1.3 Transformation Initiative
 Summarize activities and changes based on data on candidate performance and
program quality that are related to the TI.
 Discuss plans for sustaining and enhancing progress on the TI in this area.
Candidate content and pedagogical content knowledge.
In order to maintain our 100% Praxis II pass rate, we have taken steps to support candidates. Though
the current ACT required (considered in combination with high school GA and high school rank in class)
is at least 21, applicants for teacher preparation programs may have a 20 or less in verbal/reading
components. If candidates score 20 or below in this area, they are referred to coursework in reading
academic texts and the writing center. With the increased literacy demands of the Teacher
Performance Assessment, an aspect of our Transformation Initiative, we anticipate that candidates will
have adequate skills to respond to the assessment’s rigorous tasks.
Through a 325T grant (Dr. Steve Kroeger, PI), the special education program has made significant
changes in the content area coursework taken by intervention specialist candidates. In addition to
taking extensive coursework in two content areas, these candidates take the appropriate Praxis II
content area tests for grades 5-9. Special education candidates’ performance on these content area
tests is available here.
In advanced programs, there has been increased rigor to enhance the knowledge of the content that
they teach. In the transition to semesters, courses put in place include, for example:
 The development of mathematical thinking
 Geometry and measurement
 Number sense and algebraic reasoning
 Data and statistics in the classroom and the school
 Research in science learning
 Science learning in laboratory and inquiry settings
 Mathematics as problem solving
 Mathematics as a process
 Mathematics as an interdisciplinary topic
 Current issues in history education
 Research in social studies education
 Nature of social studies education
Professional and pedagogical knowledge
Mentor teachers have always rated our programs in a very positive fashion. However, an area in which
they indicated some need for improvement is related to considering school, family, and community
practices. The consideration of these factors has indeed been changes through two themes of our
Transformation Initiative: (a) supporting candidates in dealing with their biases, and (b) implementing
the Teacher Performance Assessment. Through our vertical alignment project, described in Standard 4,
we have provided longitudinal assessments and experiences across each candidate’s program to
increase the commitment to multicultural teaching and social justice.
The first task of the Teacher Performance Assessment is related to the context of learning. In this task,
the candidate completes a form which asks about the school, classes,, students, and unique needs of
students:
1. Where are you teaching?____ Middle school ____ High school____ Other (please describe)
2. List any specialized features of your school or classroom setting (e.g., themed magnet, classroom
aide, bilingual) that will affect your teaching in this learning segment.
3. Describe any district, school, or cooperating teacher requirements or expectations that might
impact your planning or delivery of instruction, such as required curricula, pacing plan, use of
specific instructional strategies, or standardized tests.
4. What is the name of the course you are documenting? _______________________________
5. What is the length of the course?
____ one semester ____ one year other (describe)
_________
6. What is the class schedule (e.g., 50 minutes every day, 90 minutes every other day)?
7. Is there any ability grouping or tracking in English-language arts? If so, please describe how it
affects your class.
8. Identify any textbook or instructional program you primarily use for English-language arts
instruction. If a textbook, please provide the name, publisher, and date of publication.
9. List other resources (e.g., SmartBoard, dictionaries, on-line resources) you use for Englishlanguage arts instruction in this class.
10. Grade level composition of class ________________________
 Number of:
 students in the class _____
 males ______ females _____
 English language learners ____
 students identified as gifted and talented _____
 students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) or 504 plans _____
11. Complete the chart below to summarize the required accommodations or modifications for
special education students or gifted and talented students that will affect your Englishlanguage arts instruction in this learning segment. As needed, consult with your cooperating
teacher to complete the chart
We are currently piloting the Teacher Performance Assessment with all candidates. Though our data
now is only related to last year’s partial pilot, we anticipate that this year’s data will provide us with
evidence related to our candidates’
Student Learning
Our Transformation Initiative has also had an impact on the ways in which we measure and analyze our
candidates’ focus on student learning. The Teacher Performance Assessment requires that candidates
complete this task: Analyze student performance across the class from one assessment completed
during the learning segment.
 Identify three student work samples that illustrate class trends in student understanding.
 Select two focus students from the class whose learning you will analyze in more depth, and for
whom you will document feedback on their work.
 Respond to commentary prompts to analyze the extent to which the whole class met the
standards/objectives, analyze the individual learning of two focus students and describe your
feedback to them, and identify next steps in instruction based on your analysis.
Our shift to coursework in partner schools with embedded field experiences has also targeted
documenting a direct impact on student learning. For example, in the special education program,
candidates complete an assessment, develop and implement a plan, and then analyze student learning
for next steps in instruction.
In our advanced programs, all endorsement programs include a documentation of impact on student
learning. This use of the Educator Impact Rubric, developed in 2003, continues to provide a means of
using a research-based tool to document our candidates’ impact. In our curriculum and instruction
advanced program, our candidates complete an analysis of a critical incident to demonstrate their ability
to analyze student, classroom, and school performance data and make data-driven decisions about
strategies for teaching and learning so that all students learn.
Dispositions (Initial and Advanced). Two of our TI themes are directly related to dispositions: helping
candidates come to terms with unintentional barriers and bias and .preparing teachers for urban
schools. Our disposition assessment (piloted in 2001 and implemented beginning 2002) has been (and
will continue to be use) to assess candidates related to these indicators:
 responsibility for making the classroom and the school a “safe harbor” for learning, in
other words, a place that is protected, predictable, and has a positive climate
 recognition of the fundamental need of students to develop and maintain a sense of
self-worth, and that student misbehavior may be attempts to protect self-esteem
 belief that all children can learn and persistence in helping every student achieve
success
 valuing all students for their potential and people and help them value each other.
This instrument has been successful in identifying candidates’ areas for improvement related to
dispositions, and has been used successfully in developing targeted action plans for candidates who do
not consistently demonstrate these dispositions. However, candidates, supervisors, and mentors have
expressed an interest in a more specific, behavioral instrument to provide explicit feedback to
candidates in various areas. During autumn, 2010, a work group began to analyze the literature related
to the behavior of effective teachers in urban, high needs schools. The focus of this review was
behaviors that had been documented through research to have a positive impact on student outcomes.
The resulting instrument was initially in paper form, but is admittedly cumbersome. In response to the
need to make the instrument more user-friendly, the instrument was also designed as a Qualtrics
survey, with skip logic used to jump to questions in focus areas. We are currently piloting this
instrument in Middle Childhood Education, English Education, and Special Education. Following this
pilot, we will review the instrument, social validity data from candidates, supervisors, and mentors and
revise the form as needed.
Plans for sustaining and enhancing progress on the TI in this area
All of the above changes are in place. As we continue to work on the TI, we anticipate that our Standard
4 plans (vertical planning of activities and assessments related to tracking candidate growth toward our
diversity proficiencies) will have an impact on the detailed dispositions assessment. We also anticipate
that there will be some changes to this detailed instrument as we complete our pilot and social validity
work. In addition, the external evaluation of Teacher Performance Assessments will lend greater rigor
to assess the impact of our candidates on student learning.