5D Assessment – FAQs

What does the assessment include?

You will be asked to watch a video of classroom practice and enter a written response to three open-ended questions.  Before the video plays, you will complete several preliminary steps.

1.    Participant Permission Agreement.  You will be asked to read CEL’s Participant Permission Agreement and indicate your agreement.  If you do not agree to the Participant Permission Agreement, please contact the person in your district or organization who is coordinating the 5D Assessment (the Assessment Contact Person) to discuss alternatives.

2.    Test Video.  Next, you will see a test video.  In order to see and hear the video clearly, you will need a high-speed Internet connection and the most recent version of Adobe Flash Player.  See the assessment Technical Requirements below for more detailed information.

3.    Demographic Survey.  After the test video, please complete CEL’s short demographic survey, filling it out as completely as possible.  The accuracy of the information you provide will help us to improve the assessment.  Except for the purpose of reporting to your district, any use of the information you provide will be anonymous.

4.    Ready to Begin Assessment.  Once your computer has successfully played the test video, you will be ready to begin the assessment.  Please note:  You will be able to pause the video, in case of interruptions, but you will not have any other video controls.  Assessment videos range from 15 to 20 minutes in length, so please take care of your personal needs before continuing.

5.    Video Excerpt of Classroom Practice.  You will watch a video excerpt of real classroom practice.  Please imagine that this classroom is in your school or district, and that you are walking into the lesson while it is in progress.  The counter in the bottom-right corner shows the elapsed time since the start of the lesson.  Note:  During the lesson, you may take notes for use as reference when answering the assessment questions about what you saw.

6.    Respond to Three Questions.  When the video ends, you will be asked to enter a written response to three questions:

  • What do you notice about teaching and learning in this classroom?
  • What conversation would you want to have with this teacher
  • How, if at all, does this inform your thinking about and planning for professional development?

Please be as thorough as possible.  There is no time limit on writing your response to the assessment questions.  Note:  Spelling and grammar are not considered during rating.

If you would like to keep a copy of what you have written for your own information, please copy and paste your response into a Word or other document before you click the Submit button, and then save the document for your future use.

7.    Rating / Scoring.  Each assessment is analyzed by two trained raters, who are highly experienced instructional leaders.  Assessments are rated using a research-based rubric developed by University of Washington faculty and Project Directors at the Center for Educational Leadership.  

For information about assessment results, please check with your district’s or organization’s Assessment Contact Person.

Can I review the Participant Permission Agreement before I take the assessment?

Yes, here is the complete text of the Participant Permission Agreement.  Note:  If you do not agree to the Participant Permission Agreement, please contact your district’s or organization’s Assessment Contact Person to discuss alternatives.

Participant Permission Agreement

You have been selected by your organization (“Organization”) to participate in the 5D Instructional Leadership Assessment (“5D Assessment”) developed by the University of Washington’s Center for Educational Leadership (“CEL”).  The 5D Assessment is a professional development tool provided under license by the University of Washington by CEL to your Organization.

The results and data from the 5D Assessment will be supplied by CEL to your Organization and may be used by CEL in ongoing 5D Assessment activities.  When the 5D Assessment is used for candidate screening, individual results are returned to the Organization.  For other uses, data will be aggregated and anonomized unless your Organization has requested individual results.  If you have questions about your Organization’s use of data, please contact the Organization’s authorized representative.  The contact information is included in the initial email you received from your Organization.

Your participation in the 5D Assessment requires your agreement to the following terms:

Participation Agreement

  • I agree that my name and results of my participation in the 5D Assessment shall be shared with my Organization.
  • I agree that my Organization shall be the sole contact for information and results of the 5D Assessment.
  • I agree that I will not request or receive information related to the 5D Assessment from CEL.
  • I agree that CEL may include my aggregated and demographic and assessment data in the development and distribution of the 5D Assessment in all forms and media and for all purposes, including educational and commercial, throughout the world and in perpetuity.
  • I acknowledge that the University of Washington shall be the owner of the intellectual property associated with the 5D Assessment, and I agree that the University of Washington shall have sole control over use, licensing and revenue or other benefit that may arise in association with the use or as a result of licensing or disposition of the 5D Assessment and that I will receive no compensation, now or in the future, for my participation.
  • I grant my permission for the University of Washington to use my name in connection with the 5D Assessment, solely to identify results related to my assessment and to disclose my participation in the 5D Assessment to my Organization’s authorized representatives.  I do not have any obligations that do not allow me to grant these permissions.

How do I get started?  I’ve been told by someone in my district that I will be taking the 5D assessment today during a certain time period.


If you will be taking the 5D Assessment individually, at a time of your own choosing (rather than in a group session), you will receive an email from edlead@u.washington.edu on the morning of the first day of the assessment window.  The subject line of the email will be 5D Assessment Notification.  The email will contain instructions and a link to log in to the 5D Assessment. 

If you do not receive the notification email by noon on the first day of the assessment window, please check your junk mailbox.  If the email is not there either, please contact support staff at CEL. 

If you will be taking the 5D Assessment in a group session, your district’s or organization’s Assessment Contact Person will provide you with log-in instructions.
 

What do I do if I’m having trouble logging in?

If you are having trouble following the link in your 5D Assessment Notification email:

  1. Request a new password

    Note:  If you are using Internet Explorer, click No in the Security Warning pop-up box that will appear after you click the Request link.
    security warning
  2. After resetting your password, go to CEL’s homepage: www.k-12leadership.org.  Click the LOGIN button on the right side of the black menu bar.
    login button
     
  3. Log in on the User Account page using your username (provided in the 5D Assessment Notification email) and your new password.
     
  4. Upon log-in, your browser should be redirected to the first page of the 5D Assessment.  If not, see below.

If you logged in successfully, but your browser has not started the 5D Assessment:

  1. From CEL’s homepage, www.k-12leadership.org, go to Services on the black menu bar and click 5 Dimensions of Teaching and Learning on the drop-down menu.
     
  2. In the purple column on the left side of the screen, click Video Assessment.

     
  3. If these steps do not connect you to the first page of the assessment, contact support staff at CEL. 
     

How should I prepare to take the 5D assessment?

If you will be taking the 5D Assessment individually, at a time of your own choosing (rather than in a group session):

  • Reserve at least an hour when you will be able to focus on the assessment without being interrupted.
  • Make sure that your computer and Internet connection meet the assessment’s technical requirements. 
  • Have paper and a pencil or pen on hand to take notes as you watch the video.
     

How much time does the assessment take?

The 5D Assessment typically takes from 45 to 90 minutes to complete.  There is no time limit on writing your responses to the three questions you will be asked to answer.  Please be as thorough as you can and know that spelling and grammar will not be considered during rating.
 

What are the technical requirements for my computer and Internet connection?

The technical requirements for the computer and Internet connection you will use to take the assessment are:

Operating system:

  • Windows 7  or
  • Windows XP  or
  • Windows Vista  or
  • MAC OS X

Internet browser (with cookies and Java script enabled):

  • IE 7 or IE8  or
  • Firefox 3  or
  • Safari  3

Adobe Flash Player 8 or higher
You can follow this link if you need to upgrade your version of Adobe Flash Player. 

Internet connection with a minimum bandwidth of:

  • 350 kilo bits per second per video

Hardware:

  • sound card
  • speaker

If your computer and/or Internet connection do not meet the technical requirements to run the 5D assessment, or if you are not sure, please contact technical support personnel in your district or organization.

Note:  If you are uncertain about the stability of your Internet connection, you may want to compose your assessment response in a text or Word document, and then copy and paste it into the response box in the online assessment window.
 

Can I keep a copy of the response I write in the assessment?

Yes.  If you would like to keep a copy of what you have written for your own information, please copy and paste your response into a Word or other document before you click the Submit button, and then save it for your future use.
 

How are the responses rated / scored?

Each assessment is analyzed by two trained raters, who are highly experienced instructional leaders.  Assessments are rated using a research-based rubric developed by University of Washington faculty and Project Directors at the Center for Educational Leadership.  

For information about assessment results, please check with your district’s or organization’s Assessment Contact Person.
 

What do the 5D Assessment scores represent?

The 5D Assessment Lesson Analysis Rubric captures multiple dimensions of what expert observers of teaching and learning pay attention to.  The rubric differentiates novice from expert instructional leadership practice along each of these dimensions.

Important considerations when reviewing 5D Assessment scores include:

  • One measure of expertise.  The 5D Assessment is only one measure of expertise.  It is not representative of a leader’s overall instructional leadership practice.
  • Not a report card.  The 5D Assessment scores are a placement of expertise, not an “A”, “B”, “C” grading scale.
  • High scores do not preclude improvement.  Regardless of reaching a “4,” all instructional leaders can continue to develop their expertise.
  • Everyone can improve.  All instructional leaders can build upon their current knowledge and skill to develop and increase their expertise.
     

How can I contact a support person?  I have a question(s) these FAQs have not answered.

Support staff are available at the University of Washington Center for Educational Leadership (CEL) in Seattle during regular Pacific time zone business hours:

Monday–Friday:    8am – 5pm PST/PDT    9am – 6pm MST/MDT    10am – 7pm CST/CDT    11am – 8pm EST/EDT

CEL's toll free number is:  (866) 577-8066.  CEL's local number is: (206) 221-6881.

You can also send an email to:  edlead@uw.edu.

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CEL 5D Assessment Orientation Slideshow