ADEPT is South Carolina’s system for Assisting, Developing, and Evaluating Professional Teaching. The component of ADEPT assigned to an individual teacher is based upon the teacher’s contract level:

• Induction contract educators fall under the guidelines of Clover’s Teacher Induction Program (TIP).

• Annual contract educators who have not completed the state-mandated summative evaluation fall under the guidelines of Expanded ADEPT 2018 for Classroom-Based teachers (SCTS 4.0) or Expanded ADEPT 2021 for Special Areas (School Counselors, School Librarians, Speech Language Pathologists).  These are typically educators who have recently completed Induction or are in their first year as a reciprocally certified South Carolina educator.  

• Annual contract educators who have completed the formal summative evaluation fall under the guidelines for Goals-Based Evaluation (GBE).

• Continuing Contract educators are formatively evaluated every five years, coinciding with the year of their certificate renewal, and fall under the guidelines of Expanded ADEPT 2018 for Classroom-Based Teachers (SCTS 4.0) or ADEPT 2021 for Special Areas (School Counselors, School Librarians, Speech Language Pathologists).

• Continuing Contract educators who are not under formative evaluation will fall under the guidelines for Goals-Based Evaluation (GBE).

As part of the Expanded ADEPT system, each educator is formally evaluated using a rubric based on a set of performance standards that establish what the educator is to know, be able to do, and carry out as an integral part of their practice. The standards are the foundation for best practice and are designed to grow educators throughout their career continuum, beginning with professional preparation and continuing through Induction, summative performance evaluations, and ongoing professional growth and development. Classroom-based teachers are evaluated using the South Carolina Teaching Standards (SCTS) 4.0 rubric which was designed and validated by the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET). Special Area educators are evaluated using a rubric with indicators unique to the roles and responsibilities of their profession and aligned with nationally normed expectations of the American School Counselor Association (ASCA), the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). 

All classroom-based teachers will develop a Student Learning Objective each year.  They will be expected to develop a system of formative and summative classroom assessments to monitor student progress toward this objective and to provide evidence of student growth at mid-course and final SLO conferences.

All evaluation records are housed in SCLead and educators are expected to review, respond, and provide requested documentation in a timely manner.

A brief description of each ADEPT component is provided below.

Teacher Induction Program (TIP)
CSD takes pride in hiring the very best professionals. During their first year in the profession, CSD educators have the advantage of participating in a summer Induction Boot Camp and monthly new teacher classes.  In addition, they are supported by an experienced mentor teacher. The Induction classes provide access to people, ideas, and experiences to help the new teacher and our students be successful. The main goals of the Teacher Induction Program are to:

• Increase the retention rate of first-year teachers

• Improve teacher performance to enhance student growth and achievement

• Promote the personal and professional well-being of first-year teachers

• Communicate the school district’s culture and expectations

• Integrate first-year teachers into the Clover community

Successful completion of the Induction year includes participation in all scheduled TIP events, regular interaction with mentors and instructional specialists, and the recommendations of the building principal and the district Induction Coordinator to advance to an Annual Summative evaluation.  Educators who would benefit from an additional year of professional growth will be offered a second year of Induction.

Expanded ADEPT Formal Evaluation of Classroom-Based Teachers (SCTS 4.0)
The Expanded ADEPT Formal Evaluation of Classroom-Based Teachers is based on observations which are announced in the fall (preliminary cycle) and unannounced in the spring (final cycle). Announced observations are accompanied by a coaching cycle which includes a pre-conference, the observation, and a post-conference (POP cycle). Unannounced observations are accompanied by a coaching cycle which includes the observation and a post-conference.  Teachers should receive timely oral and written feedback including an area of reinforcement, which is validation of highly effective practice, and an area of refinement, which is an area for growth.  In addition, teachers will receive suggestions for improving their professional practice.  In formative evaluations, a building administrator will be the observer.  In a summative evaluation, a Content Expert performs a second observation in each cycle, and the evaluation team members will reach consensus on final results. 

The four domains of the SCTS 4.0 Rubric include:  Planning, Instruction, Environment, and Professionalism

Expanded ADEPT for Special Area Educators
Special area educator evaluations are based on a coaching cycle with observations which are announced in the fall (preliminary cycle) and unannounced in the spring (final cycle). Announced observations are accompanied by a coaching cycle which includes a pre-conference, the observation, and a post-conference (POP cycle). Unannounced observations are accompanied by a coaching cycle which includes the observation and a post-conference.  Educators should receive timely oral and written feedback including an area of reinforcement, which is validation of highly effective practice, and an area of refinement, which is an area for growth.  In addition, educators will receive suggestions for improving their professional practice. In formative evaluations, a building administrator will be the observer.  In a summative evaluation, a Special Area Expert performs a second observation in each cycle, and the evaluation team members will reach consensus on final results. The unique characteristics of each special area system are described below.

School Counselor 

• Rubric domains:  Planning, Program Management, Direct and Indirect Services, Professionalism   

• Observations are always announced and can be a whole group lesson or an individual/small group counseling session. 

• Only the Special Area Expert can observe a counseling session.

School Librarian 

• Rubric domains:  Instruction, Environment, Library Services and Management, Professionalism 

Speech Language Pathologist

• Rubric domains:  Planning, Instruction, Collaboration, Professionalism   

• Observations include one IEP Meeting and one therapy session in each cycle.

 
Goals-Based Evaluation (GBE)

The goal of CSD is to recruit, prepare, and retain quality educators and to create an environment where they can continue to thrive.  Therefore, it is important that the goals-based evaluation is linked to professional development that supports professional growth, continuous improvement, and student achievement. The GBE is the ADEPT component designed as an informal evaluation tool for experienced, continuing contract teachers.

• The educator must have demonstrated overall exemplary or proficient performance on the prior formal evaluation.

• The educator is expected to develop an annual goal in collaboration with a building administrator.

• Goals are to be supportive of the school district strategic plan and school renewal plans.

• Educators pursuing initial or maintenance National Board Certification may elect to use that process as their GBE for one year in each cycle.

• Each educator must develop an individualized plan for accomplishing his/her goals to include

  • appropriate strategies for goal completion

  • a system for monitoring progress

  • a method of generating supportive evidence of goal completion, and

  • a method of demonstrating a measurable impact on student growth and achievement. 

For more information contact:

Cheryl Sniker, Director of Teacher Effectiveness