Secondary Science

Task 1: Planning Commentary

TASK 1: PLANNING COMMENTARY

Respond to the prompts below (no more than 9 single-spaced pages, including prompts) by typing your responses within the
brackets. Do not delete or alter the prompts. Pages exceeding the maximum will not be scored.

1. Central Focus
a. Describe the central focus and purpose for the content you will teach in the learning
segment.
[ Students will be learning about evolution and types of science that rely on evolution to explain
their observations. Students will learn the process by which evolution takes place, as well as
related ideas regarding the Nature of Science. ]
b. Given the central focus, describe how the standards and learning objectives within your
learning segment address the use of science concepts and the ability to apply scientific
practices through inquiry to develop evidence-based explanations for a real-world
phenomenon.
[ The standards and learning objectives within my learning segment address the use of science
concepts and the ability to apply scientific practices through inquiry to develop evidence-based
explanations for a real-world phenomenon by stating when students will use inquiry, analyzing
observations or data, evaluating evidence and using reasoning skills to develop their
understanding of the content and related ideas regarding the Nature of Science. ]
c. Explain how your plans build on each other to help students understand relationships
between scientific concepts, scientific practices, and the phenomenon in the learning
segment.
[ As each new concept is introduced, students will have opportunities to tie what they are
learning to content learned in previous lessons and units. These primarily come in the form of
critical thinking questions to be discussed in partners and as a class. Some of them are found
on related worksheets, and some on exit tickets. Ties are also drawn to scientific practices
through the article students read about Darwin, and discussions surrounding the study of fossils
and the classification of the species. ]
2. Knowledge of Students to Inform Teaching
For each of the prompts below (2ab), describe what you know about your students with
respect to the central focus of the learning segment.
Consider the variety of learners in your class who may require different strategies/support (e.g.,
students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers, underperforming
students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students).

a. Prior learning, prerequisite skills, and understanding of the nature of science related to
the central focusCite evidence of what students know, what they can do, and
what they are still learning to do.
[ Students have just gone through units on genetics, heredity, DNA, protein synthesis, and reallife applications in personal genetics. Students have shown their understanding in these areas
by completing two tests and and a student-led lesson over personal genetics. Many students
are still making connections in all of these areas. All of these are related to concepts of
evolution. Students have had some experience with critical thinking skills and the nature of
science, but they will be challenged to a higher level in the lesson segment. Therefore,
scaffolding will be built into the lesson, especially considering the student who has an IEP. ]
Copyright 2014 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.
1 of 4 | 9 pages maximum
All rights reserved.
V4_0914
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.

Secondary Science
Task 1: Planning Commentary

b. Personal/cultural/community assets related to the central focusWhat do you know

about your students everyday experiences, cultural backgrounds and practices,
and interests?
[ Students in this school are very geared toward agriculture/farming and the outdoors, since this
is a rural school district. Likewise, the school district is small, allowing students to build
relationships with a greater amount of the student population. ]
3. Supporting Students Science Learning
Respond to prompts 3ac below. To support your justifications, refer to the instructional
materials and lesson plans you have included as part of Task 1. In addition, use principles from
research or theory to support your explanations.

a. Justify how your understanding of your students prior learning and

personal/cultural/community assets (from prompts 2ab above) guided your choice or
adaptation of learning tasks and materials. Be explicit about the connections between
the learning tasks and students prior academic learning, assets, and research/theory.
[ Since students know each other very well and have developed very specific friendships within
their class, I will be exploiting this for students who struggle with intrinsic motivation. As such,
there are many learning tasks that are based on the think/pair/share strategy (this is a strategy
based on Social Learning Theory). Some students might find the topics of genetics and
evolution interesting because it has to do with changes in a population, and can be applied to
human populations and populations of wild animals. Learning tasks were based more on prior
academic learning, however. Students have been involved in activities like the learning tasks
included in the lesson segment, and they have the prior knowledge needed to understand
concepts of evolution. Constructivist Learning Theory informed the types of critical thinking
questions I used to scaffold students learning. There are activities that help students to
understand abstract concepts by providing them with a concrete experience, which is a strategy
based on Developmental Learning Theory. ]
b. Describe and justify why your instructional strategies and planned supports are
appropriate for the whole class, individuals, and groups of students with specific
learning needs.
Consider students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers,
underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students
needing greater support or challenge.

[ Since I included expected student responses and follow-up questions, I accounted for
misconceptions, student logic, and the scaffolding needed to get students to the right answer.
This type of questioning challenges both students with higher intellectual capabilities and the
student with an IEP. The student with an IEP will simultaneously be supported by these
questions, as well. Many activities are planned for students to participate with a partner, which
encourages accountability for participation, allows students to bounce ideas off of their peers,
and allows me as the instructor to give individual attention when and where it is needed. ]
c. Describe common preconceptions (based on prior learning and experiences) within your
central focus and how you will identify and address them.
[ Students have many misconceptions about evolution and its implications for science. These
are addressed implicitly through the critical thinking questions, which are intentionally focused
on getting students to make their own conclusions based on logic and evidence. One example
of a common misconception is the idea that men evolved from apes or monkeys. Students will
Copyright 2014 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.
2 of 4 | 9 pages maximum
All rights reserved.
V4_0914
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.

Secondary Science
Task 1: Planning Commentary

use deductive reasoning while answering critical thinking questions to form their ideas about
how current species (such as apes and humans) have common ancestors. Other
misconceptions are confronted more directly. For example, students will arrange fossils in the
order they think they should go as you go down in rock layers. Then they will find out the actual
order of the fossil layers and discuss how or why their ideas differed from reality. ]
4. Supporting Science Development through Language
a. Language Function. From the list below, choose one language function essential for
student learning within your central focus:
Analyze

Explain

Interpret

Justify with evidence

[ Analyze. ]
b. Identify a key learning task from your plans that provides students with opportunities to
practice using the language function. Identify the lesson in which the learning task
occurs. (Give the lesson/day and number.)
[ In the first lesson, students will analyze results from an activity designed to mimic evolution
(the M&M Survival Activity) by answering critical thinking questions in full sentences or short
paragraphs. ]
c. Additional Language Demands. Given the language function and learning task
identified above, describe the following associated language demands (written or oral)
students need to understand and/or use:

! Vocabulary and/or symbols

! Plus at least one of the following:
! Syntax
! Discourse
Consider the range of students understandings of the language function and other language
demandswhat do students already know, what are they struggling with, and/or what is new
to them?

[ Students will be introduced to the ideas of population potential, genetic variability, finite
resources, and environmental selection through the activity above. After they have completed
the activity, students will be given these terms and I will guide them through the connections
that can be made between the terms and the activity. They will, in a subsequent assignment,
be asked to describe where in the story of Darwin these concepts/terms are introduced. For this
assignment, I will explicitly ask students to use the terms in their written work, and to pay
attention to syntax, which will allow me to assess their ability to use these terms in a sentence. ]
d. Language Supports. Refer to your lesson plans and instructional materials as needed
in your response to the prompt.

! Describe the instructional supports (during and/or prior to the learning task) that help
students understand and successfully use the language function and additional
language demands identified in prompts 4ac.
[ When the terms are introduced, I will use them in complete sentences to be sure students
have been exposed to this type of language. When I explicitly ask them to use the terms in their
written work and to pay attention to syntax, I will give an example of how to do so. ]
5. Monitoring Student Learning
Copyright 2014 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.
3 of 4 | 9 pages maximum
All rights reserved.
V4_0914
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.

Secondary Science
Task 1: Planning Commentary

In response to the prompts below, refer to the assessments you will submit as part of the
materials for Task 1.
a. Describe how your planned formal and informal assessments will provide direct
evidence of students understanding of

! science concepts,
! the phenomenon,
! the nature of science, AND
! the application of scientific practices through inquiry throughout the learning
segment.
[ Formal assessments are mostly in the form of homework to be turned in the following class
day, and these assignments are directly related to the science concepts being learned in their
corresponding lessons. These are aimed at inquiry by the involvement of critical thinking or
reflective questions. These assignments also touch on the nature of science; however, the
nature of science is not one of the standards being met, so students are not required to know
this. A lot of informal assessment of application of inquiry, the science concepts, and the nature
of science is happening as students participate in the learning tasks, as I go around and listen to
student conversations. Some of this is also done in the form of exit tickets. ]
b. Explain how the design or adaptation of your planned assessments allows students with
specific needs to demonstrate their learning.
Consider all students, including students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners,
struggling readers, underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge,
and/or gifted students.

[ Each assessment includes scaffolding needed to complete the assignment, as well as an

opportunity to explain their understanding in their own words. The student with an IEP should
be able to explain his understanding, even if his vocabulary is limited or his spelling inaccurate.
This also opens up opportunities for higher academic achievers to display a deep understanding
of the content. Any additional supports will be given on an individual basis by myself or with the
help of a resource teacher. ]

Copyright 2014 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

4 of 4 | 9 pages maximum
All rights reserved.
V4_0914
The edTPA trademarks are owned by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edTPA trademarks is
permitted only pursuant to the terms of a written license agreement.