Chapter 149 Commissioner's Rules Concerning Educator Appraisal Subchapter AA Teacher Standards

Teachers understand how students learn, and they prepare for instructional delivery by designing lessons, evaluating instructional materials, leveraging their knowledge of students, and engaging in a thorough process for lesson internalization.

(A) Teachers apply basic principles of lesson plan design from the learning sciences to prepare for instruction.

    (i) Teachers understand learning as an active and social process of meaning-making that results in changes in student knowledge and behavior based on connections between past and new experiences.

    (ii) Teachers prepare instruction that uses research and evidence-based teaching strategies for eliciting and sustaining attention and motivation and supporting encoding, such as use of multimedia learning principles, reduction of extraneous cognitive load, use of worked examples, interleaving, and deep integration of new experiences with prior knowledge.

    (iii) Teachers prepare instruction that uses research and evidence-based strategies for memory and recall such as interleaving, spacing, retrieval practice, and metacognition.

    (iv) Teachers recognize misconceptions about learning, the brain, and child and adolescent development, including myths such as learning styles, personality traits, and hemispheric dominance, and avoid unsupported instructional practices based on these misunderstandings.

(B) Teachers evaluate instructional materials and select or customize the highest quality district-approved option to prepare for instruction.

    (i) Teachers identify the components of high-quality instructional materials, such as a logical scope and sequence, clear learning objectives, grade- or course-level content, explicit instruction, student engagement, academic language, deliberate practice, and assessment, appropriate to the discipline.

    (ii) Teachers identify the benefits of using high-quality instructional materials.

    (iii) Teachers apply knowledge of the components of high-quality instructional materials to select or customize materials when appropriate.

    (iv) Teachers analyze instructional materials and digital resources to ensure quality, rigor, and access to grade- or course-level content.

    (v) Teachers use high-quality materials to plan instruction that connects students' prior understanding and real-world experiences to new content and contexts.

(C) Teachers understand initial lesson plan design and, when district-approved materials are not available and when directed by their district, engage in initial lesson plan design using science of learning concepts.

    (i) Teachers design lessons based on the components of high-quality instructional materials, such as a logical scope and sequence, clear learning objectives, application of explicit instruction, and grade- or course-level content.

    (ii) Teachers design lessons that effectively connect learning objectives with explicit instruction, student engagement, academic language, deliberate practice, and assessment.

    (iii) Teachers design lessons that connect students' prior understanding and real-world experiences to new content and contexts.

    (iv) Teachers plan for the use of digital tools and resources to engage students in active deep learning.

(D) Teachers ensure lesson sequence and materials meet the needs of all learners and adapt methods when appropriate.

    (i) Teachers plan for the use of multiple means to engage students, varied ways of representing information, and options for students to demonstrate their learning.

    (ii) Teachers leverage student data to prepare flexible student groups that facilitate learning for all students.

    (iii) Teachers differentiate instruction and align methods and techniques to diverse student needs, including acceleration, just-in-time supports, technology, intervention, linguistic supports, appropriate scaffolding, and implementation of individualized education programs.

(E) Teachers recognize students' backgrounds (familial, educational, linguistic, and developmental) as assets and apply knowledge of students to engage them in meaningful learning.

    (i) Teachers plan to present information in a meaningful way that activates or provides any prerequisite knowledge to maximize student learning.

    (ii) Teachers collaborate with other professionals, use resources, and plan researchand evidence-based instructional strategies to anticipate and respond to the unique needs of students, including disabilities, giftedness, bilingualism, and biliteracy.

    (iii) Teachers plan instructional practices and strategies that support language acquisition so that language is comprehensible and instruction is fully accessible.

    (iv) Teachers apply knowledge of how each category of disability under the Individuals with Disabilities Act (20 U.S.C. §1400, et seq.) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. §794) can affect student learning and development.

(F) Teachers engage in a thorough process of lesson internalization to prepare wellorganized, sequential instruction that builds on students' prior knowledge.

    (i) Teachers identify how the intentional sequencing of units, lessons, and learning tasks supports student knowledge and mastery throughout the year.

    (ii) Teachers identify how the learning goals of units and lessons are aligned to state standards.

    (iii) Teachers use assessment data to identify prior knowledge and plan for the learning needs of students.

    (iv) Teachers internalize lesson content by reading the texts, completing learning tasks and assessments, rehearsing lesson delivery, and identifying any personal gaps in understanding.

    (v) Teachers plan for pacing, use of teacher resources, and transitions between activities.

    (vi) Teachers create or analyze and customize exemplar responses and anticipate potential barriers to learning.

    (vii) Teachers strategically plan instructional strategies, formative assessments, technology, scaffolds, and enrichment to make learning accessible to all students.

Teachers intentionally apply their knowledge of students and the learning process to implement high-quality instruction and assessment practices that are research- and evidence-based and informed by student work.

(A) Teachers deliver research- and evidence-based instruction to meet the needs of all learners and adapt methods when appropriate.

    (i) Teachers effectively communicate grade- or course-level expectations, objectives, and goals to help all students reach high levels of achievement.

    (ii) Teachers apply research- and evidence-based teaching strategies for eliciting and sustaining attention and motivation and supporting memory encoding and recall, such as interleaving, spacing, metacognition, and distributed practice.

    (iii) Teachers ensure a high degree of student engagement through explicit instruction, student discussion, feedback, and opportunities for deliberate practice.

    (iv) Teachers apply research- and evidence-based teaching strategies that connect students' prior understanding and real-world experiences to new content and contexts and invite student perspectives.

    (v) Teachers implement appropriate scaffolds in response to student needs.

    (vi) Teachers strategically implement tools, technology, and procedures that lead to increased participation from all students, elicit patterns of student thinking, and highlight varied responses.

    (vii) Teachers provide multiple means of engagement to encourage all students to remain persistent in the face of challenges.

    (viii) Teachers collaborate with other educational professionals, when appropriate, to deliver instruction that addresses students' academic and non-academic needs.

(B) Teachers scaffold instruction, from initial knowledge and skill development through automaticity, toward complex, higher-order thinking, providing opportunities for deeper learning.

    (i) Teachers set high expectations and facilitate rigorous grade- or course-level learning experiences for all students that encourage them to apply disciplinary and cross-disciplinary knowledge to real-world problems.

    (ii) Teachers apply instructional strategies to deliberately engage all students in critical thinking and problem solving.

    (iii) Teachers validate student responses utilizing them to advance learning for all students.

    (iv) Teachers respond to student errors and misconceptions with prompts or questions that build new understanding on prior knowledge.

    (v) Teachers use strategic questioning to build and deepen student understanding

    (vi) Teachers strategically incorporate technology that removes barriers and allows students to interact with the curriculum in more authentic, significant, and effective ways.

(C) Teachers consistently check for understanding, give feedback, and make lesson adjustments as necessary.

    (i) Teachers use a variety of formative assessments during instruction to gauge and respond to student progress and address misconceptions.

    (ii) Teachers implement frequent or low- or no-stakes assessments to promote retrieval of learned information.

    (iii) Teachers continually monitor and assess students' progress to guide instructional outcomes and determine next steps to ensure student mastery of grade- or course-level content.

    (iv) Teachers build student capacity to self-monitor their progress.

    (v) Teachers provide frequent, timely, and specific explanatory feedback that emphasizes effort, improvement, and acknowledges students' strengths and areas for growth.

    (vi) Teachers strategically implement instructional strategies, formative assessments, scaffolds, and enrichment to make learning accessible to all students.

    (vii) Teachers set goals for each student in response to previous outcomes from formative and summative assessments.

    (viii) Teachers involve all students in self-assessment, goal setting, and monitoring progress.

(D) Teachers implement formative and summative methods of measuring and monitoring student progress through the regular collection, review, and analysis of data.

    (i) Teachers regularly review and analyze student work, individually and collaboratively, to understand students' thinking, identify strengths and progress toward mastery, and identify gaps in knowledge.

    (ii) Teachers combine results from different measures to develop a holistic picture of students' strengths and learning needs.

    (iii) Teachers apply multiple means of assessing learning, including the use of digital tools, to accommodate according to students' learning needs, linguistic differences, and/or varying levels of background knowledge.

    (iv) Teachers use assessment results to inform and adjust instruction and intervention.

    (v) Teachers clearly communicate the results of assessments with students, including setting goals, identifying areas of strength and opportunities for improvement.

Teachers show a full understanding of their content and related pedagogy and the appropriate grade-level TEKS.

(A) Teachers understand the major concepts, key themes, multiple perspectives, assumptions, processes of inquiry, structure, and real-world applications of their grade-level and subject-area content.

    (i) Teachers demonstrate a thorough understanding of and competence in the use of open education resource instructional materials when available for the grade level and subject area.

    (ii) Teachers have expertise in how their content vertically and horizontally aligns with the grade-level/subject-area continuum, leading to an integrated curriculum across grade levels and content areas.

    (iii) Teachers identify gaps in students' knowledge of subject matter and communicate with their leaders and colleagues to ensure that these gaps are adequately addressed across grade levels and subject areas.

    (iv) Teachers deliberately and regularly share multiple different examples of student representations and resolutions.

    (v) Teachers stay current with developments, new content, new approaches, and changing methods of instructional delivery within their discipline.

(B) Teachers demonstrate content-specific pedagogy that meets the needs of diverse learners, utilizing engaging instructional materials to connect prior content knowledge to new learning.

    (i) Teachers teach both the key content knowledge and the key skills of the discipline and requisite linguistic skills making the information accessible to all learners by constructing it into usable knowledge.

    (ii) Teachers make appropriate and authentic connections across disciplines, subjects, and students' real-world experiences to build knowledge from year to year.

    (iii) Teachers provide multiple means of representation and engagement to promote literacy and ensure discipline-specific academic language is accessible for all students.

    (iv) Teachers explicitly teach, encourage, and reinforce the use of academic language, including vocabulary, use of symbols, and labeling.

    (v) Teachers prepare for and apply scaffolds in the lesson to make content accessible to all students, including diverse learners such as emergent bilingual students, students with disabilities, and students working above and below grade level.

    (vi) Teachers engage students in productive struggle by allowing them time to work, asking questions to deepen their thinking, encouraging multiple approaches, praising effort on successful and unsuccessful attempts, and contrasting student attempts and correct solutions.

(C) Teachers demonstrate research- and evidence-based best practices specific to planning, instruction, and assessment of mathematics.

    (i) Teachers communicate, using multiple means of representation, the relationship between mathematical concepts and mathematical procedures.

    (ii) Teachers engage students in recursive lesson activities that reinforce automaticity in prerequisite knowledge and skills to mitigate the use of working memory when engaging those knowledge and skills as task complexity increases.

    (iii) Teachers use multiple means of representation to engage students in mathematical tasks that deepen students' understanding of conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and mathematical reasoning.

    (iv) Teachers prepare and deliver instruction and questioning to deliberately solicit different explanations, representations, solutions, and reasoning from all students.

    (v) Teachers prepare and deliver explicit instruction and modeling that links gradelevel conceptual understanding with mathematical procedures and avoids shortcuts to problem solving.

    (vi) Teachers analyze instructional plans to ensure an appropriate balance between conceptual understanding and procedural fluency.

    (vii) Teachers facilitate discourse through regular opportunities for students to communicate the relationship between mathematical concepts and mathematical procedures.

    (viii) Teachers provide time for students to collaboratively and independently apply conceptual understanding and procedural fluency to problem-solving.

    (ix) Teachers communicate and model the connections between mathematics and other fields that use mathematics to problem solve, make decisions, and incorporate real-world applications in instruction.

    (x) Teachers explicitly teach and model that math abilities are expandable and improvable.

(D) Teachers demonstrate research- and evidence-based best practices specific to planning, instruction, and assessment of language arts and reading.

    (i) Teachers analyze instructional materials in preparation for instruction to ensure they provide grade-level appropriate, systematic, and explicit practice in foundational literacy skills.

    (ii) Teachers analyze instructional materials in preparation for instruction to ensure that foundational literacy skills are reached at each grade or course level.

    (iii) Teachers implement clear and explicit reading instruction aligned to the Science of Teaching Reading competencies and engage students in deliberate practice to make meaning from text.

    (iv) Teachers identify and analyze grade- or course-level and complex texts for quality in preparation for instruction.

    (v) Teachers prepare and deliver explicit reading instruction that uses grade-level and complex texts to build student knowledge.

    (vi) Teachers strategically plan and implement supports such as read-aloud and questioning at varied levels of complexity to support comprehension of high-quality complex texts.

    (vii) Teachers engage students in writing practice, including text-based writing that builds comprehension and higher-order thinking skills.

    (viii) Teachers engage students in speaking practice that builds comprehension, language acquisition, and higher-order thinking skills.

    (ix) Teachers use high-quality assessments to monitor grade-level appropriate foundational skills development.

    (x) Teachers implement and analyze a variety of high-quality literacy assessments to monitor grade-level appropriate comprehension and identify gaps.

    (xi) Teachers apply just-in-time supports and intervention on prerequisite skills and continually monitor to determine the need for additional learning support.

Teachers maintain a safe and supportive learning environment that is characterized by respectful interactions with students, consistent routines, high expectations, and the development of students' self-regulation skills.

(A) Teachers establish, implement, and communicate consistent routines for effective classroom management, including clear expectations for student behavior and positive interventions, that maintain a productive learning environment for all students.

    (i) Teachers arrange their classrooms and virtual learning spaces in an organized way that is safe, flexible, and accessible to maximize learning that accommodates all students' learning and physical needs.

    (ii) Teachers implement consistent classroom and behavior management systems to maintain an environment where all students are engaged and can reach academic and nonacademic goals.

    (iii) Teachers model and provide explicit instruction on effective behavior regulation skills to build students' resilience and self-discipline.

    (iv) Teachers maintain a safe and positive culture of student ownership and group accountability that fosters engagement by all students in the classroom expectations, culture, and norms.

(B) Teachers lead and maintain classroom environments in which students are motivated and cognitively engaged in learning.

    (i) Teachers maintain a classroom environment that is based on high expectations and student self-efficacy.

    (ii) Teachers strategically use instructional time, including transitions, to maximize learning.

    (iii) Teachers manage and facilitate strategic and flexible groupings to maximize student learning.

Teachers are self-aware and consistently hold themselves to a high standard for individual development. They collaborate with other educational professionals; communicate regularly with stakeholders; maintain professional relationships; comply with federal, state, and local laws; and conduct themselves ethically and with integrity.

(A) Teachers model ethical and respectful behavior and demonstrate integrity in all settings and situations.

    (i) Teachers understand and comply with applicable federal, state, and local laws pertaining to the professional behaviors and responsibilities of educators.

    (ii) Teachers adhere to the Educators' Code of Ethics in §247.2 of this title (relating to Code of Ethics and Standard Practices for Texas Educators), including following policies and procedures at their specific school placement(s).

    (iii) Teachers demonstrate understanding of their role in strengthening American democracy and are willing to support and defend the constitutions of the United States and Texas.

    (iv) Teachers advocate for and apply knowledge of students' progress and learning plans through the maintenance of thorough and accurate records.

    (v) Teachers model and promote for students the use of safe, ethical, and legal practices with digital tools and technology.

(B) Teachers actively self-reflect on their practice and collaborate with other educational professionals to deepen knowledge, demonstrate leadership, and improve their instructional effectiveness.

    (i) Teachers apply consistent reflective practices, analysis of student work, and video evidence of teaching to identify and communicate professional learning needs.

    (ii) Teachers seek and apply job-embedded feedback from colleagues, including supervisors, mentors, coaches, and peers.

    (iii) Teachers establish and strive to achieve professional goals to strengthen their instructional effectiveness and better meet students' needs.

    (iv) Teachers engage in relevant professional learning opportunities that align with their growth goals and student learning needs.

    (v) Teachers seek to lead other adults on campus through professional learning communities, grade- or subject-level team leadership, committee membership, or other opportunities.

    (vi) Teachers collaborate with educational professionals to ensure learning is accessible and enables all students to reach their academic and non-academic goals.

(C) Teachers communicate consistently, clearly, and respectfully with all community stakeholders, including students, parents and families, colleagues, administrators, and staff.

    (i) Teachers clearly communicate the mission, vision, and goals of the school to students, colleagues, parents and families, and other community members.

    (ii) Teachers communicate regularly, clearly, and appropriately with families about student progress, providing detailed and constructive feedback in a language that is accessible to families to support students' developmental and learning goals.

    (iii) Teachers build mutual understanding of expectations with students, parents, and families through clear, respectful, and consistent communication methods.

    (iv) Teachers communicate with students and families regularly about the importance of collecting data and monitoring progress of student outcomes, sharing timely and comprehensible feedback so they understand students' goals and progress.

(D) Teachers utilize the data they collect and analyze to inform their instructional strategies and adjust short- and long-term plans accordingly.

    (i) Teachers design instruction, change strategies, and differentiate their teaching practices to improve student learning based on assessment outcomes.

    (ii) Teachers regularly compare their curriculum scope and sequence with student data to ensure they are on track and make adjustments as needed.