blog posts and news stories

Pittsburgh Public Schools Uses 20 New Content Suite Videos

In June 2015, Pittsburgh Public Schools began using Observation Engine for calibration and training their teacher evaluators. They were one of our first clients to use the Content Suite to calibrate and certify classroom observers.

The Content Suite contains a collection of master scored videos along with thoughtful, objective score justifications on all observable elements of teaching called for by the evaluation framework used in the district. And it includes short video clips focused on one particular aspect of teaching. The combination of full-length and short clips makes it possible to easily and flexibly set up practice exercises, collaborative calibration sessions, and formal certification testing. Recently, we have added 20 new videos to the Content Suite collection!

The Content Suite can be used with most frameworks, either as-is or modified to ensure that the scores and justifications are consistent with the local context and observation framework interpretation. Observation Engine support staff will work closely with each client to modify content and design a customized implementation plan that meets the goals of the school system and sets up evaluators for success. For more information about the Content Suite, click here.

Arkansas Implements Observation Engine Statewide

BloomBoard’s observation tool, EdReflect, has been used across the state of Arkansas since fall 2014. Last year, the Arkansas Department of Education piloted Observation Engine, an online observation training and calibration tool from Empirical Education Inc., in four districts under the state’s Equitable Access Plan. Accessible through the BloomBoard platform, Observation Engine allows administrators and other teacher evaluators to improve scoring calibration and reliability through viewing and rating videos of classroom lessons collected in thousands of classrooms across the country.

Paired with BloomBoard resources and training, the results were impressive. In one district, the number of observers scoring above target increased from 43% to 100%. Not only that but the percent discrepancy (scores that were two levels above or below the target) decreased from 9% to 0%. Similar results were found in the other three pilot districts, prompting decision makers to make Observation Engine readily available to districts throughout the state.

“EdReflect has proven to be a valuable platform for educator observations in Arkansas. The professional conversation, which results from the ability to provide timely feedback and shared understanding of effective practice, has proven to ensure a transparency and collaboration that we have not experienced before. With the addition of Empirical Education’s Observation Engine, credentialed teacher observers have ready access to increase inter-rater reliability and personal skill. For the first time this year, BloomBoard Collections and micro-credentials have begun meeting individualized professional learning needs for educators all over the state.”
– Sandra Hurst, Arkansas Department of Education

In July, the Arkansas Department of Education decided to offer Observation Engine to the entire state. About half of all districts in the state opted in to receive the service, with the implementation spanning three groups of users in Arkansas. The Beginning Administrators group has already started pursuing a micro-credential based on Observation Engine. Micro-credentials are a digital form of certification that indicate a person has demonstrated competency in a specific skill set. The Beginning Administrators group can earn their “Observation Skills for Beginning Administrators” micro-credential by demonstrating observation skill competencies using Observation Engine’s online observer calibration tool to practice and assess observation skills.

Next month, the 26 more districts under the Equitable Access Plan and the remaining Arkansas districts will begin using Observation Engine. We look forward to following and reporting on the progress of these districts during the 2016-17 school year.

Oklahoma Implements Empirical’s Observation Engine for Certification of Classroom Observers

Tulsa Public Schools, the Cooperative Council for Oklahoma Administration, and Empirical Education Inc. just announced the launch of Observation Engine to implement the Teacher and Leader Effectiveness program in the state of Oklahoma. Tulsa Public Schools has purchased Empirical Education’s Observation Engine, an online certification and calibration tool for measuring the reliability of administrators assigned to conduct classroom observations. Tulsa Public Schools developed the Tulsa Model for Observation and Evaluation, a framework for ensuring teaching effectiveness performance, as well as best practices for creating an environment for successful learning and student achievement. Nearly 500 school districts in the state are piloting the Tulsa Model evaluation system this year.

In order to support the dissemination of the Tulsa Model, the Cooperative Council for Oklahoma Administration (CCOSA) is training and administering calibration tests throughout the state to assess and certify the individuals who evaluate the state’s teachers. The Tulsa Model is embedded in Observation Engine to deliver an efficient online system for state-wide use by Oklahoma certified classroom observers. Observation Engine is allowing CCOSA to test approximately 2,000 observers over a span of two weeks.

Observation Engine was developed as part of The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s Measures of Effective Teaching project in which Empirical Education has participated as a research partner conducting R&D on validity and reliability of observational measures. The web-based software was built by Empirical Education, which hosts and supports it for school systems nationwide.

For more details on these events, see the press announcement and our case study.