The rule action presented in this item will be filed as adopted with the Texas Register under the commissioner's rulemaking authority. This item adopts revisions to 19 TAC Chapter 150, Commissioner's Rules Concerning Educator Appraisal, Subchapter AA, Teacher Appraisal. The adopted revisions update and clarify provisions relating to the Professional Development and Appraisal System (PDAS).

STATUTORY AUTHORITY:

Texas Education Code (TEC), §21.351.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

February 17, 2010.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND SIGNIFICANT ISSUES:

The 74th Texas Legislature, 1995, created the requirements for appraisal of teacher performance. In accordance with the TEC, §21.351, the commissioner exercised rulemaking authority to adopt 19 TAC Chapter 150, Commissioner's Rules Concerning Educator Appraisal, Subchapter AA, Teacher Appraisal, establishing the PDAS. The rules in 19 TAC Chapter 150, Subchapter AA, address provisions on appraisals, data source documentation, conferences, intervention plans, written responses, appraiser qualifications, and teacher orientation.

Adopted revisions to 19 TAC Chapter 150, Subchapter AA, update and clarify the PDAS requirements, as follows.

Section 150.1001, General Provisions, was amended to add new subsection (d) to specify in rule the commissioner's authority to appoint a regional education service center to manage the instructional and management aspects of the PDAS. Subsection (d) also specifies in rule the policy that has been in effect since 2001 that the designated regional education service center may collect appropriate fees.

Section 150.1003, Appraisals, Data Sources, and Conferences, was amended throughout to clarify that the term "appraiser" refers to an individual who is actually a "certified appraiser."

Section 150.1004, Teacher in Need of Assistance, was amended in subsection (b), as published as proposed, to define who would be considered a teacher's supervisor for the purpose of participating in the development of an intervention plan. Clarification of the term "certified appraiser" was also made in subsections (b) and (f) as well as minor, technical corrections throughout the section. In response to public comment, subsection (b) was modified at adoption to remove the enumerated categories of employees and clarify that the campus principal or designee will be involved with the certified appraiser and the teacher in the development of intervention plan(s).

Section 150.1005, Teacher Response and Appeals, was amended throughout to clarify the term "certified appraiser." Minor, technical corrections were also made throughout the section.

Section 150.1006, Appraiser Qualifications, was amended by adding new subsection (b) to define campus administrator and specify that a qualified campus administrator would conduct a teacher's appraisal. Clarifications and technical corrections were made in subsection (c). New subsection (d), as published as proposed, would clarify existing provisions relating to a certified appraiser who is a classroom teacher. In response to public comment, subsection (d) was modified at adoption to clarify the circumstances that would permit persons other than administrators to conduct teacher appraisals.

Section 150.1007, Teacher Orientation, was amended in subsection (a) to add the requirement that teachers to be appraised shall be provided with an annual review of 19 TAC Chapter 150, Subchapter AA.

Section 150.1008, Training of Teacher Participants, was repealed since it is obsolete and no longer needed.

Section 150.1010, District Notification to Regional Education Service Center, was amended to add new subsection (b) requiring each school district to report the summary of the evaluation scoring of PDAS appraisals for all campuses in the school district to its regional education service center. The section title was also updated accordingly. In addition, subsections (a) and (b) were modified at adoption to clarify that in the event a district chooses to use an appraisal system other than PDAS, a copy of the instrument chosen and a summary of that evaluation scoring must also be provided to the district's regional education service center. The subsections were also modified at adoption in response to public comment to clarify that only campus-level scoring will be reported and not individual teacher information.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The TEA has determined that there are no additional costs to persons or entities required to comply with the proposed rule actions. The new language in 19 TAC §150.1001 relating to collection of fees specifies in rule the policy that has been in effect since 2001. The new language in 19 TAC §150.1010 relating to reporting evaluation scoring should not create a new cost since the information is already collected by districts.

In addition, there is no direct adverse economic impact for small businesses and microbusinesses; therefore, no regulatory flexibility analysis, specified in Texas Government Code, §2006.002, is required.

PUBLIC AND STUDENT BENEFIT:

The adopted rule actions promote improved standardization of teacher appraisals throughout the state. This improvement should provide for improved accuracy in teacher appraisals leading to increased rigor for students in classrooms.

PROCEDURAL AND REPORTING IMPLICATIONS:

The adopted amendment to 19 TAC §150.1010 requires each school district to report campus-level information on teacher ratings to its regional education service center. This reporting will be required whether a district uses PDAS or a locally adopted instrument.

LOCALLY MAINTAINED PAPERWORK REQUIREMENTS:

The adopted rule actions would not require additional paperwork beyond what is already maintained. Districts already have the evaluation scoring of their employees.

PUBLIC COMMENTS:

The public comment period on the proposal began July 31, 2009, and ended August 31, 2009. Following is a summary of public comments received and corresponding agency responses regarding the proposed revisions to 19 TAC Chapter 150, Commissioner's Rules Concerning Educator Appraisal, Subchapter AA, Teacher Appraisal.

Comment: A representative of iteachTEXAS, an alternative certification program, commented that current limitations on the number of entities able to offer Instructional Leadership Development (ILD) and PDAS training create hardships on districts and participants. The commenter suggested that other entities be allowed to perform these functions.

Agency Response: The comment addresses issues outside the scope of the current rule proposal. The provisions in this rule are unrelated to the number of entities able to offer ILD and PDAS training.

Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association (TCTA) commented that enumerating various categories of employees that could be defined as "supervisor" could expose these categories of employees to liability. TCTA also commented that the rule did not specify that the department chair enumerated in the list of categories would be a particular teacher's department chair. The TCTA further suggested that either the appraiser and the supervisor together or either of them individually be allowed, along with the teacher, to develop an intervention plan. The TCTA suggested that in 19 TAC §150.1004(b), the proposed definition of "supervisor" be deleted and that "and/or" be retained in the description of parties to be involved in the development of an intervention plan.

Agency Response: The agency agrees and modified 19 TAC §150.1004(b) at adoption to remove the enumerated categories of employees. Language was added to subsection (b) to indicate that the campus principal or designee will be required to participate in the development of an intervention plan. The agency disagrees, however, with retaining "and/or." The intervention plan should include input from both the certified appraiser and the campus principal or designee in situations where the campus principal is not the appraiser for the individual teacher involved.

Comment: The TCTA commented that the rules should define circumstances that would permit persons other than the campus administrator to serve as an appraiser, and under what circumstances classroom teachers can serve as appraisers.

Agency Response: The agency agrees. Language in 19 TAC §150.1006(d) was revised at adoption to clarify the circumstances that would permit persons other than administrators to conduct appraisals.

Comment: The Texas AFT commented that "teacher behavior" in 19 TAC §150.1004(b)(4) and (5) should be replaced with "teaching practice."

Agency Response: The agency disagrees. The targeted areas might not involve "teaching practice," so "teaching behavior" provides a more inclusive term. The purpose of the intervention plan is to modify the behaviors of the teacher, which are observable during observations and appraisals.

Comment: The Texas AFT commented that the required three years of teaching experience for PDAS appraisers should be maintained in 19 TAC §150.1006(b).

Agency Response: The agency disagrees. Two years of experience aligns with Texas Education Code requirements for principal certification and is considered appropriate.

Comment: The Texas AFT commented that assurances of employee privacy should be provided in 19 TAC §150.1010(b).

Agency Response: The agency disagrees. However, language in 19 TAC §150.1010 was modified to clarify that only campus-level scoring will be reported. Individual teacher information will not be collected.

ALTERNATIVES:

None.

OTHER COMMENTS AND RELATED ISSUES:

None.

Staff Members Responsible:

Jerel Booker, Associate Commissioner, Educator and Student Policy Initiatives
Carla Valadez, Director, Educator Initiatives and Performance
Priscilla Aquino-Garza, Research and Policy Advisor, Educator and Student Policy Initiatives

For additional information, email rules@tea.state.tx.us.

Page last modified on 8/30/2011.