Task 1: Planning for Instruction & Assessment

Think about...

• Your 3-5 lesson learning segment

• Your student population

• How you will plan to meet the needs of all your learners

• Focus on rubrics 1-5 as you complete Task 1 and URLP.

Task 1 includes:

• Part A: Context for Learning

  • About the School

    • Demographics (geographic area and student population)

    • Type of school

    • Describe but do not name the school district

    • 4-page maximum

  • Selecting a Class

    • Elementary - use your assigned class

    • Secondary - The class you select will be used for your entire portfolio

    • Special Education - Select ONE learner with an IEP as the focus for your portfolio 

*Begin to complete the Context for Learning form as soon as your clinical practice starts!

• Part B: Lesson Plans  

  • Use the Catawba edTPA Lesson Plan Template

  • Select a learning segment that is 3-5 consecutive lessons.

    • Be sure it is one that allows students to be engaged in learning and higher-order thinking!

  • Identify a central focus

  • An essential strategy and related skills (Literacy) See Appendix A

  • OR Subject-Specific Emphasis (predetermined and listed in Rubric #1)

  • Determine the content standards and objectives that the central focus and essential strategy and related skills will address.

• Identify and plan to support language demands - Understanding Academic Language

• Lesson plans should be no longer than four pages in length - save your explanations and rationale for the Planning Commentary.

Planning Ahead

Parts C, D, and E ask you to explain how you support students who need accommodations and modifications.

Consider students:

• with IEPS, 504 plans, or ELL

• who are hearing, vision, or mobility impaired

• who are struggling or gifted

 Part C: Instructional Materials

• Submit key instructional materials, such as handouts, assignments, slides, interactive whiteboard images, etc. No more than five additional pages per lesson

Part D: Assessments

• Submit blank copies of all written assessments and/or directions for any oral or performance assessments

Part E: Planning Commentary

• Reply to the commentary prompts PRIOR to teaching the lesson.

• While it is helpful to see a sample commentary someone else has written, do not copy the work of others!
  During official scoring, portions of candidate's submitted materials are screened for originality by official scorers and detection software!

Planning Commentary 1

Prompt 1: (Rubric 1)

Explain how your central focus, standards, and objectives align.

Most important: Describe how lessons build on one another AND how each lesson addresses your subject-specific emphasis.

Example Prompt 1A

Example Prompt 1B

Example Prompt 1C

Prompt 2: (not evaluated by a rubric, but sets up information needed for prompt 3)

Important because it presents information about students needed to answer Prompt 3:

You will describe 

• What you know about what students know, can do, and are still working on.

  • Your answers need to reflect that you understand your classroom is full of unique learners.

• What do you know about students' personal, cultural, or community assets?

  • Avoid demonstrating a deficit view.

• What are some misconceptions that are a consideration?

Example Prompt 2

Prompt 3: (Rubrics 2 and 3)

Justify your instructional choices!

• Be absolutely certain to address needs of IEP and 504 plans if there are listed in your Context for Learning.

• Justify your choices based on what you know about students' prior learning.

• Justify your choices based on students' personal, cultural, and community assets.

• Be sure to reference specific learning tasks, materials used in you lessons with the information that you presented about your students in Prompt 2.

• Explain how principles of research and theory support or set the foundation for your planning decisions. Give thorough explanations.

Example Prompt 3

Prompt 4 (Rubric 4)

Be sure you understand what language demands (function, discourse, syntax, vocabulary are.
This is scored primarily based on your response to Prompt 4d.

• There is no need to discuss both syntax and discourse. Choose one or the other.

• Describe supports for function, vocabulary and syntax OR discourse. 

• Consider the language needs of individuals as they complete your tasks in the lesson (reading, writing, speaking, listening, performing)

• Supports need to go beyond opportunities for practice.

• Supports should be focused on addressing specific language demands (sentence starters, modeling using think alouds, graphic organizers, concept mapping, outlines, etc.)

Example Prompt 4

Prompt 5 (Rubric 5)

Focus: You want to prove that you have continually evaluated your students on each of your subject specific emphasis throughout your learning segment.

• Describe a variety of both informal and formal assessments that occur throughout the learning segment.

• Be sure to address IEP and 504 requirements that are listed in your Context for Learning.

• Describe modified assessments that were strategically designed for individuals or groups with specific needs.

Example Prompt 5