tpe domain b: assessing student learning

DOMAIN B: ASSESSING STUDENT LEARNING

Domain B: Assessing Student Learning

Lara Landry

National University

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Abstract

The following paper discusses the expectation of TPE Domain B: Monitoring

Students Learning During Instruction. I discuss my competencies in this domain and

describe why I chose to include two lesson plans as my artifacts demonstrating my

competencies in this area. I have chosen to review an informational text called Linking

Classroom Assessment with Student Learning published by ETS (Educational Testing

Services) as my third artifact.

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TPE Domain B: Assessing Student Learning contains TPE 2: Monitoring Students

Learning During Instruction and TPE 3: Interpretation and Use of Assessments. It is

imperative that teachers monitor students during instruction in order to determine

whether students are meeting the standards and objective of the lesson. You need to be

able to pace instruction and re-teach content if necessary, based on student assessment.

Monitoring students learning during instruction is an aspect of teaching I feel especially

comfortable with. I like the challenge of making accommodations to learning activities

within a lesson for students that may need to see a concept, or show understanding of a

particular concept, in a different way. It is necessary to ensure all of the students are

meeting the standards (Appendix A: TPEs, 2008).

Not only must teacher conduct assessments, but they need to use the assessments

to reflect and adjust their teaching, and plan further instruction. I feel confident in this

expectation as well. I use multiple measures to assess students' knowledge, skills and

behaviors, and I know when and how to use specialized assessments based on student

needs. Additionally, I understand the importance of interpreting the assessments I give so

I can modify instruction as needed and identify comprehension and proficiency. Students

need to be given timely feedback on their learning and maintain accurate records

summarizing student achievement. The most important aspect to this TPE Domain,

however, is the ability to explain, to both students and their families, students academic

and behavior strengths, areas of growth, promotion and retention policies, and how a

grade or progress report was derived. Teachers must be able to backup their assessment

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conclusions. I understand the importance of organization and maintaining current and

accurate records of student progress (Appendix A: TPEs, 2008).

When teaching at the private school, we implemented an online grading system

called Gradelink. It allowed teachers to input student grades and comments, as well as a

host of other features like send out parent emails for missing assignments or failing

grades, and print reports on student progress. Parents could access at it at any time as well

to monitor their child's progress. I became very accustomed to updating Gradelink on a

daily basis with assessments and scores with explanations. I often used it as a

communication tool with parents as well. It was a great way to keep parents abreast of

student work and keep them in the loop if there should be any inconsistencies or concerns

immediately. If used consistently, it allowed for immediate feedback to both students and

parents. Unfortunately, I do not have access to my Gradelink any longer due to the fact I

have had to take the year off to complete the student teaching portion of this credential

program.

Instead of including a portion of my online grade book as an artifact for TPE

Domain B, I have chosen to include two lesson plans I created. One is an annotated

lesson called The Age of Exploration and the other is a thematic lesson called Early

California Indian Tribes. I have chosen these as artifacts to show competency in

Assessing Student Learning because they both include multiple formative assessments

and summative assessments. In the Age of Exploration lesson, students are given a pre-

test to assess prior knowledge on the subject. The teacher collects these pre-tests and goes

over the answers with the students. They then watch a short video and answer questions

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about the important facts. This is then reviewed as a class and students make corrections

on their papers in correcting pen. This is collected and reviewed by the teacher. In the

third activity, students work in partners to complete a webquest on the Early Explorers.

This is reviewed as a class and students make corrections with their correcting pens.

After each written assessment, before starting the next activity, the teacher has an

opportunity to pull students aside that are having trouble and reteach the material. The

teacher conducts formative assessments as she observes students working on the

webquest and guides students to find the information they need. Due to the multiple

activities, by the time the students take the final summative assessment, if they give it

100%, they should get 100%.

The second artifact I included is a lesson I created for fourth grade history called

Early California Indian Tribes. I decided to include this for TPE Domain B: Assessing

Student Learning because it shows my competency in TPE 2: Monitoring Students

Learning During Instruction. Students have multiple learning activities to demonstrate

mastery of the concepts and Content Standards. In a week-long lesson, students engage in

many activities and demonstrate comprehension of the material in many ways. The

students list the discuss and list the main ideas in the informational text, they write a

legend of their own and illustrate the different types of homes of the California Indians,

they play different Indian games, compare and contrast the regions of California and

color and label a map of the different regions, and engage in a mock trade between Indian

tribes. The teacher is continuously conducting formative assessments during all activities

and taking anecdotal notes. Following the lesson is a detailed rubric for the five writing

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activities in the lesson. Students should use to the rubric to assess their own work. I also

follow up the lesson with an explanation of the importance of multiple assessments

within any given lesson.

My third artifact is a literature review on a an informational text put out by the

ETS, or Educational Testing Services called Linking Classroom Assessment with Student

Learning. It is a very helpful publication that discusses the importance of linking

assessment to instruction. All three artifacts are available for review on the TPE Domain

B Page of my PDQP BLOG.

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References

Appendix a: The california teaching performance expectations (TPEs) (2008). Cal

TPA: California Teaching Performance Assessment Candidate Handbook.

Sacramento, CA: California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. Retrieved

from http://www.ctc.ca.gov/educator-prep/tpa-files/candidatehandbook-

appendixa-tpes.pdf

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tpe domain b: assessing student learning

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