Modules and Settings
District Administrators configure which features (modules) are available and how they behave (settings). School Administrators can override some settings if the district allows it.
Modules
Modules are features that can be enabled or disabled. Some are required, others optional.
Required Modules
These are always active:
- Artifacts — Evidence documents and files
- Prompt Bank — Pre-defined questions for observations and reflections
- Student Growth Goal Achievement — End-of-year growth results, for both teacher and principal evaluations
- Student Growth Goal Setting — Goal setting conference and goals, for teacher evaluations only
- Summative — End-of-year evaluation and final reports
- Report Archives — Access to completed evaluation reports
- Observations — Required for teacher evaluations and can't be disabled; optional for principal evaluations (see below)
Optional Modules
Districts can enable or disable these:
| Module | Default | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Observations (principal evaluations only) | Off | Optional for principal evaluations. Required and always on for teacher evaluations. |
| Self Assessments | On | Evaluatee reflection (not included in Summative) |
| Mid Year | Off | Mid-year review checkpoint |
| Resources | On | Documents and links available in evaluations |
| Training Videos | On | Video resources from BERC Group |
For each optional module, the DA can allow schools to override the district default.
Key Settings
These are the settings administrators most commonly configure.
Workflow Mode (Simple vs. Formal)
Controls whether the evaluatee must review and acknowledge before a report is sealed.
| Setting | Modules Affected | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Use Simple Workflow | Observations | Formal |
| Use Simple Workflow | Summative | Formal |
| Use Simple Workflow for Goal Setting | Student Growth | Simple |
| Use Simple Workflow for Goal Achievement | Student Growth | Simple |
Formal mode (default for Observations and Summative): After submission, the evaluatee reviews and acknowledges the report within eVAL before it's locked, creating a documented sign-off.
Simple mode (default for Student Growth): The evaluator submits and the report is immediately archived and locked. The evaluatee is notified and can view it, but isn't part of the final submission.
:::tip Choosing a Mode This is a district policy question, not a workflow-efficiency one: for each evidence collection, does your district want the evaluatee's sign-off recorded in eVAL before the report is locked?
Choose Formal where your district's process calls for a documented acknowledgement. Choose Simple where sign-off happens some other way — for example, when the evaluator and evaluatee meet in person to review the report together, and a separate acknowledgement in eVAL would be redundant. :::
See Completion Modes for details.
Scoring Options
Controls whether rubric scoring is available during evidence collection.
| Setting | Who It Affects | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Allow Rubric Scoring (Observations) | Evaluators | Enabled |
| Allow Rubric Scoring (Self Assessments) | Evaluatees | Enabled |
| Allow Focused Rubric Component Scoring | Evaluators | Disabled |
When disabled, the scoring interface doesn't appear for that evidence type.
See Scoring in eVAL for how scoring works.
Assignment Delegation
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| Assignments Delegated | When enabled, School Admins and principals get edit access to the Assignments screen for their school. When disabled, only District Admins manage assignments. |
Default: Disabled (District Admin assigns all).
Summative Requirements
These settings control what evaluators must complete before finalizing a Summative.
| Setting | What It Requires | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Criteria Statement of Performance Required | Written statement for each criterion | Disabled |
| Next Year Plan Type Required | Proposed plan type for next year | Disabled |
| Evaluator Final Recommendation Required | Final recommendation text | Disabled |
Focused Evaluation Settings
| Setting | What It Controls | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Carry Forward Years Limit | How many years scores can carry forward before requiring a new Comprehensive | 6 years |
| Allow Focused Rubric Component Scoring | Whether evaluators can score components in Focused evaluations | Disabled |
Critical Attributes (Danielson Only)
For districts using the Danielson Framework:
| Setting | What It Controls | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Critical Attributes Enabled | Show critical attributes in rubric displays | Enabled |
| Critical Attributes Reference Only | Display as reference text only (vs. checkable items) | Enabled |
Teacher vs. Principal Differences
| Feature | Teachers | Principals |
|---|---|---|
| Observations | Required module | Optional module |
| Student Growth Goal Setting | Yes | Not used |
| Student Growth Goal Achievement | Yes | Yes — with the option to use the revised AWSP rubric descriptor text |
| Critical Attributes | Available (Danielson) | Not applicable |
Settings Inheritance
Settings follow an inheritance pattern:
- District settings are the baseline
- School settings can override (where allowed)
- Settings apply based on the evaluator's position, not the evaluatee's
See How Settings Are Inherited for details.
Related Topics
- How Workflows Work — Simple vs. Formal completion modes
- How Settings Are Inherited — District and school configuration
- Scoring in eVAL — How scoring works
- Start of Year Setup — When to configure settings