Cindy Patterson, CETPA CTO Mentor Candidate

 

Learning Outcomes

 

AsA-01. Demonstrate a working knowledge of the relationship between standards, curriculum & instruction, and assessments.

 

AsA-02. Demonstrate a working knowledge of state assessments and their associated reporting structures.

 

AsA-03. Demonstrate a working knowledge of state and federal education accountability systems and their associated reporting structures.

 

AsA-04. Demonstrate a working knowledge of best practices districts utilize to report achievement data to various stakeholder groups.

 

AsA-05. Demonstrate a working knowledge of how districts utilize assessment data to improve achievement for all students.

 

AsA-06. Demonstrate the ability to identify how they will develop the leadership skills needed to help their organization effectively use local, state, and federal data.

 

Context

 

As Manager of Applications Support at Santa Clara County Office of Education I have very little contact with Assessment because my team is focused on systems that support school business such as ERP and document management. There is some context because of a cross over into the LCAP and LCFF but in general this was new material for me.

 

Artifacts

 

I created 3 artifacts; a PowToon presentation on SBAC for parents, a summary using graphs of assessment data and a plan to continue my professional development in Assessment.

 

Reflection

 

This class was a complete epiphany to me and clearly demonstrates how a CTO must be knowledgeable in all aspects of Education because they all inter-relate. I had listened to discussions about supporting SBAC from colleagues that support schools. Through their lens I saw it as technology requirements; bandwidth, availability, hardware, support, and professional development for those administering the test. I had also heard the point of view of the school business administrators. Through their lens it was financial and a function of LCAP. But what I learned through this seminar is that improving student performance is the focus of assessment. The data should be used by teachers, administrators, and the rest of the support structure to understand how students are performing on a common scale and determine ways to improve. I was truly intrigued with SBAC and how it related directly to skills that will build to assure that the student is college and/or career ready. This seminar and material was a stretch for me because I really had little background in the subject.

 

Creating the artifact was an interesting adventure. It forced me to go out of my comfort zone and introduce myself to people at SCCOE that I had not met. First the pre-work required that meet the Director of Assessment and Accountability and learn about Assessment through his lens. I reached out to the Manager within that department for access to more data. He graciously provided read-only access to their data management system. Combing through the data made me understand the struggles of assembling analysis with the inconsistencies inherent in alternative education. I am concurrently enrolled in the Leading Edge Certification class which encourages using more creative forms of presentation other than traditional PowerPoint. I created a PowToon overview of SBAC for parents. It required that I distill what I had learned and put it in parent friendly terms.

 

From this module I learned new information, made new contacts within the SCCOE Assessment Team and practiced new skills. Having completed this work I feel better prepared to be part of the solution, using my technical and data skills, and intend to continue learning more about Assessment. This was very valuable and will make me more prepared to assume the role of CTO.