Clear_EDUC_331

Santa Clara University

School of Education and Counseling Psychology Department of Education, Clear MS/SS Teaching Credential Program

EDUC 331- Integrating Theory and Practice in Classrooms B (3 units)

Mission and Goals of the Department of Education

The mission of the Department of Education is to prepare professionals of competence, conscience, and compassion, who will promote the common good as they transform lives, schools, and communities. Rooted in the Jesuit tradition at Santa Clara University, core values of reflective practice, scholarship, diversity, ethical conduct, social justice, and collaboration guide both theory and practice.

Department of Education goals:

1. To prepare professionals who will work competently with individuals who have a variety of strengths; experiences and challenges, those with diverse backgrounds, and those in greatest need;
2. To develop positive habits of mind, identify and apply best practices in the field, and engage in critical reflection on practice;
3. To demonstrate mastery-level knowledge and skills in teaching and learning; and
4. To become leaders sensitive to the ethical and social consequences of their
  1. decisions.
  2. Course Description

EDUC 331 is the second in the Integrating Theory and Practice in Classrooms (ITP) sequence. This three-course sequence is required for all candidates for the general education clear teaching credential.

My goals for this course are to support your growth in the online classroom by facilitating the work of your Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) and teaching curriculum modules and to support your work in your own K-12 classroom and by facilitating the observation of you teaching one lesson per quarter where you are provided with targeted support and feedback.

This course has three strands that stretch across the academic year: all three strands present new knowledge and skills that will extend your professional capabilities and strengthen your ability to provide all learners with equitable access to the curriculum. Each module will include attention to all three strands. The strands are:

Instructor: Harold Jules Hoyle, Ph.D.

Email: hhoyle@scu.edu

Office & Contact Information: Guadalupe 241 Office Hours: By appointment

1. Professional Learning Community (PLC) sessions

You will participate in virtual working sessions with your Professional Learning Community. These sessions require hands-on engagement in lesson study and other activities designed to focus your professional attention on improving learning outcomes for all students.

2. Curriculum modules

The topics of these short curriculum modules are determined by state requirements, by the substance of the CSTP, by the informed judgment of your faculty coaches, and by requests made by candidates. There will be activities that introduce you to best practices in teaching.

3. Learning activities linked to curriculum module content

I have developed learning activities designed to assist you in creating connections between the content of the curriculum modules and your experiences with your students.

Like the clear credential program, this course is framed by the 2009 California Standards for the Teaching Profession (CSTP):

1. Engaging and supporting all students in learning

2. Creating and maintaining effective learning environments

3. Understanding and organizing subject matter for student learning

4. Planning instruction and designing learning experiences for all students 5. Assessing student learning

6. Developing as professional educators

The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) established these professional standards to serve and support professional educators in fulfilling their professional roles and responsibilities from pre-service teacher to experienced practitioner. Your performance in this class and in your classroom will be assessed according to the criteria specified in the CSTP using a suite of CSTP-driven assessment tools. These will be discussed during the first class session.

Required Readings for ALL CLEAR CANDIDATES

1. The Clear credential program is framed by the 2009 California Standards for the Teaching Profession (CSTP). Visit the CTC website (http://www.ctc.ca.gov/educator- prep/standards/CSTP-2009.pdf) and download a copy of the full CSTP document. You will refer to this document frequently this year.

2. Short readings will be assigned throughout the year. These will be posted in pdf format on our course’s web site. You must make sure that you are able to use your email address and to access the Canvas learning management system. If you need assistance you can call the Help Desk at 408-554-5050.

Required Readings for single subject teachers

Go to the California Department of Education website (http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/); download and print a copy of the California State Content Standards for (a) your academic content area; and (b) English Language Development.

Required Readings

for multiple subject teachers

Go to the California Department of Education website (http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/);

download and print a copy of the California State Content Standards for the grade level you currently teach in the following content areas: English Language Arts, English Language Development, Health Education, History-Social Science, Mathematics, Physical Education, Science, Visual and Performing Arts. You should also print a copy of the K-12 standards in the content area that is the focus of your Yearly Professional Goals.

Required Readings

Boyle, G., 2010 Tattoos on the Heart Free Press: New York.

Course Objectives/Expectations/Learning Outcomes

In this course you will:

1. Engage in collaborative professional conversations and lesson study sessions designed to extend your professional capabilities and strengthen your ability to provide all learners with equitable access to the curriculum. (DG 1-4; CSTP 1-6)

2. Learn, practice, and apply new knowledge and skills that will increase your instructional effectiveness and refine your teaching. (DG 1-4; CSTP 1-6)

3. Examine and participate in the plan-teach-reflect-apply cycle and document its contribution to your practice. (DG 1-4; CSTP 1-6)

Course Requirements/Assignments

Professionalism

(20 points, 20% of course grade. Linked to Course Objectives 1-3.) The professionalism requirement includes the six dimensions described below.

1. Attendance. Students enrolled in on-line courses for which campus attendance is not required must fulfill the following attendance requirements:

- Students must contact the instructor at least once during the first seven days of class. (The first seven days after registering for the course or the first five days after the start date of the course, whichever is later).
- Contact can include visit, phone, e-mail or course logon. *Failure to contact is the equivalent of failure to attend; student will be dropped and refunds are not automatically issued.
  - On-line students must interact with the instructor via telephone, email, Web, or in person during every two-week period of the term. Failure to contact according to this schedule is considered excessive absence.
  - 2. Punctuality. On-line students must interact with the instructor via telephone, email, Web, or in person during every two-week period of the term. Failure to contact according to this schedule is considered excessive absence.
  - 3. Communication. Email and our Canvas website will be our primary means of communication outside of class. You must check your email and our course’s Canvas site to ensure you maintain a connection with your peers and coaches.
  - 4. Preparation. You are expected to prepare for each class session by doing all of the required readings, completing the assignments, and coming to class with all the necessary materials.
  - 5. Participation. Expectations for participation include engaging actively in all discussions and activities; demonstrating a commitment to your own professional development; supporting the growth of the other teachers in your Professional Learning Community (PLC); and maintaining your commitment to maximizing the learning of the students you teach.
  - We take these professionalism requirements very seriously, and we expect you to take them seriously also.
  - Ongoing formative assessment of your practice
  - (30 points, 30% of course grade. Linked to Course Objectives 1-3.)
  - You will spend the quarter improving your practice through participation in two different types of learning experiences: (1) Lesson Study with your PLCs and (2) in-class activities linked to the knowledge and skills taught in the curriculum modules. Your participation in these learning experiences provides coaches with the chance to see your work, to listen to your ideas, to consider your questions, and then to give you customized,

detailed formative feedback. Your participation in these learning experiences is also an opportunity for you to learn from your classmates, every one of whom is an experienced teacher.

You will receive a lot of feedback—from your faculty coach, and from members of your PLC—all of which is intended to help you strengthen your practice and improve your students’ learning. The keys to success when receiving ongoing formative assessment of your practice are to remain engaged in the learning process, to demonstrate effort to integrate the feedback into your work, and to maintain an optimistic attitude about your own professional development.

1. Active engagement in lesson study in your Professional Learning Community (PLC). Each of you belongs to a PLC facilitated by your SCU faculty coach. You and your PLC will spend a great deal of time doing Lesson Study: engaging collaboratively in the plan- teach-reflect-apply cycle with the intent of improving your practices and serving your students more effectively. Lesson study also establishes and reinforces professional norms of inquiry, innovation, and critical reflection that lead to continual professional improvement.

Engagement in the work of your PLC requires dedication to improving your own teaching and student learning outcomes; a commitment to supporting the efforts of the other members of your PLC; and a willingness to receive constructive feedback from the professionals in your PLC.

Engagement also involves doing your PLC homework each week. Because PLCs are focused on improving classroom practices, the homework typically will require that you bring copies of your lesson plans, examples of student work or assessment data, curricular materials, brief written reflections on your practice, etc. You must do your PLC homework—coming to PLC unprepared will jeopardize your learning opportunities and those of your peers.

Tentative PLC assignments and due dates are provided in the course schedule at the end of this syllabus. Faculty coaches will be making adjustments to this schedule as needed to maximize your learning.

2. Performance assessment during in-class learning activities.

In each class session, you will learn new knowledge and skills via lessons in our curriculum modules. After each lesson, you will engage in a learning activity—like a performance task, for example—that requires you to make connections between the content of the curriculum module and your experiences with your students. While you work on the activity and practice your new skills/apply your new knowledge, the coaches will circulate around the room to provide you with immediate formative feedback on your performance. This feedback is designed to help you hone and sharpen your understanding of the new content.

The first three curriculum modules for fall quarter are listed in the course schedule. The remaining modules for this quarter will be determined by the fourth or fifth class meeting.

Signature Assignment A: Plan-Teach-Reflect-Apply Portfolio

(50 points, 50% of course grade. Linked to Course Objectives 1-3.)

The signature assignment requires you to document your engagement in the plan-teach- reflect-apply cycle for the lesson observed by your SCU faculty coach. You will complete this signature assignment three times during the clear credential program: once each quarter. Signature assignments A, B, C stand alone as evidence of your capabilities at three transition points in the credential program; when assessed together, the signature assignments chart your growth and improvement over time. Because the lessons your faculty coach observes are in the content area targeted in your Yearly Professional Goals, thoughtful re-examination of your trio of signature assessments at the end of spring quarter will be helpful in shaping your plans for your capstone project.

Early in the quarter, we will provide you with very clear and specific guidelines about what your portfolio must include, and with a checklist to assist you in assembling your portfolio in accordance with the guidelines. These guidelines and tools will be discussed in detail in your PLCs.

As you know, it is our pleasure to support your progress toward becoming effective teachers. To help you reach that goal, we offer you the option of asking us to provide ungraded formative feedback on a preliminary draft your signature assignment. We reserve both the right to limit the number times a candidate may resubmit the signature assignment for formative feedback (even if that decision impacts the project grade) and the right to set a final date after which no revisions will be accepted.

Please note: We strongly encourage you to use the signature assignment rubric to self- asses your portfolio before submitting it to your coach for formative feedback. We also recommend that you ask your PLC peers to evaluate your work using the signature assignment rubric before submitting it for formative feedback. Of course, we also recommend that you evaluate your peers’ work as well! Your careful pre-assessing allows us to focus our attention on the substance of your assignment and to be able to make our recommendations for revision based on a thorough understanding of your engagement in the plan-teach-reflect-apply cycle.

Course Assignments

Assessment of Candidate Learning

• We will determine both your professionalism grade and your in-class activity grade by analyzing evidence of your in-class performance gathered by the coaches’ ongoing observation and documentation throughout the quarter. If we have reason to feel you are not meeting the expectations spelled out on the syllabus, we will contact you privately to discuss the issue, to clarify the expectations as needed, and to offer our support in helping you reach those expectations. If we do not contact you with a concern, you can assume you are fully satisfying these course requirements. However, if you would like specific feedback on your professional conduct, you are welcome to contact any one of us and we will be glad to share our assessment with you.

• We have a suite of CSTP-driven tools that will be used throughout the year to assess your work and the work of your faculty coaches. The tools will be distributed and discussed in detail in class. The numerical ratings/evaluative categories on the CSTP

assessment forms are aligned with the ratings/categories on the Diocese of San Jose’s Teacher Performance Appraisal.

The ratings on our CSTP instruments also correspond roughly to letter grades:

Grading Criteria

• All tasks, projects, and assignments must be completed and handed in (or brought to class or posted on Camino) by the due date and time specified unless arrangements have been made in advance. Late work may be penalized.

• Points lost due to poor attendance and/or lack of punctuality are deducted from your final grade. A candidate with excellent grades on assignments and other aspects of professional conduct can earn a poor course grade as a result of excessive absence or chronic lateness.

Grade conversion guidelines

Points Grade 94-100 A

90-93 A- 87-89 B+ 84-86 B 80-83 B- 76-79 C+ 73-75 C 70-72 C-

Disability Accommodations

Candidates needing accommodation for a disability should contact Disabilities Resources at 408-554-4109 (voice) or 408-554-5445 (TDD) (ECPPM Graduate Bulletin, 2008- 2009).

Academic Integrity

The University is committed to academic excellence and integrity. Credential candidates are expected to do their own work and to cite any sources they use. A candidate who is guilty of dishonest acts in an examination, paper, or other required work for a course, or who assists others in such acts, will receive a grade of F for the course. In addition, a candidate guilty of dishonest acts will be immediately dismissed from the University. Candidates that violate copyright laws, including those covering the copying of software

programs, or who knowingly alter official academic records from this or any other institution, are subject to disciplinary action (ECPPM Graduate Bulletin, 2008-2009).

TITLE IX

Santa Clara University upholds a zero tolerance policy for discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct. If you (or someone you know) have experienced discrimination or harassment, including sexual assault, domestic and dating violence or stalking, we encourage you to tell someone promptly. For more information, please go to www.scu.edu/studentlife and click on the link for the University’s Gender-Based Discrimination and Sexual Misconduct Policy or contact the University's EEO and Title IX Coordinator, Belinda Guthrie at 408-554-3043 or by email at bguthrie@scu.edu. Reports may be submitted online through www.scu.edu/osl/report or anonymously through Ethicspoint: www.ethicspoint.com

REPORTING PRACTICES

While I want you to feel comfortable coming to me with issues you may be struggling with or concerns you may be having, please be aware that there are some reporting requirements that are part of my job at Santa Clara University. For example, if you inform me of an issue of harassment, sexual violence, or discrimination, I will keep the information as private as I can, but I am required to bring it to the attention of the institution’s EEO and Title IX Coordinator. If you inform me that you are struggling with an issue that may be resulting in, or caused by, traumatic or unusual stress, I will likely inform the campus Student Care Team (SCU CARE). If you would like to reach out directly to the Student Care Team for assistance, you can contact them at www.scu.edu/osl/report. If you would like to talk to the Office of EEO and Title IX directly, they can be reached at 408-554-3043 or by email at bguthrie@scu.edu. Reports may be submitted online through www.scu.edu/osl/report or anonymously through Ethicspoint: www.ethicspoint.com. Additionally, you can report incidents or complaints to the Office of Student Life (OSL), Campus Safety Services, and local law enforcement. For confidential support, contact the Counseling and Psychological Services office (CAPS), the YWCA, or a member of the clergy (for example, a priest or minister). Finally, please be aware that if, for some reason, our interaction involves a disruptive behavior, a concern about your safety or the safety of others, or potential violation of University policy, I will inform the Office of Student Life. The purpose of this is to keep OSL apprised of incidents of concern, and to ensure that students can receive or stay connected to the academic support and student wellness services they need.