As you may be aware, BPS experienced a service disruption today to our online evaluation platform, Vector Evaluations+PD. The service disruption appears to be resolved as of 3:30pm. Nonetheless, the disruption warrants additional time for evaluators to complete evaluations due today, May 15. Accordingly, for BTU evaluations due today that have not yet been released, release these evaluations as soon as possible (but no later than 11:59pm Wednesday May 17th).

May 18 at 11am (School Committee Room) and June 8 at 10am (Zoom/Virtual) will be the last sessions for SY23. Sign up in Vector PD if you manage Central Office staff and have not yet attended this training. More info in item #1 of this memo.

Please see the memo linked here outlining evaluation processes for Central Office staff for the 2022-2023 year. 

All central office managerial employees and their direct reports will use VectorEvals+PD.

Please find other key eval dates and info on our PMT One-Pager SY22-23.

Please see the End-of-Year School Evaluations SY22-23 memo for information about each employee group's evaluation process and deadlines.

Please find other key dates and information on our PMT One-Pager SY22-23.

Attention Teacher Evaluators:

• Updates have been made to the BTU-BPS Collective Bargaining Agreement.
• Please see the linked document, Guidance on CBA Implementation of 30/30 Observation Rule which is in effect immediately and retroactive to the ratification of the BTU-BPS CBA.
• As always, please contact us at eval@bostonpublicschools.org with any questions.

2023 School Liaison Changes

• The Performance Management Liaison for your school may have changed. Updates as of January 2023 for the best point of contact for your school can be found HERE.

Educator Formative Assessments Due Feb 1

• Formative Assessments for educators on Developing and 1-Year Self-Directed plans will be due on February 1, 2023. Please see the memo linked HERE.

*NEW* Evaluation Goal Setting Guidance Document.

The Performance Management Team has collaborated with the Office of Data and Accountability to develop consolidated goal-setting guidance to support school leaders and educators in discussions about evaluation goal approval.

Please see the Beginning of Year Evaluation Intro SY22-23 outlining evaluation processes for school staff, such as:

1. Information about caseload setup in VectorEvals+
2. New! This year, paraprofessional evaluations will be submitted on VectorEvals+
3. Distribution of the required annual evaluation orientation training
4. PMT school support liaison assignments for the year
5. Important eval dates and deadlines

Please find our Evaluation Orientation slide decks from New Teacher Institute, August 2022 below.

• For Teachers
• For Librarians and Specialized Support Personnel (SISP)

Beginning SY22-23, all paraprofessionals will be evaluated using the following Superintendent Circulars, HRS-PM07 and HRS-PM07A based on their role as either a classroom or non-classroom paraprofessional. See the official memo HERE for FAQ, video trainings, and highlights.

All Evaluators of DESE-licensed Educators and Administrators,

In July 2021, OHC released major updates to the “Evaluation 101 - Certification Training for Evaluators” (“Eval 101”). To ensure that all evaluators have the most current training, PLEASE COMPLETE THE COURSE BY JANUARY 2, 2023. 

            Read the Memo LINKED HERE for further details.

This training is not the same as the Observation and Feedback Course, which does not fulfill the same requirements. The training may be accessed by following the instructions provided HERE.

 Thank you!

Please see the End-of-Year School Evaluations SY21-22 memo for information about each employee group's evaluation process and deadlines.

Please reach out to eval@bostonpublicschools.org at any point with questions.

Please see the memo linked here outlining evaluation processes for Central Office staff for the 2021-2022 year. 

All central office managerial employees and their direct reports will use Vector Evaluations.

Please email eval@bostonpublicschools.org with questions or for technical support.

This is a reminder to all BPS evaluators that Massachusetts state law prohibits the secret audio recording of observations and other activities without prior permission by all parties being recorded. Read the complete memo HERE.

Formative Assessments for educators on Developing and 1-Year Self-Directed plans are due at 11:59pm on Tuesday, February 15th, 2022. Remember, provisional educators missing formatives after this date will be non-renewed, even if they were retained at Probable Org. A formative assessment is also required in order for third-year provisional educators to be recommended for permanency. Educators with outstanding formatives must also be notified in writing that this date was extended from January 15th to February 15th.

The memo linked below further outlines these policies as well as how to view a list of outstanding Formative Assessments on your Dashboard in the VectorEvaluations+ platform:

Memo - Formative Assessments Due Feb 15 (SY21-22)

The initial memo announcement can be found in the previous post.

11:59pm Tuesday, February 15th, 2022 is the new, extended deadline for Formative Assessments for educators on Developing and 1-Year Self-Directed plans.

Memo - Extension of Formative Assessment Deadline SY21-22

Please read the memo linked above carefully and reach out to your PMT liaison or email us at eval@bostonpublicschools.org if you have any additional questions.

Educators must be notified in writing if their Formative Assessment date will be more than one week after January 15th, and their artifact submission deadline must be adjusted accordingly.

Please see the memo linked here outlining midyear evaluation processes for Central Office staff for the 2021-2022 year. 

All central office managerial employees and their direct reports will use Vector Evaluations this year. Caseloads should be visible to RC managers and direct reports should have plans for the year started. 

Saturday, January 15th, 2022 at midnight is the deadline for Formative Assessments for educators on Developing and 1-Year Self-Directed plans.

Formative Assessment Reminder Memo SY21-22

1. Learn this year's deadlines for mid-year evaluation.
2. Schedule a time to meet with your school's assigned PM support liaison to ask questions about your caseload.
3. Important mid-year eval dates and deadlines for non-DESE licensed employees.

Please see the PMT One-Pager for a quick guide to evaluation information.

Dear School Leaders and Evaluators: 

The memo linked HERE is a reminder that educators who received an overall rating of Unsatisfactory or Needs Improvement must be issued letters in writing designating next year's plan type and length within one calendar month of issuance. For educators who receive their overall rating in May or June, the new plan length must be designated on or before the last day of school.
Please contact your school’s assigned Performance Management liaison (listed HERE) with questions and for guidance on specific cases.

Thank you for your work on evaluations!


The OHC Performance Management Team

Dear Central Office RC Managers and Evaluators,

We hope this finds you well!

The memo linked here outlines evaluation processes for Central Office staff for the close of the 2020-2021 year. Please reach out to eval@bostonpublicschools.org at any point with questions.

Best regards,

The OHC Performance Management Team

Dear BPS Classroom Evaluators,

We are reaching out to encourage evaluators to approach observations and other evaluation based evidence gathering with sensitivity this week. Due to the added stress on educators that the return to full-time in-person learning brings, we ask that you allow for some grace and think of it as equivalent to the return to school in September. 

At the same time, we understand that as the end of the year approaches, observations need to be conducted and evaluation requirements must be met. One approach, if a one-week pause is not workable, could be to set up an announced observation for the end of the week rather than conduct an unannounced observation. This is only a suggestion and every situation should be considered on a case-by-case basis. 

As always, please email eval@bostonpublicschools.org  if you need support or have questions and/or refer to the EOY evaluation memo sent in March. 

Be well,

The Performance Management Team

Dear BPS Users of TeachPoint,

Boston Public Schools’ evaluation and professional development platform, TeachPoint is getting a new name. Below and linked here has all that you need to know:

• Nothing about the interface and login process is changing.
• The product name and logo will be Vector Evaluations+ and Vector PD Tracking.
• No action on your part is needed.
• Linked or bookmarked items do not need to be updated, including support pages.

For more details, read Vector Solutions’ (formerly TeachPoint’s), announcement and one-pager. Please feel free to reach out to us with questions at eval@bostonpublicschools.org.

With appreciation,

The OHC Performance Management Team

Dear School Leaders & Evaluators,

Please read our newly released End of Year Evaluation Preparation Memo. It contains important guidance to carry you through the end of the year with eval processes, such as:

• upcoming Eval deadlines
• provisional to permanent appointments
• next plan determinations
• required observations
• resources for the remote classroom environment

We hope this gives you plenty of time to prepare, and please know that we are available to help via email or by contacting your school’s assigned Performance Management Team Liaison (liaison list).

Best wishes,

The OHC Performance Management Team

BTU Evaluators:

Formative assessment (FA) deadlines for educators on Developing and 1-Year Self-Directed plans are:

-January 15: Complete FAs for educators for whom there are performance concerns 
-February 1: Complete FAs for ALL provisional educators
-February 15: Complete FAs for ALL permanent educators

Please communicate revised FA deadlines with educators, including that artifacts are due two weeks prior. A draft notification letter for communicating these updates is linked here.

Read the complete Formative Assessment Reminder Memo .

BTU Evaluators:

BPS and BTU have reached an agreement related to the use of video observation pursuant to the Collective Bargaining Agreement as follows in the Memorandum of Agreement for Remote Observation:

1. This agreement remains in effect beginning upon execution and for the duration of the COVID-19 state of emergency or at the conclusion of the 2020-2021work year, whichever occurs first. If the state of emergency still exists as of end of 2020-2021, the parties agree to reconvene to review the terms of this Agreement and discuss possible modifications to be effective as of the 2021-2022 work year. 

2. No observed lesson may be recorded.

3. When conducting a remote observation, the evaluator shall provide notice of their presence (for example, verbally, by audible alert, or in writing in the chat) upon entering the virtual classroom.

4. While access to and effective use of appropriate, district-provided technology should be taken into consideration if outside the control of the employee, an employee's practice while participating in remote instruction is otherwise entirely subject to observation, feedback, and evaluation. Consideration should be given if the technology is not compatible with applications, platforms or software required to be used. 

Formative Assessment Reminder Memo SY20-21

1. Learn this year's deadlines for mid-year evaluation.
2. Schedule a time to meet with your school's assigned PM support liaison to ask questions about your caseload.
3. Important mid-year eval dates and deadlines for non-DESE licensed employees.

Remote Instruction Look-Fors

PMT has published an interactive tool of rubric-aligned Remote Instruction Look-Fors on our website HERE. It is designed to foster conversation among educators, their peers, and supervisors to identify priorities and standards in regard to remote teaching and learning.

The tool builds off of the OHC website’s interactive rubric, and uses a pyramid arrangement to prioritize rubric elements...