Assessing Pre-Service Teachers' Assessment Literacy

Author(s):  
Beth Clark-Gareca

Conducting classroom assessments is a regular part of teachers' daily work. Despite the centrality of tests in K-12 classrooms, teacher candidates consistently demonstrate fundamental weakness in their understanding and implementation of assessment. Student teaching has the potential to be an important training ground for teacher candidates to grow in their assessment practices, and by focusing on assessment during the student teaching experience, teacher candidates can more easily develop a deeper understanding of the myriad ways to evaluate student learning. This chapter explores the assessment relationships between teacher candidates and their mentors (i.e., cooperating teachers, student teaching supervisors, and seminar instructors) and provides a framework through which intentional and incidental classroom assessment can be considered. Ways to teach assessment through planning, debriefing, and raising awareness through noticing are discussed, and recommendations are made to help teacher candidates build the foundation of a strong assessment repertoire.

2021 ◽  
pp. 238133772110335
Author(s):  
Rick Coppola ◽  
Daniel J. Rocha ◽  
Rebecca Woodard

Cooperating teachers are vital in the professional development of teacher candidates. Yet, little research has been done to explore the generative and bidirectional nature of mentoring in the context of a student teaching-mentoring dyad—including the ways that teacher candidates are vital to the professional development of cooperating teachers. This case study addresses this gap by exploring the realized potential of adopting a transformative activist stance in relation to the mentoring of a preservice teacher candidate. The strategic partnering of a veteran teacher (Rick) and undergraduate teacher candidate (Daniel)—both committed to culturally sustaining pedagogies—created an opportunity to reimagine the student teaching experience in one English language arts classroom. Through collaborative reflection and artifact analysis, we examine our roles in contributing to bidirectional mentorship that stressed innovative collaboration rather than adaptation to existing power differentials.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca McMahon Giles ◽  
Andrea M. Kent

A quantitative, descriptive research model was used to investigate the perceptions of teacher candidates (n=32) in a clinically based dual certification program regarding their culminating student teaching experience. Data consisted of candidates’ responses to both multiple choice and open ended survey items. Results indicated that teacher candidates within an undergraduate program leading to state teaching certification in both elementary and collaborative teaching (K-6) had positive perceptions regarding their preparedness as a result of prior experiences working in K-6 classrooms (44%) and interactions with in-service teachers (28%). In addition, teacher candidates perceived strong relationships with their university supervisors reporting that they received a greater amount of encouragement and feedback for improved teaching from their university supervisors than from their cooperating teachers.


2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina M. Tschida ◽  
Judith J. Smith ◽  
Elizabeth A. Fogarty

Many issues influence reform in teacher preparation including national accountability efforts, professional teaching standards, and local or regional factors. This study examines a rurally-located teacher education program’s efforts to reform clinical preparation through co-teaching. Researchers argue that their adaption of the typical one-to-one (1:1) model of co-teaching to a two-to-one (2:1) model, where two teacher candidates work collaboratively with one cooperating teacher, greatly enhances the student teaching experience. This phenomenological research describes the first year of implementation. Despite cooperating teacher concerns about teacher candidates being prepared for their own classrooms, student teachers learned valuable lessons in collaboration and co-planning, built strong relationships with peers and cooperating teachers, and greatly impacted K-6 student learning. Implications suggest a 2:1 co-teaching model of student teaching allows for fewer placements, which ultimately allows selection of quality cooperating teachers who mentor teacher candidates in powerful ways.  


2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 728-750 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael P. Brady ◽  
Katie Miller ◽  
Jazarae McCormick ◽  
Lawrence A. Heiser

Educators struggle with “value-added” teacher evaluation models based on high-stakes student assessments. Despite validity and reliability threats, these models evaluate university-based teacher preparation programs (TPPs), and play a role in state and professional accreditation. This study reports a more rational value-added evaluation model linking student performance to teacher candidates’ lessons during Practicum and Student Teaching. Results indicate that K-12 students showed learning gains on these lessons, with mixed findings on comparisons of part-time to full-time internships, academic and functional lessons, and candidates’ grade point averages (GPAs). Results indicated that teacher candidates’ lessons are a viable value-added model (VAM) alternative for TPPs.


2021 ◽  
pp. e20200014
Author(s):  
Elise St. John ◽  
Dan Goldhaber ◽  
John Krieg ◽  
Roddy Theobald

Emerging research finds connections between teacher candidates’ student teaching placements and their future career paths and effectiveness. Yet relatively little is known about the factors that influence these placements and how teacher education programs (TEPs) and K-12 school systems match teacher candidates to mentor teachers. In our study of this process in Washington state, we find that TEPs and K-12 systems share overarching goals related to successful student teacher placements and developing a highly effective teacher workforce. However, distinct accountabilities and day-to-day demands also sometimes lead them to prioritize other objectives. In addition, we identified informational asymmetries, which left TEPs questioning how mentor teachers were selected, and districts and schools with limited information with which to make intentional matches between teacher candidates and mentor teachers. The findings from this study inform both practice and research in teacher education and human resources. First, they illuminate practices that appear to contribute to informational gaps and institutional disadvantages in the placement of student teachers. Additionally, they raise questions about what constitutes an effective mentor teacher and provide researchers and policymakers with better insight into the professional realities of teacher educators and K-12 educators, as well as those of district human resource (HR) coordinators, which is important given their differing accountabilities and distinctive positionings in the education of teacher candidates.


Author(s):  
Jason D. Baker ◽  
Shauna Tonkin

By the time someone becomes a teacher, regardless of whether he or she enters the K-12 school system, higher education arena, or corporate training environment, he or she has literally had decades of experience with face-to-face instruction. While new teachers vary in their pedagogical training and student teaching experience, they still benefit from a lifetime of experience as students themselves. Accordingly, most of today’s teachers have a fairly common set of experiences and expectations to draw from when planning and evaluating traditional instruction. This is not so when the educational environment is shifted from the four-walled classroom to the online Internet environment. According to Bork (2002), the results of a survey of university instructors revealed that experienced online instructors had taught between four and seven online courses either partially or fully online. While not an insignificant number, it pales in comparison to the teaching experience of the same respondents (e.g., 36% having more than 20 years of experience and 34% with 10-20 years of experience), as well as the nonteaching history that such instructors invariably had.


Author(s):  
Nancy P. Gallavan

Teacher candidates reflect upon their most favorite and their least favorite classroom assessment experiences in K-12 and higher education. Through qualitative research methods, their vivid images, compelling influences, and enduring implications are analyzed to reveal clear indicators of teacher presence, practice, and professionalism. Evident in the immediate importance for advancing their understanding and application of their awareness, communication, and self-efficacy, teachers benefit greatly by connecting effective classroom assessments to ensure student well-being and learning for every student.


2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 451-468
Author(s):  
Philip B. Edelman

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of cooperating teachers regarding the importance of certain teacher traits, behaviors, and skills as predictors of a successful student teaching experience. The sample consisted of teachers who had served as cooperating teachers ( N = 519). Participants rated a list of 40 teacher traits, behaviors, and skills based on their (perceived) importance as predictors of student teacher success. I constructed ranked lists for each demographic grouping of respondents by the mean score for each item, and these lists were examined using a method put forward by Teachout. Results revealed that the highest-rated items regardless of demographic grouping variables were demonstrating appropriate social behavior, stress management, fostering appropriate student behavior, establishing a positive rapport with others, and enthusiasm. All participant groups rated personal traits, behaviors, and skills as most important; followed by teaching traits, behaviors, and skills; then musical traits, behaviors, and skills. Content analyses of open-ended questions revealed that no items had a universal meaning among participants in this study.


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