Evidence and Commentary of Classroom Practices

Provide four unique evidential artifacts created during your student teaching, each of which should exemplify a different classroom competency, by doing the following:

Provide one evidential artifact created during your student teaching that showcases your competency in the instruction of academic language in the classroom.

a.  Explain how the artifact you provided demonstrates your competency in this area, including the effect the artifact had or would have on student learning.

The artifact I provided above demonstrates my competency in the instruction of academic language because it provides a visual representation of the use and implementation of academic language in my classroom. This artifact is referred to as, 'The Vocabulary Wall', and I refer to it throughout my instruction on a daily basis. As I mention academic language throughout my instruction, I use the vocabulary wall to clarify the meaning of various words and their relevance to the learning target for that lesson. This artifact has a monumental effect on student learning as it positively reinforces the meaning of academic words used throughout instruction and clarifies any student misconceptions about the role certain academic words play in the facilitation of various learning targets. 

b.  Explain, based on the artifact’s effect on student learning, how you would modify the artifact for future use.

Based on the artifact's effect on student learning, I would make a small modification by adding an example to the academic vocabulary words that do not have examples already included at the end of the definition. Examples of the academic language being used would further student understanding of the concept of that word, and its use within the content. 

Provide one evidential artifact created during your student teaching that showcases your competency in using differentiated instruction in the classroom as part of a system of student support.

a.  Explain how the artifact you provided demonstrates your competency in this area, including the effect the artifact had on student learning.

The artifact I provided above demonstrates my competency in using differentiated instruction throughout my classroom because it is an example of differentiated instruction through product, which is a learning task (or assignment) that ask the student to rehearse, apply, and extend what he or she has learned in a unit. This artifact is a choice board with several different options for students to express and model their mastery of certain content and learning targets. This artifact is an example of differentiating products because it gives students options of how to express required learning, and it encourages students to create their own product assignment as long as the assignment contains the required elements. This artifact is also an example of differentiated learning in the learning environment because it defines clear guidelines for independent work that matches individual needs. This artifact matches individual needs because it allows each student to choose which choice board options they will complete based on their individual needs within the classroom; for example, an ELL learner may choose option number eight to further exercise his English writing skills based on his need for additional writing supports in class (such as sentence starters, transitional phrases/words, and essay templates). This artifact has a positive effect on student learning, as it includes the student in the facilitation of their own learning process and give the student the choice of the product(s) that represent their mastery of the content. This can encourage the student to further invest in their learning process in the future, while also creating excitement in the student to have future learning experiences in your classroom. 

b.  Explain, based on the artifact’s effect on student learning, how you would modify the artifact for future use.

Based on the artifact's effect on student learning, I would modify this artifact by providing previous student examples of mastery for each option provided for student's struggling with their own creation of their choice board options. This modification would hopefully provide clarity for students who misunderstand the directions or expectations for that particualr option(s) on the choice board. I would also possibly consider adding a rubric to the overall assignment that would clarify the criteria or standards for evaluating each choice board option at various levels of achievement. 

Provide one evidential artifact created during your student teaching that showcases your competency in using educational technology in the classroom as a way to engage students in their learning.

*Please see the highlighted portion of the assignment for the components relevant to using educational technology. I've included the entire assignment for context purposes to provide additional information on the overall assignment the educational technology component was included in. 

a.  Explain how the artifact you provided demonstrates your competency in this area, including the effect the artifact had or would have on student learning.

The artifact I provided above demonstrates my competency in using educational technology because it exemplifies my ability to integrate technology into the classroom activities I plan for my students as a means for them to demonstrate their competency on various learning targets. This artifact also demonstrates that I communicate the requirements of effective technology use to my students to ensure they are exercising proper internet use. This artifact has had a positive influence on student learning as it has given students the opportunity to explore safe usage of the internet as apart of their learning process, while also encouraging them to find scholarly based resources during their research. 

b.  Explain, based on the artifact’s effect on student learning, how you would modify the artifact for future use.

Based on the artifact's effect on student learning, I would modify this artifact by including a list of scholarly-based websites the students could refer to in their research for information on the global issue of their choice. This would ensure that students are not confused about the concept of 'scholary-based' resources. 

Provide one evidential artifact created during your student teaching that showcases your competency in using professional communication with students’ families.

a.  Explain how the artifact you provided demonstrates your competency in this area, including the effect the artifact had or would have on student learning.

The artifact I provided above demonstrates my competency in using professional communication because it is an exemplar of my standard communication to a parent about their child's academic standing in my course. This particular notice is used specifically for communicating current academic standing for the parent guardians of either currently failing or almost failing students. This notice also indicates the reason and/or reasons the student is failing and if a conference is needed for further discussion on developing a mediation plan for that student to earn a passing score in the course before the end of the semester. This artifact has had a monumental effect on student learning and student success rates. Most of the students I send this notice out to are failing due to missing and/or incomplete assignments, so when these notices are sent out, parents tend to put much needed pressure on their child(ren) to create a different situation. This in return, encourages students to take more initiative in their learning process, which usually increases overall student learning. 

b.  Explain, based on the artifact’s effect on student learning, how you would modify the artifact for future use.

Based on the artifact's effect on student learning, I would modify this artifact by including details on the actual missing assignments, being this is the most prominent reason I experience in regards to student failures throughout the semester. This would ensure students and their parents are informed on the assignment(s) causing the student's grade to be failing or almost failing.