Dr.+Mark+McQuillan

Please list at least **//10 questions or ideas//** that come to mind as you review CT's RTTT proposal for Round 1.

· I worry about sustainability. These are tough economic times even with a plan in place it may not happen. · TEAM is still in the development stage with implementation due to begin in the 2010-2011 school year. TEAM standards are much less stringent than its predecessor BEST. o //Great Teachers and Leaders//( iv-C) states “ Use evaluation to inform tenure and /or full certification. o I also have issue with the fact that districts can chose to review modules within district or use a regional review committee. Again, calibration is essential especially if this is tied to certification. o How will this fit in? · Although the CEA and AFT have agreed to work with the CSDE on this Reform Plan I worry that when it comes down to aligning evaluation and/or tenure with student growth there may be some obstacles. In my district the union had some problems with our new evaluation plan and it was not related to student growth. · How will you engage higher education in this reform plan? · The digital “standards based curriculum” with sample units and student work is a great idea. Involving higher ed so that new teachers see quality student work is imperative. Many of our veteran teachers could benefit from this type of professional development as well. o How will the CSDE engage teachers in this process?

· Our school does a lot with peer scoring for consistency in grade levels but our district and the state need to do more of this. The BEST program did a great job in calibrating all of their portfolio scorers. This was some of the best professional development I had as a teacher. I would love to see this model used for scoring constructed response and extended response questions. · It has been stated numerous times that the best indicator of student success is the quality of teaching taking place in the classroom. With that being said, many of the teachers that went through the ARC program are very knowledgeable in their field but lack effective teaching strategies and are therefore not effective teachers. o What is being done to give these teachers more support? · Love the idea of Teacher- in- Residence/ Master Teacher being loaned to districts in need. I worry about buy-in from individual districts. o Would each district be required to be part of this program? · I am happy to see that the CSDE is reviewing CEU guidelines. They need to be aligned with what is driving professional development in our state and our districts. · Is there a plan to link highly effective teachers with their teacher preparation program? · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">On the reverse side--- will the CSDE link ineffective teachers with their teacher prep program as well? Marianne Johnson


 * Do you feel that the CT’s RTTT application was rejected because many of the requirements can not yet be implemented until legislation mandates them?

Beginning on 7-1-11, each local BoE shall incorporate the use of data and indicators on student academic growth as a “significant factor” in evaluating teacher performance. To that end:


 * Will it be up to each local BoE to determine what data and indicators will be used?
 * What and who determines “significant” portion of teacher performance?
 * If each local BoE determines the what and how of using student data, how will equity be insured throughout the state?
 * Why did the new TEAM model not include some of this if teachers will now be evaluated on this basis?

The model teacher evaluation program guidelines will have “a consideration of control factors that may influence teacher performance ratings, including, but not limited to, student characteristics, student attendance, and student mobility”.

· How will that be accounted for and quantified in an evaluation document so that teachers are evaluated objectively and consistently across districts?

Effective 7-1-10, on or before Oct. 1 of each year, local BoE shall submit a report to the State BoE reports on AP course enrollment and analysis of AP exam results.

· Do you feel schools will now become selective with students in their AP enrollment for fear of poor results? · How will the State use these results? · Will the State be looking for gender and/or racial breakdown? · Will there be sanctions for school districts with poor performance results? · Will schools be required to offer a minimum number of AP courses?

“Effective teachers and highly effective teachers” as well as “effective and highly effective principal” will be measured by acceptable rates of student growth.


 * How will acceptable and high rate of growth be determined?
 * What data and how will the data be used?
 * Since districts will have to report the percentage of effective and highly effective teachers, will there be a minimum acceptable percentage per district?
 * How will student achievement factor into the evaluation of non-teaching positions such as counselors, social workers, etc?

By 7-1-12, the State will “link high school student performance data to postsecondary performance data through the PSIS system using the students SASID number.” · What data will be used? (# of remedial courses needed?, attrition vs. graduation rate?) · Will there be sanctions for districts that do not meet a certain threshold?

A “unique identifier” will be assigned to all public school educators for the purposes of monitoring student performance in P-12 grades.


 * Will the same cohort of students be monitored over time or will it be from year to year comparisons of different cohorts of students?
 * Will this be used as part of teacher evaluations?
 * Does the state have a position on social promotion or retention?
 * Is the state considering funding programs that will support students who are failing; such as after-school or extended day, weekend academies, etc?

Submitted by: Jan Saam

- What has been the reception in CT to the reform models that are required as part of the SIG grants and which are included in RTTT as well? - In the application, under the section regarding the equitable distribution of teachers, there are a number of legislative proposals that the Department says it will pursue—what is the status of these concepts? - Since the application was submitted in January, the Common Core Standards have been released—what is the Department’s take on these standards and will implementation by August be doable? - The diversity of districts that signed on is interesting—especially given how little some districts will receive from the grant. Why do you think they were willing to sign on given the fact that most districts are struggling to just maintain current services? - The application states that charter schools receive approximately 92% of the funding that traditional public schools receive. Why then would 5493 help the state’s application? - How does the parent trigger proposal in HB 5491 support the application? It doesn’t seem relevant. - What is the status of the State Board’s legislative proposals regarding charter schools that are mentioned throughout the application? - What are some characteristics of the applications from other states that were finalists, compared to Connecticut’s application? - It does not seem that the “CommPACT School” model fully meets the definition of “innovative autonomous school” in the application—is the Department pursuing a legislative change on this issue? - Will the recent Supreme Court decision impact the state’s application in Phase II? Jen Widness


 * How did CT’s application compare to states that were accepted?
 * What section(s) of our application were the strongest? Weakest?
 * How large of a role does proposed legislation play in this process?
 * How will states that don’t receive funds be expected to move forward with reform?
 * Will the application assessment criteria be different for “Round 2” More/less rigorous?
 * If CT is accepted in Round 2, what will the initial changes be for the SDE and participating districts?
 * How will teachers and parents be engaged in the reform process?
 * How will data be used in teacher evaluation, district performance and students’ postsecondary performance?
 * How will reform changes affect teacher preparation programs and professional development for teachers?


 * Charter schools????

Mike Tavernier

Scott Clayton
 * 1) Section 1 (2) (E) of Bill 5491-Achievement Gap. What are the specifics regarding “additional training or technical assistance for parents?”
 * 2) Section 1 3 (e) of 5491. How will districts fund full day kindergarten, summer school, extended day, weekend classed etc? Is the work/pay that teachers will be given an income tax credit on?
 * 3) “On and after July 1, 2011, each local and regional board of education…….use of data and indicators on student achievement….teacher evaluation.” The teacher’s unions have already started sending talking points” email. How do you plan to respond?
 * 4) “On or before July, 11 2011…….Performance Advisory Council.” Who will be on the Advisory Council? Must members be in state government?
 * 5) “Annually collect and publish performance evaluation outcomes for each school district…..no teacher can be personally be identified……”By what mechanism will data be published? Why not disclose names of teachers?
 * 6) “There is established a task force to study and monitor……” Why can’t the legislative education committee’s handle this responsibility? Do members of the task force need to members of the general assembly or can they be average citizens?
 * 7) It seems like bill 5941 places heavy emphasis on a greater degree of government responsibility to deliver education. How does any of this new legislation hold parents and students accountable for their own future, especially as it relates to various external factors that impact education such as widespread drug abuse, gang violence, truancy etc.?
 * 8) How do you feel the recent Supreme Court decision regarding education funding reform will impact CT schools, especially in those districts that are chronically underperforming Do you think LEA’s will file an appeal?
 * 9) How do you feel about the proposed “burden of proof” changes in special education due process?
 * 10) How can the state vocational and technical high school system better serve our population? What are the future plans for the Vo/Tech system?

What is your stance on the Hartford Public School petition to the State Board of Education to alter the teacher contract language from district seniority bumping rights to school-based bumping rights? What is the long-term future of magnet schools resulting from the Scheff settlement? Is there a possibility of county-based public school systems in Connecticut? Could SDE or the legislature provide leverage to that end? What are the possible ways that the SDE can further impact the state’s priority school districts? John Freeman

_ -Submitted by D. Ducharme
 * 1) What kind of public feedback has CT's RTTT proposal received?
 * 2) At this point in time, what components of CT's RTTT application can be strengthened? What will the second submission entail?
 * 3) What new models will be used to measure student growth?
 * 4) Will there be state systemic approach so that CT principals and teachers will be evaluated fairly and consistently? Is there a formula? Some states are using standardized test scores as a major component in teacher performance. What is CSDE's take on this?
 * 5) On page 40 of CT's RTTT application, over 80 organizations/stakeholders agreeing to support CT's efforts with improving education. To what extent do they currently support education initiatives and what roles will they serve should we not receive funds from RTTT.
 * 6) How can CT secure these stakeholders and more to increase resources and provide better opportunities to educators, students and parents?
 * 7) Where do Community Schools fit into CT's vision of the future of our schools and improving struggling/under performing schools?Can we use these stakeholders to create community schools?
 * 8) The STEM program is addressed in the secondary education proposal. How will these programs be introduced in the elementary grade levels? It seems as the only focus in elementary school is primarily math and language arts.
 * 9) The digital curriculum and assessment library is a great feature...
 * 10) On pages 76-77, a series of companies/programs are listed as affiliates with CT's school districts and provide opportunities to students in addressing the goals of STEM. Who currently participates in these programs? Is there any kind of data showing how effective these programs are? What kind of kids are benefiting?How do districts access them?How can we get more local companies to establish education related programs to support more students?

· In the current economy, school districts are being forced to make tough decisions. How will the state government help to support local districts if the RTTT money is not granted to us? · Without RTTT money, how will the state government help school districts with school renewal (reform)? · Sustainability and recruitment of highly qualified teachers and leaders… what is CT going to do to make education a priority for society? How will we recruit and keep highly qualified people when money is always a factor in job security? · Why do you believe CT did not receive Round 1 RTTT money? · Do you envision a plan for Community Schools to become part of CT’s education? · Why is money taken from schools that were once on the “need of improvement” list once they have improved? Isn’t this contradictory? If the money helped to improve the school, how will the school sustain improvement if the money is taken away? · I am concerned about our current teacher evaluation procedure and tenure laws. How can we make changes to ensure that the best teachers are teaching and those that should not be teaching are taken out of the classroom? · When will an evaluation plan be developed for non-classroom teacher educational professionals – such as school psychologists, social workers, etc…? · Has the state considered what some other states have used to improved student achievement – extended school year or extended school days? · Great Teachers and Leaders: the definition of effective and highly effective teachers and leaders requires at least one year of growth for each year of schooling… how realistic is this goal for ALL students? · School leaders/principals face many challenges on a daily basis. How will a school renewal plan support leaders in accomplishing the task of great leadership while also “managing” the day to day requirements of the job? What PD is planned for leaders? Rose Lacobelle

What role does parent and teacher testimony play in legislative decision making? Is the increase in high school graduation credits sustainable as schools are laying off teachers? Will teachers who teach at-risk students be held to the same evaluation and accountability measures? What is the state’s plan to retain Teach for America corps members to develop them into effective teachers and increase teacher retention? According to the Great Teachers and Leaders required initiatives, the Connecticut Department of Education will be responsible for a system to support and evaluate teachers. If Connecticut is developing their own system, will this eventually lead to a lack of consistency among states? Who will be facilitating the professional development? School districts? Outside agencies? What is the long-term goal for charter schools in Connecticut? What role will compact schools play in encouraging parent engagement and leadership in schools? A teacher’s union representative testified at the education committee meeting to her disapproval of HB 5493. How can we move forward if teacher unions are already expressing disapproval? Heather Wachter

<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">In order to apply for SIG, what is your recommendation for reforming two of three urban High Schools which will be visited by NEASC in the 2010-11 school year? Is there any flexibility with combining components of the Restart Model with the Turnaround Model? What is your opinion of the Restart Model (High School)? Is this a means of offering a school of choice in the District? With limited District resources and personnel, how can funds be obtained, monitored and sustained? When will the final application be presented for SIG? With a short turn around and teacher contract restrictions, are there any suggestions in regards to implementations occuring in September 2010? With the focus on alternatives for high school graduation, will a vendor by selected by the State or will the selected pilot District have input in the process of selecting the vendor? What are obstacles that may impede the piloting of this initiative? What did you view as an impediment to Connecticut's application in applying for Race to the Top funds? Will the Dept. of Education be writing policy regarding the linking of the teacher evaluation to student achievement? Denise C

Regarding the tying of teacher and principal evaluation to student results, is there a plan to present this to teacher unions to avoid or reconcile teacher pushback and improve buy-in? I feel using peer observation among teachers to improve instruction represents a huge and largely unexplored opportunity. SDE supports and believes in public school choice involving a variety of innovation models. I feel this is an important component, especially in urban districts in CT. I live in Windham and have no public school choices for my children- just a poorly performing public school. Along the same lines, is the system for restructuring such schools going to become more streamlined and responsive to public sentiment or be based under the local BOEs? Are there plans to ensure sustainable funding for mandates regarding schools with any subgroups with 30% students providing summer school, weekend classes, tutoring, professional development for faculty, etc.? Adult education, summer school, and online credit recovery opportunities are often an afterthought for districts and schools. At the same time, these students are the ones most likely to lose out and not be college and career ready. What would you suggest to focus districts on these students? Regarding Secondary Ed Reform, current systems are deeply entrenched. What types of support will be available for schools and districts as they implement ed reform? 10th grade Board exams- in the CT model, will all students who pass proceed directly to college or will there be AP options and other higher-level coursework available along with opportunities to take college courses? I agree with the need to strengthen the connections between colleges/universities and high schools. K-16 education needs to be viewed more as one piece than as a separate components of a sequence. In EPFP we have examined the Community Schools model. Will there be state support available to schools in all tiers to move towards this? Jason Daly