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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6757
January Session, 2023
LCO No. 4497
Referred to Committee on EDUCATION
Introduced by:
(ED)
AN ACT CONCERNING TEACHER PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 10-151b of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 2
(a) The superintendent of each local or regional board of education 3
shall annually evaluate or cause to be evaluated each teacher, and for 4
the school year commencing July 1, 2013, and each school year 5
thereafter, such annual evaluations shall be the teacher evaluation and 6
support program adopted pursuant to subsection (b) of this section. The 7
superintendent may conduct additional formative evaluations toward 8
producing an annual summative evaluation. An evaluation pursuant to 9
this subsection shall include, but need not be limited to, strengths, areas 10
needing improvement, strategies for improvement and multiple 11
indicators of student academic growth. Claims of failure to follow the 12
established procedures of such teacher evaluation and support program 13
shall be subject to the grievance procedure in collective bargaining 14
agreements negotiated subsequent to July 1, 2004. In the event that a 15
teacher does not receive a summative evaluation during the school year, 16 Raised Bill No. 6757
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such teacher shall [receive a "not rated" designation for such school year] 17
be recorded as not evaluated. The superintendent shall report (1) the 18
status of teacher evaluations to the local or regional board of education 19
on or before June first of each year, and (2) the status of the 20
implementation of the teacher evaluation and support program, 21
including the frequency of evaluations, [aggregate evaluation ratings,] 22
the number of teachers who have not been evaluated and other 23
requirements as determined by the Department of Education, to the 24
Commissioner of Education on or before September fifteenth of each 25
year. For purposes of this section, the term "teacher" shall include each 26
professional employee of a board of education, below the rank of 27
superintendent, who holds a certificate or permit issued by the State 28
Board of Education. 29
(b) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section, not later than 30
September 1, [2013] 2024, each local and regional board of education 31
shall adopt and implement a teacher evaluation and support program 32
that is consistent with [the guidelines for a model teacher evaluation and 33
support program adopted by the State Board of Education, pursuant to 34
subsection (c) of this section] Connecticut state guidelines for educator 35
evaluation and support. Such teacher evaluation and support program 36
shall be developed through mutual agreement between the local or 37
regional board of education and the professional development and 38
evaluation committee for the school district, established pursuant to 39
subsection (b) of section 10-220a. [If a local or regional board of 40
education is unable to develop a teacher evaluation and support 41
program through mutual agreeme nt with such professional 42
development and evaluation committee, then such board of education 43
and such professional development and evaluation committee shall 44
consider the model teacher evaluation and support program adopted by 45
the State Board of Education, pursuant to subsection (c) of this section, 46
and such board of education may adopt, through mutual agreement 47
with such professional development and evaluation committee, such 48
model teacher evaluation and support program. If a local or regional 49
board of education and the professional development and evaluation 50 Raised Bill No. 6757
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committee are unable to mutually agree on the adoption of such model 51
teacher evaluation and support program, then such board of education 52
shall adopt and implement a teacher evaluation and support program 53
developed by such board of education, provided such teacher 54
evaluation and support program is consistent with the guidelines 55
adopted by the State Board of Education, pursuant to subsection (c) of 56
this section. Each local and regional board of education may commence 57
implementation of the teacher evaluation and support program adopted 58
pursuant to this subsection in accordance with a teacher evaluation and 59
support program implementation plan adopted pursuant to subsection 60
(d) of this section.] 61
(c) [(1)] On or before July 1, [2012] 2025, the State Board of Education 62
shall adopt, in consultation with the Performance Evaluation Advisory 63
Council established pursuant to section 10-151d, as amended by this act, 64
guidelines for a [model] teacher evaluation and support program. Such 65
guidelines shall include, but not be limited to, [(A) the use of four 66
performance evaluations designators: Exemplary, proficient, 67
developing and below standard; (B)] (1) the use of multiple indicators 68
of student [academic] growth and development in teacher evaluations; 69
[(C)] (2) methods for assessing student [academic] growth and 70
development; [(D)] (3) a consideration of control factors tracked by the 71
state-wide public school information system, pursuant to subsection (c) 72
of section 10-10a, that may influence teacher performance, [ratings,] 73
including, but not limited to, student characteristics, student attendance 74
and student mobility; [(E)] (4) minimum requirements for teacher 75
evaluation instruments and procedures; [, including scoring systems to 76
determine exemplary, proficient, developing and below standard 77
ratings; (F)] (5) the development and implementation of periodic 78
training programs regarding the teacher evaluation and support 79
program to be offered by the local or regional board of education or 80
regional educational service center for the school district to teachers 81
who are employed by such local or regional board of education and 82
whose performance is being evaluated and to administrators who are 83
employed by such local or regional board of education and who are 84 Raised Bill No. 6757
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conducting performance evaluations; [(G)] (6) the provision of 85
professional development services based on the individual or group of 86
individuals' needs that are identified through the evaluation process; 87
[(H)] (7) the creation of individual teacher improvement and 88
remediation plans for teachers [whose performance is developing or 89
below standard] who require additional support, designed in 90
consultation with such teacher and his or her exclusive bargaining 91
representative for certified teachers chosen pursuant to section 10-153b, 92
and that (i) identify resources, support and other strategies to be 93
provided by the local or regional board of education to address 94
documented deficiencies, (ii) indicate a timeline for implementing such 95
resources, support, and other strategies, in the course of the same school 96
year as the plan is issued, and (iii) include indicators of success 97
[including a summative rating of proficient or better] immediately at the 98
conclusion of the improvement and remediation plan; [(I)] (8) 99
opportunities for career development and professional growth; and [(J)] 100
(9) a validation procedure to audit [evaluation ratings of exemplary or 101
below standard] remediation plans by the department or a third-party 102
entity approved by the department. 103
[(2) The State Board of Education shall, following the completion of 104
the teacher evaluation and support pilot program, pursuant to section 105
10-151f, and the submission of the study of such pilot program, 106
pursuant to section 10-151g, review and may revise, as necessary, the 107
guidelines for a model teacher evaluation and support program and the 108
model teacher evaluation and support program adopted under this 109
subsection.] 110
[(d) A local or regional board of education may phase in full 111
implementation of the teacher evaluation and support program adopted 112
pursuant to subsection (b) of this section during the school years 113
commencing July 1, 2013, and July 1, 2014, pursuant to a teacher 114
evaluation and support program implementation plan adopted by the 115
State Board of Education, in consultation with the Performance 116
Evaluation Advisory Council, not later than July 1, 2013. The 117
Commissioner of Education may waive the provisions of subsection (b) 118 Raised Bill No. 6757
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of this section and the implementation plan provisions of this subsection 119
for any local or regional board of education that has expressed an intent, 120
not later than July 1, 2013, to adopt a teacher evaluation program for 121
which such board requests a waiver in accordance with this subsection.] 122
Sec. 2. Section 10-151d of the general statutes is repealed and the 123
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 124
(a) There is established a Performance Evaluation Advisory Council 125
within the Department of Education. Membership of the council shall 126
consist of: (1) The Commissioner of Education and the president of the 127
Connecticut State Colleges and Universities, or their designees, (2) one 128
representative from each of the following associations, designated by 129
the association, the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education, the 130
Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents, the 131
Connecticut Federation of School Administrators, the Connecticut 132
Education Association, the American Federation of Teachers -133
Connecticut, the Connecticut Association of School Administrators and 134
the Connecticut Association of Schools, (3) a representative from the 135
Task Force to Diversify the Educator Workforce, established pursuant 136
to section 10-156aa, designated by the chairpersons of said task force, 137
and (4) persons selected by the Commissioner of Education who shall 138
include, but need not be limited to, teachers, persons with expertise in 139
performance evaluation processes and systems, and any other person 140
the commissioner deems appropriate. 141
(b) The council shall be responsible for (1) assisting the State Board of 142
Education in the development of [(A)] guidelines for a [model] teacher 143
evaluation and support program, and [(B) a model teacher evaluation 144
and support program, pursuant to subsection (c) of section 10-151b,] (2) 145
the data collection and evaluation support system, pursuant to 146
subsection (c) of section 10-10a. [, and (3) assisting the State Board of 147
Education in the development of a teacher evaluation and support 148
program implementation plan, pursuant to subsection (e) of section 10-149
151b.] The council shall meet at least quarterly. The council shall 150
collaborate with the Task Force to Diversify the Educator Workforce, 151 Raised Bill No. 6757
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established pursuant to section 10-156aa, to focus on issues concerning 152
equity and closing the achievement gap, as defined in section 10-14u. 153
(c) On and after July 1, 2018, the council shall, in collaboration with 154
the [minority teacher recruitment task force] Task Force to Diversify the 155
Educator Workforce, incorporate into the work of the council strategies 156
and a framework for educators to be effective in closing the achievement 157
gap and in increasing educational opportunities. 158
Sec. 3. Section 10-151h of the general statutes is repealed and the 159
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 160
(a) Upon the implementation of the teacher evaluation and support 161
program adopted pursuant to subsection (b) of section 10-151b, as 162
amended by this act, each local and regional board of education shall 163
conduct training programs for all evaluators and orientation for all 164
teachers employed by such board relating to the provisions of such 165
teacher evaluation and support program adopted by such board of 166
education. Such training shall provide instruction to evaluators in how 167
to conduct proper performance evaluations prior to conducting an 168
evaluation under the teacher evaluation and support program. Such 169
orientation shall be completed by each teacher before a teacher receives 170
an evaluation under the teacher evaluation and support program. For 171
purposes of this section, "teacher" includes each professional employee 172
of a board of education, below the rank of superintendent, who holds a 173
certificate or permit issued by the State Board of Education. 174
(b) For the school year commencing July 1, [2014] 2023, and each 175
school year thereafter, each local and regional board of education shall 176
(1) conduct the training programs and orientation described in 177
subsection (a) of this section at least [biennially] annually to all 178
evaluators and teachers employed by such board, (2) conduct such 179
training programs for all new evaluators prior to any evaluations 180
conducted by such evaluators, and (3) provide such orientation to all 181
new teachers hired by such board before such teachers receive an 182
evaluation. 183 Raised Bill No. 6757
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Sec. 4. Subsection (i) of section 10-145a of the general statutes is 184
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 185
2023): 186
(i) On and after July 1, 2016, any program of teacher preparation 187
leading to professional certification shall require, as part of the 188
curriculum, clinical experience, field experience or student teaching 189
experience in a classroom during four semesters of such program of 190
teacher preparation. Such clinical experience, field experience or student 191
teaching experience shall occur: (1) In a school district that has been 192
categorized by the Department of Education as District Reference Group 193
A, B, C, D or E, and (2) in a school district that has been categorized by 194
the department as District Reference Group F, G, H or I. Such clinical 195
experience, field experience or student teaching experience may include 196
a cooperating teacher serving as a mentor to student teachers. [, 197
provided such cooperating teacher has received a performance 198
evaluation designation of exemplary or proficient, pursuant to section 199
10-151b, for the prior school year.] 200
Sec. 5. Subsection (c) of section 10-223h of the general statutes is 201
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 202
2023): 203
(c) Following the establishment of a turnaround committee, the 204
Department of Education shall conduct, in consultation with the local or 205
regional board of education for a school selected to participate in the 206
commissioner's network of schools, the school governance council for 207
such school and such turnaround committee, an operations and 208
instructional audit, as described in subparagraph (A) of subdivision (2) 209
of subsection (e) of section 10-223e, for such school. Such operations and 210
instructional audit shall be conducted pursuant to guidelines issued by 211
the department and shall determine the extent to which the school (1) 212
has established a strong family and community connection to the school; 213
(2) has a positive school environment, as evidenced by a culture of high 214
expectations, a safe and orderly workplace, and that address other 215
nonacademic factors that impact student achievement, such as students' 216 Raised Bill No. 6757
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social, emotional, arts, cultural, recreational and health needs; (3) has 217
effective leadership, as evidenced by the school principal's performance 218
appraisals, track record in improving student achievement, ability to 219
lead turnaround efforts, and managerial skills and authority in the areas 220
of scheduling, staff management, curriculum implementation and 221
budgeting; (4) has effective teachers and support staff as evidenced by 222
performance evaluations, policies to retain staff determined to be 223
effective and who have the ability to be successful in the turnaround 224
effort, policies to prevent ineffective teachers from transferring to the 225
schools, and job-embedded, ongoing professional development 226
informed by the teacher evaluation and support programs that are tied 227
to teacher and student needs; (5) uses time effectively as evidenced by 228
the redesign of the school day, week, or year to include additional time 229
for student learning and teacher collaboration; (6) has a curriculum and 230
instructional program that is based on student needs, is research-based, 231
rigorous and aligned with state academic content standards, and serves 232
all children, including students at every achievement level; and (7) uses 233
evidence to inform decision-making and for continuous improvement, 234
including by providing time for collaboration on the use of data. Such 235
operations and instructional audit shall be informed by an inventory of 236
the following: (A) Before and after school programs, (B) any school-237
based health centers, family resource centers or other community 238
services offered at the school, including, but not limited to, social 239
services, mental health services and parenting support programs, (C) 240
whether scientific research-based interventions are being fully 241
implemented at the school, (D) resources for scientific research-based 242
interventions during the school year and summer school programs, (E) 243
resources for gifted and talented students, (F) the length of the school 244
day and the school year, (G) summer school programs, (H) alternative 245
education, as defined in section 10-74j, if any, offered to students at the 246
school, (I) the number of teachers employed at the school and the 247
number of teachers who have left the school in each of the previous three 248
school years, (J) student mobility, including the number of students who 249
have been enrolled in and left the school, (K) the number of students 250
whose primary language is not English, (L) the number of students 251 Raised Bill No. 6757
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receiving special education services, (M) the number of truants, (N) the 252
number of students who are eligible for free or reduced price lunches, 253
(O) the number of students who are eligible for HUSKY A, (P) the 254
curricula used at the school, (Q) the reading curricula and programs for 255
kindergarten to grade three, inclusive, if any, at the school, (R) arts and 256
music programs offered at the school, (S) physical education programs 257
offered and periods for recess or physical activity, (T) the number of 258
school psychologists at the school and the ratio of school psychologists 259
to students at the school, (U) the number of social workers at the school 260
and the ratio of social workers to students at the school, (V) the teacher 261
and administrator performance evaluation program, including the 262
frequency of performance evaluations, how such evaluations are 263
conducted and by whom, the standards for performance ratings and 264
follow-up and remediation plans and the [aggregate] results of teacher 265
performance evaluation ratings conducted pursuant to section 10-151b, 266
as amended by this act, and any other available measures of teacher 267
effectiveness, (W) professional development activities and programs, 268
(X) teacher and student access to technology inside and outside of the 269
classroom, (Y) student access to and enrollment in mastery test 270
preparation programs, (Z) the availability of textbooks, learning 271
materials and other supplies, (AA) student demographics, including 272
race, gender and ethnicity, (BB) chronic absenteeism, and (CC) 273
preexisting school improvement plans, for the purpose of (i) 274
determining why such school improvement plans have not improved 275
student academic performance, and (ii) identifying governance, legal, 276
operational, staffing or resource constraints that contributed to the lack 277
of student academic performance at such school and should be 278
addressed, modified or removed for such school to improve student 279
academic performance. 280
Sec. 6. Subsection (d) of section 10-262u of the general statutes is 281
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 282
2023): 283
(d) The local or regional board of education for a town designated as 284
an alliance district may apply to the Commissioner of Education, at such 285 Raised Bill No. 6757
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time and in such manner as the commissioner prescribes, to receive any 286
increase in funds received over the amount the town received for the 287
prior fiscal year pursuant to subsection (a) of section 10-262i. 288
Applications pursuant to this subsection shall include objectives and 289
performance targets and a plan that are developed, in part, on the 290
strategic use of student academic performance data. Such plan may 291
include, but not be limited to, the following: (1) A tiered system of 292
interventions for the schools under the jurisdiction of such board based 293
on the needs of such schools, (2) ways to strengthen the foundational 294
programs in reading, through the intensive reading instruction program 295
pursuant to section 10-14u, to ensure reading mastery in kindergarten 296
to grade three, inclusive, with a focus on standards and instruction, 297
proper use of data, intervention strategies, current information for 298
teachers, parental engagement, and teacher professional development, 299
(3) additional learning time, including extended school day or school 300
year programming administered by school personnel or external 301
partners, (4) a talent strategy that includes, but is not limited to, teacher 302
and school leader recruitment and assignment, career ladder policies 303
that draw upon guidelines for a [model] teacher evaluation program 304
adopted by the State Board of Education, pursuant to section 10-151b, 305
as amended by this act, and adopted by each local or regional board of 306
education. Such talent strategy may include provisions that 307
demonstrate increased ability to attract, retain, promote and bolster the 308
performance of staff in accordance with performance evaluation 309
findings and, in the case of new personnel, other indicators of 310
effectiveness, (5) training for school leaders and other staff on new 311
teacher evaluation models, (6) provisions for the cooperation and 312
coordination with early childhood education providers to ensure 313
alignment with district expectations for student entry into kindergarten, 314
including funding for an existing local Head Start program, (7) 315
provisions for the cooperation and coordination with other 316
governmental and community programs to ensure that students receive 317
adequate support and wraparound services, including community 318
school models, (8) provisions for implementing and furthering state-319
wide education standards adopted by the State Board of Education and 320 Raised Bill No. 6757
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all activities and initiatives associated with such standards, (9) strategies 321
for attracting and recruiting minority teachers and administrators, (10) 322
provisions for the enhancement of bilingual education programs, 323
pursuant to section 10-17f, or other language acquisition services to 324
English language learners, including, but not limited to, participation in 325
the English language learner pilot program, established pursuant to 326
section 10-17n, (11) entering into the model school district 327
responsibilities agreement, described in section 10-223l, (12) leadership 328
succession plans that provide training and learning opportunities for 329
administrators and are designed to assist in the seamless transition of 330
school and district personnel in and out of leadership positions in the 331
school district and the continuous implementation of plans developed 332
under this subsection, (13) implementing the policy adopted pursuant 333
to section 10-223m to improve completion rates of the Free Application 334
for Federal Student Aid by students enrolled in grade twelve in a high 335
school under the jurisdiction of such board or students enrolled in an 336
adult education program maintained by such board pursuant to section 337
10-69, and, as applicable, the parent and guardians of such students, and 338
(14) any additional categories or goals as determined by the 339
commissioner. Such plan shall demonstrate collaboration with key 340
stakeholders, as identified by the commissioner, with the goal of 341
achieving efficiencies and the alignment of intent and practice of current 342
programs with conditional programs identified in this subsection. The 343
commissioner may (A) require changes in any plan submitted by a local 344
or regional board of education before the commissioner approves an 345
application under this subsection, and (B) permit a local or regional 346
board of education, as part of such plan, to use a portion of any funds 347
received under this section for the purposes of paying tuition charged 348
to such board pursuant to subdivision (1) of subsection (k) of section 10-349
264l or subsection (b) of section 10-264o. 350
Sec. 7. Sections 10-151f and 10-151g of the general statutes are 351
repealed. (Effective July 1, 2023) 352 Raised Bill No. 6757
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This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2023 10-151b
Sec. 2 July 1, 2023 10-151d
Sec. 3 July 1, 2023 10-151h
Sec. 4 July 1, 2023 10-145a(i)
Sec. 5 July 1, 2023 10-223h(c)
Sec. 6 July 1, 2023 10-262u(d)
Sec. 7 July 1, 2023 Repealer section
Statement of Purpose:
To make revisions to how teacher evaluation and support programs are
implemented.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]