syllabus

AZUSA PACIFIC UNIVERSITY School of Education Department of Teacher Education Course Syllabus – Spring 2009

EDLS 411 Introduction to Assessment

Instructor: Jeffrey Lee Classroom: AZWCAM 140 Class Time: Mondays 8:20 – 9:15 Office: (Building 1 Office 114) Office Hours: Mondays 9:15 – 12:00 Available by appointment E-mail: jeffreylee@apu.edu

I. Mission Statement of Azusa Pacific University Azusa Pacific University is an evangelical Christian community of disciples and scholars who seek to advance the work of God in the world through academic liberal arts and professional programs of higher education that encourage students to develop a Christian perspective of truth and life. II. University Cornerstones Azusa Pacific University is founded on Four Cornerstones. The Four Cornerstones are a philosophical description of the values of the institution and its people, students, staff, faculty, administration, trustees and alumni. They describe who we are and who we are becoming. We are all journeying toward the values described in the Four Cornerstones: Christ, Scholarship, Community, and Service. III. Course Description The course provides an introduction to the California Teaching Performance Assessment with specific focus on principles of content-specific and developmentally appropriate pedagogy. Issues addressed include engaging and supporting students in learning, making subject matter comprehensible, assessing learning, planning instruction, and designing learning experiences for students. Electronic portfolio will be utilized. IV. School of Education Learner Goals We prepare: 1. Ethical professionals who are able to understand and articulate the integration of a Christian worldview with their discipline in their communities of practice. 2. Responsive professionals who practice reflective critical thinking in their engagements with diverse communities of learners. 3. Informed scholarly professionals who are dedicated to collaboration and lifelong learning. V. Student Outcomes and Expected Competencies

Measure Learning Outcome IDEA Objective Activities to Assess By the end of this course, students should be able to: Select IDEA objective that addresses the learning outcome: Name assignments ot activity used tyo assess learning outcome 1.Understand teaching performance assessment Gaining factual knowledge 1. Completion of TPA 1 (70%) 2.Develop a teaching performance of content-and specific and developmentally appropriate pedagogy Developing professional skills and competencies 2. Attendance and participation (30%) 3.Demonstrate understanding of electronic portfolio Learning to apply course material

Timeline Part 1 – Introduction to EDLS 411 (January 12 – March 2) Going through the TPA Manual ELL students, GATE students, 504, IEP, Learning Disabled students Part 2 – Reviewing benchmark TPA’s (March 9 – April 6) Part 3 – Writing TPA 1 (Due April 27)

VI. Textbooks and Study Resources

REQUIRED TEXT O'Malley J.M. & Pierce, L. V. (1996). Authentic Assessment for English Language Learners. New York: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc.

California Teacher Performance Assessement (Ca TPA) Handbook.

OTHER REQUIRED INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL TaskStream Account (Tutorial can be found at http://education.apu.edu/techintegration/booklet )

VII. Course Expectations

1. Dispositions In order to maintain the highest standards for teacher candidates the Teacher Education faculty takes into consideration student dispositions. For example, observable and measurable characteristics of exemplary candidates might include: • Prompt and consistent attendance • All assignments turned in promptly representing the candidates’ best efforts • Positive attitude displayed before, during, and after classes. • Active participation in class discussions and activities • Christ like compassion for others • Life long learning evident • Ethical in dealings with instructor and peers

2. Professional behavior and participation are vital to your role as a learner, much of which is contingent upon in-class participation and cannot be replicated in other ways. As a co-learner and co-teacher, come prepared to incorporate reflections, personal experiences, opinion, and questions in a responsible and professional manner. As you read, critically reflect upon your classroom experiences in an effort to recognize and integrate important principles concerning effective teaching. You are a vital part of this class. The wealth of knowledge and creative ideas you contribute and gain from the contributions of others are invaluable and cannot be replicated outside this experiential-based program. 3. Online collaboration will be done through a wiki. Students are expected to co-construct a collaborative perspective on the class subject matter. The class wiki will also act as valuable resource for completing TPA 1. Because this course is a graduate course, students are held to the academic rigor equivalent to that of all other graduate courses at APU. Please do your part in the co-constructing of knowledge online.