The Unit’s Conceptual Framework identifies Domain IV Pedagogy as an important skill-based area for mastery. Candidates must not only know what to teach, they must be able to apply their professional and pedagogical knowledge and skills to facilitate student learning. They must consider the school, family, and community contexts in which teachers work, and take into consideration the prior experience of students to develop meaningful learning experiences. Candidates are expected to demonstrate the following proficiency for this Domain: “The candidate demonstrates skills that are associated with the successful execution of the responsibilities of the profession.” The Competencies that derive from this Proficiency are that the Candidate: 1. Plans and implements procedures and routines that create a classroom environment that is
safe and conducive to learning, and that demonstrates commitment to students’ personal
development and academic success
2. Organizes appropriate and well-designed lesson and Unit plans that contribute to students’
academic learning and their personal and social development
3. Employs a variety of instructional techniques, methods, and strategies that develop students’
critical and creative thinking skills, problem solving abilities, and ethical and responsible
behavior
4. Differentiates instruction based on the needs of diverse student populations, as determined
by learning styles and exceptionalities; and cultural, ethnic, and linguistic backgrounds
5. Uses a variety of appropriate assessment techniques to evaluate student learning, and
utilizes the results to modify instruction and to provide feedback to students and parents
6. Integrates emerging technologies and strategies across the curriculum Assessment data on the pedagogical skills of the Unit’s teacher Candidates is obtained through the following instruments and methods: 1) Lesson Plan Development Assessment; 2) Student Teaching Assessment; 3) Course Assessments; 4) Exit Survey of Program Completers; 5) Survey of Supervisors; 6) Survey of Cooperating Teachers; and 7) Interviews of Administrators. Lesson Plan Development Assessment: Pre-Clinical At the Pre-Clinical Gateway, successful development of a lesson plan is one of the factors that determine the eligibility of a Candidate for student teaching. At the completion of student teaching, Candidates are also expected to have demonstrated this skill. The same rubric is used at the pre-clinical and post-clinical stages to provide a formative assessment of the Candidate’s progress. The rubric is based on three criteria: Designing learning tasks; Use of appropriate resources; and Plan for Differentiation. Candidates are assessed on a three-point scale: Target Level of Mastery of the competency (3 points); Acceptable level of mastery (2 points); or an Unacceptable level of mastery (1 point). A copy of the rubric for this assessment can be found in the Exhibit Room. At the Pre-Clinical Gateway, Candidates are required to develop a lesson plan in each of their elementary or secondary methods courses. The elementary methods courses are ED221/413 Elementary Curriculum & Methods: Reading, Writing and Language Arts; ED223/430 Elementary Curriculum & Methods: Social Studies & health; and ED222/459 Elementary Curriculum & Methods: Mathematics and Science. Secondary methods courses are ED262/428 Secondary Curriculum and ED264/429 Secondary Methods in the Content Areas. Student performance on Developing Lesson Plans is recorded in the Competency Assessment Report (CAR) for each methods course. Average scores for the elementary and secondary methods courses are presented in Table 16 and Table 17. Successful completion of the lesson plans which demonstrate Candidate proficiency in the requirements of Domain IV – Pedagogy provide one of the measures that determine a Candidate’s eligibility for student teaching.
Standard 1 Table 16
Lesson Planning in Preclinical Elementary Methods Courses
Elementary | | Criteria
1 | Criteria
2 | Criteria
3 | Total | 221/413 | Average | 2.9 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 2.9 | | SD | .28 | .21 | .35 | .28 | | N | 105 | 105 | 105 | 105 | 222/459 | Average | 2.9 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 2.8 | | SD | .28 | .21 | .35 | .28 | | N | 140 | 140 | 140 | 140 | 223/430 | Average | 2.8 | 2.8 | 2.8 | 2.8 | | SD | .38 | .32 | .32 | .34 | | N | 103 | 103 | 103 | 103 | Overall | Average | 2.9 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 2.9 | | SD | .31 | .25 | .34 | .30 | | N | 348 | 348 | 348 | 348 |
Criteria 1 Designing Learning Tasks
Criteria 2 Use of Appropriate Resources
Criteria 3 Plan for DifferentiationStandard 1 Table 17
Lesson Planning in Preclinical Secondary
Secondary | | Criteria
1 | Criteria
2 | Criteria
3 | Total | 262/428 | Average | 2.9 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 2.9 | | SD | .19 | .14 | .25 | .19 | | N | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 264/429 | Average | 2.6 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | | SD | .46 | .38 | .37 | .40 | | N | 69 | 69 | 69 | 69 | Overall | Average | 2.7 | 2.8 | 2.8 | 2.8 | | SD | .32 | .26 | .31 | .29 | | N | 119 | 119 | 119 | 119 |
Criteria 1 Designing Learning Tasks
Criteria 2 Use of Appropriate Resources
Criteria 3 Plan for Differentiation Lesson Plan Development Assessment: Student Teaching As previously noted the Unit’s Clinical Assessment System (CAS) provides another key assessment of the subject matter knowledge of Candidates and is the foundation of the Unit’s Student Teaching assessment. The CAS is a course-embedded set of activities and evaluation forms that permit an assessment of a student teacher’s mastery of knowledge, skills and dispositions articulated in the Unit’s Conceptual Framework. In the student teaching experience Candidates work with a cooperating teacher, are supported by a university supervisor, and attend a weekly seminar conducted by University faculty. Candidates prepare extensive portfolio documents of both written and presented lesson/unit plans that are aligned with CCCT standards. The entire portfolio is reviewed by the university supervisor and the seminar instructor as part of the evaluation process using the Clinical Assessment System. The CAS includes also includes observations, feedback, self assessments, and preparation of a binder of evidence of meeting CCCT requirements including: clinical practice; content standards; pedagogical and professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions; and effect on student learning. It is the Unit’s contention that teachers must be able to apply their content knowledge in the classroom. Therefore, the Unit’s assessment system requires Candidates to be observed three times during their student teaching experience by a university supervisor. For each visit the Candidate writes a lesson plan, which includes information on how the content to be taught during the lesson is aligned with local (school, district) or national content standards. The results of the observations and evaluations of the lesson plans are also components of the Clinical Assessment System. The cooperating teacher uses the CAS to provide formative feedback on the Candidate’s knowledge, skills, dispositions, and effect on student learning at the midpoint of the Candidate’s student teaching. At the end of the student teaching experience, the cooperating teacher and the university supervisor use forms CAS11 (a), (b), (c) and (d) to conduct a summary assessment of the Candidate’s overall performance. CAS11(a) is used to assess the Candidate’s knowledge and the Candidate’s competency in Planning. CAS11(b) asks the cooperating teacher and university supervisor to assess the Candidate’s pedagogical skill in Instructing. CAS11(c) covers the Candidate’s effect on student learning and the Candidate’s abilities in Assessing student learning. CAS11(d) is used to assess the Candidate’s dispositions and understanding of Professional Responsibility. Table 18 presents aggregated data on the assessments made by cooperating teachers and university supervisors using a three-point scale (3=Above Average Mastery, 2=Average Mastery, and 1= Below Average) of the ability of Candidates in developing lesson plans which demonstrate knowledge of content standards as evaluated by cooperating teachers and university supervisors on form CAS11(a). Standard 1 Table 18:
Lesson Plan Development During Student Teaching
Elementary | | Criteria
1 | Criteria
2 | Criteria
3 | Total | CAS 11(a) | Average | 2.8 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 2.8 | | SD | .39 | .30 | .41 | .37 | | N | 89 | 89 | 89 | 89 | Secondary | | | | | | CAS11 (a) | Average | 2.8 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 2.8 | | SD | .30 | .20 | .30 | .27 | | N | 55 | 55 | 55 | 55 |
Criteria 1 Designing Learning Tasks
Criteria 2 Use of Appropriate Resources
Criteria 3 Plan for Differentiation Competency Assessment Reports Other assessment data used by the Unit to demonstrate that Candidates have broad professional knowledge and skills related to CCCT requirements include the use of Competency Assessment Reports (CAR) in all courses. These CARs have been aligned with the Unit’s Domains, Proficiencies, and Competencies, as well as with the CCCT for Teacher Preparation and Initial Certification Courses and with appropriate SPA standards for other professional school personnel. These alignment charts can be found in Appendix A. Program Completion Exit Survey Program Completers were administered an exit survey upon completion of student teaching, at the Program Completion Gateway. They responded to a twenty-one item questionnaire using a 3-point scale to indicate whether they were in “Agreement” (3 points), “Partial Agreement” (2 points) or “Disagreement” (1 point) with statements about the program’s efficacy in developing the requisite competencies. Two-hundred forty-five program completers were surveyed in Fall 2006 and Spring and Fall 2007. Based on the data presented in Table 19, the respondents demonstrated a moderate to high level of agreement that their certification program helped them to acquire Pedagogical Skills necessary for excellence in the classroom. A copy of the survey instrument can be found in the Exhibiit Room.
Standard 1 Table 19:
Exit Survey of Program Completers (N=245)
on Pedagogical Skills:
Fall 2006, Spring and Fall 2007
Pedagogical Skill Items | Average
Rating | 10. Develop skills in designing lessons and Unit plans. 11. Develop skills in teaching techniques, methods and strategies. 12. Develop skills in utilizing assessment methods and instruments. 13. Develop skills in managing learning environment. 14. Developed skills in differentiating instruction. 15. Developed skills in using instructional technology in the classroom. | 2.88 2.76 2.73 2.62 2.54 2.24 |
Mean of the Averages = 2.63 Program Completion Surveys of Cooperating Teachers and University Supervisors Two additional surveys were conducted to triangulate information on the Pedagogical Skills of program completers. The first survey was of cooperating teachers, and the second of university supervisors. In the surveys the respondents were asked to evaluate student teachers who had been assigned to them. Both instruments used in the surveys consisted of 12 items, seven of which measured program completers’ mastery of pedagogical skills on a rating scale of 1 to 3, with 1 signifying Unacceptable, 2 Acceptable, and 3 Target behaviors. A copy of the survey instrument can be found in the Exhibit Room. Data on the responses to the survey of cooperating teachers is presented in Table 20, which shows that average ratings for mastery of the seven competencies by the program completers (N = 100) ranged from 2.72 to 2.92, with very little variation among the ratings. Based on these high values and an overall rating of 2.82 for the seven competencies related to pedagogical skills, the data shows that the cooperating teachers perceived their student teachers as having demonstrated pedagogical skills well above the Acceptable level. Standard 1 Table 20
Average Ratings of Program Completers (N = 100) by
Cooperating Teachers on Pedagogical Skills:
Spring and Fall 2007
Pedagogical Skill Items | N | Average Rating |
3. Ability to write a coherent lesson plan.
4. Ability to implement effective lesson plans.
5. Ability to promote critical thinking, problem solving,
understanding of concepts.
6. Ability to differentiate instruction to meet needs of diverse
learners.
7. Ability to manage behavior.
10. Ability to analyze multiple sources of data to evaluate student
progress.
11. Ability to provide oral and written feedback to improve student
performance.
|
99
97
95
98
94
98
100 |
2.92
2.87
2.75
2.80
2.72
2.80
2.85 |
Mean of the averages 2.82
Table 21 presents data on the university supervisors’ assessments of the level of mastery of pedagogical skills by their student teachers (N = 187). The data show that the supervisors also perceived the program completers to have demonstrated pedagogical skills at near Target level. Standard 1 Table 21: Average Ratings of Program Completers (N = 187) by
University Supervisors on Pedagogical Skills: Spring and Fall 2007
Pedagogical Skill Items | No. of Responses | Average Rating |
3. Ability to write a coherent lesson plan.
4. Ability to implement effective lesson plans.
5. Ability to promote critical thinking, problem solving,
understanding of concepts.
6. Ability to differentiate instruction to meet needs of diverse
learners.
7. Ability to manage behavior.
10. Ability to analyze multiple sources of data to evaluate student
progress.
11. Ability to provide oral and written feedback to improve student
performance. |
175
177
187
181
186
182
177
|
2.93
2.86
2.80
2.80
2.83
2.75
2.80
|
Mean of the averages: 2.82
Post-Program Completion Survey of Program Graduates
An e-mail survey of program graduates was conducted in 2006 and 2007, three months or more after the graduates had completed the teacher certification program. The questionnaire was comprised of twelve items, each with a 5-point scale: “Strong Agreement” (5 points), “Agreement” (4 points), Neutral (3 points), “Disagreement” (2 point), and “Strong Disagreement” (1 point). Three of the items provided graduates with the opportunity to assess the success of the Teacher Preparation Program in developing three competencies associated with Domain IV – Pedagogy. Data obtained from 70 graduates provided an overall average of 4.06 rating for each of three skill-based competencies. The data supports the conclusion that program graduates were in a high level of agreement that the program developed their pedagogical skills. The survey instrument can be found in the Exhibit Room, and the results of the survey are presented in Table 22.
Standard 1 Table 22: Average Ratings from Follow-up Survey of Graduates (N = 70)
on Pedagogical Skills:
Summer 2006, Spring and Fall 2007
Pedagogical Skill Items | No. of Responses | Average Rating | 2. Taught me to employ a variety of teaching techniques and
strategies 3. Taught me to use a variety of techniques to assess student
learning. 4. Taught me to write lesson plans, assessments that allow me
to differentiate instruction. | 69
68
68
| 4.16
4.06
3.96
|
Mean of the averages: 4.06 Post-Program Completion Survey of Administrators Hiring Program Graduates In 2007 a survey was conducted among 65 district office personnel and building administrators who have hired our Teacher Preparation and Initial Certification Program graduates. The questionnaire was comprised of 12 items, each with a three-point scale with 3 indicating above average mastery, 2 average mastery and 1 below average mastery. The instrument provided the respondents the opportunity to assess the success of the Teacher Preparation Program in developing the six competencies associated with Domain V – Pedagogy. A copy of the survey instrument can be found in the Exhibit Room. Data presented in Table 23 shows that the employers’ assessment of the level of mastery of pedagogical skills by SOE graduates (N = 100) show employers perceive the Unit’s graduates to have demonstrated a better than average mastery of pedagogical skills. However, since five of the seven competencies received ratings less than 2.5, the data also points to a need for the Unit to further review and strengthen those competencies in the Unit’s Teacher Certification Program which received ratings of less than 2.5.
Standard 1 Table 23: Average Ratings of Program Graduates by
Administrators on Pedagogical Skills: Fall 2007
Pedagogical Skill Items | No. of Responses | Average Rating |
3. Ability to write a coherent lesson plan.
4. Ability to implement effective lesson plans.
5. Ability to promote critical thinking, problem solving, understanding
of concepts.
6. Ability to differentiate instruction to meet needs of diverse learners.
7. Ability to manage behavior.
10. Ability to analyze multiple sources of data to evaluate student
progress.
11. Ability to provide oral and written feedback to improve student
performance.
|
60
61
62
60
61
60
61 |
2.60
2.57
2.47
2.32
2.41
2.40
2.44 |
Mean of the averages: 2.46
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