Florida educator accomplished practices
Throughout the span of the five semesters in the Elementary Education program at University of South Florida, I was required to justify that I had shown mastery of all aspects of the Florida Education Accomplished Practices or FEAPs. Here you will find a list of the FEAPs as well as evidence that I have mastered them.
1. Instructional Design and Lesson Planning. Applying concepts from human development and learning theories, the effective educator consistently:
a. Aligns instruction with state-adopted standards at the appropriate level of rigor;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
b. Sequences lessons and concepts to ensure coherence and required prior knowledge;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
c. Designs instruction for students to achieve mastery;
Evidence: Reflection
d. Selects appropriate formative assessments to monitor learning;
Evidence: Reflection
e. Uses diagnostic student data to plan lessons; and
Evidence: Lesson Plan
f.Develops learning experiences that require students to demonstrate a variety of applicable skills and competencies.
Evidence: Project Letter
2. The Learning Environment. To maintain a student-centered learning environment that is safe, organized, equitable, flexible, inclusive, and collaborative, the effective educator consistently:
a.Organizes, allocates, and manages the resources of time, space, and attention;
Evidence: Diagram of Seating Plan
b.Manages individual and class behaviors through a well-planned management system;
Evidence: Picture of Table Points
c.Conveys high expectations to all students;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
Evidence: Blog Post
e.Models clear, acceptable oral and written communication skills;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
Evidence: Blog Post
g.Integrates current information and communication technologies;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
h.Adapts the learning environment to accommodate the differing needs and diversity of students; and
Evidence: Photo of Activity
i.Utilizes current and emerging assistive technologies that enable students to participate in high-quality communication interactions and achieve their educational goals.
Evidence: Photo of Planner Entry
3. Instructional Delivery and Facilitation. The effective educator consistently utilizes a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the subject taught to:
a.Deliver engaging and challenging lessons;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
b.Deepen and enrich students’ understanding through content area literacy strategies, verbalization of thought, and application of the subject matter;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
Evidence: Pre-Assessment
d.Modify instruction to respond to preconceptions or misconceptions;
Evidence: Lesson Plan & Lesson Plan
e.Relate and integrate the subject matter with other disciplines and life experiences;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
f.Employ higher-order questioning techniques;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
g.Apply varied instructional strategies and resources, including appropriate technology, to provide comprehensible instruction, and to teach for student understanding;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
h.Differentiate instruction based on an assessment of student learning needs and recognition of individual differences in students;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
i.Support, encourage, and provide immediate and specific feedback to students to promote student achievement; and
Evidence: Photo of Student Planner
j.Utilize student feedback to monitor instructional needs and to adjust instruction.
Evidence: Lesson Plan
4. Assessment. The effective educator consistently:
a.Analyzes and applies data from multiple assessments and measures to diagnose students’ learning needs, informs instruction based on those needs, and drives the learning process;
Evidence: Lesson Plan & Lesson Plan
Evidence: Reflection
c.Uses a variety of assessment tools to monitor student progress, achievement and learning gains;
Evidence: Lesson Plan & Lesson Plan
d.Modifies assessments and testing conditions to accommodate learning styles and varying levels of knowledge
Evidence: Photograph of small group
e.Shares the importance and outcomes of student assessment data with the student and the student’s parent/caregiver(s); and
Evidence: Picture of an Entry in the Planner
f.Applies technology to organize and integrate assessment information.
Evidence: Chart and Graph
5. Continuous Professional Improvement. The effective educator consistently:
a.Designs purposeful professional goals to strengthen the effectiveness of instruction based on students’ needs;
Evidence: Blog Post
b.Examines and uses data-informed research to improve instruction and student achievement;
Evidence: Inquiry Research Plan
c. Uses a variety of data, independently, and in collaboration with colleagues, to evaluate learning outcomes, adjust planning and continuously improve the effectiveness of the lessons;
Evidence: Blog Post
d. Collaborates with the home, school and larger communities to foster communication and to support student learning and continuous improvement:
Evidence: Photograph of Barnes and Noble Event
Evidence: Photograph of Note in Planner
e. Engages in targeted professional growth opportunities and reflective practices; and
Evidence: Picture
f.Implements knowledge and skills learned in professional development in the teaching and learning process.
Evidence: Diagram of Seating Plan
6. Professional Responsibility and Ethical Conduct. Understanding that educators are held to a high moral standard in a community, the effective educator adheres to the Code of Ethics and the Principles of Professional Conduct of the Education Profession of Florida, pursuant to Rules 6B-1.001 and 6B-1.006, F.A.C., and fulfills the expected obligations to students, the public and the education profession.
Evidence: End of Semester Assessment
a. Aligns instruction with state-adopted standards at the appropriate level of rigor;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- I taught a Kindergarten math lesson on three-dimensional shapes based on the common core standards for mathematics in Kindergarten. I chose my lesson to accommodate the Hillsborough county planning sequence.
b. Sequences lessons and concepts to ensure coherence and required prior knowledge;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- In my level 3 internship, I taught a connected lesson that required that I sequenced concepts and ideas in a way that would make sense and require buildable knowledge in order to be successful. As my piece of evidence, I have featured the second lesson plan that I had to have consideration for my students prior knowledge and sequence the lesson to create a coherent plan.
c. Designs instruction for students to achieve mastery;
Evidence: Reflection
- I taught a Third grade ELA connected lesson on cause and effect. I used data collected from formative assessments to adjust instruction to help students achieve mastery.
d. Selects appropriate formative assessments to monitor learning;
Evidence: Reflection
- I taught a Third grade ELA connected lesson on cause and effect. I used formative assessments where students were required determine the cause and effect relationship and how that relationship affected the main character. I was able to use the data from those assessments to guide instruction.
e. Uses diagnostic student data to plan lessons; and
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- I taught a Third grade ELA lesson where the main objective was that students would be able to use a context clue strategy to understand the meaning of unknown words and phrases. This objective aligned with the ELA common core standards but was picked as the focus for this lesson based on the students FAIR 2 data and in class quizzes. I knew that my students needed the extra support in this standard and I developed a lesson based off of the student data.
f.Develops learning experiences that require students to demonstrate a variety of applicable skills and competencies.
Evidence: Project Letter
- I taught a unit on figurative language and found that my students struggled significantly with idioms. To help the students create concrete understanding about this topic, I assigned a project where the student was to dress up and present about an idiom of their choice. My students were required to utilize creative thinking and public speaking skills to convey the meaning behind their idiom.
2. The Learning Environment. To maintain a student-centered learning environment that is safe, organized, equitable, flexible, inclusive, and collaborative, the effective educator consistently:
a.Organizes, allocates, and manages the resources of time, space, and attention;
Evidence: Diagram of Seating Plan
- In my final internship, I was responsible for forming new table groups using the Kagan method of seating. Using this plan, students are placed in groups with one high students, one middle high, one middle low, and one low student. I sorted and created a new seating plan with the intent of creating heterogeneous groups where students would provide many different levels of support.
b.Manages individual and class behaviors through a well-planned management system;
Evidence: Picture of Table Points
- About half way through my final internship, my CT and I noticed that our students were struggling to work cooperatively. As a result, we changed the seating groups and began to use a table point system of management. The students and I came up with different ways to gain and lose points and the team with the most points at the end of two weeks would earn a lunch bunch.
c.Conveys high expectations to all students;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- This was the first lesson plan that I taught in my level one internship. It is a one-on-one letter identification lesson with my inquiry student who came into Kindergarten with no knowledge of the alphabet. In this lesson, I conveyed high expectations for that student and challenged him to learn his alphabet.
Evidence: Blog Post
- In this blog post, I was examining two different articles that related to the gap between school and home. This inquiry led me to change my personal pedagogy about how to interact with students' cultural, linguistic and family backgrounds.
e.Models clear, acceptable oral and written communication skills;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- This lesson plan was the first lesson that I taught to Kindergarteners that modeled clear communication skills. When I taught this vocabulary lesson, my directions were precise and the information was conveyed in a clear and appropriate manner.
Evidence: Blog Post
- This reflective blog post describes an instance where, early on, I could not understand what one of my Kindergarten students was saying because of his severe speech disorder. In this situation, I made sure there was a climate of openness and apologized for not listening better and managed to deescalate the situation.
g.Integrates current information and communication technologies;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- I taught this lesson using a Myon book. I incorporated a current form of ELA technology to introduce a new form of nonfiction texts to my students.
h.Adapts the learning environment to accommodate the differing needs and diversity of students; and
Evidence: Photo of Activity
- This is a photograph of students participating in a SEED activity where they used the gym space to group themselves based on a certain category. The students were engaged in kinesthetic learning and were working together towards a common goal.
i.Utilizes current and emerging assistive technologies that enable students to participate in high-quality communication interactions and achieve their educational goals.
Evidence: Photo of Planner Entry
- This is a photo of a note that I sent home to the parents of a student whose parents do not speak any English. I utilized the Google translate app to translate what I wanted to say into Spanish.
3. Instructional Delivery and Facilitation. The effective educator consistently utilizes a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the subject taught to:
a.Deliver engaging and challenging lessons;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- This lesson required that student think about what they have learned in class about three-dimensional shapes and apply them to the world around them. Additionally, I incorporated pictures of objects that they were familiar with to help engage them into the lesson. (Ex. a PokeBall for a sphere.)
b.Deepen and enrich students’ understanding through content area literacy strategies, verbalization of thought, and application of the subject matter;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- During my final internship, I developed a lesson plan that focused on deepening the students understanding of character traits and development in a text. In this lesson, students were required to verbalize responses to questions and discuss them between me and each other.
Evidence: Pre-Assessment
- I taught a Third grade connected ELA lesson on cause and effect. Before I taught this lesson, I administered a pre-assessment to identify what gaps the students had in their knowledge.
d.Modify instruction to respond to preconceptions or misconceptions;
Evidence: Lesson Plan & Lesson Plan
- I taught a Third grade connected ELA lesson on cause and effect. I first identified the students misconceptions using a pre-assessment, then I used different assessments to determine what gaps and misconceptions there still were and adjusted my instruction.
e.Relate and integrate the subject matter with other disciplines and life experiences;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- While I was teaching this lesson, I found out that my students knew very little about slavery in the United States. I took the opportunity to take a moment an elaborate on the subject to address any misconceptions and provide an opportunity for a deeper understanding of our original topic.
f.Employ higher-order questioning techniques;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- During my final internship, I developed an ELA lesson that employed discussion through higher-order techniques. The lesson plan have the framework for questions but I added additional questions as needed.
g.Apply varied instructional strategies and resources, including appropriate technology, to provide comprehensible instruction, and to teach for student understanding;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- In this lesson, I used technology to show students different three-dimensional objects and how they appear in real life and in pop culture.
h.Differentiate instruction based on an assessment of student learning needs and recognition of individual differences in students;
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- This lesson outlines different strategies for students based on their learning needs. In this lesson, students who are struggling can draw their responses to text rather than write them. Students who master the content quickly have the option between a couple different extension assignments.
i.Support, encourage, and provide immediate and specific feedback to students to promote student achievement; and
Evidence: Photo of Student Planner
- This is a photograph of an entry in one of my student's planner providing feedback on their improved behavior for the week.
j.Utilize student feedback to monitor instructional needs and to adjust instruction.
Evidence: Lesson Plan
- Based on the feedback that I observed during this math lesson, while students were working with partners I walked around the room and noticed that students were struggling with the concept. Based off of this information, I added additional problems to model.
4. Assessment. The effective educator consistently:
a.Analyzes and applies data from multiple assessments and measures to diagnose students’ learning needs, informs instruction based on those needs, and drives the learning process;
Evidence: Lesson Plan & Lesson Plan
- I taught a Third grade connected ELA lesson on cause and effect. After the first lesson, I collected data based on a ticket out. I utilized the data from this assessment to diagnose misconceptions and drive my instruction for the next day.
Evidence: Reflection
- I taught a Third grade connected ELA lesson on cause and effect. The standard that my students should be able to claim mastery of by the end of these lessons is to use information from illustrations and words in a text. Additionally, the objective that I have that students will be able to use cause and effect and illustrations to determine relationships in the text. The assessments that I have designed require students to read the text and extract information and show how they use it to create a logical response to the question.
c.Uses a variety of assessment tools to monitor student progress, achievement and learning gains;
Evidence: Lesson Plan & Lesson Plan
- I taught a Third grade connected ELA lesson on cause and effect. I first identified the students misconceptions using a pre-assessment, then I used different assessments to determine what gaps and misconceptions there still were and adjusted my instruction.
d.Modifies assessments and testing conditions to accommodate learning styles and varying levels of knowledge
Evidence: Photograph of small group
- In this photograph, I was working with a small group on an assessment for multiplication. The assessment was modified so that the students could utilize manipulatives and receive instant feedback. The students were struggling with multiplication word problems and this modification allowed for students to correct computational issues before moving on.
e.Shares the importance and outcomes of student assessment data with the student and the student’s parent/caregiver(s); and
Evidence: Picture of an Entry in the Planner
- Over the course of my final internship I have worked to develop a relationship with my students parents and frequently communicate with them via the planner in both English and Spanish. I am providing an entry written in Spanish to one of my student's planner about their progress in class.
f.Applies technology to organize and integrate assessment information.
Evidence: Chart and Graph
- I taught a Third grade ELA lesson where I gathered data to analyze and use technology to display. For this I used Google Sheets, created a chart and then converted it into a line graph.
5. Continuous Professional Improvement. The effective educator consistently:
a.Designs purposeful professional goals to strengthen the effectiveness of instruction based on students’ needs;
Evidence: Blog Post
- This blog post outlines my professional goals for the spring semester of 2016. I based these goals on how I can strengthen the effectiveness of instruction for my students.
b.Examines and uses data-informed research to improve instruction and student achievement;
Evidence: Inquiry Research Plan
- Over the course of my third semester in the program, I have worked to develop an inquiry proposal for my final internship. In order to do so, I have had to be reflexive about my own teaching practices and consider the practices of all of the skilled educators around me. As I have worked, I have developed a wondering and have done looked for data-informed research to help guide my instructional decisions and push me to make changes for my final internship.
c. Uses a variety of data, independently, and in collaboration with colleagues, to evaluate learning outcomes, adjust planning and continuously improve the effectiveness of the lessons;
Evidence: Blog Post
- I worked collaboratively with one of my peers to plan a lesson and then she observed me teaching and provided me with useful feedback. This blog post reflects on this experience.
d. Collaborates with the home, school and larger communities to foster communication and to support student learning and continuous improvement:
Evidence: Photograph of Barnes and Noble Event
Evidence: Photograph of Note in Planner
- The first piece of evidence is a flyer from a Barnes and Nobel community event that I participated in with my school. We organized activities for students to do to help promote literacy within the community. The students also received a percentage off of any book purchase and Barnes and Nobel also donated a percentage of their profits to the school. My second piece of evidence is a photo of a note that I sent home to the parents of a student whose parents do not speak any English. I wanted to provide the student and his parents feedback on their improved behavior for the week. I utilized the Google translate app to translate what I wanted to say into Spanish.
e. Engages in targeted professional growth opportunities and reflective practices; and
Evidence: Picture
- During the semester of my level 3 internship I had to opportunity to participate in the Florida Association for the Education of Young Children (FLAEYC). While I was participating in the conference, I had the opportunity to work to grow as a professional learn to hone in my craft. For my evidence, I am providing a screenshot of my conference registration.
f.Implements knowledge and skills learned in professional development in the teaching and learning process.
Evidence: Diagram of Seating Plan
- Throughout the semester I have had the opportunity to participate in Kagan workshops at the school and during my final internship I used what I learned during the workshops to develop a new seating plan.
6. Professional Responsibility and Ethical Conduct. Understanding that educators are held to a high moral standard in a community, the effective educator adheres to the Code of Ethics and the Principles of Professional Conduct of the Education Profession of Florida, pursuant to Rules 6B-1.001 and 6B-1.006, F.A.C., and fulfills the expected obligations to students, the public and the education profession.
Evidence: End of Semester Assessment
- This is the assessment that my collaborative teacher did on my professional responsibility and ethical conduct at the end of my first semester of level one internship. I scored proficient in all areas assessed including: Maintains positive and productive relationships with colleagues, Adheres to daily schedule and attendance policies, Maintains professional appearance, Demonstrates professional use of communication, and Exhibits emotional stability and mature judgment.