Our Mission
To provide services and leadership, in partnership with families, schools and communities, that improve the learning outcomes and well-being of all children and youth.
Our Goals
- Increase learning growth for students
- Decrease the gap in achievement
- Increase annual graduation rates
- Increase gateways to post-secondary success
A new school year is here and we know we will once again be faced with the unique challenges and opportunities that come with the responsibilities of school leadership roles. We also know that leadership matters as documented in the work of Marzano, Waters, McNulty, Cameron and others too numerous to list. In fact, the meta-analysis conducted over a decade ago by McRel and the additional work in this decade continues to show the direct connection between high-quality leadership and student learning (second only to the effect of high-quality instruction-Goodwin, Cameron and Hein, 2015).
Three overarching responsibilities of effective school leaders that are tied to student learning as summarized in the McREL research are listed below along with some reflective questions for your consideration.
Establish a clear focus.
- Can you identify one or two areas of emphasis that will be your absolute focus this year?
- What communication strategies are you using with key stakeholders, board members, staff and students to support this focus in your school or district?
Manage changes (large and small) that come with making improvements.
- Do you have lead and lag measures identified?
- What formative assessment data is available for students, family members and school staff use to inform progress and make necessary adjustments over time?
- How are teacher leaders, learning community teams and advisory groups engaged to help guide change processes?
Create a purposeful community in your schools or district that contributes to all teachers and staff developing a belief that what they do does make a difference.
- Is a learning plan in place that will support staff capacity?
- How could you display/communicate learning results to help build staff efficacy?
- As you work to demonstrate the actions and behaviors that have a positive effect on student achievement in your schools, I hope you utilize the resources and supports that are available from Heartland AEA. We look forward to your requests for assistance, appreciate your suggestions for ways we can improve and look forward to partnering with you.
Best wishes for an outstanding school year,
Paula Vincent
Updated FAST benchmarks have been released and posted on the Knowledge Base of TIER as of Aug. 5, 2016.
Administrative teams with questions remaining about your district's Lau Plan for meeting needs of English Learners are invited to attend this workshop for additional support prior to the upload. Refer to the Lau Plan Checklist and Lau Plan Guidance Document for additional support.
Support for Revising 2016-2017 District Lau Plans
Date: Sept. 6, 2016
Time: 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.
Location: Heartland AEA, Regional Education Center, 6500 Corporate Drive, Johnston, IA
Register here
Dr. Jobi Lawrence and Colleen Anderson from the Iowa Department of Education asked the Title III Consultants to share the following information with districts related to TELPA Training, ordering of TELPA materials and TELPA Administration for the 2016-17 school year.
TELPA Training for 2016-17
Please ensure that anyone administering the TELPA for the upcoming academic year certifies on the training system on AEA PD Online, as the training has been updated to reflect changes in ordering and submitting scores due to the change in vendor. Iowa Testing Programs is no longer able to serve as our vendor for TELPA, and this has precipitated these changes.
From: Dr. Jobi B. Lawrence, Director, Title III, Iowa Department of Education, (515) 281-3805.
TELPA Assessment Administrators Must Recertify
Anyone administering the Tennessee English Language Placement Assessment (TELPA) assessment during the 2016-17 academic year must recertify through training on AEA PD Online. Even if a certificate states it is valid for three years, there have been changes to TELPA ordering and data reporting and everyone must recertify this year to ensure that the program remains in compliance with federal requirements. Visit the Heartland AEA website for more information about TELPA.
Ordering the TELPA
Dr. Lawrence states to please see the message below from Colleen Anderson related to changes in the TELPA for the upcoming administration year. PLEASE broadly distribute the information below to your schools and colleagues.
- Beginning July 1, 2016, any districts wishing to order the TELPA screener should place the order directly with Measurement Incorporated (MI) instead of going through IA Testing Programs.
- TELPA can only be ordered online. It is sold in packs of 10 and includes all the support materials needed.
- If you would like to place an order or have any other questions, please contact the TELPA Helpline at (888) 612-0180 or elda@measinc.com. MI will provide you with the credentials for your district as well as directions on how to place an order on the TELPA website
TELPA Administration
1. Download the correct bubble answer sheet (BAS).
TELPA K-2 Answer Sheet
TELPA 3-12 Answer Sheet
2. Score the screeners locally
3. Complete the Score Reporting Template to enter student information and TELPA scores. Save each file with a standard name (e.g. Ames_072716 (District name_Date)).
4. Log into the State of Iowa Secure email (https://securemail.iowa.gov/). Your name will be your email associated with your EdPortal A&A account (not your Account ID), your password is your A&A account password. Not sure of your A&A email, login to the portal (https://portal.ed.iowa.gov), click on ‘My Profile’ in the upper right-hand corner and review your email in the center of the screen. If you receive an error, when logging in please contact the EdPortal help desk at (515) 725-2040 or by email ated.portal@iowa.gov.
5. After logging in to Secure Email, click on ‘Compose Mail’ in the upper left corner. Enter Ed.portal@iowa.gov in the ‘To’ field, in the Subject field enter your district name and the word TELPA (e. g. Ames TELPA).
6. Click on ‘Attach’ and ‘choose file’ to select the file created in step one. Click on Upload.
7. Click on ‘Send’ to send your email.
From: Colleen Anderson, Student Assessment, Iowa Department of Education, (515) 281-3249.
The information below has also been updated on the DE website and is reflected in the updated TELPA training module. The link to the DE website for all of this information is: https://www.educateiowa.gov/english-language-proficiency-assessment-21st-century-elpa-21
Conditional Exiting of English Learners and How to Order the TELPA Screener
The Iowa Department of Education has released a webinar with timely guidance for districts on ordering the TELPA screener and the conditional exiting of students. Share this webinar widely with those who will depend on accurate information in your district.
Digital citizenship is a fundamental aspect of being a student, teacher and administrator in PK-12 schools. To that end, Heartland AEA is hosting a Digital Citizenship professional development opportunity on Sept. 13. Sessions will provide teachers and administrators with ideas, information, resources and inspiration to help guide their schools through the many facets of digital citizenship. Ryan Wise, Director of the Iowa Department of Education, will provide opening remarks and sessions will focus around Mike Ribble's Nine Elements of Digital Citizenship.
Date: Sept. 13, 2016
Time: 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Location: Heartland AEA Regional Education Center, 6500 Corporate Drive, Johnston, IA
Register here
Elementary Building Leadership Teams across Heartland AEA are invited to join this workshop to deepen their understanding in Iowa's Big Rocks:
- Effective leadership team traits
- The interconnectedness of Chapter 62/Early Literacy Initiative (ELI), Teacher Leadership Compensation (TLC), Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), Differentiated Accountability (DA), Collaborating for Kids (C4K), and Standards and Curriculum
- Building consensus with staff and constituents
- The use of C4K school improvement tools.
This opportunity will assist teams in moving forward from the summer TLC-C4K events on June 20 and Aug. 1, however attendance at those leadership sessions is not required for this day.
Date: Sept. 29, 2016
Time: 8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Location: Heartland AEA, Regional Education Center, 6500 Corporate Drive, Johnston, Iowa
Registration here
John Hattie’s work has fundamentally changed what we know about what works in education. Through a partnership with Corwin, Heartland AEA is pleased to bring the Visible Learning Institute to area schools. The Visible Learning Plus program includes a three-part foundational series of seminars in which participants learn about Hattie’s work and the Visible Learning approach.
Visible Learning is an in-depth school change model of professional learning and development. It’s designed for school-based teams to systematically examine effective instructional practices in order to determine the impact on student achievement and learning. By considering the effects of the practices of teachers and leaders, schools will be able to make substantial gains in student achievement.
Visible Learning Institute - Save the Dates
- Oct. 4, 2016 -- Learning strand designed to provide area school leadership teams an opportunity to review and discuss effective instructional practices that impact student achievement and learning.
- Nov. 1, 2016 --Review of five phases of the Deep Equity process for creating culturally responsive teaching.
- Dec. 6, 2016 --Evidence into Action Part One: Continuation of Visible Learning Institute with an emphasis on leadership actions which have the greatest impact on student outcomes.
- March. 7, 2017 -- Evidence into Action Part Two: Continuation of Visible Learning Institute with an emphasis on data analysis and management of change strategies.
The Special Education Statewide Procedures Manual (Aug. 1, 2016), Release Notes (Aug. 1, 2016 version), Parental Rights Summary (July 2015 version), Procedural Safeguards Manuals for Parents (Translations), Educational Evaluation Reports (Translations) and IEP Forms (Translations) are now posted on the Iowa IDEA website. These documents are currently posted on the front page of the IDEA website in addition to their permanent location under the IEP drop down menu > Statewide Special Education Procedures > Manual.
Classroom Implementation Profile (CIP) Training
Districts and buildings looking for a way to gather data that measures the impact of Authentic Intellectual Work (AIW) professional development on teacher instruction and student learning may find the CIP as an easy-to-use tool.
Date: Sept. 20, 2016
Time: 8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Location: Cherokee, IA
Authentic Intellectual Work: Focus on Student Work
During this cohort, participants will study the AIW standards for student work: construction of knowledge, conceptual understanding, and elaborated communication.
Dates: Sept. 27, Oct. 27 and Nov. 21
Time: 8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Location: Sioux City, IA
Think of a counseling colleague… someone with whom you work, from whom you find support, who goes that extra mile to support students, who makes a true difference and is a credit to the school counseling profession. Nominations are being accepted for an Iowa School Counselor of the Year Award. Nominating is easy! Complete the nomination form here by Sept. 30. Nominees must be a member of ISCA as of Sept. 15, 2016.
The Iowa Board of Educational Examiners Aug. 2016 BoEE Newsletter welcomes Dr. Ann Lebo of Grundy Center as the new Executive Director of the Board and includes topics such as the elimination of printed licenses, substitute teachers and conditional licensure.
The Iowa Department of Education has developed a new webpage to help teachers, school administrators and parents prepare for a transition to new statewide assessments in English language arts and mathematics. The site will be an important source of information during this transition and will be updated regularly with information and resources. Currently, you’ll find overview information about why Iowa is switching to a new state assessment, answers to common questions, links to practice tests and a timeline for professional learning. The Department is also offering talking points that you may find helpful if questions arise within your communities.
Inside this issue, Director Ryan Wise talks about the particularly busy summer we have had at the Iowa Department of Education. And Attorney Nicole Proesch brings you some important reminders, particularly apropos to the beginning of the school year.
