Instructional Leadership and Professional Development Plan Assessment

Instructional leadership and professional development are some of the most important components towards enhancing the effectiveness of teachers with regards to learning outcomes and achievement of the required educational standards. This is primarily because instructional leadership and professional development are focused on student learning and achievement. School districts are increasingly recognizing the need to promote instructional leadership and professional development of educators in order to enhance student learning and achievement. Paterson Public School considers instructional leadership and professional development as the basic vehicles for generating the desired change in teaching practice, which in turn helps in enhancing learning outcomes and student achievement. As a result, the school utilizes several measures for conducting needs assessment in relation to instructional leadership and professional development. This paper examines the evaluation instruments utilized by Paterson Public School for needs assessment on instructional leadership and professional development.

Paterson Public School is one of New Jersey’s most diverse school districts whose main aim is to educate youth in the region. This school district is managed by the New Jersey Department of Education, which helps in ensuring that teaching practice is designed in a manner that helps in meeting the diverse needs of students. The management of Paterson Public School has entailed promoting instructional leadership and professional development of educators in this school district. Based on a publication by Paterson Public School (2015), the school has engaged in major initiatives to enhance student achievement in elementary and secondary levels since 2009. These efforts have involved establishment of measures for promoting instructional leadership and professional development.

Instructional leadership and professional development measures in this school are centered on instructional initiatives, school-determined areas of need, and the objectives established by the school district as well as the state Common Core Standards. However, the determination of these measures entail conducting a needs assessment that help in identification of areas requiring improvement. Needs assessment entail the use of different evaluation instruments for promoting instructional leadership/professional development. This evaluation is carried out in a collaborative manner and geared towards promoting excellence among teachers and school administrators in order to have positive impacts on students (Paterson Public Schools, 2018). Moreover, this process focuses on ensuring continual improvement based on established/desired objectives and expectations.

One of the evaluation instruments utilized by the school to conduct needs assessment for instructional leadership and professional development is Focal Point’s Teacher Performance Evaluation Rubric. This instrument is utilized in needs assessment of principles and teachers as part of the New Jersey’s Department of Education efforts to improve teaching practice and student achievement. Secondly, the school utilizes teacher and principal evaluation tools that are approved by the state’s Department of Education. These evaluation instruments are adopted as part of AchieveNJ, which focuses on promoting the growth and development of great teachers or educators. The instruments help in the achievement of this goal through evaluating educator practice with respect to its alignment to the state’s professional standards. Some of the state-approved evaluation instruments for needs assessment for instructional leadership and professional development include Teacher Evaluation and Improvement Instrument, The Thoughtful Classroom Teacher Effectiveness Framework, Principal Evaluation and Improvement Instrument, and New Leaders Principal Evaluation Rubric.

While there are different evaluation instruments utilized by Paterson Public School for needs assessment for instructional leadership and professional development, there are some similarities between these instruments. One of the similarities between these instruments is that they focus on enhancing teaching practice and student achievement. These evaluation instruments have been designed to help promote excellence among teachers and school administrators (Paterson Public Schools, 2018). The focus on improving teaching practice and student achievement is attributable to the need for ensuring continual improvement in teaching practice. Secondly, these evaluation instruments support collaboration during needs assessment, which implies that teachers are actively involved in the evaluation process. In essence, the use of these evaluation instruments entail collaboration between observers and teachers. During the evaluation, teachers engage in conversations with observers and provide evidence and artifacts regarding their teaching practice and instruction (New Jersey Department of Education, 2017). Similarly, when using these evaluation instruments, observers collaborate with principals to assess educator practice.

Despite the similarities between these various evaluation instruments, there are some differences that contribute to variations in how they are utilized for needs assessment for instructional leadership and professional development. One of the differences is that some of these instruments are utilized for assessing the needs of teachers while others are used to evaluate school administrators. For example, Teacher Evaluation and Improvement Instrument, The Thoughtful Classroom Teacher Effectiveness Framework, and Focal Point’s Teacher Performance Evaluation Rubric are utilized to assess the needs of teachers. On the contrary, Principal Evaluation and Improvement Instrument and New Leaders Principal Evaluation Rubric are utilized to evaluate the needs of school administrators, especially principals.

Secondly, Focal Point’s Teacher Performance Evaluation Rubric is a final formative needs assessment instrument that helps observers understand whether the achieved professional development and student achievement goals/objectives have been realized. This instrument helps to determine whether teachers have implemented changes in professional practice and in turn improved student learning. On the other hand, Teacher Evaluation and Improvement Instrument as well as The Thoughtful Classroom Teacher Effectiveness Framework are ongoing needs assessment instruments that help to determine whether instructional leadership and professional development of educators is on track. These instruments help to provide information on the current progress of educators in meeting the desired professional development goals and objectives. Third, Focal Point’s Teacher Performance Evaluation Rubric helps observers to identify major components of effective teacher and ensure consistent assessment of teacher practice while giving meaningful feedback to teachers (Paterson Public School, 2013). On the contrary, the other evaluation instruments consist two major components i.e. teacher practice and student achievement. While teacher practice is evaluated using classroom observations, student achievement is assessed using student growth objectives (New Jersey Department of Education, n.d.).

In conclusion, instructional leadership and professional development are considered as crucial components towards enhancing teaching practice and student achievement. As a result, school districts including Paterson Public School has adopted various efforts towards promoting instructional leadership and professional development of educators. These initiatives are implemented through conducting needs assessment of educators using various evaluation instruments. Some of these evaluation instruments include Focal Point’s Teacher Performance Evaluation Rubric, Teacher Evaluation and Improvement Instrument, The Thoughtful Classroom Teacher Effectiveness Framework, Principal Evaluation and Improvement Instrument, and New Leaders Principal Evaluation Rubric. These evaluation instruments have some similarities and differences, which contribute to variations in their use in conducting needs assessment for instructional leadership and professional development.