WSU Cooperating Teacher News
January 2023
Happy New Year! Thank you for your gift of mentorship of a WSU teacher candidate. We are fortunate to be able to work with you and appreciate your commitment to serving your profession in this manner. You are not on this journey alone. You may reach out to me any time. Your candidate has also been assigned a University Supervisor who will also help mentor your candidate. You should hear from your candidate's supervisor before 1-20-23.
All cooperating teachers were emailed a detailed informational packet containing expectations, timelines, Taskstream directions, and assessments for the term. These were emailed in mid-December. If you did not receive this, please check your clutter folders. You may also email me at tracey.kramer@wright.edu to request the packet.
Taskstream is our online assessment system. We ask our cooperating teachers to use this to approve attendance and evaluate any required lessons. Taskstream will not be ready for use until January 13th. Anyone who has hosted for us in the past using Taskstream will have the same account. New accounts will be emailed a welcome link, but not until the week of 1-9-23.
I will send these newsletters monthly, but please do not hesitate to reach out to me at any time with questions, ideas, or concerns. Feel free to visit our CT website as needed:https://traceykramer9.wixsite.com/wsuct
Sincerely,
Tracey Kramer
OPFE Director and Teacher of Record for all Field Experience Courses
937-775-2995
Important Dates
1-9-23 First day of WSU spring term; phase 1 and 2 students begin this week. Phase 3 Student Teachers return when their schools return in January.
If you have not yet, please do the following as soon as convenient for you:
- Share any safety critical procedures and COVID-19 policies with your candidate.
- Help your candidate navigate office sign in procedures, parking, etc.
1-23-23 Approve any attendance on Taskstream. Please note that you can only see attendance logs waiting for you IF your candidate has submitted these. We expect all candidates to submit by Sunday before midnight every other week. We do not penalize candidates if their CTs do not approve their logs by the suggested deadlines. We know you are busy and ask that you approve all of the attendance by the end of term.
1-25-23 Optional PD Event to attend with your candidate
Title: An Introduction to Depth and Complexity Icons
When: Wednesday, January 25th from 5:30 PM-7:00 PM; Check-in begins at 5:15; light snacks will be provided
Where: 158 Rike Hall
RSVP: Through Google Forms by January 20, 2023.
For Phase 1 ONLY
Between 1-23 and 2-17 Supervisors will be in the classroom to informally observe for 20 minutes. Candidates should be actively involved and engaging with student(s). For example, they could lead a small group, teach a mini-lesson, or lead a routine.
For ALL Phase 2 and 3 Candidates ONLY
Before 2-3-23 Supervisor Formal Observation #1- this is a lesson they will implement, having planned it on their own or co-planned with you. They must record this on GoReact.
For Phase 3 Candidates ONLY
All phase 3 student teachers are required to attend Youth Mental Health First Aid Training. They were given 5 options of dates. They will be out all day on their scheduled day. They should keep you informed with this choice and leave substitute teaching plans as needed. Date choices were 1-24, 1-25, 1-26, 1-31, 2-1.
All phase 3 student teachers obtaining their initial teaching license must complete edTPA this term. This assessment captures 1 cycle of planning, teaching, and assessment deemed as a learning segment (3-5 lessons on one central focus). Your candidate should discuss this with you so they are prepared. edTPA will need to be submitted by March 16th at the latest, but many programs require an earlier deadline. An explanation and acceptable ways to support candidates may be found in the CT packet that was emailed in mid-December.
WSU Substitute Teaching Policy
Candidates who meet their assigned school district’s substitute teacher qualifications and have applied and been approved for a substitute teaching license in their placement school districts may substitute for their assigned cooperating teachers on days that they normally attend their placements. They may log field hours if subbing for their assigned cooperating teacher on a placement day. Candidates should not leave their assigned classroom to substitute teach in other classrooms on assigned placement days. Rather, we suggest their cooperating teachers "sub" in the needed classroom, while the candidates remain in their assigned placements. On non-placement days, candidates may substitute teach as they wish. These “extra” days may not count toward field placement attendance. Substitute payment, in each scenario, is determined by the school district. Candidates are not required to substitute teach and may decline these offers if they wish. Long term-substitute positions must be approved by the OPFE Director and require a signed agreement with the school district.
Explanation of Student Field Experience Phases
Phase 1 indicates a teacher candidate who is early in his or her experience. Some programs have only one phase 1 experience, while other programs have two phase 1 experiences. These teacher candidates are ACTIVE PARTICIPANTS, not observers. They are learning what it means to be a teacher. This is a great time to be helping the teacher with regular duties and working one on one or in small groups with students. We evaluate their professional dispositions in this phase. This year, we are strongly encouraging all phase 1 candidates to teach a brief lesson for their second supervisor informal observation.
Phase 2 indicates the teacher candidate is taking methods classes and learning more about pedagogy. Most programs have only one phase 2 experience. They are learning about lesson planning and classroom management strategies. These candidates can benefit from co-teaching and leading lessons. They are learning about diverse needs of students and how to meet these needs. Many programs have a Phase 2 YL or yearlong semester. This indicates a phase 2 candidate who is planning to remain in the same classroom for the next term for the final student teaching phase. They attend between 2 and 3 days a week, depending on their programs. We evaluate them on professional dispositions and pedagogical skills.
Phase 3 indicates an actual student teacher, attending 5 days a week. These teacher candidates are discovering what kind of teacher they are. They need to gain as much experience as possible in the role of teacher. They need intense experience in planning, managing, organizing, and assessing instruction. We ask our cooperating teachers to work with our candidates and supervisors to design a teaching schedule that makes sense for all. We evaluate them on professional dispositions and pedagogical skills. They are also completing edTPA in this phase.
We do have Phase 3 practicum candidates as well. These candidates already hold a teaching license and need 75 hours of participation in the license area that they are seeking.
Blended Supervision Model and GoReact (In-Person and Virtual Approaches)
Virtual meetings and video observations are two approaches to supervision that we have employed since 2020. We learned that there are some benefits to these approaches. As we move forward with the 22-23 school year, we have decided to continue a blended in-person/virtual supervision model. Supervisors will be communicating with you and their candidates to schedule meetings and observations. Some of these may be in-person and some may be virtual. At a minimum, we are asking supervisors to visit in-person at least twice throughout the term.
Phase 2 and 3 candidates will be using GoReact. Our phase 1 music candidates will also be using GoReact this term. GoReact is a cloud hosted secure platform for hosting videos and supporting state of the art video feedback tools. Candidates will be recording their supervisor lesson assessments. We are requiring our candidates to video record ALL supervisor lesson observations, even if their supervisor is sitting in the classroom. This practice will enhance their ability to self-assess and reflect on their teaching.
Candidates must distribute video recording OPT OUT forms to your students' caregivers. Unfortunately, we cannot use any district level release forms. Candidates must use the form they have been given by OPFE. ONLY STUDENTS WHO MAY NOT BE RECORDED NEED TO RETURN THESE FORMS.
Optional 1 Credit Hour Graduate Course Available for all Cooperating Teachers
What do our Candidates Say about their Cooperating Teachers?
- Having clear expectations and guidelines
- Feeling welcomed and like part of the team
- Hearing detailed feedback to help them improve
- Being encouraged and allowed to try new things
- Having opportunities to teach and co-teach
- Getting assistance with lesson planning skills
We appreciate all you do!
The Office of Partnerships and Field Experiences
Mission Statement: To develop quality professionals who are engaged with the communities we serve through mutually beneficial partnerships and diverse field experiences
Contact Us:
Tracey Kramer, Director, tracey.kramer@wright.edu
Amy Elston, Assistant Director, amy.elston@wright.edu
Cyndi Parsons, Administrative Support, cyndi.parsons@wright.edu
Michael Sumpter, Program Coordinator, michael.sumpter@wright.edu
Miranda Cox, Program Coordinator, miranda.cox@wright.edu
Email: cehs-opfe@wright.edu
Website: https://traceykramer9.wixsite.com/wsuct
Location: Wright State University, 378 Allyn Hall
Phone: 937-775-2107