R277. Education, Administration.
R277-531. Public Educator Evaluation Requirements (PEER).
R277-531-1. Authority and Purpose.
(1) This rule is authorized by:
(a) Utah Constitution Article X, Section 3, which vests general control and supervision over public education in the Board;
(b) Subsection 53E-3-401(4), which allows the Board to make rules to execute the Board's duties and responsibilities under the Utah Constitution and state law;
(c) Subsections 53E-3-501(1)(a)(i) and (ii), which require the Board to establish rules and minimum standards for the qualification and certification of educators and for required school administrative and supervisory services; and
(d) Section 53G-11-504, which directs that the Board adopt rules to guide school district employee evaluations.
(2) The purpose of this rule is to provide a statewide educator evaluation system framework that includes required Board directed expectations and components and additional school district determined components and procedures to ensure the availability of data about educator effectiveness.
(3) The process shall:
(a) focus on the improvement of high quality instruction and improved student achievement;
(b) include common data that can be aggregated and disaggregated to inform Board and school district decisions about retention, preparation, recruitment, and improved professional learning practices; and
(c) ensure school districts engage in a consistent process statewide of educator evaluation.
R277-531-2. Definitions.
(1) "Educator" means an individual licensed under Section 53E-6-201 and who meets the requirements of Rule R277-301.
(2) "Educator Evaluation Program" means a school district's process, policies, and procedures for evaluating an educator's performance according to the educator's various assignments.
(3) "Formative evaluation" means an evaluation that provides an educator with information and assessments on how to improve the educator's performance.
(4) "Instructional quality data" means data acquired through observation of an educator's instructional practices.
(5) "Joint educator evaluation committee" means the local committee described under Section 53G-11-506 that develops and assesses a school district evaluation program.
(6) "School administrator" means an educator:
(a) serving in a position that requires a Utah Educator License with an Administrative area of concentration; and
(b) who supervises Level 2 educators.
(7) "Summative evaluation" means an evaluation that is used to make annual decisions or ratings of an educator's performance and may inform decisions on salary, confirmed employment, personnel assignments, transfers, or dismissals.
(9) "Utah Effective Educator Standards" means:
(a) the Effective Teaching Standards established in Section R277-530-5;
(b) the Educational Leadership Standards established in Section R277-530-6; and
(c) the Educational School Counselor Standards established in Section R277-530-7.
(10) "Valid and reliable measurement tool" means an instrument that has proved consistent over time and uses non-subjective criteria that require minimal interpretation.
R277-531-3. Public Educator Evaluation Framework.
(1) The Board provides the public education evaluation framework described in this section, which includes general evaluation system areas and additional discretionary components required in a school district's educator evaluation system.
(2) A school district shall:
(a) have a joint educator evaluation committee;
(b) base the school district's educator evaluation system on the Utah Effective Educator Standards in Rule R277-530;
(c) establish and articulate performance expectations individually for all licensed school district educators;
(d) use valid and reliable measurement tools including, at a minimum:
(i) observations of instructional quality;
(ii) evidence of student growth;
(iii) parent and student input; and
(iv) other indicators as determined by the school district;
(e) provide an annual rating of educator performance using uniform statewide terminology and definitions, and include summative and formative components;
(f) direct the revision or alignment of all related school district policies, as necessary, to be consistent with the school district Educator Evaluation System;
(g) use valid, reliable, and research-based measurements that shall:
(i) employ a variety of measurement tools;
(ii) measure student growth for educators;
(iii) provide evaluation for non-instructional licensed educators and administrators; and
(h) provide both formative and summative evaluation data.
(3) A school district may consider data gathered from tools to inform decisions about employment and professional learning.
