1. Introduction to Student Achievement Objectives
Module 1
2017
Welcome to the Polk County Introduction and Overview of Student Achievement Objectives, Module 1. A series of five modules have been prepared with a focus on the needs of teachers and administrators that will help to deepen your understanding of the SAO components, as well as the information that supports it.
Student Achievement Objectives are an option for teachers who do not receive a VAM score. Along with the performance observation and student performance, an SAO may be used for the “district determined performance measure” as determined by the Florida state statute.
In order to expand your knowledge of SAOs we suggest you view each of the modules. You may also wish to visit the Center for Assessments SLO Toolkit at

2. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
What is an SAO and why are we using them for my evaluation? SAOs are content- and grade or course- specific learning objectives that can be validly measured to document student learning over a defined and significant period of time. SAOs encourage and support good teaching and learning!
What is an SAO and why are we using them for my evaluation?
Many states and districts are creating educator evaluation systems that include academic student performance information. SAOs are one method to document the influence that educators have on student learning over a specific amount of time. SAOs are content- and grade or course-specific learning objectives that can be validly measured to document student learning over a defined and significant period of time, such as a semester or school year. SAOs can constitute an instructional improvement process, driven by teachers in all grades and subjects.
Student Achievement Objectives provide the opportunity for all teachers to be able to:
set meaningful goals,
collaborate with other educators around shared goals,
monitor student and teacher progress toward goals, and
evaluate the extent to which goals were achieved.
In other words, SLOs encourage and support good teaching and learning!

3. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Student Achievement Objectives consists of three components:
Learning Goal
Assessment(s)
Targets
Student Achievement Objectives consists of three components: a learning goal, assessment(s), and targets. Each of these components will be briefly described in this module, and additional information can be found in the following modules:
Module 2: Developing Learning Goals,
Module 3: Determining Assessments,
Module 4: Selecting Baseline Data and Establishing Targets, and
Module 5: Evaluating the Quality of SAOs

4. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Learning Goal SMART Goal
Specific : focused on the big idea and the content standards.
Measurable: able to be appropriately and adequately assessed.
Appropriate: within the educator’s control to effect change and is important and meaningful for students to learn during the identified time span.
Realistic: while ambitious, is achievable for both educators and students, during the time span identified.
Time Limited: can be evaluated within the time specified and under the educator’s control.
The Learning Goal is a description of what students will be able to do at the end of the course or grade. The Learning Goal and all of the planning information for the SAO should reflect a SMART goal.
SMART is an acronym for goals that are Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time bound.
Specific refers to a Learning Goal which is focused on the big idea and the content standards.
Measurable refers to a Learning Goal which is able to be appropriately and adequately assessed.
Appropriate is a Learning Goal that is within the educator’s control to effect change and is important and meaningful for students to learn during the identified time span.
Realistic refers to a Learning Goal that, while ambitious, is achievable for both educators and students, during the time span identified.
And Time Limited means that a Learning Goal can be evaluated within the time specified and under the educator’s control.

5. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Planning for a Learning Goal
the big idea central to the discipline or course
the standards associated with the course and big idea
why the learning goal is important and meaningful
how the learning goal requires students to demonstrate understanding of the knowledge and skills associated with the standards and big idea
in what ways students will be instructed
the time span needed to teach the learning goal
how the time span is appropriate and sufficient
When planning for the Learning Goal, teachers will need to consider several factors. These planning factors include:
the overarching or big idea that is central to a discipline or course and will have lasting value beyond the classroom,
the standards that are associated with this big idea,
why the learning goal is important and meaningful for students to learn,
how the learning goal requires students to demonstrate deep, but appropriate, understanding of the knowledge and skills of the standards and big idea being measured,
in what way students will be instructed in order to learn the knowledge and skills required from the learning goal,
the time span needed to teach the learning goal, and finally
evidence that the time span is appropriate and sufficient for teaching the knowledge and skills required from the learning goal.

6. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Big Idea
Career Choices require
self-reflection and
critical thinking about
personal interests and
career opportunities
Let’s consider an example for an introductory CTE course. A Learning Goal for this introductory course might expect students to analyze their personal interests, abilities and strengths in order to formulate a plan that includes future course directions and career choices and explain and justify the decisions that are made.
A big idea that will link the units and lessons to focus the daily instruction for students could be that “career choices require self-reflection and critical thinking about personal interests and career opportunities.”

7. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Big Idea
Career Choices require
self-reflection and
critical thinking about
personal interests and
career opportunities
What will students need to do to demonstrate this big idea?
Apply strategic thinking
Interpret and analyze personal attitudes, aptitudes, abilities
Draw conclusions about career choices
In order for students to truly understand and demonstrate this big idea, they will need to apply strategic thinking including interpreting and analyzing their own personal attitudes, aptitudes, and abilities from various interest tests and drawing conclusions about this information in conjunction with possible career choices.

8. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Big Idea
Learning Goal
Career Choices require
self-reflection and
critical thinking about
personal interests and
career opportunities
Students will analyze their personal interests, abilities and strengths by participating in a broad variety of activities within the eight CTE program areas and create a formal plan that includes future course directions and career choices explaining and justifying the decisions made.
Using this information, a meaningful Learning Goal for this course that is taught and assessed throughout the year might be:
Students will analyze their personal interests, abilities and strengths by participating in a broad variety of activities within the eight CTE program areas and create a formal plan that includes future course directions and career choices explaining and justifying the decisions made.
(See the module on Developing Learning Goals for more information about the planning factors.)

9. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Assessments should be selected and used to support and measure the Learning Goal – NOT vice versa!
It is important to develop a Learning Goal prior to determining the assessments. Assessments should be selected and used to support and measure the Learning Goal, not vice versa. When considering possible assessments, they should clearly align to the identified standards and measure the student knowledge and skills expected from the Learning Goal. There are a number of assessment options that could be considered for the CTE Learning Goal, including a performance-based assessment, a project, or there may be district-level assessment previously created. The administration of any of these types of assessments may also require the development and use of a rubric or scoring guide.

10. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Instruction
Instruction
Instruction
Course
Formative
Assessment
Formative
Assessment
Formative
Assessment
Summative
Assessment
Collect data
Monitor students’ progress
Make appropriate instructional decisions
Differentiate instruction
Whatever the length of the course, data should be collected throughout it to monitor students’ progress and to make appropriate instructional decisions that will allow for differentiated instruction. The teacher should plan to collect formative information from assignments related to the Learning Goal from all students on a regular basis to be sure that students are prepared for the summative assessment. The formative assessments are a fundamental aspect of the teaching and learning cycle. The summative assessments will allow students to demonstrate that they are able to independently put all the pieces together to show the expected knowledge and skills of the Learning Goal.
(See the module on Determining Assessments for more information.)

11. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Baseline Data Targets
CTE Pre-Assessments:
Awareness of career opportunities
Awareness of self-interests
Ability to communicate through writing
General school performance
Attendance
Finally, SAOs need to be contextualized for an individual class. This is done by identifying the expected outcome or “targets” for students by the end of the course period. In order to set targets, teachers must first identify and analyze baseline data or information about students’ level of performance at the beginning of the school year or course period.
There are several things that a teacher may want to know about his/her students, which may include previous academic performance that are related to the content or the expectations of the assessments. It may also be helpful when setting targets to consider students’ general performance in school and attendance. However, targets should not be established based solely on this additional information.
When considering our Introduction to CTE Learning Goal example, a teacher may want to create, administer, and analyze a pre-assessment about students’ awareness of various career opportunities, a pre-course survey about students’ awareness of interests, as well as their ability to communicate through writing.
(See the module on Selecting Baseline Data and Establishing Targets for more information.)

12. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Targets:
Ambitious, but realistic for each group of students
Expected Targets
% or # in the high group
% or # in the average group
% or # in the low group
When establishing the expected targets for students, teachers will want to be ambitious, but realistic. Using knowledge from past teaching experience, as well as the baseline data from the current cohort of students, a decision will need to be made about how many students can demonstrate proficiency toward the Learning Goal. Based on this information, expected targets for measuring students’ understanding of the Learning Goal is established.

13. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Rubric for Rating the Quality of
Student Achievement Objectives
Acceptable Quality
Quality Needs Improvement
Insufficient Quality
Learning Goal
Assessments and Scoring
Targets
Before the entire SAO is submitted to an administrator for approval, the Rubric for Rating the Quality of an SAO and the SAO should be reviewed to ensure coherency and alignment, including the rigor of the Learning Goal, assessments, and standards.
(For more information see the Polk County SAO Rubric as well as the Center for Assessment’s SLO Toolkit.)

14. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
SAO Final Approval
Collaborative Discussion
Identify goals
Identify needs
Additional Training
Final approval of an SAO is established through a meeting with the building administrator. During this meeting each aspect of the SAO is reviewed and discussed to ensure that it is of an acceptable quality. Together, the SAO process, which began with the development of the Learning Goal, identification of assessments, and setting targets for your students, should be reviewed.
A collaborative discussion should occur to identify goals or needs necessary to ensure that that both the teacher and students will be successful. This may include opportunities to collaborate with colleagues on creating a rubric or to receive additional training in a specific area related to the Learning Goal.

15. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Develop SLO
Identify teaching goals and Professional Development needs
Create a timeline
Develop a reflection strategy
Final Steps
There are two last steps of the SAO process. Once goals or additional needs have been identified, the teacher will create a timeline that outlines when each aspect of the SAO will be implemented, including when student assessments will be administered and when the assessment data will be analyzed.
And finally, a reflection strategy should be established to keep track of the instructional changes made based on the assessments and the evidence to support these changes, learning that was gained from collaboration and training, as well as lessons learned in the SAO process. All of this information should be shared during the mid-year and final review meetings.

16. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
Meet with administrator:
Discuss how students are progressing toward the targets
What additional resources are needed to achieve the SAO?
Should the targets be revised due to extenuating circumstances?
Teachers should meet with their administrator as a mid-course check-in to discuss how his students are progressing toward the targets that were set. This discussion will include identifying which students are struggling or exceeding expectations, and what additional resources might be needed as to be sure that the SAO targets are achieved.
In addition, should there be extenuating circumstances, such as a large number of student transitions within the class, SAO targets may need to be adjusted. It is important to note that the Learning Goal and Assessments would remain the same as they are aligned to the standards and big ideas established for the course. However, the number of students who will demonstrate proficiency toward the Learning Goal may need to be adjusted.

17. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
End-of-Year Evaluation:
Results of the summative rating
Lessons learned from the process
Critical feedback on performance
Additional resources needed
And finally, at the end of the year, after the delivery of the summative assessment, all of the information and data related to student achievement toward the Learning Goal should be collected in a manner that is clear and concise. This information will be shared with the administrator at an end-of-the-year meeting to discuss:
the results of the summative rating,
lessons learned from the process,
critical feedback on performance that were valuable for improving student learning as well as those aspects that could be improved, and
additional resources that would provide reinforcement or opportunities toward the SAO components.

18. Module 1: Introduction and Overview of SAOs
SAO Reflection Questions:
How well does the SAO process fit into your current teaching and pedagogical process?
How does the SAO process align with the goals in your school and/or district?
What implementation challenges do you foresee and how will you overcome these?
What are some potential positive outcomes for you, your students, your school, and your district when implementing SAOs?
Reflect on the SAO process described in this module by answering the following questions:
How well does the SAO process fit into your current teaching and pedagogical process?
How does the SAO process align with the goals in your school and/or district?
What implementation challenges do you foresee and how will you overcome these?
What are some potential positive outcomes for you, your students, your school, and your district when implementing SAOs?

19. jthompson@nciea.org 401-316-7840