Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about
PAR (Peer Assistance and Review)
What is Peer Assistance and Review (PAR)?
Peer Assistance & Review (PAR) is a collaborative effort by the San Francisco Unified School District, the United Educators of San Francisco (UESF), and the United Administrators of San Francisco, to support and renew quality teaching in every classroom. Master teachers provide peer support and review to new teachers and permanent teachers who have received ratings of “Unsatisfactory” or “Improvement Needed” evaluations for two consecutive semesters. The UESF, UASF and SFUSD all support PAR’s strong, collaborative approach to teacher support and accountability.
What is the history of this PAR Program?
The UESF and the District worked to develop a PAR program in 1995, and actually implemented a pilot program called New Teachers Assistance Program (NTAP) during the 1995-1996 school year. In 1999, Governor Davis made PAR a component of the Education Code when he signed Assembly Bill 1x into law, which requires districts and unions to adopt a PAR program or face the loss of substantial funding. SFUSD/UESF/UASF’s current PAR program started in 2000-2001 with 10 coaches, and in 2002-2003, grew to 16 coaches served more than 200 teachers. Then state funding dwindled to provide only 2.5 PAR coaches in SFUSD. The June 2008 San Francisco citizens supported a parcel tax ballot measure that added improvements to the PAR program design and secured funding for five PAR Coaches. Currently, 8 coaches are supporting about 90 new and veteran teachers.
Where did PAR originate?
The first PAR program began in Toledo, OH, in 1981, and since then has been adopted by other large school districts, including Columbus, Cincinnati, Rochester, Seattle, and Minneapolis. The first district in California to implement PAR was Poway, north of San Diego, many years ago. Today, more California public school districts have instituted PAR programs though few have programs established as well as SFUSD.
Who participates in PAR?
PAR currently serves many new permit and intern teachers, tenured K-12 teachers with less than satisfactory summary evaluations, and PreK-12 teachers who apply for voluntary peer support.
Who provides assistance and review to PAR participating teachers?
Master teachers serve as full-time Teacher Coaches for PAR participating teachers. Coaches are experienced SFUSD teachers with excellent performance records, trained to provide intensive, on-on-one support and review to teachers in the areas of student engagement, effective classroom environments, subject matter knowledge, planning and delivering learning experiences, and assessment (Standards 1 through 5 of the California Standards for the Teaching Profession or CSTP). Principals continue to provide assistance in all areas of the CSTP and review PAR participating teachers in the area of professional development (Standard Six).
Who can become a Teacher Coach?
Teacher Coach positions are open to all who are eligible to apply. Applicants must have at least five years full-time in a SFUSD classroom teaching experience in their credential area, with Outstanding and/or Highly Satisfactory summary evaluations. Applicants must also have prior experience in a mentor, coach or support role to other teachers. Applicants should also have excellent organization and communication skills.
What do Coaches do?
Teacher Coaches spend over twenty hours each semester working with teachers to whom they are assigned. Their first job is to teach and provide guidance. Second, the coaches provide feedback to each of the people with whom they work. Third, coaches help teachers observe others and find useful resources. To fulfill these parts of their job, Teacher Coaches help Participating Teachers set goals and identify actions to take to meet specific Standards, and these goals become part of an Individual Learning Plan that guides the PAR process with each teacher. Fourth, the coaches present to the PAR panel indicated whether the teacher has or has not met standards at basic and proficiency levels. The goal of PAR is to support all Participating Teachers to meet the performance standards and objectives set out at the beginning of the PAR process.
Who runs the PAR program?
The PAR panel is the decision-making body of the program. Nine people sit on the Panel, five teachers (including the UESF President) and four administrators (including the Executive Director of Human Resources or her designee). The Panel selects and evaluate the Peer Coaches, and recommends that veteran teachers either “Meet Standards” or “Does Not Meet Standards” to the Chief Administrative Officer on behalf of the Superintendent. The PAR Co-Leads and the Supervisor of the Teacher Support and Development unit oversee the smooth operation of the program and maintain contact with participants.
How is the performance of participating teachers measured?
Teacher coaches use the California Standards for the Teaching Profession, SFUSD’s Rubric for Professional Growth and Evaluation and SFUSD’s Performance Indicators for the CSTP Essential Elements to assess the performance of teachers in PAR. While PT’s can be evaluated on all standards of the CSTPs, the essential elements are considered the most critical for the teacher’s evaluation.
What happens at the end of the PAR process?
The Teacher Coach makes a Summary Report to the PAR Panel on the teacher’s progress on the Individual Learning Plan, as well as on evidence from informal and formal classroom observations. The PAR Panel recommends to the Chief Administrative Officer whether or not the teacher has made sufficient progress to merit exiting PAR support meeting standards, be granted extended time with PAR support, exit PAR support and intervention not meeting standards. The District is free to exercise its legal options in the absences of an intervention program.
Can teachers place other teachers into PAR?
No. First, only permanent teachers who are rated below standard will be included. Tenured teachers will only be placed into PAR if they have received a summary “Unsatisfactory” evaluation for the prior school year, or “Needs Improvement” evaluations for the two consecutive semesters. All evaluation cycles must have been conducted according to the provisions of Article 16 of the UESF-SFUSD contract. Second, all Coaches and Panel members will be expected to declare potential conflicts of interest. The Panel’s responsibility is to make certain that no tenured teacher enters the PAR program for reasons other than classroom performance. However, Union Building Committee referrals can be made. A teacher may be referred into PAR under Article 41.1.4.3. and in accordance with procedures determined by the Panel co-chairs.
What about confidentiality?
All interactions between the coach and the teacher are confidential. The discussions are recommendations of the PAR Panel are confidential.
What if I have more questions about PAR?
Contact the Supervisor of HR, TSD, Debra Eslava-Burton () at (415) 355-7648. PAR is also a part of the United Educators of San Francisco. You can reach the UESF President, Dennis Kelly, at , or by calling (415) 956-8373.