Galesburg Reporter

Illinois State Board of Education Teacher Assessment Task Force met April 22

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

I. Call to Order/Roll Call:

Dr. Jason Helfer called the meeting to order at 3:33 p.m. and asked meeting facilitator Delaney Workman to conduct a roll call. A quorum was present.

Members Present:

Senator Tom Bennett

Dr. John Burkey

Dr. Kathryn Chval

Elizabeth Dampf

Dr. Vito Dipinto

Dr. Marie Donovan

Shauna Ejeh

Dr. Andrea Evans

Shannon Fehrholz

Lori Grant

Jessica Handy

Katrina Hankison

Gloria Helin

Dr. Terry Husband

Dr. Lori James-Gross

Bob Langman

Dr. Christie McIntyre

Erika Mendez

Senator Laura Murphy

Jessica Nunez

Dr. Abir Othman

Claire Siejka

Jennifer Smith

Dr. Michelle Stacy

Robin Steans

Representative Katie Stuart

Kesa Thurman-Stovall

Dr. Mary Ticknor

Dr. Diana Zaleski

Ex-officio member appointed by the state superintendent of education: Dr. Jason Helfer

Members Absent:

Representative Amy Elik

Others Present:

Meeting facilitator: Delaney Workman

Meg Cappel

Emily Fox

Jen Kirmes

Jim O’Connor

Julie Peters

Mercedes Wentworth-Nice

II. Approval of Minutes

Dr. Helfer called for discussion on the minutes. Hearing no discussion, he called for a motion to approve the minutes. The motion was made by Dr. Dipinto and seconded by Dr. Chval. Dr. Helfer then called for a roll call vote. Ms. Workman took the roll call vote on the motion.

Senator Tom Bennett – Yes

Dr. John Burkey – Yes

Dr. Kathryn Chval – Yes

Elizabeth Dampf – Yes

Dr. Vito Dipinto – Yes

Dr. Marie Donovan – Yes

Shauna Ejeh – Yes

Dr. Andrea Evans – Yes

Shannon Fehrholz – Yes

Lori Grant – Yes

Jessica Handy – Yes

Katrina Hankison – Yes

Gloria Helin – Yes

Dr. Terry Husband – Yes

Dr. Lori James-Gross – Yes

Bob Langman – Yes

Dr. Christie McIntyre – Yes

Erika Mendez – Yes

Senator Laura Murphy – Yes

Jessica Nunez – Yes

Claire Siejka – Yes

Jennifer Smith – Yes

Dr. Michelle Stacy – Yes

Robin Steans – Abstain

Kesa Thurman-Stovall – Yes

Dr. Mary Ticknor – Yes

Dr. Diana Zaleski – Yes

The motion was passed.

III. Public Comment

Dr. Helfer called for any public comment. No requests were made.

III. New Business

Dr. Helfer moved on to new business and provided members with a high-level overview of the panelist discussion from the previous meeting. He highlighted the importance of bridging the gap between teacher preparation and serving as a teacher of record. He also noted that the administrators emphasized the relationships the teacher candidates can build with their students.

Senator Bennett said that he appreciated that the superintendents were candid and open when sharing their thoughts on teacher performance assessments (TPAs).

Dr. Donovan stated that she was surprised by how much the administrators wanted to work with preparation programs. She found it impactful that they highlighted the importance of the cooperating teacher in providing candidate evaluations.

Ms. Smith shared that it was interesting that the administrators felt candidates have gaps in communication skills.

Ms. Hankison said that she appreciated how the teacher shortage was brought up as a conversation point. She also shared that she enjoyed how the administrators stressed the importance of candidates understanding the culture and climate of the schools in which they are applying.

Dr. Helfer then transitioned into the next part of the meeting, presenting the results of a survey that members completed before the meeting. The presentation of these results is included in Appendix A. He explained the purpose for the survey, which was to collect the current perceptions of task force members on ideas shared in previous meetings. He also explained that he created the survey by reviewing previous slide decks, Mentimeter presentations, and minutes. He then moved through the slide deck, presenting the survey responses. At the survey responses were displayed, he called for members to share reflections and/or comments on the presentation.

Representative Stuart responded to the “Instructional Environment” results by sharing that she disagreed with the inclusion of the instructional environment as part of a TPA as she does not feel that student teachers are able to have much control over the classroom environment. She shared that student teachers are guests in another teacher’s classroom, and she did not want candidates to be negatively impacted by the choices another individual has control over.

Dr. Helfer continued to share results and call upon members to share reflections and/or comments on the presentation.

Ms. Siejka, director of New Teacher Induction and Mentoring in Chicago Public Schools, shared that she finds all the data shared to

be interesting as her organization uses a condensed version of Danielson as its new teacher mentoring model. She shared that

Domain IV, Instructional Growth, is an area where it sees that new teachers need more support than in previous years.

Mr. Langman, an Illinois public school superintendent, shared that he is seeing a similar trend in his schools as well. He stated while professional responsibilities are an important aspect of a teacher of record’s experience, he does not feel it is appropriate to have them included in a TPA as teacher candidates are not yet professionals. He also explained that it is difficult to balance this and feels that a reflection component is an important part of a teacher of record’s evaluation and a TPA.

Ms. Handy asked Ms. Siejka if she attributes the need for support in Domain IV to the removal of the edTPA requirement.

Ms. Siejka shared that she does believe the removal of the edTPA is part of the reason, but she also believes that the pandemic -- and its impact -- plays more of a part in this.

Ms. Nunez then shared that, in her experience as a cooperating teacher, she is seeing the same things that Ms. Siejka and Mr. Langman shared. She said that she believes a major part of instructional growth is taking suggestions and implementing new strategies, neither of which she is seeing in practice as often as she used to.

Dr. Helfer continued to share the survey results and asked members to share reflections and/or comments on the presentation.

Senator Bennett shared that he feels that video can be used as a tool for personal reflection, but it should not be used as part of a TPA.

Ms. Mendez said the video evidence and transcription used for bilingual candidates can be an additional pressure for them. An evaluator who does not have the contextual information or a background in the language spoken can be an extra barrier for candidates.

Dr. Helfer transitioned back to the slide deck and shared the survey results. He asked members to share reflections and/or comments on the data as he did so.

Ms. Ejeh shared that both audio and video are impactful tools to be used for coaching and reflection, but it should not be a high stakes part of the assessment.

Representative Stuart reminded the committee that there has been legislation passed that will not allow video to be a requirement for licensure.

Dr. Chval said that there are many issues with only collecting audio.

Dr. Helfer continued to share results and call upon members to share reflections and/or comments on the presentation.

Senator Bennett shared that it is important to ensure that the TPA reflects the work student teachers will complete when they are a teacher of record.

Ms. Handy asked for clarification on the standard length of responses on a TPA. She asked if there was a way to communicate to teacher candidates that succinct answers are allowable and preferred.

Dr. Helfer responded by sharing his experience as a TPA evaluator. He said the responses that made the most sense to him were succinct and straightforward.

Dr. Donovan shared that the length of the responses is not the most important factor. What is important is ensuring that candidates answer all parts of the prompt. She also shared there are studies available that demonstrate that teacher candidates whose primary language is not English have a more difficult time with the TPA. She said she found that the heavy writing component of the TPA is masking the skills and knowledge of qualified candidates.

Dr. Helfer continued to share results and asked members to share reflections and/or comments on the data displayed.

Ms. Steans said she struggled to answer some of the questions in this section as they were worded in a way that made her unsure of the intention.

Senator Bennett said he believes the data presented aligns with the beliefs shared by the administrator panel during the previous meeting.

Dr. Helfer transitioned back to the slide deck and continued to share the survey results. He again asked members to share reflections and/or comments on the data as he did so.

Mr. Langman asked a question to clarify the requirements for training the evaluators of student teachers. He shared that it is important to consider interrater reliability.

Ms. Steans shared that she appreciates the question Mr. Langman asked as the initial survey question touches on interrater reliability.

Representative Stuart shared with the task force that there is an ongoing discussion about paying student teachers. Within that discussion, there is also training and a stipend for cooperating teachers.

Dr. Helfer continued to share member responses to the survey and call upon members to share reflections and/or comments on the data as he did so.

Ms. Steans said she struggled to respond to these questions, and there are many things to unpack with them. She stated that her answers would change based on the contextual information that is provided. She shared that she was hopeful that many of the committee members assumed the same context to ensure consistency in their responses.

Dr. Helfer responded that he agreed and that the questions were worded in a way to be intentionally vague to allow these conversations to happen. Once members converse about the context necessary for a TPA, decisions can begin to be made. Dr. Helfer then transitioned back to the slide deck and continued sharing survey results. 

Ms. Handy asked if the task force had any idea on the cost necessary for Illinois to create its own TPA.

Mr. Langman asked if the state had the capacity to create its own TPA within a given time frame.

Ms. Steans wondered if it was possible to reach out to other state Departments of Education to get an overview of the process of creating a TPA.

Ms. Handy shared her agreement. She also wondered if it would be possible to create a middle ground to ensure that Illinois individuals are scoring and evaluating the TPAs of Illinois candidates.

Senator Bennett circled back to the point about cost, and he reminded the task force that the cost of the TPA is currently on the candidates.

Representative Stuart added on to the points shared by explaining that university faculty members and staff in educator preparation programs are often encouraged and/or required to take on additional projects and responsibilities and she believes that working on the creation of a TPA would fulfill that expectation.

Dr. Helfer shared that when he worked at the higher education level, it would have counted toward that expectation.

Dr. Stacy explained that it would count at her institution as well.

Dr. Chval said that in some contexts, it may even count toward the individual's teaching load.

Dr. Helfer then transitioned back to the slide deck and shared the remaining survey results. He held space for members to share reflections and/or comments on the data as he did so. As the survey results ended, Dr. Helfer allowed members an additional opportunity to provide commentary or feedback on the data presented.

Dr. Chval explained that she found it challenging to complete the survey as her answers would change based on the decision to be made by the task force. She shared that she believes there to be three options moving forward:

1. Illinois adopts a commercially available TPA.

2. Illinois creates its own TPA.

3. Illinois teacher preparation programs and hiring districts work together to evaluate teacher candidates.

She said there are several things to consider regarding this decision and it is important that it is made in a way that ensures it can be done well.

Dr. Helfer explained that he believes that there are four options available:

1. Illinois adopts a commercially available TPA.

2. Illinois creates its own TPA through partnerships with educator preparation programs, public school districts, and ISBE.

3. Illinois adopts another state’s TPA and trains/maintains evaluation procedures.

4. Illinois creates a list of items that educator preparation programs must cover to ensure candidates have met requirements.

Ms. Steans added that it is important to note the pros and cons of each option as that will help the task force to decide the path forward.

Dr. Helfer shared a preview of the next meeting with the task force member. Members are asked to respond to another survey to help further outline the options and collect the task force’s opinions on how to move forward.

Dr. Evans asked a question about new teacher mentoring. She wanted to know if it was still required by law for teachers in their first two years.

Dr. Helfer responded by stating that it is not a current requirement.

Ms. Steans shared that there is an ongoing conversation to resume the requirement. 

Dr. Evans shared that she recalls when it was a requirement and shared that the addition of a mentoring program would help to bridge the gap between student teaching and serving as a teacher of record. She shared her experience and that she believes it is critical to a teacher’s development. She then shared that she believes the notion of interrater reliability to be part of continuous improvement and a way to build connections and consistency among teacher preparation programs.

Ms. Steans shared that it is important to consider that we are creating an additional requirement for licensure at a time when there is not a requirement for new teacher mentoring.

Dr. Helfer shared that he believes that mentoring funds were no longer available in 2009.

Dr. Donovan agreed and shared that she remembers that these same conversations were being had then too. She said it shows there is a need for this.

Senator Bennett asked Dr. Evans for clarification on the continuous improvement topic she shared earlier.

Dr. Evans shared that she believes it is important to discuss how the TPAs are being evaluated and why. Those types of conversations allow for feedback among evaluators and will help to improve the process.

Senator Bennett agreed and said he believes that is important, too.

Representative Stuart reminded the task force that there are legislators who believe new teacher mentoring is important and should not be funded by the district. She reassured the group that they would pay attention to these conversations.

IV. Adjournment

Dr. Helfer asked for a motion to adjourn the meeting. Dr. Donovan motioned for adjournment. Dr. Dipinto seconded. All members present unanimously agreed to adjourn.

The motion was passed.

Meeting adjourned at 5 p.m.

https://www.isbe.net/Documents_TPA/042224-Minutes.pdf