2006 Code of Virginia § 22.1-253.13:5 - Standard 5. Quality of classroom instruction and educational leadership

22.1-253.13:5. Standard 5. Quality of classroom instruction and educationalleadership.

A. Each member of the Board of Education shall participate in high-qualityprofessional development programs on personnel, curriculum and current issuesin education as part of his service on the Board.

B. Consistent with the finding that leadership is essential for theadvancement of public education in the Commonwealth, teacher, administrator,and superintendent evaluations shall be consistent with the performanceobjectives included in the Guidelines for Uniform Performance Standards andEvaluation Criteria for Teachers, Administrators, and Superintendents.Teacher evaluations shall include regular observation and evidence thatinstruction is aligned with the school's curriculum. Evaluations shallinclude identification of areas of individual strengths and weaknesses andrecommendations for appropriate professional activities.

C. The Board of Education shall provide guidance on high-quality professionaldevelopment for (i) teachers, principals, supervisors, divisionsuperintendents and other school staff; (ii) administrative and supervisorypersonnel in the evaluation and documentation of teacher and administratorperformance based on student academic progress and the skills and knowledgeof such instructional or administrative personnel; (iii) school board memberson personnel, curriculum and current issues in education; and (iv) programsin Braille for teachers of the blind and visually impaired, in cooperationwith the Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired.

The Board shall also provide technical assistance on high-qualityprofessional development to local school boards designed to ensure that allinstructional personnel are proficient in the use of educational technologyconsistent with its comprehensive plan for educational technology.

D. Each local school board shall require (i) its members to participateannually in high-quality professional development activities at the state,local, or national levels on governance, including, but not limited to,personnel policies and practices; curriculum and instruction; use of data inplanning and decision making; and current issues in education as part oftheir service on the local board and (ii) the division superintendent toparticipate annually in high-quality professional development activities atthe local, state or national levels.

E. Each local school board shall provide a program of high-qualityprofessional development (i) in the use and documentation of performancestandards and evaluation criteria based on student academic progress andskills for teachers and administrators to clarify roles and performanceexpectations and to facilitate the successful implementation of instructionalprograms that promote student achievement at the school and classroom levels;(ii) as part of the license renewal process, to assist teachers andprincipals in acquiring the skills needed to work with gifted students,students with disabilities, and students who have been identified as havinglimited English proficiency and to increase student achievement and expandthe knowledge and skills students require to meet the standards for academicperformance set by the Board of Education; (iii) in educational technologyfor all instructional personnel which is designed to facilitate integrationof computer skills and related technology into the curricula, and (iv) foradministrative personnel designed to increase proficiency in instructionalleadership and management, including training in the evaluation anddocumentation of teacher and administrator performance based on studentacademic progress and the skills and knowledge of such instructional oradministrative personnel.

In addition, each local school board shall also provide teachers andprincipals with high-quality professional development programs each year in(i) instructional content; (ii) the preparation of tests and other assessmentmeasures; (iii) methods for assessing the progress of individual students,including Standards of Learning assessment materials or othercriterion-referenced tests that match locally developed objectives; (iv)instruction and remediation techniques in English, mathematics, science, andhistory and social science; (v) interpreting test data for instructionalpurposes; and (vi) technology applications to implement the Standards ofLearning.

F. Schools and school divisions shall include as an integral component oftheir comprehensive plans required by 22.1-253.13:6, high-qualityprofessional development programs that support the recruitment, employment,and retention of qualified teachers and principals. Each school board shallrequire all instructional personnel to participate each year in theseprofessional development programs.

G. Each local school board shall annually review its professional developmentprogram for quality, effectiveness, participation by instructional personnel,and relevancy to the instructional needs of teachers and the academicachievement needs of the students in the school division.

(1988, cc. 645, 682; 1990, cc. 820, 839; 1992, c. 132; 1997, c. 827; 1998,cc. 826, 852; 1999, cc. 830, 1030, 1037; 2000, c. 867; 2004, cc. 939, 955;2005, cc. 331, 450.)