North Carolina Administrative Code › Title 16 - EDUCATION › Chapter 06 - ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION › Subchapter C - PERSONNEL › Section .0500 - PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL SYSTEM › Section 06C .0503 - TEACHER EVALUATION PROCESS

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 2, July 15, 2024
(a) The
				  intended purpose of the North Carolina Teacher Evaluation Process is to assess
				  the teacher's performance in relation to the North Carolina Professional
				  Teaching Standards and to design a plan for professional growth. The principal
				  or a designee (hereinafter "principal") shall conduct the evaluation process in
				  which the teacher shall participate through the use of self-assessment,
				  reflection, presentation of artifacts, and classroom
				  demonstration(s).
(b) A local board
				  of education shall use the North Carolina Professional Teaching Standards and
				  North Carolina Teacher Evaluation Process unless it develops an alternative
				  evaluation that is properly validated and that includes standards and criteria
				  similar to those in the North Carolina Professional Teaching Standards and
				  North Carolina Teacher Evaluation Process.
(c) The North Carolina Teacher Evaluation
				  Process shall include the following components:
(1) Training. Before participating in the
				  evaluation process, all teachers, principals and peer evaluators must complete
				  training on the evaluation process.
(2) Orientation. Within two weeks of a
				  teacher's first day of work in any school year, the principal shall provide the
				  teacher with a copy of or directions for obtaining access to a copy of:
(A) The Rubric for Evaluating North Carolina
				  Teachers (16 NCAC 06C .0504);
(B) This policy; and
(C) A schedule for completing all the
				  components of the evaluation process. Copies may be provided by electronic
				  means.
(3) Teacher Self
				  Assessment. Using the Rubric for Evaluating North Carolina Teachers, the
				  teacher shall rate his or her own performance at the beginning of the year and
				  reflect on his or her performance throughout the year.
(4) Pre-Formal Observation Conference. Before
				  the first formal observation, the principal shall meet with the teacher to
				  discuss the teacher's self-assessment based on the Rubric for Evaluating North
				  Carolina Teachers, the teacher's most recent professional growth plan, and the
				  lesson(s) to be observed. The teacher shall provide the principal with a
				  written description of the lesson(s). The goal of this conference is to prepare
				  the principal for the observation. Pre-Observation conferences are not required
				  for subsequent observations.
(5)
				  Observations.
(A) A formal observation shall
				  last at least 45 minutes.
(B)
				  Probationary Teachers shall have at least three formal observations conducted
				  by the principal and one formal observation conducted by a peer.
(C) Career Status Teachers shall be evaluated
				  annually, unless the LEA establishes a different evaluation cycle for career
				  teachers. During the year in which a career status teacher participates in a
				  summative evaluation, the principal shall conduct at least three observations,
				  including at least one formal observation. During observations, the principal
				  and peer (in the case of a probationary teacher) shall note the teacher's
				  performance in relationship to the applicable Standards on the Rubric for
				  Evaluating North Carolina Teachers.
(6) Post-Observation Conference. The
				  principal shall conduct a post-observation conference no later than ten school
				  days after each formal observation. During the post-observation conference, the
				  principal and teacher shall discuss and document on the Rubric the strengths
				  and weaknesses of the teacher's performance during the observed
				  lesson.
(7) Summary Evaluation
				  Conference and Scoring the Teacher Summary Rating Form. Prior to the end of the
				  school year and in accordance with LEA timelines, the principal shall conduct a
				  summary evaluation conference with the teacher. During the summary evaluation
				  conference, the principal and teacher shall discuss the teacher's
				  self-assessment, the teacher's most recent Professional Growth Plan, the
				  components of the North Carolina Teacher Evaluation Process completed during
				  the year, classroom observations, artifacts submitted or collected during the
				  evaluation process and other evidence of the teacher's performance on the
				  Rubric. At the conclusion of the North Carolina Teacher Evaluation Process, the
				  principal shall:
(A) Give a rating for each
				  Element in the Rubric;
(B) Make a
				  written comment on any Element marked "Not Demonstrated";
(C) Give an overall rating of each Standard
				  in the Rubric;
(D) Provide the
				  teacher with the opportunity to add comments to the Teacher Summary Rating
				  Form;
(E) Review the completed
				  Teacher Summary Rating Form with the teacher; and
(F) Secure the teacher's signature on the
				  Record of Teacher Evaluation Activities and Teacher Summary Rating
				  Form.
(8) Professional
				  Development Plans.
(A) Individual Growth
				  Plans: Teachers who are rated at least "Proficient" on all the Standards on the
				  Teacher Summary Rating Form shall develop an Individual Growth Plan designed to
				  improve performance on specifically identified Standards and
				  Elements.
(B) Monitored Growth
				  Plans: A teacher shall be placed on a Monitored Growth Plan whenever he or she
				  is rated "Developing" on one or more Standards on the Teacher Summary Rating
				  Form and is not recommended for dismissal, demotion or nonrenewal. A Monitored
				  Growth Plan shall, at a minimum, identify the Standards and Elements to be
				  improved, the goals to be accomplished and the activities the teacher shall
				  undertake to achieve Proficiency, and a timeline which allows the teacher one
				  school year to achieve Proficiency. A Monitored Growth Plan that meets those
				  criteria shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of
				  G.S.
				  115C-333(b).
(C) Directed Growth Plans: A teacher shall be
				  placed on a Directed Growth Plan whenever he or she is rated "Not Demonstrated"
				  on any Standard on the Teacher Summary Rating Form or "Developing" on one or
				  more Standards on the Teacher Summary Rating Form for two sequential years and
				  is not recommended for dismissal, demotion or nonrenewal. The Directed Growth
				  Plan shall, at a minimum, identify the Standards and Elements to be improved,
				  the goals to be accomplished, the activities the teacher shall complete to
				  achieve Proficiency, a timeline for achieving Proficiency within one school
				  year or such shorter time as determined by the LEA. A Directed Growth Plan that
				  meets those criteria shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of
				  G.S.
				  115C-333(b).
(9) Effective Dates and Effect on
				  Licensing and Career Status. Effective with the 2008-2009 school year, LEAs may
				  evaluate teachers using this policy. Effective with the 2010-2011 school year,
				  all teachers in North Carolina shall be evaluated using this policy unless a
				  local board develops an alternative evaluation that is properly validated and
				  that includes standards and criteria similar to those in the North Carolina
				  Professional Teaching Standards and North Carolina Teacher Evaluation Process
				  in which case the local board shall use that instrument.