Current
Issue
UNIToday
Archives
Submit
Class Notes
Alumni
Home
|
||||
Current |
UNIToday |
Submit |
Alumni |
|
Assessment tools enhance teaching, impact student learning |
||
By CJ HINES
Prior to her student teaching assignment, Megan Spooner visited her math classroom and noticed how “very old, very crowded” it was.
“There was a lot more talking than any other classroom I’d been in. The teacher didn’t mind kids from other classes coming in to do homework or work on her computer, which I remember thinking would be a problem. I was definitely nervous,” said Spooner (’05), who has a B.A. in math education.
Spooner knew that with 30 students enrolled in her class, they’d be elbow to elbow. She’d be teaching the first eight weeks of school in a south room of a non-air-conditioned building. It was going to be hot in the afternoon. Nearly half the students were living near the poverty level and many came from single-income, low-income or no-income homes.
“Students had different priorities. Some put school first, but more often than not, school was not the first or most important thing on their minds,” said Spooner, who has since become a teacher at East High School in Waterloo.
Sarah Ita, business instructor and multi-occupations course coordinator at Waverly-Shell Rock High School, did her student teaching at an urban Iowa high school. Nearly 37 percent of the students received free or reduced-cost lunches. Ita’s business classes ranged from diverse to not at all.
Her first classroom experience was intimidating. “Some of the students were taller than I was and the student population was much more diverse. I remember thinking there was no way I was ready for this, no way could I stand in front of the classroom and teach these students,” said Ita (’06) who has a B.A. in business management education. “Knowing that I was only three years older than some of the students made it difficult to believe they would want to learn from me.”
Ita’s classroom housed projectors, LCDs and software, all of which she was apprehensive about using in front of a “rambunctious” class.
Spatial, socioeconomic and community factors impacted both Ita’s and Spooner’s teaching methods. Ita altered her teaching style to be more encompassing because of her diverse classes. “When we discussed CEOs in our management class, I included people of varied backgrounds. In business law, I read up on cases and job situations happening in the area. This made it much more relevant to them. They could contribute more to the class because it was local news and they had an interest in it,” she said. “With my seniors I wanted them to realize that I was the teacher, so I talked about what I studied in college and gave a tip of the day related to college. This helped gain some respect for me, which was initially lacking.”
How important are these adjustments to the learning process?
“Contextual factors make all the difference in the world. We can’t pretend the kids are all robots. Teacher education isn’t the same-old-same-old anymore,” said Victoria Robinson, associate professor, Educational Leadership, Counseling and Postsecondary Education. “We’ve always talked about meeting the needs of every child, however, teachers didn’t always have the tools to assess student learning and map student progress.”
In 2002, UNI’s College of Education (COE) instituted methods to ensure that teacher candidates like Spooner and Ita have the tools and awareness to impact students’ learning. That in itself is not necessarily news, because in 2001, the Iowa State Board of Education mandated teacher assessment programs requiring universities to have a system in place that documents the competence of COE graduates. “But the state mandate does not tell you what data to collect,” said Barry Wilson, associate professor, Educational Psychology & Foundations and director of assessment. “UNI is advanced in doing this assessment. Other universities have ways to assess their programs under the same mandate, but our approach is unique.”
Wilson and teacher education colleagues developed UNI Teacher Education Database (UNITED), which faculty, administrators and teacher candidates can access through MyUniverse and where students can view their progress as soon as they are admitted to the teacher education program. All teacher candidates must complete a teacher work sample (TWS) during their first eight-week teaching assignment.
“Students summarize a unit they’ve taught by writing a 20-page narrative, including planning, execution, assessment, personal reflections and what they’d do differently knowing what they know now. Faculty members score these samples in November and April. Students receive feedback quickly and are able to correct or modify those things needed to demonstrate their understanding,” Wilson said.
Teacher candidates must demonstrate proficiency in seven areas: contextual factors; learning goals; assessment plan; instruction design; instructional decision-making; analysis of student learning and self-examination. Work samples are rated as ‘indicator not met,’ ‘indicator partially met,’ or ‘indicator met.’ A student teacher who does not meet all factors can write a second TWS for a subsequent teaching assignment.
Upon graduation students receive a temporary two-year teaching license. After teaching for two years, they apply for their permanent license by providing evidence of their effectiveness and ability to meet the eight Iowa Teaching Standards, which are similar to the seven TWS factors.
“There is a good fit between teacher work sample methodology and the current licensure requirements for first- and second-year teachers in Iowa,” Robinson said.
COE Assessment Background In the late 1990s, 10 teacher preparation institutions, including UNI, came together to improve the quality of graduates and teachers in local partner groups. The 10 universities were members of the Renaissance Group, a consortium of 38 higher education institutions across the country. It received a nearly $6 million Title II Improving Teacher Quality Grant to develop its version of a teacher work sample.
Robinson, who was UNI’s director of the grant and university representative for the Renaissance Partnership for Improving Teaching quality, said, “By 2002, we had created a prompt, detailing instruction for student teachers. Waterloo (schools) was the first center. The work sample is not only a finished product; it’s a process. Engaging in TWS can broaden student teachers’ thinking, help teacher education faculty improve course alignment, better connect theory and practice and identify authentic teaching performances leading to improved student achievement.”
Wilson said prior to implementing TWS, teaching licensure was based on students completing courses in a state-approved program. The state allowed flexibility on some matters, such as GPA and coursework specifics. Since 1999-2000 the COE has moved from course completion to more direct evidence that candidates can teach. The TWS is approved by accreditation bodies for providing evidence that teacher candidates can produce student learning.
Robinson has traveled the country, instructing universities on TWS development. “Before, someone could student teach and we’d never know what the experience was like. The faculty can also look at previous teacher work samples to see what the students are or aren’t ‘getting’ and can modify their teaching. It’s one of the most connected pieces for teacher preparation we’ve had.”
UNI Office of Academic Assessment The COE’s teacher preparation program is one of many assessments taking place on campus. Established in 2005, the Office of Academic Assessment (OAA) can help each college develop assessment programs to meet the needs of their specific disciplines.
“The goal is to make assessment systems meaningful, doable and accepted as how we do business. It becomes part of the culture. Every department comes up with a system that makes sense and provides information they want,” said Donna Vinton, director of Academic Assessment. “As a university, we make sure people have the tools needed to do assessment.”
Within OAA is the Student Outcomes Assessment Committee, which promotes an assessment culture at UNI. The committee includes students, faculty and staff, who exchange information on campus assessment practices and advise the OAA on how to communicate and disseminate assessment information. It also identifies faculty, staff and departments that are doing exemplary assessment work and motivating campus-wide assessment. Each college may have its own SOA committee.
“Each department develops student-learning outcomes and determines what assessment systems and information will be most useful to them,” said Vinton. “The process of assessment is ongoing and there is no single way to assess what students are learning. But if departments are doing assessment well, faculty will have information that can help them communicate their successes and develop strategies for continuing to strengthen teaching at UNI.”
“I’m sure doing (TWS) has made me a more effective teacher,” Spooner said. “I have a list of questions I ask myself after the lesson, such as ‘what went well, what didn’t go well, why didn’t it go well, what should I change next time?’ I keep a notebook for each class so I remember what I needed to add or take out and what things I need to emphasize more next time. TWS has given me a basis for building on that in the classroom.” |
||
|
|
||
 |
||
|
|
||