Educative Teacher Performance Assessment

Introduction

Educative Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA) is a multiple measure assessment of teaching. Candidates applying for their first certification in New York are required to take and pass edTPA. The information on this page will explain main concepts of the edTPA, guide students to important links and provide resources for preparing the edTPA portfolio.

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Educational Leadership also provides edTPA support facilitated by faculty. Students will be introduced to the requirements of the edTPA in classes. Depending on need, follow-up sessions will be offered. Faculty may be available for individual support as needed.

For questions or concerns about the edTPA process or about any of the information listed here, contact the University's edTPA coordinator Jackie Visser at jvisser@binghamton.edu or 607-777-5070.

Student responsibilities for completion of the edTPA

While the faculty and staff of Binghamton University will support teacher candidates in their completion of the requirements of the edTPA, the upkeep and completion of the portfolio, as well as the task of uploading all files and documents to Pearson, is solely the student’s responsibility as a requirement for a  teacher candidate applying for initial certification.

Learn about the edTPA

  1. Learn about edTPA in classes.
  2. Ask for help (Jackie Visser, Matthew McConn, program faculty).
  3. Visit the department's edTPA website and the myCourses edTPA support organization.
  4. Understand the difference between the acceptable – and unacceptable – forms of assistance that the department can offer.

Video

  1. Plan with all three tasks in mind and have concrete lesson plans before starting.
  2. Plan to video as soon as possible to allow for possible problems.
  3. Get permission from parents.
  4. Plan the lesson and the video session with the cooperating teacher.
  5. Bring a personal recording device or borrow a device from the department.
  6. Video record more than needed, keeping in mind the requirements of the task.
  7. Keep video backed up to a computer or a CD.
  8. Keep video confidential and do not store on public platform, e.g., YouTube.
  9. Do not include students who do not have parental permission.
  10. Keep the video secure and confidential forever.

Complete the written narrative for each of the tasks

  1. Allow sufficient time for writing, editing and rewriting.
  2. Seek appropriate feedback from faculty, cooperating teacher, supervisor and peers.
  3. Make sure to backup all written materials AND save all student work.
  4. Cite sources of curriculum materials such as texts, worksheets and handouts.
  5. Align plans with state standards and school curriculum.

Be prepared to confirm adherence to the following:

  1. I have primary responsibility for teaching the students/class during the learning segment profiled in this assessment.
  2. I have not previously taught this learning segment to the students/class.
  3. The video clip(s) submitted show me teaching the students/class profiled in the evidence submitted.
  4. The student work included in the documentation is that of my students, completed during the learning segment documented in this assessment.
  5. I am sole author of the commentaries and other written responses to prompts and other requests for information in this assessment.
  6. Appropriate citations have been made for all materials in the assessment whose sources are from published text, the internet or other educators.

Complete the edTPA submission requirements for Pearson platform

  1. Use downloaded templates for narrative, lesson plans and student work.
  2. Upload video to Pearson.
  3. Contact Pearson technical support as needed.
  4.  Finalize all financial arrangements with Pearson.
  5.  Ask Jackie Visser about potential financial assistance (opportunity may vary from year to year and is usually known in the fall).
  6. Become familiar with the calendar for submission and score reporting.
  7. Submit early enough to allow for re-submission if necessary.
  8. Notify the University supervisor/program coordinator as soon as materials are submitted to Pearson.

Video permission and confidentiality

Each district, and often each school, has a different policy regarding students and video. Teacher candidates should be sure that they find out what the policy is as soon as they get their placement. Most districts require a consent form to be signed by parents. If the cooperating school does not already have one, the department has created a letter seeking parental permission. If the teacher candidate uses the Department of Teaching, Learning, and Educational Leadership permission form, it should also be approved by the school. Teacher candidates will also need to be familiar with Pearson's guidelines for confidentiality and security.

myCourses edTPA support

All students enrolled in initial preparation programs are enrolled in a myCourses organization titled Binghamton edTPA Support. This is where students will find:

  1. Assessment handbooks - be sure to use the most current version
  2. Understanding rubric progression - a detailed explanation of how each rubric is to be scored
  3. Making Good Choices - a support guide for edTPA candidates that answers many of the questions about tasks in the edTPA. This is the first resource students should visit when there are questions. There are three of these: a general "Making Good Choices"; one for the math portion of the childhood edTPA; and a special education version.

Scoring

The cut scores represent the minimum scores needed to pass as well as the mastery scores, which indicate that there are three possible categories a candidate can fall under: no pass, pass and mastery. All students should be setting their goal to reach mastery, and plan lessons and assessments with the intent of scoring above a three on each rubric. Being able to tell an administrator in an interview that "mastery" was achieved on the edTPA portfolio is worth noting.

Minimum Cut Scores
Field Total Score Average Rubric Score
Elementary Education 49 2.73
All other handbook areas 41 2.73
World Languages, Classical Languages 35 2.73
Mastery
Field Total Score Average rubric score
Elementary education 57 3.2
All other handbook areas 48 3.2
World languages, Classical languages 42 3.2

Letters to cooperating teacher and supervisor

The letter to cooperating teachers and the letter to supervisors are intended to inform them of edTPA expectations. These letters outline the requirements and inform the teacher and the supervisor of the student’s responsibilities. The letter to the cooperating teacher also outlines what his/her role is in the process. Check with the program coordinator before giving these letters to the teachers and supervisors. Once these letters are given to both the cooperating teacher and supervisor, the teacher candidate should make time to go over the information provided so that he/she, the cooperating teacher, and the supervisor are all aligned.