June 17, 2011 Action Required ( X ) Informational bulletin no. 034-11

June 17, 2011 ( ) Action Required

( X ) Informational

BULLETIN NO. 034-11 Title II, PArt a

TO: Educational Service District Superintendents

School District Superintendents

Comprehensive Education Data And Research System (CEDARS) District

Administrators

Human Resource Personnel
FROM: Randy I. Dorn, State Superintendent of Public Instruction
RE: New Highly Qualified Teacher Data Collection Tool Open to Districts
CONTACT: Deborah Parriott, Program Supervisor, Title II, Part A

[phone]; Agency TTY: [phone]

E-mail: [e-mail]
OSPI Customer Support: [phone] or [phone]

Agency TTY: [phone]

E-mail: [e-mail]

This bulletin provides an overview of the new Teacher Quality (HQT) Data Collection Tool that has been in design and development for over a year. As authorized under Washington State Senate Bill 5843 from the 2007 legislative session, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) developed the Teacher Quality Data Collection Tool for reporting highly qualified teacher information. Its function and purpose are to accurately collect and report on data relative to the highly qualified status of Washington State public school teachers.

Data Collection Process

The HQT report tool is pre-populated with information from the Comprehensive Education Data and Research System (CEDARS), the S-275, and eCertification (e-Cert). The Staff, Staff Schedule, and Course Catalog CEDARS files will provide the initial data. Teacher data is then pulled from the S-275 annual reporting to pick-up itinerant teachers who were not reported in CEDARS. Finally, the e-Cert database validates certificate numbers and identifies endorsements and state tests which teachers have taken to meet the highly qualified teacher requirements. District personnel will need to add the HQT points-based High, Objective, Uniform State Standard of Evaluation

(HOUSSE) information. Once this step is complete, the state and school districts will have a rich database of teacher information that will require periodic updates.

 

It is important that ongoing communication be maintained between Human Resources personnel, building principals, and CEDARS district personnel. How districts report information in CEDARS and on the S-275 is critical to the accurate function of this new HQT tool.

Pilot Project

The tool was piloted from October 2010 to May 2011 by twelve school districts in the state (large and small/urban and rural), encompassing a variety of vendors for Student Information and Human Resources. Those twelve districts include: Bellevue, Bickleton, Clover Park, College Place, Everett, Kahlotus, Kelso, Lake Washington, Mukilteo, Paterson, Richland, and Wenatchee.

Objectives

The objectives of the project were to:

• 
  Use this electronic tool to dramatically reduce the paper workload on district personnel.
  
• 
  Provide HQT data and reports that are more meaningful and accurate to school districts, more accurate for the federal reporting requirements of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).
  
• 
  Meet the guidelines of 2007 Washington State Senate Bill 5843 requiring OSPI to report teacher and student data to the Legislature.
  
• 
  Replace the current HQT data collection tool.
  

Findings from the Pilot Project

Overall, districts reported the Teacher Quality Data Collection Tool to be user friendly and self-explanatory. The pilot phase of the project underscored, for both district users and OSPI, the need for district CEDARS and human resource personnel to be in communication with one another to accurately assess and report teaching assignments and courses taught. The HQT Data Collection Tool makes data reported by districts more transparent and clearer—in some cases requiring adjustments to current business practices, especially in the areas of teaching assignment, reassignment and how teachers are highly qualified.

Recommendations

Based on the results of the pilot project, it is evident that the following actions continue to occur:

• 
  Additional support be provided to school districts during the implementation phase. Program supervisors in Title II, Part A and OSPI Customer Support will field questions and provide technical assistance as needed.
  
• 
  Further evaluation in 2011–12 will be necessary to allow time for the real outcomes of the project to become evident.
  
• 
  OSPI will continue to develop reports that will be mutually useful to districts and to OSPI.
  

Additional Training Opportunities

OSPI’s Title II, Part A department will provide two webinars providing additional training in August 2011. Registration for the webinars will be sent in early July 2011. Title II, Part A Coordinators, CEDARS, and Human Resource staff are encourage to register.

For questions on the Data Collection Tool, please contact Deborah Parriott at [phone] or by e-mail at [e-mail]. You may also e-mail Julie Wright ([e-mail]) or Pat Smithson ([e-mail]).
For more information about CEDARS, please contact OSPI Customer Support at [phone] or call toll-free at [phone]. The agency TTY is [phone] or e-mail [e-mail].
This information is available on the agency web site at: www.k12.wa.us/bulletinsmemos.
SPECIAL PROGRAMS, SECONDARY EDUCATION, SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT, AND FEDERAL ACCOUNTABILITY
Bob Harmon

Assistant Superintendent

Yvonne Ryans, Ed.D

Director of Title II, Part A and Equity and Civil Rights

RD:yr:ts

OSPI provides equal access to all programs and services without discrimination based on sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, honorably discharged veteran or military status, sexual orientation including gender expression or identity, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability.  Questions and complaints of alleged discrimination should be directed to the Equity and Civil Rights Director at [phone] or P.O. Box 47200 Olympia, WA 98504-7200.