The quality of graduate teachers is a significant concern for teacher educators, policymakers and the public. Initiatives regarding the quality assurance of initial teacher education (ITE) programs require critical examination to ensure that ITE programs develop proficient graduate teachers to meet the demands of modern classrooms. In this paper,…

The Interstate Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC) Model Core Teaching Standards and Learning Progressions for Teachers 1.0, developed by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO, 2013) in the United States, provide a set of expectations for essential knowledge, critical disposition, and performance needed for high-quality…

In this paper the authors examine the uses of teaching performance assessments (TPAs) as resources for learning, program evaluation, and improvement in teacher education. The authors begin by outlining their conceptual framing and related research questions about the uses of TPAs as resources for program evaluation and improvement. They describe…

The edTPA, a national performance assessment for teacher candidates, has seen rapid adoption across the country since its development in 2009. Against the national backdrop of high stakes testing and accountability, the edTPA was developed to be an indicator of teachers' readiness to teach. The varying perspectives and responses to edTPA in…

The edTPA Teacher Performance Assessment was implemented at a regional public university to replace the previous paper-and-pencil assessment of teacher candidates' teaching effectiveness. To determine the teacher educators' impressions of using the edTPA as an assessment of readiness to teach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17…

A strong focus on teacher performance is resurfacing in teacher-preparation programs across the US. EdTPA, a teacher-performance assessment designed to determine K-12 teacher candidates' readiness for the classroom, has become central in teacher-preparation programs in several states and promises to be implemented in more states in the coming…

The purpose of teacher preparation programs is to ensure that teachers are adequately equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to support the various educational needs of their students. Nevertheless, a call for a uniform process through which teacher candidates can demonstrate their ability to meet their students' educational needs using…

To meet the demands of living and working in the 21st century, it is critical that every P-12 student in every classroom have an effective teacher. Yet, each year, thousands of new teachers enter the field unprepared to meet the challenges of today's classroom. Recent federal policies such as No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top have made…

A study investigated the effects of training in cognitive monitoring on preservice teacher lesson planning. Planning and implementing lessons were more effective for prospective teachers training in cognitive monitoring. Implications for teacher preparation programs are discussed. (MT)

To assess the performance of student teachers, the authors describe two approaches to observation involving established observation inventories. Forty-nine competencies are identified, and results of student teacher performance are discussed and interpreted. (MT)

In order to determine if successful academic performance assures good teaching, four measures of academic achievement of teacher education graduates of Georgia State University from 1981 through 1984 were correlated with on-the-job performance assessments. Results are presented and implications for education policies are discussed. (Author/MT)

This study was designed to determine the feasibility of using the Teacher Performance Assessment Instruments (TPAI) to evaluate student teacher performance in northern Nevada by a more accurate and mutually acceptable method. Developed and validated by the University of Georgia, passing the TPAI is required for teacher certification in Georgia.…

Two student teacher evaluation methods used by the University of Toledo are the Classroom Observation Keyed for Effectiveness Research Instrument (COKER) and the Teacher Performance Assessment Instrument (TPAI). The COKER is an objectively administered low inference system for recording teacher and student interactions in the classroom. (The form…

Recent literature emphasizing the relationship of content knowledge to teaching performance has provided an inducement for some evaluators to use formal tests to assess teachers' understanding of subject matter. This study, conducted at a laboratory school connected with the University of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), examines the relationship…

The selection of students qualified for teacher education has many facets, only some of which are addressed by standardized tests and college grades. The purpose of the present study was to examine the American College Testing (ACT) Program Assessment, Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST), and college grade point average (GPA) as predictors of…