RFP Response: Educator Observation and Evaluation Software ......Perhaps the most unique feature of...

My Learning Plan Inc Attn: Jennifer Walter 3500 Sunrise Highway Great River, NY 11739 800-287-4432 www.MyLearningPlan.com

Southeast Service Cooperative

RFP Response: Educator Observation and Evaluation Software Professional Development Components

My Learning Plan Inc.

Proposal Contents

Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 3

Attachment #1 Signature Page ..................................................................................................................... 5

Attachment #2 Proposal Responses ............................................................................................................. 6

Product Features and Requirements and MLP Response ............................................................................ 7

Attachment #3 Vendor Statement of Qualifications .................................................................................. 37

Appendix A: Additional Information .......................................................................................................... 39

Report Samples ...................................................................................................................................... 39

Case Study .............................................................................................................................................. 43

My Learning Plan Inc. Awards ................................................................................................................ 44

Stronge & Associates: Stronge Effectiveness Performance Evaluation Systems ................................ 48


Executive Summary

The current national climate and policy around educator evaluation and support has inspired new possibilities for connecting professional development, evaluation, and student achievement data in support of student success, and represents a leap forward in systemic capabilities. We recognize and have embraced the challenges, opportunities, and the rapid pace of change that is occurring with these new high stakes processes. As a result, educators’ careers will forever be changed, consistently ineffective teachers will be identified and removed from the classroom, and if we get it right, a powerful system will emerge to guarantee that all teachers are appropriately supported to drive student achievement.

My Learning Plan Inc. has more than 27 years of experience working exclusively with K-12 systems at all levels in support of educator growth. Thirteen years ago our company introduced MyLearningPlan, the first commercial Professional Development Management System (PDMS) to enable LEAs to plan, manage, assess, and optimize professional learning to enhance student outcomes.

Since then, MyLearningPlan has grown to be the most widely-used system of its type, supporting more than 900 school districts and 850,000 users, including Anoka-Hennepin, Hopkins, ISD 622, Mora, Minnetonka and Wayzata Schools. Through years of deeply listening to our customers, we have been able to leverage the latest technology to collect data in a way that is natural and logical to LEAs.

Three years ago, we introduced our highly flexible and customizable Observation and Appraisal System, MyLearningPlan OASYS, which broadens our focus to comprehensively support educator growth through the addition of educator evaluation data management that aligns educator goals, student learning objectives and growth, targeted professional learning, and continuous progress monitoring.

As our response highlights, our organizational culture and operations are deeply district-oriented, and we have the experience and proven systems ready for immediate implementation. Our data systems have been thoroughly tested by thousands of users over many years, and all of the enhancements have been driven by end user feedback. This ensures that out of the gate Minnesota districts will have a data system to gather, integrate, and store the specified data elements, while providing the technical tools necessary to analyze and summarize the data and to calculate the final ratings. We understand that it is important to form a meaningful learning cycle for each educator that enables evaluation data elements to inform and support professional development activities, and for professional learning outcomes to feed back into the educator evaluation system. The optional implementation of MyLearningPlan, our Professional Development Management System (PDMS), will leverage the Learning Loop feature, which creates a full circle, enabling evaluators to automatically recommend targeted professional learning opportunities from a variety of internal and external sources and formats, based on each individual’s evaluation results. We have a rich history of responding to these types of requirements in a timely and thorough fashion by building multi-layered relationships with State Departments of Education and regional service centers through joint work on custom systems that integrate data from many sources.


Our background with collaborative state-level design, deployment, and problem solving to attend to complex changing requirements, coupled with substantial LEA and school experience offers the unique ability to balance needs from all levels to assist organizations to operationalize their vision. In recognition of this demonstrated success, we were honored to be selected as the 2012 CODiE Award WINNER in the Best K-12 Enterprise Solution category. In short, we understand the scope and stakes involved in this undertaking, and have the demonstrated ability to respond to the tight timeframe. We have the experience, flexibility, energy, and commitment required to work jointly and productively with the team from the Southeast Services Cooperative to achieve the vision for educator effectiveness to drive student success.


Southeast Service Cooperative REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) by the Minnesota Service Cooperatives Educator Observation and Evaluation Software Professional Development Components

Attachment #1 Signature Page

SIGNATURE PAGE

This form must be returned, properly executed.

Please use this page as a cover sheet for your proposal.

In compliance with your request for proposals, the undersigned proposes to furnish and deliver

all labor, services, merchandise or materials in accordance with the accompanying descriptions,

proposal form, and instructions to vendors.

This proposal is made without any previous understanding, agreement or connection with any

other person, firm or corporation making a proposal for the same purchase, and is in all respects fair and

without collusion or fraud. No member of the Board of Directors of Southeast Service Cooperative, nor

any officer, employee or person whose salary is payable in whole or in part from the treasury of said

Board of Directors is directly or indirectly interested in this proposal or in the supplies, materials, work

or services to which it relates, or in any portion of the profits thereof. All prices herein are net and

exclusive of any applicable federal, state and municipal sales and excise taxes. The undersigned

proposer clearly understands that the Minnesota Service Cooperatives will be the sole judge in

determining the quality of merchandise as being equal to or in compliance with the descriptions.

Company: My Learning Plan Inc.

Name: Elizabeth Combs

Signature of above

Title: President

Address: 3500 Sunrise Highway

__Great River, NY 11739____________________________

Telephone: 631-859-9770

Fax Number: 631-859-9780

Date: January 9, 2013

Are you a small business? yes __X___ no ____

Are you a minority business? yes _____ no __X__

If yes, list minority:

12/27/2012



REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) by the Minnesota Service Cooperatives

Educator Observation and Evaluation Software Professional Development Components

Attachment #2 Proposal Responses

EDUCATOR OBERSATION AND EVALUATION SOFTWARE

AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS

PROPOSAL RESPONSES

Please complete this form in the provided MS Word file in entering your responses regarding product features, requirements, and financing. The boxes will expand as you enter your response. In addition to entering each response on the form, you may provide attachments for additional detail and reference the attachments in your responses.

Vendor: My Learning Plan Inc. Contact: Jennifer Walter

Address: 3500 Sunrise Highway Phone Number: 800-287-4432 x106

Great River, NY 11739 Fax Number: 631-859-9780

Vendor web site: www.MyLearningPlan.com Vendor email: [email protected]

SEC will conduct a demonstration session on Thursday, February 14 at the Southeast Service Cooperative, 210 Wood Lake Drive SE, Rochester, MN 55904. Selected vendors will be invited to provide a 30-minute demonstration of the product/service, including time for questions and answers. Vendors may choose to present in person or via videoconferencing or live webinar. Internet and equipment will be available to project the demonstration on a large screen. Attendees will include administrators, teachers, board members, and other interested parties. __ AM _X_ PM Please indicate your preference for a time to present during the

demonstration on Thursday, February 14 at SEC if you are invited. SEC does not guarantee the time but will make every effort to accommodate participating Vendors.

Indicate your preference for method of presentation _X__ In Person at Southeast Service Cooperative ___ Videoconference ___ Live Webinar


Product Features and Requirements and MLP Response

PRODUCT FEATURES and REQUIREMENTS

My Learning Plan RESPONSE

System Capacity for the Software Products and Services

1. Describe the observation tool.

MyLearningPlan OASYS includes completely integrated observation and evaluation tools. The observation tools allow for customized observation forms, pre- and post-observation forms, observation and conference scheduling, and the ability for teachers to acknowledge and comment on completed forms. Observation data is stored on district-customized observation forms. Observation Forms:

MyLearningPlan OASYS includes many features to support the formal and

informal observation process, including free-text scripting:

Customizable Observation Forms: There is no limit to the number of

formal or informal observation forms that can be created. Different

observation forms may be used for different educator types (teachers,

teachers in need of an improvement, etc.) different times of the year, or

for observations with different foci. These individual forms can be

assigned to evaluation types and/or individuals, as appropriate. Various

data sections can also be placed on forms, to display data from external

data systems, or from within the system. For example, an observation

form can be configured to display report sections, or data gathered on

other forms, so that this information is readily available to the evaluator

during the observation.


Partial example of a configurable observation form

Notes and Evidence Collection: Fields for supervisor notes can be added to

any form. These fields can be marked for supervisor access only, so

employees are not able to view any information entered in these fields.

In addition, every Supervisor has their own “Scratch Pad,” a tool designed

to enable evaluators to jot notes, or document evidence, throughout the

evaluation process. An individual supervisor is the only one who has access

to view the comments on their Scratch Pad. Information added to the

Scratch Pad is easily “dragged and dropped” onto the appropriate forms to

make the process of completing forms easier and more efficient, and

during an observation, to maintain focus on the lesson not on the form.


Scratchpad Feature

Timestamp

The Timestamp icon appears on any text box as a way to add the current

date and time. Typically, the timestamp is used when scripting, or

documenting specific actions that are being observed. Simply clicking the

timestamp icon adds the date and time to the textbox, with the cursor

next to that entry ready for additional comments.

Timestamp Feature

2. Describe the evaluation tool.

As described in our ensuing response, MyLearningPlan OASYS is a proven, intuitive, and fully customizable online teacher/principal performance evaluation system. One way that MyLearningPlan OASYS is different from other performance management systems, is that it allows districts to establish a set of evaluation components and associated forms, rubrics, and workflow to administer a specific evaluation process for each different employee type or group in the organization. With this information configured, the system enables leaders to track progress for individuals and groups. In fact, the system is flexible enough to manage multiple evaluation processes for differing evaluation groups (multiple different teacher groups, principals, support staff, etc.). Another differentiator of MyLearningPlan OASYS is that it truly manages the entire district-designed evaluation process. The flexibility and


comprehensiveness of the system enables districts to manage all important components of the process for each individual, including observations, conferences, walkthroughs, survey results, self-reflections, student learning objectives, artifact reviews and any others. These individual components can be initiated by the evaluatee or evaluator, and the system facilitates communication between evaluatees and evaluators on each part of the process. Perhaps the most unique feature of MyLearningPlan OASYS is the ability to pull all evidence, artifacts, and other data points together, both from forms within OASYS, as well as data imported from external systems, to generate a final composite score, based upon district or State requirements. This information integration enables districts to use one data system to manage ALL aspects of the evaluation process for ALL employee groups within the organization. This provides maximum flexibility and one system to streamline and manage performance evaluations and professional growth for all staff.

3. Describe how the observation and evaluation tools interface with one another.

As described in the response above, MyLearningPlan OASYS is an Observation and Appraisal System, meaning that it can be used to manage the entire appraisal, or evaluation process for a district (inclusive of observations), or only the observation process. For districts that use OASYS to manage their entire evaluation process, that process might include:

Goal setting

Student learning objectives

Observations (including pre- and post-observation conferences)

Self-assessment

Parent and/or student survey summaries

Student growth scores

Summative evaluations

Summative evaluation scores Specific for the observation process is the Scratchpad. As described above the scratchpad enables observers to capture evidence during the observation process and easily present that information on the appropriate forms after the observation is complete. The details in this proposal outline all of the features of the system.

4. Describe how the tool addresses the differences in the process for teachers versus administrators.

One way that MyLearningPlan OASYS is different from other performance

management data systems, is that it allows districts to establish a set of

evaluation components and associated forms, rubrics, and workflow to

administer a specific evaluation process for each different employee type or

group in the organization. With this information configured, the system

enables leaders to track progress for individuals and groups. In fact, the

system is flexible enough to manage multiple evaluation processes for

differing evaluation groups (multiple teacher groups, principals, educational

specialists, support staff, central office staff, etc.).


At the heart of MyLearningPlan OASYS is a forms processing system that

enables organizations to create forms using any fields, rubrics, file

attachments, report sections, and more. Forms can then be grouped

together into components. (For example, an observation component may

include a pre-observation form, an observation form, and a post-

observation form).

Once the components are created, they are assigned to evaluation types

(groups) to specify each group’s evaluation requirements. This form/

component/ type relationship enables maximum flexibility by allowing the

same form to be used across multiple components, and components to be

assigned to multiple types. By structuring the evaluation process in this

way, reports can be run for data entered on one form across multiple users,

components, and types.

Therefore, MyLearningPlan OASYS can be used for performance evaluations

for multiple groups (such as a variety of different teacher and administrator

groups) that do, or do not, share like forms. This provides maximum

flexibility and one system to streamline and easily support the performance

evaluation management for all staff.

The diagram below represents the form, component, evaluation type

relationship within OASYS.

5. Rubrics/Frameworks. Describe the alignment

Rubrics can be added to MyLearningPlan OASYS using the built in Rubric


between the teacher and administrator evaluation rubrics.

Designer tool. Given that MyLearningPlan OASYS is rubric[-agnostic, any

rubric can be added to the system directly by the organization. Once a

rubric has been entered in the system, it can then be added to any form.

(The Stronge Effectiveness Performance Evaluation System rubrics for

teachers, educational specialists, principals and superintendents are all pre-

loaded into the system.) To simplify the process of completing the form,

evaluators only have to click on an individual cell in a rubric to “select” that

cell. The cell is then highlighted, so that it is clear as to which one has been

selected. Additional notes, rationale or evidence to support the selection,

can be added in the optional “Notes” section below each row.

Stronge

EPES teacher rubrics within OASYS

In addition, each column in a rubric can be assigned a score, and each row can be assigned a weight. These scores can be used as part of the composite score tool to calculate a final evaluation score for each individual.

6. On which evaluation framework or set of rubrics is the software designed? If the software can support multiple frameworks, skip to the next question.

MyLearningPlan OASYS is rubric agnostic; however if the Consortium

chooses to select a new evaluation methodology or framework in addition

to a technology platform, we offer a unique partnership with James Stronge

that provides MyLearningPlan OASYS customers with Stronge’s Teacher and

Leader Effectiveness System pre-configured in the online system. The

Stronge System provides a feasible, sustainable, and customizable

alternative to other evaluation frameworks.

The combination of the Stronge System and MyLearningPlan OASYS

provides the following benefits:

Stronge Teacher and Leader Effectiveness Evaluation System

MyLearningPlan OASYS Evaluation Management System

TEACHER, PRINCIPAL and EDUCATIONAL SPECIALIST, and SUPERINTENDENT evaluation systems

Management of teacher, principal and educational specialist evaluations in ONE data system Customizable, pre-configured, Stronge evaluation rubrics/forms


Standards, indicators, forms and rubrics for all evaluation groups

Interactive evidence collections tools compatible with iPhone, iPad and Android mobile devices

All handbooks in electronic format (MS Word) to allow for local customization

Scheduling and flexible workflow capabilities

Orientation training materials for teachers (e.g. PowerPoint presentations, handouts)

Advanced graphic reporting tools

Support materials (e.g. fact sheets, forms, resource materials and rubrics)

Evaluatee access for form completion, self-reflection and transparency

Selected research materials (e.g. teacher evaluation research, evidence supporting performance standards, etc.)

Composite score computation

Full setup, configuration and unlimited customer support

The Stronge Effectiveness Performance evaluation frameworks have been implemented statewide in Georgia and Virginia, and in organizations such as CESA 6, WI, Association of American Schools in South America, Miami Public Schools, FL, and Gwinnett County Public Schools, GA. Stronge and Associates has also consulted extensively with the Kentucky Department of Education and the Louisiana Department of Education.

7. Which frameworks or set of rubrics does the software support - e.g. Charlotte Danielson, Marzano, others. Describe how this is accommodated.

As described above, MyLearningPlan OASYS is framework/rubric-agnostic. Therefore, using the built in Rubric Designer and Form Designer an organization can add or create any rubric or forms needed. Given this flexibility, the system can be used with any framework or rubrics an organization selects (assuming they have the appropriate rights to add the information to an electronic data system.) This flexibility also enables an organization to “tweak” or customize any rubrics or forms they may select as part of a framework, to meet their specific needs. It also provides the ability to weight each of the rubrics as the organization deems appropriate, to be used as part of an overall composite evaluation score.

8. Can the customer modify the rubrics that are provided?

Yes, if the customer chooses to use the Stronge Effectiveness Performance Evaluation System, which includes all of the rubrics and forms for teacher, principal, educational specialist and superintendent observations and evaluations already pre-loaded into the system, any of the form and rubrics can be modified, by the customer, to meet their needs. If a customer enters their own rubrics or forms into the system, they can also be modified, by the customer, at any time.

9. Does this tool/service offer samples and options for rubrics (explain)?

For organizations using the Stronge Effectiveness Performance Evaluation System, the rubrics are already configured within MyLearningPlan OASYS. For organizations choosing to use other frameworks and rubrics, they can


be added directly by the organization. Options for rubrics include:

Rubric Title: Rubrics can be assigned any title

Number of Columns: Rubrics can include anywhere from one to 20 columns (most rubrics include four or five columns)

Naming of Performance Ratings: Rubric columns can be assigned any names (for example, Highly Effective, Effective, Developing, etc,)

Scoring of Performance Ratings: Each performance rating (column) can be assigned any score (for example, Ineffective = 1, Developing = 2, Effective = 3, Highly Effective =4)

Number of Rows: Rubrics can include any number of rows

Naming of Row: Rubric rows can be assigned any name, based upon the framework (e.g. Indicators, Criteria, Components, etc.)

Weighting of Rows: Each row (indicator) of a rubric can be weighted differently. (For example, if there is a rubric with two rows, the first row can be weighted to count twice as much as the second row.)

Include Rubric Evidence (yes/no): The optional capability for the evaluator to add evidence or rationale as the rubric is being completed, on a row by row basis.

Show Only Selected Values: Only count a row in the overall rubric scoring if a rating for that row has been selected

Use Rubric Scoring (yes/no): The optional capability to calculate a score for the rubric

Align to Standards: The ability to align each row (indicator) in a rubric to a set of one or more State Teaching Standards

Copy Rubric: The ability to copy an existing rubric for additional editing or to create a variation of the original

Import Rubric: The ability to import a rubric from an Excel spreadsheet

Delete Rubric: The ability to delete a rubric from the system

10. Can the customer develop its own rubrics to import into the software?

Yes. The customer can develop their own rubrics and either add them directly into the system using the Rubric Designer, or import them from an Excel Spreadsheet.


11. Describe how titles, field labels, and weighting might be accommodated.

MyLearningPlan OASYS includes a tremendous amount of flexibility due to the form/component/evaluation type relationship described above. Fields/Forms The Form Designer enables customers to design their own forms, complete with their own logos, colors, titles, fields, field names, and field specifications. Using the Form Designer, customers can drag fields from the left side of the screen, on to the form designer surface in the middle. The fields are then configured using the properties panel on the right.

MyLearningPlan OASYS Form Designer

Once completed, any form can be assigned to any evaluation type or group. Scoring/Weighting


The Composite Score Tool enables districts to identify the weights and

compute a total weighted score for each employee. The score calculations

and weights can be different for each evaluation type (teachers, principals,

educational specialists, etc.)

Sample Composite Score Graphic

Rubric Score Reports

The OASYS score reports provide detailed information regarding an

individual’s completed rubrics. The score report displays each rubric

(competency or criterion), a graphic indicator displaying the number of

times it has been assigned to the individual, and the number of times it has

been completed to date, the actual score, the maximum score, an average

score, and the date that the last rubric was complete.

By expanding any one of the competencies, the report displays the detail

information for each time the rubric was completed. The graphic below

shows that the Instruction competency rubric was assigned to this user

three times, and all of them have been completed. The detail below shows

the name of each of the forms the rubric was included on, the

administrator that completed the rubric, and additional score detail. The

totals are found at the bottom and can be used to calculate the Final

Performance Evaluation Score. This report can be embedded on any form.

As noted earlier, the individual rubrics, as well as the rows in each rubric,

can all be weighted differently. The final score in this report can be used

as one of the components of the composite score tool pictured above.


Sample Score Report

12. Multi-Raters: How does the tool/service accommodate multi-rater requirements?

The flexible design of MyLearningPlan OASYS enables an organization to assign multiple evaluators to one form (such as an observation form), or multiple evaluators to individual forms or observations for one person (for example, a principal that is required to complete one observation for a teacher, and a department leader that must complete a second observation for that same teacher.) The Evaluation Rights tool is used to assign rights, or assignments, to evaluators. Assignments can be done by building (for example, assign all teachers in a building to the building principal for observation #1), department, or individual, and the assignments can be granted to one or more simultaneous evaluator’s on a form by form basis, or for an entire set of evaluation requirements. An evaluator is able to view all of the forms assigned to an individual, but the ability to open and view, or edit, are based upon the assignments. The graphic below shows an evaluator’s view of one teacher’s evaluation profile. Two of this teacher’s three observations are being completed by different evaluators.


13. Student Data: How does the software accommodate inclusion of student growth data and student achievement data (teacher evaluation)?

MyLearningPlan OASYS is able to manage the Student Learning Objective (SLO) component of the evaluation process. Data input at that time would include SLO supporting information (background, rationale, etc.), SLO target statement, baseline data, etc. SLOs are entered by teachers at the beginning of the year, and then reviewed by evaluators after the results data is available. Evaluators are able to score the SLO(s), and that score can be used as a component of the teachers overall composite score. MyLearningPlan OASYS does not hold data on individual students in order to support the SLO process. Rather, aggregate data for teachers’ baseline data and results data can be imported into OASYS using the import tool outlined above. In the cases where the data is available through a web-based service, it is often possible to integrate the data directly. Specific course rosters, with student data, can be added as attachments to the SLO forms. MyLearningPlan OASYS does not score the individual student scores, since these are often available through the student systems being used by districts, and replication of the detail scores, and thus storing the same data in two systems, often leads to discrepancy of data. In addition, special Number fields can be added to any form to allow a particular student growth or achievement score to be entered and then included in the calculation of the final effectiveness rating.

14. Student Data: How does the software accommodate inclusion of student growth data per building (principal evaluation)?

As described above in response number 13, MyLearningPlan OASYS does not store individual student data. For principals, the aggregate data based on schools, grade levels or subject areas can be uploaded and used as part of the principals SLOs.

15. Student Data: For a district with multiple buildings, is the software for principal

The data is imported, or automatically transferred into MyLearningPlan OASYS based upon whatever parameters are set by the sending system.


evaluation able to disaggregate the data?

16. Survey Tools. How does the software/tool support surveys by internal and external respondents (teachers, other administrators, students, parents, etc.)

MylearningPlan survey features include forms to detail survey summary data. At this point, the system is not used to disseminate and collect the individual responses from surveys, but rather provide a form for the end-user to summarize the survey results, and their follow-up actions. The survey summary forms can be configured with any questions and fields. These forms can be scored by evaluators, and the results can be included in the overall composite evaluation score (for instance, in many organizations, 5% of a teacher’s overall evaluation score is based upon parent surveys).

17. Does this tool/service offer samples and options for surveys?

Through our partnership with Stronge & Associates, the Stronge Teacher Effectiveness Performance Evaluation System Student surveys and the Principal staff surveys are available within MyLearningPlan OASYS.

18. Report Generation: Reports must include both detail and summarized data including summary reports using graphs. Please provide an outline of included reports and attach sample reports.

MyLearningPlan OASYS includes a variety of report tools enabling reporting

on all data elements in the system. In addition to available system reports,

several “explorer tools,” graphic report tools focusing on specific data

elements, provide users with very easy to use, customizable graphic reports

for accessing data. They have been designed in such a way that end users

need not understand database design or reporting to use the tools and

generate meaningful output. Several sample reports are included as

attachments. Examples of report types include:

System Reports: a list of row and column reports

Rubric Explorer: an explorer tool for analyzing results on rubrics in

graphic format

Growth Explorer: an explorer tool for analyzing results from any

multiple select/multiple choice question on any form, over time, in

graphic format

Composite Score Explorer: an explorer tool for analyzing composite

score results by component and evaluation type/group

Detail View: report for quickly identifying which evaluation

components are complete, in progress, past due, etc.

Rubric Score Reports: detailed information regarding an

individual’s rubric results

Combined Score Reports: rubric results across multiple rubrics on

the same form

19. Customization. If other features of the software are customizable at a consortium level and/or at the district level, please describe. What customization must be done by the Vendor, and what can be done at the consortium

As described above, MyLearningPlan OASYS is a highly configurable and flexible evaluation management system. All of the configurable options outlined in this response can be configured by the consortium and/or the district. While the MyLearningPlan support team is happy to provide assistance, and update forms as requested throughout the contract period, (at no additional cost) there are no customizations that the districts are not able to complete on their own, without vendor support, if they choose to do so.


and/or district levels?

20. Software/Tool Training. Describe training available for the tool, how it will be delivered (in person, webinar, on-line course), and what training is available for sustainability.

There are many training resources available for MyLearningPlan OASYS. These include:

- face-to-face onsite train-the-training sessions - remote system operator trainings - remote evaluator/administrator trainings - online tutorials for evaluators - online tutorials for end-users - extensive HELP documents including FAQs, video tutorials, and

searchable HELP database - annual onsite user group meetings

We recommend the specific training requirements be outlined after more information is available regarding the number of districts planning to use the system and their geographies. As a start, we have built into this proposal the following training plan:

- SEC Initial Overview Training: a full-day onsite training for SEC staff to provide them with a thorough overview of the capabilities and configuration options of MyLearningPlan OASYS.

- Individual District Configuration/System Operator Training (remote/online): two-hour online session to be led by MLP team, with participation of SEC staff if desired, to configure and train the individual district system operators.

- Ongoing Support/ Training: training and support calls, scheduled at the districts convenience, to learn new features or ask questions. There is no limit to the number of calls that can be scheduled, and there is no charge for these calls.

- Onsite User Group Meetings: Annual user group meetings, scheduled for one-half day each, in multiple geographies across the state if appropriate. Focus on announcing new system capabilities and updates, answering questions, and facilitating networking and idea-sharing among users.

21. Who provides training in using the observation and evaluation software for:

Local system administrator?

District leadership

Local staff?

If a train-the-trainer approach is applicable, describe how MSC employees would be trained and supported during implementation.

How are new staff trained subsequent

As described in response to question #20 above, there are multiple training opportunities available. Generally, the training for specific user types includes: Local System Administrators:

- One remote configuration/ system operator training session for the specific district that is typically about two hours long, and includes an overview of the system, and review of configuration options for the district.

- A minimum of one (typically more) post-configuration calls to review configuration questions and discuss implementation of additional needs

- Participation at regional user-group meetings District Leadership:

- District leadership would generally follow the same training as the local system operators outlined above

Local Staff: - In addition to the resources above, local staff such as evaluators


to initial training? and end-users would access online tutorials and HELP resources New Staff:

- It is recommended that all new district level staff be trained through the same training process outlined for the local system admins above. This is done at no charge.

- Annual onsite training sessions for new SEC staff

Professional Development to Support Educator Growth

22. Describe how professional development related to various frameworks is delivered - e.g. Charlotte Danielson, Marzano.

As with all of our other tools (MyLearningPlan Professional Development Management System, MyLearningPlan OASYS, etc.), we do not develop professional development resources, or content, geared towards any one framework. The tools outlined in response to question #23 below describe the various optional PD tools available that can be customized by individual organizations to support specific standards or frameworks.

23. Describe professional development components.

Evaluator Certification and Training & Teacher Professional Development: MyLearningPlan ELEVATE (NOTE: MLP Elevate is an optional Professional Development Tool that is an add-on to this proposal.) MyLearningPlan Elevate is an online video-based Evaluator Training and Certification System. MyLearningPlan Elevate is highly flexible, attends to the multiple measures that often comprise new and emerging evaluation processes, and provides transparency for educators about evaluation expectations. This system can be used as an integral add-on to MyLearningPlan OASYS.

MyLearningPlan Elevate is the only system of its kind that is entirely customizable from the ground up. For example, districts can configure the system to integrate their own videos of practice or utilize our video collection. In addition, districts can upload their own rubrics and code the rubrics against the video themselves or they can leverage pre-configured rubrics with embedded “expert” feedback and comparisons. Districts can also determine the certification metrics on their own or use a certification methodology from an external organization. These unique points of customization provide an unrivalled level of flexibility for each My Learning Plan Elevate customer. Unlike other evaluator training programs, MyLearningPlan Elevate facilitates training on all of the measures that commonly comprise evaluation processes, such as artifacts, peer reviews, surveys, and other components, as well as observations. MyLearningPlan Elevate allows districts to train and certify leaders on all components that make up the entire evaluation cycle with a single tool. The system supports the simple creation of custom learning plans for different groups, and after MyLearningPlan Elevate has been configured,


evaluators can collect evidence in real time using a combination of video and our intuitive and streamlined evidence collection tool. Cohorts of evaluators can engage in online threaded discussions to compare their work and their thinking processes. Extensive reporting tools offer a clear and dynamic picture of status and progress throughout the process. While MyLearningPlan Elevate was developed as an evaluator certification and training tool, many organizations are implementing it with teachers as a professional development tool. As the evaluation process is undergoing so many changes, teachers are often fearful and confused about the new processes. MyLearningPlan Elevate training plans can be designed for, and assigned to teachers, so that they have the opportunity to understand the process of evidence collection and rubric scoring. By going through the process of collecting evidence and scoring a training plan, teachers become very familiar with the rubrics, and gain a better understanding of what an evaluator is looking for when conducting their evaluation.

Video Resources: ETS Classroom Video Library

(The ETS Classroom Video Library is an optional resource that is an add-on to this proposal.)

My Learning Plan Inc. has partnered with Educational Testing Service (ETS) to provide a comprehensive online library of authentic, unedited classroom videos for use as a stand-alone professional learning resource or within MyLearningPlan Elevate. The library currently includes 50 videos of K-12 classroom teaching, spanning multiple subjects and settings, with a total of 80 videos available by June 2013. Each of the lesson-length classroom videos are available in either a wide-angle or dual-camera view (the dual-camera view simultaneously provides a wide-angle view and a close-up view focusing on the front of the classroom). A directional microphone picks up student discussion from all parts of the classroom.

The ETS Classroom Video Library includes an online video clip tool, enabling organizations and individual users to create multiple clips within each classroom video that can be tagged, saved and marked for sharing in their own video clip library. Tags can be tailored by the organization and may include categories of instruction, common core standards, rubric alignment or more. Many of the classroom videos also include the instructional artifacts used by the teacher during filming, such as lesson plans, worksheets and student assignments that can also be used as learning resources. Therefore, the complete classroom video library can provide thousands of individual learning resources to be used within targeted learning modules.

24. Describe professional development formats, e.g. webinar, on-line courses, in person.

As described above, MyLearningPlan Elevate and the ETS Classroom Video Library are both online tools to support professional learning.

25. Describe how this service addresses the

MyLearningPlan Elevate can be used by: - Principals or other evaluators for evaluator training and certification


differences in professional development for teachers versus principals or administrators and other employees, if applicable.

- Teachers for additional support in becoming familiar with the rubrics and the process of evidence collection and rubric alignment that evaluators go through when evaluating teachers.

26. Describe how on-line professional development ensures learning mastery aligned with the program objectives and rubrics.

In addition to OASYS, My Learning Plan Inc. has developed a Professional

Development Management System (PDMS). MyLearningPlan PDMS has

been designed to be fully integrated with MyLearningPlan OASYS, providing

single sign on, integrated dashboards, shared user demographic information

and more.

Learning Mastery: MyLearningPlan PDMS

(NOTE: MyLearningPlan PDMS is an optional add-on to this proposal.)

(NOTE: MyLearningPlan PDMS does not include any PD content. It is a

management system that provides for targeted PD based upon an

individual’s evaluation results. The professional development content is

offered by the district or online sources.)

For organizations using both MyLearningPlan PDMS and MyLearningPlan

OASYS, the LearningLoop feature provides end-users with a customized list

of recommended professional learning opportunities based upon their

individual evaluation results. On any MyLearningPlan OASYS evaluation

form, an individual’s professional development goals and completed

activities, including whether a specific activity was recommended, can be

easily displayed enabling natural fluid conversations about professional

learning as part of evaluation dialogue. This cycle of continually refined

recommended professional development based upon teachers’ practice

supports ongoing professional growth and mastery in identified areas.

The LearningLoop feature enables professional learning opportunities to be

recommended to educators, based upon their evaluation results. When an

educator falls below a pre-determined threshold in specific competencies

and performance standards as shown on a rubric on an Observation Form

(or a Summative Form), the system will automatically recommend

appropriate professional learning opportunities from a wide variety of

sources.

Educators can view and enroll in any of the recommended professional

learning experiences directly from their dashboard, and see a view of their

recommended PD that has been completed towards specific goals. Any


OASYS form can include a section indicating the recommended and

completed professional learning experiences, so that professional

development is clearly an aligned part of the evaluation process, and

evaluators can easily track completion of the professional development that

they have recommended.

Support

27. Describe the availability of technical assistance between the hours of 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. (Central time) and support options available to troubleshoot any minor/major issues that may arise during or after business hours

My Learning Plan Inc. employs a full team of customer support liaisons,

managed by the Vice President of Customer Support. The team is available

from 8am – 8pm EST on regular business days, and often during other

times, to provide email and phone support. Phone and email support is

provided to all administrator level users while email support is provided to

end-users. We do not outsource our technical support.

Our primary goal is end-user self-service, so that users don't need to

contact us for support. Our support tools operationalize

our commitment to service and support by offering many self-help

solutions, training materials, searchable knowledge bases, and a ticketing

system to record and track each open support request.

28. Describe your response to troubleshooting issues that may occur with the system. Include your ability to meet 2-4 hour initial response and 24-48 hour resolution requirements and prioritization of issues.

All of the company’s support representatives are fully trained to answer any

support questions, including configuration, “how tos”, enabling additional

features, and training support. Should a bug be identified by a customer

support representative, they are able to contact a member of the My

Learning Plan development team directly, and work specifically with the

appropriate developer to resolve the issue. The lines of direct

communication between customer support representative and

programmers significantly reduces the time necessary to implement a

resolution.

Response Times and Escalation for Support Issues

Phone and/or email support: 4-hour response time during normal business hours

Response from the assigned Customer Support Liaison: Within 24 hours

Response from a My Learning Plan Inc. Vice President: Within 48 hours

Response from the My Learning Plan Inc. President or CEO: Within 72 hours

In addition, any issue that causes a significant portion of the system, or the

entire system, to be inaccessible is attended to immediately, with a one-

hour response time and resolution ASAP. In the event that a resolution is

not immediate, the Customer Support Liaison will be in regular

communication with the customer to provide updates.


29. Describe the helpdesk and/or project software that will be used to handle the implementation of new districts, and troubleshooting issues within the system. If applicable, describe how MSC employees would access to helpdesk software to facilitate communication with MSC clients.

FreshDesk HELP Desk

We have implemented FreshDesk as a end-user HELP tool and ticket

management system. FreshDesk is fully integrated within OASYS, enabling

any user, once logged into MyLearningPlan OASYS, to search the extensive

HELP tools, or generate a HELP ticket from the same locations. Tickets are

managed and answered by our support team. Response time, number of

follow-up responses, and other data points are tracked to ensure that we

are continually improving our end-user HELP experience.

Project Management Software

We have been successful using the Agile Software Development process.

This process is proven effective for small project groups of less than 15

participants, where the software developers are all highly skilled (no junior

developers).

We use an online tool www.Assembla.com (Assembla.com) for Project

Management, Milestone and Ticket Management, Source Code Control

(SVN), and team communication. This tool directly supports our Agile

methods. We use this approach with all of our large projects with great

success, including our collaboration with several State Departments of

Education.

As MylearningPlan OASYS is implemented in districts, MyLearningPlan and

SEC Staff will have access to Assembla. The tool will include a collection of

detailed Milestones, Tickets, Reference Documents, and an agreed

communication plan. Each Milestone would clearly list the deliverables

and due dates. The project plan becomes the collection of Milestones,

Tickets, Wikis, and Documents stored on Assembla.com. This method

facilitates ongoing changes more readily than a traditional project plan that

may need to be rewritten with each major change.

30. Describe the process and timeframe for notifying clients during outages of the system. Describe the redundancies that are in place to ensure the system will be operational at all times unless otherwise scheduled as a maintenance window.

The customer’s service liaison, assigned to each account, is responsible for communicating directly with customers during any outages or other significant interruptions. Database Server availability and scalability is achieved using large, scalable

SMP servers under two separate, but parallel processes as follows:

Primary and Secondary Transactional (OLTP) server systems in a warm standby configuration.

Primary system always online, with ability to fail over to warm standby with equal capacity, and vertical scalable capability.

Transactions are copied/applied to warm standby server four times per hour to minimize latency, or loss of data in case of primary

http://www.assembla.com/


server failure. Hub & Spoke Data Access Layer Tier

All Web Server database access is conducted via proprietary Data Access component tier able to route database requests based upon query types, server availability and performance.

The “HUB” database server is provided by the Primary or Secondary server as described above.

The “SPOKE(s)” database servers are provided by independent database servers with dedicated storage (copies) of the OLTP data synchronized under Transactional Replication.

This architecture allows for offloading reporting/lookup type database requests to as many SPOKE servers as necessary to maintain performance/scalability.

Performance and Failure Monitoring and Alerting 24/7

Near FOUR “9”s Web server availability for past 12 months

Near 100% Database server availability for past 12 months

Three “9”s ISP connectivity for past 12 months

Operator Notifications via EMAIL and Text Message Pagers

EMAIL notifications backed up by Direct Modem Dialed Paging

31. Describe the backup system.

To maintain the integrity of code and preserve previous versions, a source

code control system is used. This is maintained on a separate server for

every project and the same is automatically scheduled for daily backup on

the Source Code Backup Server. If the backup does not happen or fails for

any reason, a log of the same is maintained and a notification is sent to the

system administration group. Any problems noticed are rectified and the

backup is completed.

Databases are replicated on backup machines to ensure that critical data is

not lost. This also ensures near 100% recovery in case of any database or

machine crash. The replication is done to onsite backup database servers at

the DC. If the backup does not happen or fails for any reason, a log of the

same is maintained and a notification is sent to the system administration

group. Any problems noticed are rectified and the backup is completed.

Weekly FULL backups are taken to local storage disk arrays, then moved to

tape media, labeled, sorted and stored in offsite fire-proof cabinets with

proper security. Access to this is controlled.

Daily DIFFERENTIAL backups are taken to local storage disk arrays, then

moved to tape media, labeled, sorted and stored in offsite fire-proof

cabinets with proper security. Access to this is controlled.

While no backup strategy can guarantee 100% data integrity, the My Learning Plan backup strategy described above, ensures that in the event of an emergency, there is either no loss or minimal loss of work and also


makes recovery possible in the shortest possible time.

System Management and Database Integration

32. Describe how updates and enhancements are implemented, including Minnesota mandated requirements.

New features and enhancements are routinely added to our products, and

all products undergo a “core-component” upgrade about once per quarter.

Other updates are applied on a monthly basis (or as-needed, when special

circumstances require it).

Our Vice President of Educational Services, along with her team, is

responsible for ensuring that MyLearningPlan OASYS meets the various

state requirements. Upgrades are routinely made to OASYS to meet

emerging state requirements.

In addition, there are several customer feedback processes in place. All

development priorities are defined by customer requests and state

requirements. Customer feedback is gathered through:

Customer Support Questions: All customer support questions are

categorized and achieved. They are routinely reviewed by the

customer support team to identify common questions or confusion,

and areas where the system can be simplified or additional HELP

can be provided.

HELP System Searches: The MyLearningPlan HELP system tracks all

searches and page views. The Support team is able to identify those

features where users most often refer to the HELP system. The

team works with Development to identify ways of simplifying the

end user experience for those functions.

User Group Meetings: MyLearningPlan and OASYS User Group

meetings are scheduled at least one time each year in geographic

locations throughout the country. My Learning Plan customer

support representatives facilitate the meetings, which are designed

to introduce new features, gather feedback from customers,

promote customer sharing, and answer specific user questions.

Customer Calls: There is a system in place where each My Learning

Plan Inc. employee is asked to routinely reach out to customers to

“check-in,” answer any questions, gather feedback, and provide any

additional support necessary. These calls are all documented and

reviewed.

33. Software must be web delivered. Describe any restrictions.

MyLearningPlan OASYS is a web-delivered ASP solution.

34. Describe the Web environment, including communication speeds, backup and recovery

Web Environment: Hub & Spoke Data Access Layer Tier

All Web Server database access is conducted via proprietary Data Access component tier able to route database requests based upon


procedures, and disaster recovery procedures.

query types, server availability and performance.

The “HUB(s)” database servers are provided by the Primary or Secondary server as described above.

The “SPOKE(s)” database servers are provided by independent database servers with dedicated storage (copies) of the OLTP data synchronized under Transactional Replication.

This architecture allows for offloading reporting/lookup type database requests to as many SPOKE servers as necessary to maintain performance/scalability.

The backup procedures are outlined in the response to question #31 above.

Recovery Procedures

Due to the fact that there are multiple backups maintained by My Learning

Plan, it was necessary to ensure that the recovery procedures are well

documented and individuals properly identified. These individuals who are

system administrators are the first point of contact in case of an

emergency.

In short, the following is the Recovery Procedure:

1. In case of a local power outage at the DC, all data center systems are provided short term battery backup power until the power generator comes online (approx. 40 seconds). The transfer of power from local building to backup generator, and back; is completely automatic. The diesel generator at the DC is maintained and tested once per month with a four-five day fuel reserve and run-time capacity. The downtime/recovery in this case would be immediate. Guaranteed Fuel Contracts ensure long term run times if necessary.

2. In case of a Database Server crash, the local warm standby/replication server is immediately used and the crashed database server is repaired and the reverse replication is started. This local recovery from failed database server to warm standby database server can be completed in approximately four-six hours.

3. In case of a Web Server crash, the failed server is removed from the web server cluster and replaced with a hot standby server. Reason for server failure is determined, repairs are made or the server is replace and returned to service as the new hot standby. Since the web application cluster is fully load balanced, no single server failure would down the site. The downtime/recovery in this case would be measured in minutes.

4. In case of a serious situation, wherein the DC is not available or accessible, the backup servers are used in the following manner:

o Web and Database servers at the DC are brought online and DNS is reconfigured to route customers to the DC systems.


o Customers are informed via email or telephone to the named contact in the event extended downtime situation. The chances of all backups going bad or being inaccessible is very slim due

to data storage duplication and host server systems.

35. Software must operate on multiple platforms including OS and Windows operating systems, iPads, iPhones, and Androids. Please describe the platform environments on which the product will run.

Browser Requirements:

The following includes the following minimum web browser requirements

for using My Learning Plan systems:

PC Users:

Internet Explorer version 7.0 and higher

FireFox version 3.0 and higher

Google Chrome

Apple Safari version 4 and higher Mac Users:

FireFox version 3.0 and higher

Apple Safari version 4 and higher

Google Chrome

Note: Admin users must use FireFox for certain roster/enrollment features.

Please note that other conventional browsers have been used with MyLearningPlan systems with no reported issues. MobileView

The MyLearningPlan OASYS MobileView provides a mobile interface for

scheduling observations and conferences, completing forms, and reviewing

data from any mobile device using Apple or Android platforms. Functions

and page layouts are formatted specifically for mobile devices. Supported

mobile devices include iPad, iPhone, iTouch and all Android devices.


My Learning Plan OASYS MobileView

36. Describe the process for testing new versions/upgrades prior to them being rolled out.

The testing and quality control processes for these enhancements make use

of established “Use-Case Scenarios” (a commonly accepted technique for

documenting software and performing quality assurance tests). The extent

of the testing depends largely on the type of change being added.

For Upgrades/Enhancements that affect the displaying of data/information

only (applied as needed):

Changes are applied to a development server.

Development and customer support staff review and test the proposed change using various clients (Mac, PC).

The change is posted to production servers.

For Upgrades/Enhancement that affect the writing/reading of data (applied

monthly):


Development and customer support staff review and test the proposed change using established “Use Case Scenarios” for the feature-set being upgraded.

SQL statements are carefully reviewed by the database administrator.

The change is posted to production.

For Upgrades/Enhancement that affect the core components (applied

quarterly):

All development activities are frozen.


Development and customer support staff review and test the entire site using established “Use-Case Scenarios.”

Any bugs/problems are reviewed and fixed.

Development and customer support staff review and test the entire site using established “Use-Case Scenarios.” This process continues until all bugs/issues are resolved.

When posting to production severs, only one of the clustered servers is taken off-line and upgraded. The development team will review and test the entire site on that single off-line server using the established “Use-Case Scenarios”.

The remaining servers in the cluster are then upgraded.

For Upgrades/Enhancements that affect hardware/hosting infrastructure

performance (reviewed, applied as needed):

Database Server Performance metrics


(Disk/Memory/CPU/Network) are collected at five minute intervals, recorded and reviewed daily/weekly/monthly.

Web Server Performance metrics (Disk/Memory/CPU/Network) are collected at five minute interval, recorded and reviewed daily/weekly/monthly.

Network Performance metrics (Bandwidth/Throughput/Utilization) are collected at 5 minute interval, recorded and reviewed daily/weekly/monthly.

Response Times for all Web/DB/Network connections are recorded and reviewed daily/weekly/monthly.

Performance Alerts for all critical infrastructure components are triggered by preset thresholds and sent to Administrators via email/pager, as well as real-time monitoring during normal business hours.

Web Server availability and scalability is obtained using multiple, independent SMP server systems connected together using virtual IP addressing, and network load balancing features. Additional servers are readily available, and can be added to increase horizontal scalability of the web server farm as needed.

It should be noted that Web and Database Servers are provisioned and operated as separate/dedicated physical servers. Web and Database Servers are not run concurrently on any single physical server.

37. Describe the process of involving MSC employee(s) in the testing, training and implementation of new versions/upgrades prior to them being rolled out.

All major enhancements are deployed and tested on our development servers prior to being released to production servers. SEC employees will have access to the development server to test new features and provide feedback, prior to general deployment.

38. Describe the process of implementing a new MSC client into the system (e.g. approximate timelines, customer service that will be provided during implementation, how long the setup time will be until the customer will be fully operational).

Outlined below is a general timeline for MyLearningPlan OASYS implementation and training. The timeframes are approximate, and can be adjusted based upon individual district needs.

MyLearningPlan OASYS Proposed Implementation Schedule

Timeframe Task Description Responsible Party

TBD Contract Award

District Personnel

First week Configuration Meeting / System Operator Training

Overall review of OASYS configuration options

Review the process for configuring the forms and system options

System operators are trained throughout the process

District System Operators and MLP Team


First or second week

Technical Staff Meeting

Discuss with district technical team data import, export and single sign-on options

District and MLP Technical Staff

Weekly, or as needed

Regular configuration trainings

Weekly follow-up remote meetings are recommended to provide additional training, tweak site configuration and answer any questions

District Configuration Staff and MLP Team

Third or fourth week

Train Evaluators

Provide evaluators with logins and remote training modules on evaluation process. Schedule remote administrative training led by MLP team

District Personnel and MLP Team

Third or fourth week

Implement data integration

Implement data integration as determined by the MLP team and district technical staff

District and MLP Technical Staff

Fourth or fifth week

Train Staff Provide staff with login information and remote training tutorials for accessing their evaluation data

District Personnel

Fifth week OASYS Roll-out

Roll-out OASYS district-wide or to specific users

District Personnel

Spring Evaluation Finalization Training

Remote training for configuration staff and evaluators to review end of year processes and finalization of evaluation cycles

District Personnel and MLP Team

39. Describe the ability to manage user permissions, especially the ability to set up accounts for district administrators to configure, monitor, and administer the system for the entire district from one login ID. Also describe the ability for creating, editing, and deleting unlimited number of user accounts and user security profiles.

User accounts and permissions are managed by the district-designated system operator. The system operator(s) are those few individuals in a district with rights to configure all aspects of the system from their single login. Individual user accounts can be added or edited in the following ways: LDAP Integration: An LDAP Authentication feature is available to My Learning Plan customers. This feature makes it possible for users to access My Learning Plan using their familiar network username and password.

MyLearningPlan Data Exchange: Data can be automatically uploaded from the District’s information management systems to MyLearningPlan systems using the MLP Data Exchange API Manual Entry: System operators can add or edit user accounts from within the MyLearningPlan OASYS system.

40. Describe how users, passwords, and roles are managed within the

My Learning Plan supports both Active Directory and LDAP for user account creation. The LDAP / Active Directory account creation process requires specific data be transferred in order to create the MyLearningPlan accounts.


system. If applicable, describe the system support for the use of LDAP or Active Directory for authentication.

There are no additional costs associated with using LDAP or Active Directory services. As a robust and mature platform, MyLearningPlan offers great flexibility in

processes and protocols for secure passwords and logins. We can support a

wide variety of methods including:

HTTP Basic Authentication

HTTPS Server Authentication

Single Sign-On via LDAP

Single Sign-On via Active Directory

Single Sign-On via SAML

We find that many users wish to access the site from any device, including

smart phones, iPads, other Internet tablets, etc. For this reason, we prefer

to use one of the methods listed above, which requires no special

configuration of a user’s device.

41. List those Student Information Systems (SIS) (e.g. PowerSchool, Skyward, TIES Student Information System, etc.) with which the Vendor has integration experience. Describe the level of integration available.

MyLearningPlan OASYS integrates with various systems using the MyLearningPlan Data Exchange Tool. The MLP Data Exchange tool transfers data from the Districts system to MyLearningPlan systems on a regularly scheduled basis through a secure XML transfer. A dedicated computer is needed at the District location on which the MLP Extender client software is installed. The computer also needs access to the Internet and the District’s information management system. XML is a powerful, platform-independent technology suitable for transferring data between disparate systems. XML is used by the School Interoperability Frameworks organization as a standard for transferring data items between School applications, and thus is suitable for transferring data between record management systems like MyLearningPlan OASYS and other educational organizations.

42. List other databases/systems with which the Vendor has integration experience (e.g. Payroll/HR).

Using the MyLearningPlan Data Exchange API, MyLearningPlan OASYS has been integrated with a wide variety of HR, payroll, student systems, calendaring systems, etc.


Financing and Marketing Options - Pricing Structure

43. Describe pricing structure. Describe whether each cost is one-time, annually renewable, or other structure. Specify charges, such as

product costs,

startup costs,

training costs,

database integration costs,

professional development modules,

customer support costs, etc.

MyLearningPlan OASYS

Observation and Appraisal System

MyLearningPlan OASYS One Time Fee

MLP OASYS Setup and Configuration Fee

(charged per district)

$1,500

per

district

MyLearningPlan OASYS Annual Subscription Fees

# of Users

in District

MLP OASYS Annual Subscription Fee

(charged per year)

$12 per subscription (user)

$TBD

MyLearningPlan ELEVATE (Optional)

Evaluator Training and Certification & Teacher PD

#of Users

in District

MLP ELEVATE Annual Subscription Fee

(charged per year)


$TBD

Data Integration Services Included N/C

Remote Training/Support Included N/C

Other Services (Optional)

Onsite Support $1,500/

day

ETS Classroom Video Library Annual

Subscription Fee

(charged per year)

$3 per subscription (user) (Must be purchased based on total number of teachers /

district)

$TBD


44. Specify separate pricing options for various system modules, e.g. Observation, Evaluation and Professional Development components.

Observation / Evaluation System

MyLearningPlan OASYS is a complete system that manages both

observations and evaluations. Therefore, it is purchase as a complete system

and users can choose to configure it for observations only, evaluations, or

both.

One-Time Set- up and Configuration Fee:

$1,500

per

district

# of

Users in

District

MLP OASYS Annual Subscription Fee

(charged per year)


$TBD

Professional Development Components

My Learning Plan Inc. does not provide professional development modules.

However, the following tools are used for professional development:

# of

Users in

District

MyLearningPlan ELEVATE

Evaluator Training and Certification and Teacher PD

MLP ELEVATE Annual Subscription Fee

(charged per year)


$TBD

# of

Users in

District

ETS Classroom Video Library

Professional Learning Resource

ETS Video Library Annual Subscription Fee

(charged per year)

$3 per subscription (user) (Must be purchased based on total number of teachers /

district)

$TBD

45. Include pricing for one, two, and three years of a contract.

There are no mulit-year discounts. However, the pricing above is guaranteed for three years.

46. Describe the volume discount being quoted

The standard district pricing for MyLearningPlan OASYS is $3,000 setup and configuration fee and $15 / user subscription fee.


for this regional proposal. Provide examples of difference between independent district retail pricing and consortium pricing.

Pricing for this consortium (pricing from My Learning Plan Inc. to SEC) is $1,500 setup and $12 / user subscription fee. Pricing for each year is per district, based on the number of subscribers per district.

47. Marketing Plan. Describe your marketing strategy.

In conjunction with the SEC, My Learning Plan Inc. Marketing Efforts may include, but are not limited to:

State Mailings to Districts

Regional Mailings to Districts

Remote Webinars/Demos for Districts

Onsite Marketing Events as needed

48. Marketing Arrangements. Describe options for marketing and distribution arrangements – that is, outline the potential roles of the Service Cooperative and outline details about remuneration to the contracting Service Cooperative.

My Learning Plan Inc. will assume all marketing costs, such as the design, printing and postage for mailings, travel for My Learning Plan staff for onsite events, rental fees and refreshments associated with onsite events. My Learning Plan staff will facilitate all onsite and remote events. Suggested participation from the SEC staff would include developing potential participant lists and sending out email event reminders.

49. Administrative Fee. Outline the administrative fee payable to the contracting Service Cooperative for consortium management, invoicing, marketing, training, and any other roles expected of the Service Cooperative.

It is recommended that the SEC increase the fees charged to districts for configuration and subscription. The increased fees are then used to cover SEC administrative fees. The chart below compares the pricing and outlines the fees to be collected by SEC to cover administrative costs.

MLP List Prices

MLP Pricing to SEC

SEC Pricing to Districts

Fees to cover SEC Admin Costs

MLP OASYS Configuration

$3,000 / district

$1,500 / district

$2,500 / district

$1,000 / district

MLP OASYS Subscription

$15 / user $12 / user $14 / user $1 / user

MLP Elevate Subscription

$6 / user $5 / user $5.50/ user $.50 / user

Signature: Date: 1/9/2013

Print Name: __Elizabeth Combs________ Title: President

12/27/2012



REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) by the Minnesota Service Cooperatives

Educator Observation and Evaluation Software Professional Development Components

Attachment #3 Vendor Statement of Qualifications

VENDOR STATEMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS

Company Name: My Learning Plan Inc. Phone Number: 800-287-4432

Company Address: 3500 Sunrise Highway Fax Number: 631-859-9780

Great River, NY 11739 Contact Name: Jennifer Walter

Contact Title: Vice President of Sales

Company website: www.mylearningplan.com Email: [email protected]

Number of years in business: 10

Company’s financial rating: DUNS or Bank reference (or the name and address of bank where company’s

commercial account is located):

HSBC

25 Nugent Street

Southampton, NY 1168


List three (3) current or recent EDUCATIONAL clients for reference purposes.

Minnesota school references are preferred.

Client Data Description and Date of Service

Name: Wayzata Public Schools 7/21/2012 MyLearningPlan OASYS Implementation

Address: 305 Vicksburg Lane N Plymouth, MN 55447

Manage scheduling, record keeping and reporting of all components of the evaluation process for teachers, principals, administrators and non-instructional staff.

Phone Number: 763-745-5000

Contact Name: Brad Anderson

Name: Gilbert Public Schools 7/21/2007 MyLearningPlan OASYS Implementation

Address: 140 S. Gilbert Road Gilbert, AZ 85296

Manage scheduling, record keeping and reporting of all components of the evaluation process for teachers, principals, administrators and non-instructional staff.

Phone Number: 480-497-3300 ext 350

Contact Name: Andrew Szczepaniak

Name: Cooperative Educational Service Agency 6 2/10/12 MyLearningPlan Contract Executed

Address: PO Box 2568 Oshkosh, WI 54903-2568

Partner with the Cooperative Educational Service Agency 6 (CESA 6) in Wisconsin to create a web-based Teacher Evaluation System to be used to support the CESA 6 Effectiveness Project. The My Learning Plan team worked to configure MyLearningPlan OASYS to support the multiple measures that comprise educator evaluations, which include the collection of observation data, student growth scores, and student achievement data. The online system calculates a final composite score based upon these three components.

Phone Number: 920-236-0558

Contact Name: Cheryl M. Malaha

Signature: Title: President Date: 1/9/2013

12/27/2012

tel:920-236-0558


Appendix A: Additional Information

Report Samples

Rubric Explorer

Rubric Explorer Example: Heat map showing all selections on a specific rubric. Darker colors indicate

greater number of selections on that cell. They numbers in each cell indicate the distribution of

selections.


Growth Explorer

Growth Explorer Example: Heat map displaying selections on a multiple select question, over time.


Admin View Report

Admin View Report: Report displaying current status of all evaluation elements.


Composite Score Report

Sample Composite Score Report: Completely configurable composite score report for an individual.


Case Study

CASE STUDY

Cooperative Educational Service Agency 6, WI (CESA 6) Contract Start Date: 2012

My Learning Plan Inc. has partnered with the Cooperative Educational Service Agency 6 (CESA 6) in Wisconsin to create a web-based Teacher Evaluation System to be used to support the CESA 6 Effectiveness Project.

The My Learning Plan team worked to configure MyLearningPlan OASYS to support the multiple measures that comprise educator evaluations, which include the collection of observation data, student growth scores, and student achievement data. The online system calculates a final composite score based upon these three components.

An additional challenge of the project was an immediate need to implement a solution to coincide with the release of the CESA 6 Effectiveness Project Professional Evaluation System.

CESA required fast-track release of the technology solution supporting their evaluation system, so as to coincide with the state-wide trainings on their Effectiveness Project. All of the project components and forms were developed within OASYS to support evidence collection, documentation, and observation records for the system, and all components were in place in time for the rollout and release of the system to the participating school districts across the state.

The Original goal was to sign on 20 districts within CESA 6. CESA 6, received approval from the Wisconsin CESA Statewide Network (CSN), a cooperative of all 12 WI CESA regions which promotes products and services statewide. The CSN continues to support our efforts as well as the WI Department of Public Instruction.

Wisconsin has 12 Cooperative Educational Service Agency (CESA) regions. At the CESA 6 June training, districts from six CESAs (including CESA 6) attended the trainings. In addition, 10 of the 12 CESAs sent representatives to the June Trainer of Trainers sessions and are now ready to roll-out to their regions.

CESA 6 has districts statewide within 10 CESA regions that have signed onto the system. Statewide, Wisconsin has a total of 426 school districts (including independent charter schools). Currently, there are 82 public school districts on board as well as the Green Bay Area Catholic Education System (GRACE) which serves 2,800 students pre-school through Grade 8 at 10 schools sponsored by 23 area parishes. Additionally, there are 26 school districts within CESA 8 that are planning to come aboard shortly. CESA 6 expects the number of districts involved with the project, and using MyLearningPlan OASYS, to continue to increase through September of 2013.

At this time, CESA 6 staff is working to implement MyLearningPlan Elevate as the evaluator certification and training tool used to support their project goals.


My Learning Plan Inc. Awards

2012 CODiE Award Winner – Best K-12 Enterprise Solution

2012 eSchool News Readers Choice Award

The 2012-13 eSchool News Readers’ Choice Awards recognize the educational technology products and services that have had the greatest impact in readers’ schools.


2011 Tech & Learning Award of Excellence

Tech & Learning highlights innovative education technology products in its prestigious 29-year-old recognition program. Honored applications are the best of the year as selected by a panel of more than 30 educators who look for edtech products that improve teaching and learning, inspire teachers, as well as meet today’s assessment and standards requirements.

2011 District Administrator Top 100 Products

Each year, school district administrators are invited to submit a nomination depicting how an educational product has made a positive difference in their district during the past year.

http://www.techlearning.com/index


2011 Scholastic “Best in Tech Today” Winner


Scholastic “Best in Tech” (continued)


Stronge & Associates: Stronge Effectiveness Performance Evaluation Systems

As noted in our response, while MyLearningPlan OASYS is rubric-agnostic, we have developed a partnership with Stronge & Associates. We believe that the Stronge Effectiveness Performance Evaluation System for teachers, educational specialists, leaders and superintendents is one of the most effective and feasible evaluation frameworks available. For organizations that use both MyLearningPlan OASYS and the Stronge framework, the forms and rubrics are pre-loaded into the system. Additional information can be found at www.strongeandassociates.com

http://www.strongeandassociates.com/

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