Task 3. Instructing Students & Supporting Learning - Commentary
Adapted from: PACT Handbook - Science Teaching Event Candidate Handbook 2008-2009; Performance Assessment for California Teachers
Write a commentary of 4-7 single-spaced pages (including prompts) that addresses the following prompts. You can address each prompt separately, through a holistic essay, or a combination of both, as long as all prompts are addressed. (We strongly encourage you to use the numbering and titles listed below)
(1) Context of Video - Other than what is stated in the lesson plan(s), what occurred immediately prior to and after each video clip that is important to know in order to understand and interpret the interactions between and among you and your students? Please provide any other information needed to interpret the events and interactions in the video clips.
(2) Routines & Structures - Describe any routines or working structures of the class (e.g., group work roles, class discussion norms) that were operating in the learning tasks seen on the video clips. If specific routines or working structures are new to the students, how did you prepare students for them? (TPE 10)
(3) Intellectual Engagement: In the instruction seen in the clips, how did you further the students’ knowledge and skills and engage them intellectually while collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data from a scientific inquiry? Provide examples of both general strategies to address the needs of all of your students and strategies to address specific individual needs. (TPEs 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 11)
(4) Language Supports: Describe any language supports used in the clips to help your students (including English learners as well as other students struggling with language) understand the content and/or academic language central to the lesson. If possible, give one or two examples from the video clip(s) of how you implemented these supports. (TPEs 4, 7)
- Sourcebook for Teaching Science - Chapter 1 - Building a Scientific Vocabulary
- Sourcebook for Teaching Science - Chapter 2 - Developing Science Reading Skills
- Sourcebook for Teaching Science - Chapter 3 - Developing Science Writing Skills
(5) Monitoring Student Learning: Describe the strategies you used to monitor student learning during the learning task shown on the video clips. Cite one or two examples of what students said and/or did in the video clips or in assessments related to the lesson(s) that indicated their progress toward accomplishing the lessons’ learning objectives. (TPEs 2, 3)
- Reflect on the learning that resulted from the experiences featured in the video clips. Explain how, in your subsequent planning and teaching, successes were built upon and missed opportunities were addressed.