EDUCATEAlabama (EA) At A Glance

Adopted by the Alabama State Board of Education in May 2009, then piloted in 2009-2010, EA is a formative system designed to provide information about a teacher’s/ educator’s current level of practice within the Alabama Continuum for Teacher Development, which is based on the Alabama Quality Teaching Standards (AQTS), Alabama Administrative Code §290-3-3-.04. The AQTS constitutes the foundation of the teaching profession while the Continuum is a tool used to guide teacher/educator reflection, self-assessment, and goal setting for professional learning and growth. more

EDUCATEAlabama (EA) At A Glance

Adopted by the Alabama State Board of Education in May 2009, then piloted in 2009-2010, EA is a formative system designed to provide information about a teacher’s/ educator’s current level of practice within the Alabama Continuum for Teacher Development, which is based on the Alabama Quality Teaching Standards (AQTS), Alabama Administrative Code §290-3-3-.04. The AQTS constitutes the foundation of the teaching profession while the Continuum is a tool used to guide teacher/educator reflection, self-assessment, and goal setting for professional learning and growth.
Pursuant to the Alabama Administrative Code §290-3-2-.01(28), EA supports sustained and collaborative activities for teachers/educators designed to increase the academic achievement of all students. The activities must be consistent with the Alabama Standards for Professional Development, Alabama Administrative Code §290-4-3-.01(3). The activities must strengthen pedagogical knowledge and promote the acquisition of research-based strategies. For currently employed Alabama teachers/educators, the activities chosen to improve practice must by supported by data from local schools. Professional Learning Plans (PLPs) must be approved by the employing superintendent. 

2009 Development
A group of stakeholders, comprised of Alabama instructional leaders and teachers/educators, worked diligently in 2009 to develop the EA process. As a result of that committee’s work, the EDUCATEAlabama Professional Learning Collaborative was chosen to replace the Professional Education Personnel Evaluation (PEPE) Program as the evaluation process needed to meet the state’s 1988 requirement of personnel evaluation for Alabama’s teachers/educators.

2009-2010 Pilot
The EA process, a formative system designed to provide data about a teacher’s/educator’s current level of practice within the Alabama Continuum for Teacher Development based on the Alabama Quality Teaching Standards, was piloted statewide in 2009-2010. As the process implies, EA is a professional learning collaborative. Data were used by the instructional leader and teacher/educator to set expectations, goals, and a plan of action for teacher/educator professional growth and learning. Instructional leaders and teachers/educators received training to implement the process through a series of online training modules. This training was an approved professional study by the Alabama Council for Leadership Development (ACLD). Upon successful completion of this ACLD approved professional study, instructional leaders seeking to maintain Alabama instructional leader certification, earned a Professional Learning Unit (PLU).

2010-2011 Online Process
Based on the EA Survey 2010, conducted online in July 2010, over 1,000 practitioners responded with compelling suggestions for improving the EA professional learning collaborative.  In response, the Alabama State Department of Education (SDE) created the EA Work Group, comprised of 18 practitioners (superintendents, assistant superintendents, central office staff, principals, assistant principals, teachers/educators, counselors, and librarians) representing all state board districts, to revise the EA process.  Based on the work group’s recommendations the SDE, in collaboration with the Alabama Supercomputer Authority (ASA), developed the EA online process, with implementation beginning with 14 face-to-face trainings provided statewide in the fall 2010 for Local Education Agency (LEA) instructional leaders and teachers/educators.  LEAs accessed and began implementing the online process in December 2010, formatively assessing all regular classroom educators and selected special educators during the 2010-2011 school year.

2011-2012 Improvement and Expansion
Effective August 2011, all teachers/educators in LEAs implementing EA, were formatively assessed through the EA online process.  All teachers/educators include regular classroom teachers, school counselors, school librarians, Alabama Reading Initiative (ARI) coaches, and all special educators, including psychometrists/psychologists, speech-language pathologists, pre-kindergarten special educators, and special educators teaching students who generally take the Alabama Alternate Assessment (AAA).
New to the EA online process, school counselors and school librarians requested a Continuum that specifically related the AQTS to their respective professions. As a result, EA counselor and librarian work groups, comprised of LEA, SDE, counselor and librarian professional association representatives, and university personnel, developed the Counselor and Librarian Continua. Both Continua serve as the EA self-assessment for each profession. All other teachers and educators continue to use the original Continuum to self-assess their professional practice.

During 2011-2012, the SDE, in collaboration with ASA and selected LEA practitioners, hosted a series of instructional and informational webinars for all EA Users and interested individuals on the various components of the EA online process.

EA Survey 2012 was conducted online in March 2012. Over 3,000 practitioners responded with specific suggestions for improving EA and requesting further training on the process.  In response, the SDE and ASA further refined the process.  As a result, EA Users should experience an improved online process in 2012-2013.

2012-2013 Continuous Growth

Dr. Thomas R. Bice, State Superintendent of Education, emphasized the Importance of EDUCATEAlabama and LEADAlabama in a videotaped message that was delivered to all EA Users statewide via electronic correspondence, face-to-face trainings, and state publications.
Seven (7) regional EA Trainings were provided statewide in July 2012 for all LEA EA Users, professional association representatives, SDE/other agency personnel, university professionals, and interested individuals.  Trainings emphasized the importance of 1) effective EA implementation for all users; 2) careful self-assessment by teachers/educators;  3) timely, ongoing dialogues between instructional leaders and teachers/educators; 4) quality Professional Learning Plans developed collaboratively; 5) participation in professional growth opportunities; and compelling Supporting Evidence entries demonstrating professional growth occurred during the year, ultimately impacting student achievement.  Trainings also included information on the latest technology improvements to the online process, and panel discussions featuring EA Users as they shared their EA successes, challenges, and plan for professional growth while effectively implementing EA in the upcoming school year.

State Fiscal Stabilization Fund - American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)
Alabama does not link student achievement data to teacher or leader evaluation. less