STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES (SLOs) Orientation Module © Pennsylvania Department of Education

Goal: Design ● Build ● Review student learning objectives (SLOs) for use in guiding instruction and determining student mastery and/or growth as part of Pennsylvania’s teacher effectiveness system. Participants will: 1.Review each component used in the SLO process, including the role of high-quality performance measures. 2.Examine tools and techniques available to teachers and principals. 2 Goal & Objectives

Training Describe the procedures within each of the three phases (i.e., Design, Build, & Review) Provide examples and information about a process Templates Assist in developing customized material Resources Supplements the core training materials 3 Tool Organization

Tool Organization (cont.) 4

5 SLO Design Coherency GOAL STATEMENT RATING PERFORMANCE MEASURE PERFORMANCE INDICATOR ALL STUDENTSFOCUSED STUDENTS

6 Training Resources SAS is the PDE website ( containing: Pennsylvania content standards and other helpful PDE developed material a downloadable SLO training “packet”, including SLO Models links to Research in Action’s (RIA) training platform, Homeroom Homeroom is RIA’s web-based learning platform ( containing: on-line training materials, including the SLO Process Template downloadable SLO training files links to the SAS portal

7 Assessment Literacy Series vs. Student Learning Objectives I need to…SLO Process Series-PA Assessment Literacy Series Start from scratchXX Only build a performance measure X Only complete the SLO Process Template X

8 Outline of the Orientation Module Orientation Build Design SLO Process Phases Review ALS Techniques

PDE’s Definition: A process to document a measure of educator effectiveness based on student achievement of content standards. Student Learning Objective 9

Assessment Literacy The skills, knowledge, and concepts associated with sound assessment practices, including the critical review of quality evidence. Goal Statement Narrative articulating the “Big Idea” upon which the SLO is based. Standards Targeted content standards used in developing SLOs, which are the foundation of performance measures. 10 Terminology

Rationale Statement Narrative providing reasons why the Goal Statement and the targeted content standards address important learning. Blueprint Visual depiction of the relationship among key SLO components. Performance Measure An assessment tool used to measure the knowledge and skills acquired by students. 11 Terminology (cont.)

Performance Indicator Statement of the expected level of achievement on each performance measure. Elective Rating Comprise four levels of performance: DISTINGUISHED, PROFICIENT, NEEDS IMPROVEMENT, and FAILING. Reflect an “expectations continuum” established by the educator prior to the evaluation period and then examined at the end of the evaluation period. 12 Terminology (cont.)

13 SLO Process Phases

Guiding Principles SLOs should: 1.Represent student performance in a specific course/content area taught by the educator. 2.Align to a targeted set of content standards that represent the depth and breadth of the goal statement. 3.Contain results from only high-quality performance measures collected in an equitable, verifiable, and standardized manner. 4.Use metrics based on two time-bound events/data collection periods and/or summative performance with defined levels of achievement. 5.Include performance indicators linked to performance measures. 14

The SLO process contains three (3) phases: I.Design (ing): thinking, conceptualizing, organizing, discussing, researching II.Build (ing): selecting, developing, sharing, completing III.Review (ing): refining, checking, updating, editing, testing, finalizing 15 SLO Process Phases

16 SLO Process Phases DESIGN Thinking about what content standards to measure Organizing standards and measures Discussing collective goals with colleagues Researching what is needed for a high quality SLO

17 SLO Process Phases BUILD Selecting the performance measure(s) Developing targets and expectations Completing the template Sharing the draft materials with other colleagues

18 SLO Process Phases REVIEW Checking the drafted SLO (including the performance measures) for quality Refining measures and targets Editing text and preparing discussion points/highlights for principal Finalizing materials Updating completed SLO with performance data

The Orientation Module- Shared the conceptual framework, resources, and tools associated with the SLO process. Discussed the phases and guiding principles used in creating student learning objectives. 19 Summary