The following topics were discussed during the Georgia Professional Standards Commission's ("GaPSC") monthly meeting in March 2016.
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Ethics Division
A teacher who allegedly cursed in front of students, left campus without permission and resigned without providing sufficient notice received a suspension for 30 days.
An educator accused of providing false information on her employment application received a reprimand. In mitigation, it appears the school district was aware of the incorrect information but still hired that educator.
After a vigorous discussion, the Commission found no probable cause to sanction the certificate of an educator accused of posting a picture on Facebook of a pregnant Barbie doll with three African-American children, with an accompanying caption stating "baby daddies can be purchased separately, EBT cards accepted" or words to that effect. While there was community outrage and the superintendent "lost confidence" in that educator, the educator claims his or her account was hacked. Ultimately, the GaPSC staff didn't believe it could disprove that assertion. This matter led to further discussion about how the GaPSC should handle social media cases now and in the future. The Commission acknowledged it is often difficult to determine when, exactly, one's social media activities should affect her certification.
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Certification and Educator Preparation Divisions
The GaPSC staff shared an update on the new professional learning requirements for certification, which will be implemented beginning July 1, 2017. Among the highlights:
- PLUs have been suspended through June 30, 2017, and will be phased out.
- Under the new system, workshops will be de-emphasized. There will be more focus on collaboration between educators.
- Under the new system, teachers will either have Professional Learning Goals (PLGs) or Professional Learning Plans (PLPs). PLGs will be implemented for teachers who've earned overall Proficient, Satisfactory or higher ratings on their summative evaluations. PLPs will be for teachers who've received overall ratings below Proficient or Satisfactory on their summative evaluations. PLPs will also be used for educators with Induction-level certificates, educators with non-renewable certificates, educators in "new positions" (i.e. different certification fields), those returning to the profession after an absence of at least one year, and educators who are new to Georgia.
- Districts may track professional learning using whatever methods they choose.
The GaPSC will have a professional learning page on its website in the near future.
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