Teacher Educator Reliability Study Observation Training

This online training is for teacher educators participating in the MnEDS Reliability Study, including supervisors, cooperating classroom teachers, and university instructors who will be evaluating observations. In the following training, you will be guided through several exercises. At the bottom of the page, you will be prompted to complete a knowledge check via the Google form link provided. This final check will confirm your completion of the training for payment purposes. The entire training including the knowledge check will take approximately one hour. 

Step 1. Review the MnEDS framework by watching the videos below. If you have not already done so, be sure that you have read, studied and/or reviewed the MnEDS rubrics, as well as the Thinking Behind the Strands. 

Step 2. Learn the observation protocol and prepare to practice applying the MnEDS to example observations.

Observation Protocol for MnEDS Teacher Educator Participants:

Directions for observers (student teaching supervisors or cooperating teachers)

1. Talk with the teacher candidate before the observation to determine which disposition rubric(s) you are observing

2. Observe the teacher candidate during the designated activity (e.g., teaching a lesson, participating in a meeting, interacting with a parent, etc.) (minimum of 15 minutes)

3. Locate the candidate on the rubric(s)* that were/was selected

4. Submit your "score" (i.e., critical incident, awareness, commitment, enactment) and brief observational notes using the on-line submission form

5. Debriefing with the candidate is optional, but the score that you submit should be your initial evaluation based on what you observed

*Up to two strand rubrics can be selected by teacher candidates per observation.

Step 3. Read through the following example of the observation protocol in use: 

1. Identify strand focus for the observation

1. A teacher candidate invites her cooperating teacher to observe and evaluate her participation in the all staff meeting after school for the MnEDS reliability study. The cooperating teacher confers with the teacher candidate about which strand she will be showcasing during the meeting. She shares she will be demonstrating the disposition of advocacy.

2. Observe

A teacher candidate working in a third grade classroom in a school serving a large immigrant community, including many Mexican American families, attends an after-school meeting for all teachers at her student teaching site. The meeting is led by a teacher leader in the building. At the meeting the teacher candidate learns that teachers are organizing a walk-in to protest changes to the DACA program, which will likely affect many students and families in the school community. The meeting leader asks the teachers to discuss in small groups the impact this walk-in could have and what additional steps should be taken. During the small group discussion the teacher candidate is quite shy and withdrawn. However, when the group asks who is willing to come early the next morning, the teacher candidate raises her hand to signal that she will be there. She then shares, "I think this is an important step to show our families and community what our school values." 

3. Locate the candidate on the rubric(s):

• • • This teacher candidate has selected "Advocacy" as the only rubric she would like applied to her participation during the meeting. The cooperating teacher reviews the rubric for Advocacy:

• • • The cooperating teacher is a little torn at first between locating the teacher candidate in awareness verses commitment. She considers that the teacher candidate's actions overall showed a level of commitment to advocacy. The cooperating teacher understands that it took courage to speak up at all at the meeting for this teacher candidate, who is still developing her sense of identity as a teacher. On the other hand, during the small group instruction she would have liked to have seen more of the indicators under "Commitment" demonstrated. For example, "Seeks to understand the complex realities of students' experiences" could have been demonstrated by the teacher candidate if she had asked more questions of the other members of her small group about how the national political situation was affecting students and families. Likewise, "Seeks to understand the importance of creating anti-oppressive and liberatory schooling" could have been demonstrated through comments or questions shared by the teacher candidate regarding additional steps beyond the walk-in that could be taken. The cooperating teacher settles on "awareness" when she considers the indicators "Recognizes the role of advocacy" and "Assesses educational, institutional, and political contexts" as best demonstrating her participation in the meeting.

    • If this observation resulted in locating a Critical Incident, what would have been different?

    • Although the teacher candidate in this example was reticent and uncertain in her participation, she did show a level of awareness of the importance of advocacy by attending the meeting, by showing her support, and by suggesting that the walk-in could communicate solidarity to families affected by DACA. However, if the candidate had denied the significance of the impact of DACA changes to students and families, or had expressed a stereotype about students or families, this could have signaled a critical incident. Likewise, if she had dismissed the significance of the meeting she may have been demonstrating a critical incident via the indicator "Ignores educational, institutional, or political contexts". 

If this observation resulted in locating Enactment, what would have been different?

The teacher candidate could have shown Enactment in this observation by demonstrating the indicator "advocates alongside students and families" for example, by raising questions and urging action to directly involve students and families affected by DACA changes in terms of providing school- and community-based supports.

4. Submit the score and debrief the candidate:

• • (Required) The cooperating teacher logs onto the Google form for observation ratings and completes the prompts, selecting "Awareness" for the strand "Advocacy". 

  • (Optional) She takes a moment to share her observation with the teacher candidate, using formative coaching questions to better understand the teacher candidate's state of mind and goals during the staff meeting. She guides the teacher candidate through questioning and by sharing the rubric to consider where the teacher candidate would have placed herself and what she would do differently next time. Together, they brainstorm actions that would locate her participation in the commitment or enactment levels.

Step 4. Knowledge Check

Make sure that you have carefully read and considered the above resources. Access the MnEDS rubrics to use during the knowledge check by either printing or keeping a tab or window open to this page.

Click here to take the knowledge check for MnEDS Observations.