Arlington Community Schools

*NEW* FLEX will be earned online for the 2020-2021 school year!

ACS is excited to offer virtual online professional development options through the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) platform for FLEX PD 2020-21. All full-time instructional staff members (faculty), including teachers, counselors, and therapists (those who are on the 10-month calendar) are required to earn the equivalent of four (4) professional development days (28 hours).

Click here to view the FLEX PD Flyer.

Click here to download the FLEX PD request form. (More Information Below)

Click here to view the Trevecca Training for Tennessee Teachers

What is Flexible Professional Learning (FLEX)?  

Arlington Community Schools is committed to improvement through intentional, reflective and empowering professional learning that meets the individual needs of each school and our instructional staff members. By providing opportunities for flexible professional development hours specific to school needs, professional development is more closely aligned to the district’s strategic goals and targeted to the needs of the teachers. FLEX Professional Learning sessions will be offered through December 23, with the expectation that all designated faculty members will earn hours equivalent to 4 professional development days built into the 2020-21 instructional calendar. 

Who is required to earn FLEX hours? 

All full time instructional staff members (faculty), including teachers, counselors, and therapists (those who are on the 10-month calendar) are required to earn the equivalent of 4 professional development days. 

What are the timeline requirements for FLEX hours? 

•  Faculty is required to earn a total of 28 FLEX hours for the 2020-21 school year. 
•  June 2020 begins the FLEX cycle for the 2020-21 school year.  

 All 28 hours must be earned by the end of the 1st Semester (Dec. 2020). 

•   SAFE SCHOOLS module completion is due by September 7, 2020 and will be monitored by district office. 
•  The final certificate from PD InFocus, reflecting 24 hours, is due to your district office designee by December 23, 2020. Who to submit final certificate to: AES & DES to Tonya Hawkins / AHS & AMS to Rochelle Douglas.

How will I earn my 28 FLEX hours? 

•  The District Office will offer FLEX sessions June 1st  through December 23rd via an online platform, PD InFocus from ASCD. 
• Four hours of FLEX will be recorded by district office for completion of the SAFE SCHOOLS modules. 

Will I receive FLEX credit for completion of the required SAFE Schools modules?  

Yes, upon completion of the required modules by September 7th, 4 hours of FLEX credit will be recorded by the district office.             

How do I request FLEX credit for events not hosted by the district? 

At least two weeks prior to the event, submit a Request for Flex PD form to Rochelle Douglas. The request will be reviewed and either approved or denied. The PD opportunity should relate to one’s teaching duties. 

How do I access the ASCD PD InFocus site?  

•  Check your email for log in information from ASCD. 
•  Follow the steps for Set Up Account in the email. 
•  Once logged in, select PD InFocus from the top navigation bar or the tile. 
•  Choose CHANNELS from the menu on the left. 
•  Choose the CUSTOM CHANNELS tab. 
•  Select the ACS FLEX PD 2020-21Channel. 
•  Begin your online PD and start earning your 24 virtual clock hours. 

When can I begin earning my hours for 2020-21?  

Your ASCD accounts will become active on June 1, 2020.  

Can I choose any PD from PD InFocus for earning my FLEX hours?  

No. Although the site has many resources for professional development, FLEX PD hours must be earned from the custom ACS FLEX PD 2020-21 channel.  

How will my FLEX hours be recorded?  

Hours earned through PD InFocus will be recorded as clock hours within the site. 

•  Select PD InFocus from the top navigation bar or the tile. 
•  Choose REPORTS from the menu on the left. 
•  Mark the date range as 6/1/2020 – 12/23/20 (or current date). 
•  Your total clock hours are visible from this screen. 
•  Click CERTIFICATE to print or download. 
•  Submit your certificate (email or hard copy) to your district office designee upon completion of your 24 hours. 

Will FLEX hours count for Professional Development Points (PDP’s)? 

Yes, your FLEX Professional Learning hours , if applicable to your current role, may be entered in TN Compass as professional development points towards renewing or advancing your license. Your Activate PD InFocus “Clock Hours by Resource” PDF export will serve as the documentation you will attach in TNCompass. Safe Schools modules cannot be counted as PDPs.  

Will I report to school on the designated 4 FLEX PD days listed on the ACS Instructional Calendar?  

No, schools will not be open for regular business on these days. Faculty members are expected to earn the hours during the June 2020 – December 2020 window.  

What are the consequences for not fulfilling the required hours? 

•  Faculty are expected to earn 28 hours. Professional development is a required component of your annual contract; it is not optional.
•  Failure to meet the 28 hours will result in a payroll deduction on the January 15th paycheck. Employees will not be paid for partial credit. 

For any additional questions, email FLEX@acsk-12.org. 

Fall Semester 2019 FLEX Opportunities:

Saturday, Oct. 5th will be an opportunity for teachers to earn FLEX hours. A morning session (Managing Challenging Behaviors – Dr. Elswick) is already listed in Frontline and available for registration. 

Additionally, our tech team will offer an afternoon session on this same day. More details on that session will be posted in Frontline soon. Overall, the day will allow for 6 hours of FLEX.

Click here to access Frontline Education (MyLearningPlan)

What is Flexible Professional Learning (FLEX)?

Arlington Community Schools is committed to improvement through intentional, reflective and empowering professional learning that meets the individual needs of each school and our instructional staff members. By providing opportunities for flexible professional development hours specific to school needs, professional development is more closely aligned to the district’s strategic goals and targeted to the needs of the teachers. FLEX Professional Learning sessions will be offered over the course of the school year, with the expectation that all designated faculty members will earn hours equivalent to 4 professional development days built into the 2019-2020 instructional calendar.


Who is required to earn FLEX hours?

All full-time instructional staff members (faculty), including teachers, counselors, and therapists (those who are on the 10-month calendar) are required to earn the equivalent of 4 professional development days.


What are the timeline requirements for FLEX hours? 

• Faculty is required to earn a total of 28 FLEX hours for the 2019-2020 school year. 

• June 2019 begins the FLEX cycle for the 2019-20 school year. 

• At least 21 hours must be earned by the end of the 1st Semester (Dec. 2019). 

• Yes, all 28 hours can be earned during the summer break. 

• The final transcript, reflecting 28 hours, is due on May 1, 2020.


How will I earn my 28 FLEX hours?

• The District Office will offer FLEX sessions throughout the summer (June/July), as well as 2 Saturday offerings during each semester. 

• You can seek pre-approval to attend quality PD events offered by outside entities. The Request for FLEX PD Form must be submitted to your principal at least 2 weeks prior to the event. 

How do I request FLEX credit for events not hosted by the district?

At least 2 weeks prior to the event, submit a Request for Flex PD form to your principal. He/she will review the request and either approve or deny. The PD opportunity should relate to one’s teaching duties.

What type of events cannot count toward FLEX?

In an effort to promote hands-on, interactive learning, independent webinar viewing and virtual learning will not count as FLEX. Opportunities for which one is paid a stipend are not eligible for FLEX credit. 

How do I register for FLEX sessions? 

Participants will register for FLEX sessions via Frontline (formerly MyLearningPlan). Qualifying sessions will be indicated by “FLEX” as a prefix in the session title.

Will FLEX hours count for Professional Development Points (PDP’s)?

Yes, your FLEX Professional Learning hours may be entered in TN Compass as professional development points towards renewing or advancing your license. Your Frontline transcript will serve as the documentation you will attach in TNCompass. 

Will I report to school on the designated 4 FLEX PD days listed on the ACS Instructional Calendar? 

No, schools will not be open for regular business on these days. Faculty members are expected to earn the hours during the June 2019 – April 2020 window. 

What are the consequences for not fulfilling the required hours? 

• Faculty are expected to earn 28 hours. Professional development is a required component of your annual contract; it is not optional.

• At least 21 hours must be earned by the end of the 1st Semester. Failure to meet the 21 hours 1st semester will result in a payroll deduction on the January 15th paycheck. Employees will not be paid for partial credit.

• The remaining hours must be earned by May 1, 2020.

• Failure to earn the final 7 hours by the May 1, 2020 deadline will result in a payroll deduction on the May 31st paycheck. Employees will not be paid for partial credit. 
  
  
  

~ Plan ahead as you RENEW or ADVANCE your teaching license ~

Did you know?

Educators must earn 30 professional development points (PDPs) to advance or 60 PDPs to renew a teacher license (professional, professional occupational, and professional school services personnel license).

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Activities used for PDPs must be completed within the validity period of the license being advanced or renewed and must be related to improving educator effectiveness by:

1. Developing content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, or pedagogical content knowledge; or
2. Enhancing educator effectiveness (e.g., world language courses for those working with students for whom English is a second language, coursework that supports understanding and use of data).

Reasons for PDP denial include, but are not limited to: 

• activity not related to improving educator effectiveness*;
• activity conducted outside the validity period of the license; 
• activity lacks adequate documentation; or duplicate activity. 

*Activities not related to improving educator effectiveness do not qualify for PDPs. This includes training activities such as sessions on bloodborne pathogens and suicide prevention. While these training opportunities are highly valuable and often mandated, they do not explicitly focus on educator effectiveness. 


It is the responsibility of the teacher to submit PDP’s for approval in TN Compass. 

Here are the steps:

• Click on My Educator Profile from the Home page (TNCompass).

• When the Educator Profile page displays, click Licensure tab.

• On the Licensure page, scroll to the section for Professional Development Points (PDPs) and click the Add PDPs button.

• When the PDP Wizard displays, select the Type of Activity from the drop-down list, --such as Training, Coursework and/or National Board Certification for the PDP-- and include the Date Completed, Course Title/Seminar Name/Title, the number of Clock Hours, CEUs, Semester Hours, Points Accrued, etc. When all entries are completed, click the Add button.

• When the activity/activities appear in the list click the Continue button.

• A summary of the new PDP activities displays. The Review and Submit step in the PDP Wizard tracks progress. Click the Submit button to send the PDP request for approval.

• For approval, you must add an Attachment to verify attendance/participation. Choose file, provide Attachment Description, choose Attachment Type. Click Save.

Please contact Tonya Hawkins if you have questions or need assistance.

Visit the Tennessee Department of Education Professional Development Website to learn more about PDPs.

TASL – Tennessee Academy for School Leaders
Arlington Community Schools

~ Plan ahead as you ADVANCE or RENEW your admin license ~

Did you know?

• TASL professional learning tracking has been integrated into the TNCompass data platform as of March 1, 2017.

• TASL cycles have changed from a 28 credit hour requirement in a two-year cycle to a 14-credit hour requirement in a one-year cycle.

• The 2019-20 new 14-hour TASL cycle will begin July 1, 2019. All cycles are one year beginning July 1 and ending June 30.

• A listing of TASL events can be found in TN Compass. ACS is committed to offering TASL events annually, as well. 

Check TNCompass to view the expiration date for your license(s)

It is the responsibility of the administratorto add/submit TASL credits for approval TN Compass. 

Here are the steps:

• Click on My Educator Profile from the Home page (TNCompass).

• When the Educator Profile page displays, click TASL tab.

• Find the TASL Requests section and Add TASL Attendance.

• Follow the TASL Wizard directions.

• A supporting document is required to submit (ie. Certificate, email verification of attendance, etc.)

• Click Continue. Review and Verify.Click Back to make changes.

• If all is correct, click Submit. Enter your PIN Signature to sign and click Submit. 

Visit the Tennessee Academy for School Leaders (TASL) website to learn more information.

Please contact Tonya Hawkins if you have questions or need assistance.

In conjunction with the Tennessee Department of Education, Arlington Community Schools recognizes the importance of high-quality professional learning in a continuous improvement process to support positive student outcomes. We seek to reinforce what it means to select, plan, implement and evaluate professional learning opportunities. This goal is accomplished by recognizing high-quality professional learning practices based upon research and supporting leaders and educators to reach those standards (Professional Learning Rubric and Quick Guide, 2017). 

ACS plans PD in alignment with the Tennessee Professional Learning Standards as stated in the State Board of Education Policy 5.2. We strive to provide professional learning opportunities that are based upon student, educator, community, and/or district needs. 



Tennessee Standards for Professional Learning (Adopted 2012)

The Standards for Professional Learning are the essential elements of professional learning that function in synergy to enable educators to increase their effectiveness and student learning. All elements are essential to realize the full potential of educator professional learning. The Standards for Professional Learning describe the attributes of effective professional learning to guide the decisions and practices of all persons with the responsibility to fund, regulate, manage, conceive, organize, implement, and evaluate professional learning. 


Educators’ commitment to students, all students, is the foundation of effective professional learning. Each educator involved in professional learning comes to the experience ready to learn. Because there are disparate experience levels, and use of practice among educators, professional learning can foster collaborative inquiry and learning that enhances individual and collective performance. Like all learners, educators learn in different ways and at different rates. 

Tennessee Standards for Professional Learning

LEARNING COMMUNITIES: Professional learning that increases educator effectiveness and results for all students occurs within learning communities committed to continuous improvement, collective responsibility, and goal alignment. 

LEADERSHIP: Professional learning that increases educator effectiveness and results for all students requires skillful leaders who develop capacity, advocate, and create support systems for professional learning. 

RESOURCES: Professional learning that increases educator effectiveness and results for all students requires prioritizing, monitoring, and coordinating resources for educator learning. 

DATA: Professional learning that increases educator effectiveness and results for all students uses a variety of sources and types of student, educator, and system data to plan, assess, and evaluate professional learning. 

LEARNING DESIGNS: Professional learning that increases educator effectiveness and results for all students integrates theories, research, and models of human learning to achieve its intended outcomes. 

IMPLEMENTATION: Professional learning that increases educator effectiveness and results for all students applies research on change and sustains support for implementation of professional learning for long term change. 

OUTCOMES: Professional learning that increases educator effectiveness and results for all students aligns its outcomes with educator performance and student curriculum standards.

References

Professional Learning Rubric and Quick Guide. (2017, September). Retrieved from here.

Policies. (n.d.). Retrieved from here.