Writing for the edTPA: Making and Supporting Claims about

Your Teaching and Student Learning

Christine M. Dawson, Ph.D.Director of Student Teaching, Skidmore College

Teacher Consultant, National Writing Project

February 11, 2014 Latham, NY

Goals for our workshop today:

To identify and describe key elements of argument (claims and evidence)

To examine significance of argument in our teaching profession (CCSS, APPR, edTPA, communicating with other stakeholders)

Identify the overarching claim the edTPA is expecting you to make

Identify the related claims (subclaims) the edTPA is expecting you to make in each commentary prompt question

Identify what evidence the edTPA considers meaningful for commentary responses

Form a plan on how to make a claim and effectively use evidence on the edTPA commentary responses

Everything is an Argument!

For example…

Argument Writing and the CCSS

With a partner, take a look at the argument writing standards for the Common Core: What do you notice about the progression

across grades (changes noted in bold)? What do you notice that students are

expected to do with argument writing by the time they graduate high school?

For our purposes today: Focus on claims and evidence

What overall claim is the edTPA asking you to make? What types of evidence does the edTPA consider

convincing or appropriate?

This is the same move you will be making throughout your career as a professional educator: to make claims about your instructional decisions and student learning, based on evidence that your audience will find appropriate and convincing

Resources to keep in mind

Overview of Tasks (at front of Assessment Handbook) – lists the key evidence you will submit for each Task

Evidence Chart (at end of Assessment Handbook) – lists artifacts and commentary specifications

Glossary (at very end of Assessment Handboook) – defines all key terms and provides illustrative examples

Making Good Choices Handbook (available online) – provides additional insights to support you as you prepare materials

Commentary page limits

With a partner, try Exercise #1

CLAIMS: Identify the claims that the edTPA is expecting you to make in the selected commentary prompts? (Mark these on the prompts.)

EVIDENCE: What types of evidence can you reference to support your claims (remember – this is for Task 1)?

AUDIENCE: What does the edTPA reviewer care most about seeing in your response? (See the rubric on next page.)

With a partner, try Exercise #2 (OR work on the corresponding academic language prompt/rubric from your own handbook)

CLAIMS: Identify the claims that the edTPA is expecting you to make in the selected commentary prompts? (Mark these on the prompts.)

EVIDENCE: What types of evidence can you reference to support your claims (remember – this is for Task 1)?

AUDIENCE: What does the edTPA reviewer care most about seeing in your response? (See the rubrics on next page.)

Exercise #3 (Prompt asking for connections to research/theory)

CLAIMS: Identify the claims that the edTPA is expecting you to make in the selected commentary prompts? (Mark these on the prompts.) Notice how these commentaries are asking you to coordinate your claims.

EVIDENCE: What types of evidence can you reference to support your claims (remember – this is for Task 1)? What is the role of research/theory in this evidence?

AUDIENCE: What does the edTPA reviewer care most about seeing in your response? (See the rubrics on next page.)

How can we respond to commentary prompts?

A writing strategy: 3 INs1

INtroduce the claim you are making (state the claim)

INsert the evidence you are using to support your claim

INterpret the evidence in terms of the claim (state how your evidence supports your claim)

NOTE: As you draft your responses, you may find it useful to draft the first two INs first – and then go back and fill in the third IN later in revision

[1 Lawrence, A. (in review). “Genre conventions of qualitative research articles in English education”.]

An example: Responding to Task 2 Commentary Prompt #2

The 3 INs in action: A way of responding to Task 2 Commentary Prompt #2 Introduce: I demonstrate mutual rapport with and responsiveness

to students with varied needs and backgrounds in a variety of ways in these clips.

Insert: For example, in Video1, at 3:15, notice the exchange with the girl in the green sweater. She asks me “X,” and I respond, “Y.”

Interpret: This interaction shows my rapport with this student (explain how). My response to her question also encourages her to expand her question, which teaches her Z.

Insert: Similarly, at 4:46 in Video 2, notice the exchange with the boy in the white sweatshirt. ETC.

[NOTE that this response still needs to make and support the claim that I challenge students to engage in learning.]

Examining additional edTPA samples

Does the student teacher make the claims s/he is asked to make in the prompt? (Introduce the appropriate claim?)

Does the student teacher provide sufficient evidence to support his/her claims? (Insert the appropriate evidence?)

What do you notice about the specificity of detail in the claims and evidence?

Does the student teacher interpret the evidence in terms of the claim?

Using your understanding of argument throughout your teaching career Preparing for formal observations: making a claim for

why this lesson with these students on this day – and for what learning is taking place

Preparing APPR evidence binders: making claims about student learning across the school year

Explaining teaching decisions to students and other stakeholders: making a claim for why a lesson matters, or how lessons tie together

Across contexts: being able to interpret a particular audience’s purpose and interests, and what evidence they will find convincing

Revisiting the goals for our workshop today:

To identify and describe key elements of argument (claims and evidence)

To examine significance of argument in our teaching profession (CCSS, APPR, edTPA, communicating with other stakeholders)

Identify the overarching claim the edTPA is expecting you to make

Identify the related claims (subclaims) the edTPA is expecting you to make in each commentary prompt question

Identify what evidence the edTPA considers meaningful for commentary responses (be specific!)

Form a plan on how to make a claim and effectively use evidence on the edTPA commentary responses

Question and Answer Time