The Ohio Department of Education (ODE) has recently issued reminders of important upcoming opportunities and deadlines.
Ohio Dyslexia Committee survey
The Ohio Dyslexia Committee, which was created by the Ohio General Assembly earlier this year, is responsible for:
- Developing a guidebook with best practices for universal screening, intervention, and remediation, using a multi-sensory structured literacy program, for children with dyslexia or displaying dyslexic characteristics.
- Providing multi-sensory structured literacy program professional development for teachers in evidence-based dyslexia screening and intervention practices.
- Assisting school districts and other public schools in establishing multidisciplinary teams to support the identification, intervention, and remediation of dyslexia.
- Developing reporting mechanisms for districts and schools to submit to the department the information and data required in the guidebook developed by the Committee.
- Developing academic standards for kindergarten in reading and writing that incorporate a multi-sensory structured literacy program.
The committee is providing the opportunity for educators to submit suggestions for improving Ohio’s Learning Standards for English Language Arts – Kindergarten through a public comment survey. The survey opportunity will end on Oct. 6 at 11:59 p.m. Questions can be submitted to standardsrevision@education.ohio.gov.
Business Advisory Council annual plan
All school districts and educational service centers (ESCs) are required to have a business advisory council or work with a business advisory council established by an ESC. Business advisory councils are composed of education and business leaders who engage in dialogue, build trust and identify strategies that transform the student learning experience.
One of the requirements for each business advisory council is to submit an annual plan to ODE. The deadline for submitting this year’s plan is Thursday, Sept. 30. The plan must address how the council will collaborate and make recommendations to the board of education, joint vocational school district or educational service center governing board on the following areas:
- Delineating employment skills and developing curriculum to instill the identified employment skills.
- Changes in the economy and job market and the types of employment in which future jobs are most likely to be available.
- Developing a working relationship among business, labor and education personnel.
- Actively addressing workforce gaps by preparing students for future careers through mentorship, job shadowing, internships and pre-apprenticeships.
ODE is offering technical assistance and other support to districts as they are completing and submitting their plans, including office hours on Sept. 27, 29 and 30. More information is available on ODE’s business advisory council webpage.
Educator evaluation systems
Finally, Oct. 15, 2021, is the deadline for districts to set up their educator evaluation system in the Ohio Evaluation System (OhioES) and Ohio Teacher and Principal Evaluation Systems (eTPES). Superintendents and superintendent designees who are new to their districts are required to ensure that their role designations and email addresses are current in the Ohio Educational Directory System (OEDS).
ODE is offering eTPES or OhioES training or refresher training. Interested districts should contact evaluation@education.ohio.gov to connect with trainers in their areas. More information about eTPES should see the OTES 1.0 webpage for more information. OhioES users should visit the OTES 2.0 webpage for more information.