UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY WERKLUND SCHOOL OF EDUCATION UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMS IN EDUCATION INDIVIDUAL/GROUP LEARNING IN CLASSROOMS Student Teacher: Ms. Amy Novak ID#: 10086085 School: WG Murdoch Partner Teacher: Mr. Dan New Field Instructor: Ms. Shirley Pepper NOTE: This is not a letter of reference and will not be distributed by the WERKLUND SCHOOL OF EDUCATION to potential employers, however potential employers may ask for this assessment from the student directly. ‘The purpose of this four-week field experience is to focus on the complex dimensions of individual/group learning in classrooms. The student's learning portfolio and her/his participation in the field placement should provide evidence of an emerging ability to act thoughtfully in the classroom and within the school community, anda preliminary understanding of learners and of the enactment of curriculum and pedagogical telationships within the classroom environment, The narrative assessment should address the student teacher's growth in their initial ability 0 plan fr, implement and assess leaming. It should also comment onthe student teacher's growth in relation to the relevant KSAs, including, the student's own goal setting and personal/professional assessment throughout field experience. The following report onthe students work should be organized in relation to the questions: Where isthe work particularly strong? What could the student do to further her/his professional ‘growth and development? You may also want to consider the elements assessed as part of the midterm assessment Amy was and is a very diligent and prepared educational professional. She excelled in the area of lesson planning and preparation. I was particularly impressed with the detailed, interconnected, and thoughtful lesson plans she developed. Lessons were clearly linked to curricular outcomes and lesson objectives were insightfully scaffolded. She was also able to extend beyond the expectations placed on her with this introductory practicum by creating long and short range planning for a particular unit, She took on the task of utilizing a UBD and UDL model to create a whole unit of study including formative, and summative assessment materials in the form of performance tasks and a traditional final exam, Amy made note of the diverse learning needs in her classes and began finding opportunities to differentiate for these diverse students. As the practicum progressed, Amy also began to develop special attention to students’ deeper thinking and higher order thinking skills by creating unique lesson experiences that required students to gain a strong and deep understanding of the mathematics curriculum. This was aided by her desire to provide students with valuable leaming experiences that aligned with her own strong understanding of the curriculum itself. One such example of this showcased her comfort with the use of emerging digital technologies. Amy was able to utilize the technological tools at her disposal to identify, plan and execute engaging lessons that involved formative assessment and engaging use of iPads as a learning tool. One of the most challenging things in any classroom is pacing, time management, and transitions. This was a growth area for Amy, but as the practicum moved on, she gave special attention to these areas and is now beginning to utilize a variety of skills and cues to manage her own, as well as her students” time during learning situations. In this area and others, Amy was always receptive to feedback and immediately tried to ut into practice new ideas and suggestions we arrived at together as a teaching team. Her desire to know and Jearn more about the teaching of her subject, and to have opportunities herself to implement these new Jearnings on a next day turn around, was admirable. As she continues her development, I believe she will further gain insight into lesson pacing, as well as develop greater self-confidence in addressing classrooms of students.On multiple occasions, Amy was able to show her ability to work as a member of the professional learning community in our school. She worked well with other educators, and always presented herself as a willing and collegial professional. This was also evident in her time working with substitute teachers for multiple classes. She took on the full responsibility of the classroom routine on a regular basis and was able to rise to the occasion at a high degree. Additionally, she gave her time to extra-curricular pursuits by participating in our school leadership program, as well as volunteering with our music teacher to help with our choir class who met outside of class time. Amy also was also fortunate to participate in parent-teacher conversations and our celebration of leaming uring her time at our school. Her dedication to include herself on both of these fronts was appreciated and should be applauded. These opportunities as well as her participation on a professional leaning day showed her acknowledgement of the importance of engaging the greater school community. I believe these experiences will also prepare her for similar experiences in future practicums and/or in her future teaching tenure Amy proved to be very capable and strong as a teaching professional. I strongly recommend her for any of her future teaching pursuits. Partner Teacher's Signature Student Teacher's Signature Recommendation to the Office of Undergraduate Prog) Was this assessment reviewed with the student? (Yes) No '* Please remember to also sign and date any additional pages and attach to this form. ‘© Please ensure the student signs the Narrative Assessment. |* Please provide the original Narrative Assessment to the student teacher and keep a copy for yourown records. '* The student teacher is required to submit a copy of this Narrative Assessment to their Field Experience ___ Instruetor, as per the instructions of the Field Experience Instructor, in order to receive their final grade.