Inclusive Practice: Interpreting Rubrics and Self-Assessment

Overview

The Massachusetts Task Force on the Evaluation of Teachers and Administrators proposed common Standards and Indicators for Effective Teaching Practice and for Effective Administrative Leadership Practice because "it is critical to develop and adopt a common statewide understanding about what effective teaching practice and administrative leadership looks like."¹ These standards and related indicators are the principles around which performance rubrics are organized and support each step of the 5-Step Cycle of evaluation.

The Massachusetts Model System for Educator Evaluation includes four model rubrics based on role: Superintendent, School-Level Administrator, Classroom Teacher, and Specialized Instructional Support Personnel. Districts may adopt or adapt the model rubrics or use a comparably rigorous and comprehensive rubric. According to DESE's Guide to Rubrics, rubrics are designed to help educators and evaluators:

• Define and describe effective practice for educators, which grounds the professional practice component of the self-assessment

• Inform areas of focus for the student learning and professional practice goals

• Help educators and evaluators organize evidence and provide feedback throughout the evaluation cycle

• Inform and calibrate professional judgments about performance in each standard overall, formatively, and at the end of the cycle

The model rubrics foster constructive dialogue about educators' performance and provide clear expectations that are used to promote practice through professional learning and support.

Using Rubric Resources in Inclusive Settings

All Massachusetts educators are held to the same high professional standards through the Massachusetts Educator Evaluation Framework. The tools offered in this section do not replace existing rubrics within the Massachusetts Model System but rather serve as supplements to the existing rubrics and are designed to support inclusive practice within the educator evaluation process. Examples are added per rubric indicator to identify the leverage points within the evaluation process to support educators and students in the cultivation of an inclusive learning environment. These tools may be a useful frame of reference for evaluators and educators to stimulate discussion and facilitate action toward inclusive practices and systems.

The following tools provide examples of what accessible instruction and positive behavior supports may look like through the lens of three model rubrics and an opportunity to complete a self-assessment. Use these tools to promote discussion, collaboration, self-assessment, and planning relating to inclusive practice.

Tools and Resources

• Inclusive Practice Tool 2a: Massachusetts Classroom Teacher Rubric Resource
  This tool annotates the Model Classroom Teacher Rubric, at the indicator level, with examples of accessible instruction and positive behavior supports to facilitate a more targeted and strategic application of rubric components to practice in inclusive settings. Use this tool to promote discussion, collaboration, and planning relating to inclusive practice at the classroom level.

• Inclusive Practice Tool 2b: Massachusetts School-Level Administrator Rubric Resource
  This tool annotates the Model School-Level Administrator Rubric, at the indicator level, with descriptions of accessible instruction and positive behavior supports to facilitate a more targeted and strategic application of rubric components to practice in inclusive settings. Use this tool to promote discussion, collaboration, and planning relating to inclusive practice at the school level.

• Inclusive Practice Tool 2c: Massachusetts Superintendent Rubric Resource
  This tool annotates the Model Superintendent Rubric, at the indicator level, with descriptions of accessible instruction and positive behavior supports to facilitate a more targeted and strategic application of rubric components to practice in inclusive settings. Use this tool to promote discussion, collaboration, and planning relating to inclusive practice at the district level. Superintendents may also consider the Massachusetts Tiered System of Supports Self-Assessment Tool.

• Inclusive Practice Tool 2d: Self-Assessment Form
  This tool, adapted from DESE's Model System, allows educators to conduct a self-assessment with an emphasis on inclusive practice. Classroom educators, building administrators, and district administrators can use this tool in the process of conducting self-assessments, the first step of the 5-Step Cycle of evaluation.

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¹ Massachusetts Task Force on the Evaluation of Teachers and Administrators. (2011, March). Building a breakthrough framework for educator evaluation in the Commonwealth. Malden, MA: Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Last Updated: August 14, 2015