Your Evergreen Schools
World language options continue to grow
Evergreen Public Schools students
now have the option to learn
languages earlier, or to earn credits
for ones they already speak
Dual language: Students work with tablets to learn the correct spelling and pronunciation for
new Spanish words in the immersion class at Pioneer Elementary School.
T
hree years ago, Evergreen Public
Schools (EPS) launched its
first dual language program, giving
kindergarten students the chance to
immerse themselves in the Spanish
language. That program is thriving
at two elementary schools and the
district is now focusing on helping
high school students earn language
credits.
A new program adopted by for
the 2013-2014 school year has
given more than 150 students the
opportunity to test for high school
language credits in a language they
speak at home or have learned in
another manner. So far, close to 20
languages have been represented and
the list continues to grow.
“Russian and Spanish have been
the biggest groups, but we’ve had
several languages tested that are not
well represented in our community
or in the country,” said Ryan
Theodoriches, Manager of World
Languages for EPS. “There hasn’t
been a language we’ve said no to.”
Currently, EPS is the only district
in Southwest Washington offering
this opportunity to students whose
primary language is something other
than English. Theodoriches hopes that
changes in the future so that testing
can be coordinated with neighboring
districts.
“There’s a lot that goes into the
testing because the tests are different
for each language. Some can be done
easily on the computer, some require
paper and pencil for written portions,
and some even require an interview
over the phone.”
The testing program is supported
by the Office of Superintendent of
Public Instruction.
So far, the district has offered three
testing dates with a fourth planned
before the end of the school year.
Early results look promising, with
90 percent of the test takers earning
one or more credits toward their high
language requirements.
The continued growth of the
district’s dual language programs,
combined with the popularity of
the new language proficiency tests,
will make sure students of all grade
levels have the opportunity to acquire
and apply their knowledge of world
languages.
District fully implements new evaluation procedures
W
hen the Washington State
legislature passed a new bill
in 2010 to improve evaluations
for teachers and principals,
Evergreen Public Schools was one
of eight districts chosen to help
develop and pilot a new four-tier
evaluation system. Three years later,
the Teacher/Principal Evaluation
Pilot is now the Teacher/Principal
Evaluation Project (TPEP) and is
used across the state.
“The state wants to
have a process that
shows evidence of a
teacher or a principal
demonstrating
growth.”
“The state offered three models
for districts to choose from
for the new evaluations,” said
Evergreen Public Schools’ Assistant
Superintendent of Student Learning
Marilyn Colliflower. “One of those
models was the one our district had
already been working with for the
last eight years.”
The state’s desire for more
objective evaluations for teachers
and principals predicated the
move to TPEP, Colliflower said.
Familiarity with the model made it
easier for the district to integrate the
new criteria into clear and concise
evaluations.
“The state wants to have a
process that shows evidence of a
teacher or a principal demonstrating
growth. With the new evaluation
model, teachers know exactly what
they need to do.”
As expected, an expanded
evaluation process takes more
time for both the principal and
the teacher. “Schools will have 25
percent of their teachers receiving
a focused evaluation each year on
a rotating basis,” said Colliflower.
“The rest will still have regular
meetings and be held accountable
by choosing areas they want to
work on each year.”
What does this new process
mean for students? Throughout
the course of the year, students
will see more administrators –
principals, associate principals or
district administrators – observing
more of their classes and even
making video recordings of their
teachers. Those administrators will
also be interacting with students,
asking them questions and using
technology to gather information.
For more about TPEP, visit www.
evergreenps.org.
6 | March 2014 | Evergreen Public Schools
Photo by: Lee Emmert, HeLa High School Digital Photography teacher
Following a year-long pilot program,
Evergreen Public Schools has a new way
to evaluate its teachers and principals
Watch the tape: New evaluation methods include recording teachers during class so
administrators can help them analyze their presentation and teaching methods.
MVHS Wind Ensemble shines
at National competition
Select few: The
Mountain View
High School
Wind Ensemble
performed on
the Featured
Stage at the
2014 Music for
All- Na [ۘ[