desk know of the problems so that we can quickly address the issues.

It is my hope that the rest of the year and the required components of the new system go very smoothly and that teachers feel they are supported in their efforts to grow professionally.

Putting superintendent feedback to use

It’s been about six months since Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) leadership and I met with all Kentucky school district superintendents in Frankfort for a face-to-face Superintendents’ Summit. This provided an opportunity for me to explain the why, what and how of the P-12 components of the Unbridled Learning: College and Career Readiness for All system. In addition, superintendents heard presentations on key topics and had the opportunity through roundtable discussions to share feedback on the issues. This detailed feedback was compiled into a document that included responses from KDE staff to each comment/question submitted by superintendents. 

Since the summit, Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) staff has studied and integrated this feedback into our work in an effort to be responsive to the needs of school districts. The feedback has been extremely valuable and KDE is appreciative of superintendents’ willingness to share it with us.

Below is an update on the many ways the superintendent feedback has had a positive impact on KDE’s work.

Assessment and Accountability
• Accountability Model – KDE will do a three-year review of the components of the accountability system looking for areas for continuation and adjustments. By allowing three years of data to be part of the review, it will provide a more consistent look at the scores. 

• State Tests – KDE issued a Request for Information (RFI) in November 2013 to begin exploring assessments to help with the issuing of a Response for Proposals (RFP) to replace the EXPLORE/PLAN tests at a minimum since the vendor is discontinuing them, but also possibly the high school end-of-course tests. KDE continues working with ACT to improve their current high school model and ACT has indicated that the turnaround times for paper tests this spring will be significantly shorter. 

• Growth – Both at the summit and later, superintendents focused attention on the growth model. Due to this concern, the Growth Component will be one of the main components we will be taking a look at during review of the accountability model. The review will look at purpose, use and weights of the growth component. 

• Program Reviews – KDE is launching major activities to help improve the Program Review model. Those activities include strengthening of the audit process, conducting research to determine the value and importance of Program Reviews, improving the scoring process, and reviewing and analyzing data to help inform future changes. 

Professional Growth and Effectiveness System (PGES)
• Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) took up the first reading of the new regulation earlier this month. It comes back for a second reading and approval on April 9. In the interim, KDE is analyzing and considering all feedback on the regulation. Additionally, the KBE is holding a study session on the student growth component of the PGES model on April 8 prior to its board meeting.
• KDE has distributed the Model Certified Evaluation Plan (CEP).
• Regional trainings are taking place this month and next for district leadership teams to delve into the Model CEP.
• Educational cooperatives have been involved in this work and have been encouraged to share models of solid implementation from the statewide pilot of the system during their meetings.
• A closer look at time and funding to implement PGES is a part of the research agenda throughout the pilot.
• The Area Technology Centers/Career and Technical Education (ATC/CTE) pilot of PGES is currently underway and will expand during the upcoming academic school year.
• A subcommittee of the Steering Committee that has been guiding this work agreed on rubrics for “other professionals” in January. A pilot for the “other professionals” system will take place during the 2014-15 school year.
• Ongoing conversations between KDE and the Kentucky Education Association (KEA) have occurred to ensure local presidents are sharing a consistent message around the expectations for PGES.

Teacher PGES
• PGES consultants are providing greater support for all four domains.
• The Kentucky Teacher Internship Program (KTIP) and PGES will be merged. A pilot will be conducted in the 2014-15 academic school year with full implementation in 2015-16. 
• The summative model for the teacher PGES has been shared publicly and with the KBE. 
• Videos from teachers, principals, and superintendents will be shared in the coming weeks to provide information about the use of student growth in the system.

Principal PGES
• Questions about assistant principals and their role in the principal PGES have been addressed through PGES webcasts and newsletters.
• Great collaboration has occurred with the Education Professional Standards Board (EPSB) to ensure principal preparation programs are sharing the principal PGES as a part of the expectations for demonstrating effectiveness.
• Regional VAL-ED training has assisted with understanding of the tool.
• TELL Kentucky survey data is used as a source of evidence for the creation of principal goals but focuses primarily on working conditions and the goal for continuous improvement.
• A greater partnership with the Kentucky Leadership Academy (KLA) has been formed to support the principal PGES and teacher PGES.

Additional Curricular Information
• Science leadership networks are underway across the regions. Teachers have been participating and involved in conversations about the standards and updating local curricula.
• Regional social studies leadership networks are meeting so teachers may examine the C3 Social Studies Framework and develop new standards for future implementation. The social studies standards will not be introduced until late in the fall of 2014 at the earliest
• World Language Program Reviews will be piloted in 2014-15 in order to continue to build innovative models for language and cultural programs. 

Budget
• Based on the comments during the Superintendent’s Summit, KDE submitted a budget proposal to the Governor in November 2013 supporting the three priorities as agreed on by superintendents. These were restoration of funding for SEEK, Flexible Focus (textbooks, professional development, Extended School Services, school safety) and Technology. 
• The Governor’s budget proposal supports all of these areas in some fashion and KDE continues to advocate for restoration of K-12 funding as the legislative session moves forward.

Flexibility of Federal Funds
• KDE will issue a white paper in March to assist districts in using federal funds effectively.

Career and Technical Education
• In response to requests to expand the career readiness measures, the Office of Career and Technical Education (OCTE) has developed an electronic form by which schools and districts can submit industry certifications for consideration. The form can be found on the KDE website at this link.
• In collaboration with the Office of Next-Generation Learners, OCTE has created workgroups to develop career pathways for the arts. Seven pathways and end-of-program assessments will be developed for students interested in the arts. Schools and districts will be able to implement the pathways during the 2014-15 school year.

Sharing Best Practices
• A “Best Practices” webpage now exists where districts can both submit best practices that have worked for them as well as access ideas from across the state.  The webpage is currently undergoing a redesign to make it easier for users to submit and find best practices.

Technology
• KDE continues to assist district and school staff with any issues regarding roles and levels in the Continuous Instructional Improvement Technology System (CIITS) through monthly webcasts as well as through the CIITS Help Desk.
• KDE has been working with the SchoolNet development team on an issue with the Educator Development Suite (EDS) recognizing only the teacher of record. The solution will make it possible for all certified staff to have access to self-reflection, student growth goal setting, professional growth plans, and student voice results that are a part of PGES. We are hopeful this will occur within the next three months.

Finally, plans are underway to schedule a second Superintendents’ Summit in September of this year. The main topic for the summit would be reviewing the existing accountability model and making recommendations for possible changes in the model to the Kentucky Board of Education.  After seeing the impact they can have, we hope all superintendents will once again take part.

Kentucky Is Committed to Education Technology

Since coming to Kentucky in 2009, I have been very impressed with the commitment to technology that is apparent throughout the commonwealth’s schools. I believe this commitment originates at the state level with a great plan and support from the General Assembly. Kentucky is certainly a leader among states with regard to state solutions for software and 21st-century classrooms.

Kentucky has a distinct advantage with the uniform student information system (Infinite Campus). This tool allows parent, student and educator access through a variety of platforms. Also, Kentucky has a strong advantage with the live@edu product from Microsoft. Kentucky was the first state in the nation to use cloud services for e-mail and storage. This was made possible by having a statewide active directory for e-mail addresses for educators and students. This active directory also has opened many other software solutions.

The Continuous Instructional Improvement Technology System (CIITS) is a powerful tool for educators across Kentucky. This tool provides educators with access to resources to support the implementation of the common core standards and teacher/principal evaluation systems.

The ASSIST software is another exciting tool for Kentucky educators. This tool will provide a single source for the development, implementation and monitoring of comprehensive school and district improvement plans. Schools and districts will not have to complete separate improvement plans for a variety of funding sources, and the plans will not have to be submitted in paper format. Also, schools and districts will submit Program Reviews required by 2009’s Senate Bill 1 through the ASSIST software.

MUNIS is our statewide solution for school finance. Over the past few months, we have been moving school districts to the MUNIS cloud solution. To date, we have over 100 of the 174 districts on the cloud. The cloud solution helped those districts impacted by recent storms meet payroll and financial obligations.

Individual Learning Plans (ILPs) are available for every student in Kentucky starting in 6th grade. During our recent Operation Preparation focus, we were able to increase the use of the ILPs by over 50 percent for parents of 8th-grade students. The ILP is an excellent way for parents to have conversations about long-range education plans for their children.

iTunes U is another great source for educators, students and parents. The resources from Kentucky educators, colleges and other sources are growing exponentially through this free and easy-to-access tool.

These are just a few of the great tools available to Kentucky educators, students and parents. Kentucky is certainly a 21st-century state when it comes to the use of technology. Again, this is due to strong financial support from the General Assembly; however, the FY 13 and 14 budget has taken a step back from this commitment. While we understand the short-range revenue shortfall, it is certainly our hope that the General Assembly will renew the commitment to education technology as soon as possible. I hope educators will let legislators know what a great impact technology has on the students, classrooms, schools and districts across Kentucky.

Follow-Up on Digital Summit

Last week, I mentioned several articles concerning digital learning. One article gave me concern -- “In Classroom of Future, Stagnant Scores.” This article from the New York Times seemed to take us back about 20 years by looking at outdated models of technology with a focus on measures that limit the creativity and innovation of our students and teachers to create higher levels of learning and success. As I was beginning to prepare the blog for this week, I ran across a response from Tom Vander Ark that spoke so well to the issue that I share his response below.

Matt Richtel wrote the rearview mirror story of the last decade -- technology layered on top of how we've always done school yielding meager results, at least when measured in traditional ways. The story of this decade is that personal digital learning will change the world.

The Sunday feature in the New York Times did a disservice to the field. It's easy to make sweeping statements about the past and prop up critics. Richtel knows well the case for digital learning; he just chose to leave it out.

Where technology is designed in rather than layered on, it is transformational. When it creates entirely new learning opportunities, like the 4 million students learning online, it is transformational. When it enables schools that blend the best of online and onsite learning, it is transformational. Why would Matt look only at weak examples and skip the 40 blended models featured in the Innosight Report, "The Rise of Blended Learning?”

For two years, Gov. Bob Wise's Alliance for Excellent Education has been calling attention to the skill gap, the funding gap and the effective teacher gap. A July report stated, "The Alliance concludes that taking advantage of digital learning to expand opportunities and access for students, especially in rural and urban areas, is the only way to address these issues." The Alliance report goes on to outline 10 examples of smart uses of instructional technology. Why didn't Matt talk to Bob? Why didn't Matt talk to Susan Patrick from the online learning association?

Weak ROI on computers in schools is an old story, but the future will not look like the past. Hundreds of schools and pilot projects make the case for personal digital learning. More broadband, cheap access devices, new apps and powerful platforms are reshaping how people learn. Learning technology is reshaping the world by making education more personal and by creating more time and opportunity.
1. More personal. Instruction at the right level, in the best mode, at the right time, is more effective teaching to the middle of a class with big skill differences; Rocketship's John Danner thinks it's often 10 times more effective. Personalized math products like MIND Research, McGraw's Power of U, and games-based products like Dreambox and Mangahigh have all demonstrated great early results.
2. More time. Online learning allows schools to stretch staffing ratios and leverage teacher talent. Schools that blend online and onsite instruction can afford a longer day and year. Engaging work and motivating feedback are extending learning time. Schools like Rocketship show that it's possible to double productive learning time for kids who need it most.
3. More opportunity. Where policy barriers have come down, online learning is creating more opportunity for every student: access to every AP course, every foreign language course, every STEM course. Online learning is powering virtual schools and new blended models. It's helping students at risk catch up and graduate.

These benefits are evident today in schools like Carpe Diem and in networks like AdvancePath. The benefits are accelerating, and there's no going back. All new teachers grew up digital. Kids come to school wired. Many new learning apps are free and expanding virally. The "new normal" economy is demanding more knowledge and skill, but the fiscal crisis is demanding better outcomes for less money.

A look back is only of value if we learn from success stories as well as mistakes. Matt knows the story; he just left out the good parts: personal digital learning is transforming American public education and extending access to millions of students worldwide.

In Kentucky, we are working toward the transformational model for digital learning. We have launched the Unbridled Learning strategic plan that focuses on unleashing the innovation and creativity of our students and teachers to meet the goal of college/career readiness for all. Look for the final set of recommendations from our digital summit later this fall

Digital Learning in Kentucky

This week, we held a digital summit that was the culmination of a needs assessment conducted by OpenEd Solutions. This consultant group was hired to assess the current situation concerning digital learning in Kentucky and produce recommendations for possible legislative and regulatory changes needed to support the enhancement of digital learning in the state. The recommendations will be informed by the needs assessment and the recent report Digital Learning Now.

Prior to the digital summit, several articles caught my attention. An article in the Huffington Post – “Many U.S. Schools Adding iPads, Trimming Textbooks” -- discussed the emerging trend of digital textbooks using the iPad as the platform. Recently, we announced the launch of iTunes U at Woodford County High School, and that district was mentioned in the article as one of over 600 school districts in the nation that have launched a 1:1 tablet project to provide digital learning resources and textbooks to students. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has developed a digital version of the Algebra II textbook with free interactive digital resources for students and teachers. The digital textbook sells for $60, and the hardcover sells for $73. It is yet to be seen if publishers will offer digital textbooks and materials at a significant savings that in turn could be used to purchase tablets or netbooks. Our recommendations from the digital report will certainly have to discuss funding models that allow districts to use textbook funding (if we ever have textbook funds again) for the purchase of digital resources and equipment.

A key question to be addressed will be student and teacher access to websites. Currently, our state and many districts interpret Internet protection regulations very stringently. This means students and teachers often complain to the technology staff that important resources are not accessible. In the New York Times this past weekend, I read an article on how students are helping teachers find ways around district/school Internet firewalls to access Facebook. Given the innovation of our students, it is impossible to successfully block inappropriate sites. Our digital report will certainly have to address this issue and how we manage access in the future, given limited resources.

Finally, the ultimate question relates to student learning outcomes. Does digital learning make a difference in student learning outcomes? In another New York Times article, “In Classroom of Future, Stagnant Scores,” the Kyrene School District in Arizona is highlighted. This district is a suburban district that obtained, through a ballot initiative, $33 million for investments in technology. Every classroom is a “classroom of the future,” with Smartboards, wireless, response devices and computers. As the district prepares to continue the technology focus with a $56 million ballot initiative this fall, concerns have risen over stagnant test scores in reading and math. Professor Larry Cuban from Stanford University says there is no evidence in the research that technology enhances student learning outcomes, and there seems to be no justification for this level of expenditure. Teachers in the district question the funding for technology in a time of tight budgets and lack of resources such as paper and Kleenex for classrooms.

Digital learning in Kentucky is at a crossroads. Certainly, any use of resources must focus on student learning with the outcome of college/career readiness for all students. In a time of limited resources, do we support digital learning expenditures? Look for next week’s blog, when I’ll discuss this important question.

Digital Learning in Kentucky

Kentucky was one of the early leaders in virtual learning. Today, we are struggling to find the appropriate methods for funding, support and innovation.

Over the past two years, we have been working first through the Transforming Education in Kentucky task force and now through an “innovative pathways to graduation” committee to define how we can create more opportunities for students and teachers to engage in digital learning.

Our work in Kentucky is being informed through the Digital Learning Now report that was a collaborative project of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and former West Virginia Governor Bob Wise. We have been utilizing the services of a consulting firm – OpenEd Solutions – to develop key recommendations for policy and budget decisions. The consulting firm is conducting an analysis of current digital learning conditions in Kentucky and will host a Digital Summit on September 7 in Lexington to further develop a final report. The final report will then be presented to Kentucky Board of Education and key legislators for action in the 2012 session.

This week saw some exciting potential for the future of digital learning in Kentucky. In a joint press conference held at Woodford County High School, Governor Steve Beshear, University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto, Kentucky Educational Television Executive Director Shae Hopkins and I announced the launch of the Kentucky on iTunes U site. This free source provides access to numerous teacher- and student-friendly sites that provide unlimited opportunities for digital learning.

Also, it was exciting to witness the deployment of a 1:1 iPad solution in Woodford County High classrooms. Students and teachers demonstrated exciting new opportunities for digital learning. Superintendent Scott Hawkins and his team are to be commended for their innovative work. Woodford County joins many other Kentucky school districts with similar 1:1 projects and a focus on innovation.

Our partners at the UK P20 Innovation Lab and the Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education (CASTLE) are stretching our thinking for the future. Also, a group of 16 school districts is partnering with us through the Stupski Foundation and Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) to design the next generation of schools and learning opportunities.

The energy, interest and creative abilities exist in Kentucky to create the national model for digital learning. Stay tuned for the final report from our digital summit.