PST/CAP Implementation COP Facilitator Application

Background 

In accordance with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Educational Vision, the Office of Educator Effectiveness was pleased to release updated guidance and tools for defining, developing, and supporting effective teaching practice in the Commonwealth that centers evidence-based, culturally and linguistically sustaining practices necessary to advance equitable learning opportunities for all students.  

These updates include the 2024 Guidelines for the Professional Standards for Teachers (PSTs) and the 2024 Guidelines for the Candidate Assessment of Performance (CAP). The PSTs and corresponding performance assessment (CAP) were updated to ensure continued alignment with the Standards of Effective Practice for K-12 educators so that beginning teachers are well-prepared with the knowledge and skills needed to serve all of their students, particularly those from systemically marginalized groups and communities.  

The PSTs and CAP, along with the Model Rubrics for Teachers and Administrators, reflect a critically important shift in focus towards the evidence-based, culturally and linguistically sustaining practices necessary to support all students to attain academic knowledge and skills, understand and value themselves and others, and engage with the world. We look forward to continuing to partner with our colleagues from educator preparation programs in support of this work.  

2024-2025 Communities of Practice 

Two significant changes in the 2024 PSTs and CAP are the updates to the Essential Elements and the requirements for using the different sources of evidence to evaluate candidates’ practice. In the feedback we collected last spring, educator preparation personnel elevated the need for dedicated space to collaborate with colleagues from other programs about implementing the updated guidelines and supporting field supervisors and candidates to understand these key shifts.  

The 2025 Communities of Practice are intended to provide these opportunities for learning and discussion. In January through March 2025, colleagues from sponsoring organizations will facilitate three Communities of Practice. Each of the Communities of Practice will meet for three 2-hour virtual sessions. During these sessions, facilitators will share resources and lead discussions around: 

(1) What the updated Essential Elements look like in practice across contexts,  

(2) Calibrating around the high-quality evidence that could be used to understand how candidates are demonstrating each Essential Element, 

(3)  Triangulating multiple sources of evidence to understand candidates’ practice. 

 

The facilitators will share, collect, and/or compile examples of high-quality, triangulated evidence that could be used to demonstrate candidates’ practice in the subset of Essential Elements. After all Communities of Practice sessions are complete, facilitators will present the Community of Practice’s work during an info session, which will be open to anyone in the prep field.  

The materials created through the Communities of Practice will be compiled, refined, and posted on the DESE website in a new CAP Resources Hub. 

 

Essential Element Groupings 

Each Community of Practice will focus on a specific subset of the Essential Elements. The groupings are designed to support discussion about a range of types and sources of evidence. Each grouping includes Elements from across two or more Standards, and at least one of the Elements in each group requires observations as a source of evidence in CAP.  The groupings are as follows.  

Grouping 1: 

• I-A-1 Subject Matter Knowledge (requires evidence from observation) 

• II-A-3 Inclusive Instruction  

Grouping 2: 

• II-B-2 Safe Learning Environment (requires evidence from observation) 

• IV-A-1 Reflective Practice  

Grouping 3: 

• I-C-2 Adjustments to Practice 

• II-A-1 High Expectations and Support (requires evidence from observation) 

• III-C-1 Collaboration on Student Learning and Well-Being  

 

Responsibilities: 

Facilitators may apply as individuals or in pairs. Facilitator pairs may or may not work at the same sponsoring organization. Facilitators will be responsible for: 

• Establishing a space that enables collaborative work 

• Facilitating conversation about the selected subset of Essential Elements, including   

• what the updated Essential Elements look like in practice across contexts, 

• calibrating around the high-quality evidence that could be used to understand how candidates are demonstrating each Essential Element, and 

• triangulating multiple sources of evidence to understand candidates’ practice. 

• Facilitating the group in such a way that they are able to share, collect, and/or compile examples of high-quality, triangulated evidence that could be used to demonstrate candidates’ practice in the subset of Essential Elements, including: 

• Examples of the evidence that could be collected for one candidate demonstrating that they are Ready to Teach in the assigned Essential Elements.  

• At least one artifact that corresponds to each of four of the five categories of evidence: observations, candidate artifacts, student learning outcomes, student feedback. (Inclusion of evidence for the professional practice goal is optional.) 

We hope to be able to provide an honorarium to the selected facilitator(s) for each Community of Practice (pending confirmation of funding). Additional details regarding the honoraria will be shared in coming weeks.    

 

The Communities of Practice are just one form of implementation support for CAP and the PSTs during the 2024-2025 school year. Other implementation support will include:  

• Info sessions 

• CAP Handbook 

• Quick Reference Guides on selected topics 

• Videos for candidates and supervising practitioners 

• Drop-in sessions on selected topics 

Rate your level of familiarity with each of the 2024 CAP Essential Elements: 

For the following questions, please indicate whether you would be interested in facilitating a Community of Practice for the Essential Element grouping as a first choice, second choice, third choice, or not at all. For each grouping you are interested in facilitating, you will be prompted to upload 2-3 artifacts and describe how you would use them to rate a candidates’ practice in the included Essential Elements. These artifacts will only be shared with the internal DESE ed prep team. Please remove any candidate names before sharing.