Introduction
Element 3.1. Collaboration between Unit and School Partners
Element 3.2. Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of Field Experience and Clinical Practice
Element 3.3. Candidates’ Development and Demonstration of Knowledge, Skills, and Dispositions Help All Students Learn
Summary

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This discussion of Standard 3 “Field Experiences and Clinical Practice” examines all dimensions of the off-campus efforts of our teacher candidates. We collaborate and communicate especially well with our community partners. Based on the principles of the Conceptual Framework, we have dramatically improved our field experience program through a total revision of our procedures, practices and handbooks. This generated great progress including multiple assessments and opportunities for strengthening dispositions, especially in the area of cultural diversity. Aligning our courses and entire programs to the Conceptual Framework has strengthened the connection of each program to the unit, our teacher candidates to each other, and those candidates to the students with whom they work.

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Field experiences and clinical practice are instrumental in the development of teacher candidates at the University of Guam. Over the last 5 years, the School of Education has endeavored to strengthen field experiences and clinical practice for the various programs. This has included internal decisions to link field experiences with key foundations or methods classes, changing the evaluation system for student teaching, creating student teaching and internship handbooks, developing classroom supervisor handbooks or guides, as well as developing rubrics for lesson planning, lesson implementation and portfolio evaluation. Also, the School of Education developed an internship handbook for School Administrator Candidates. (Student Teaching Handbooks, Internship Handbooks, Classroom Supervisor Handbook, and Mentor Guide).

Externally, the School of Education has endeavored to link with administrators and teachers within the schools of Guam to foster in-school support and enhancement of the overall preparation of teacher candidates. This includes several meetings per semester with mentor teachers and student teachers as well as Advisory Council meetings with school administrators from public and private schools on Guam where issues about teacher candidate and other school personnel are discussed. UOG faculty, Classroom Supervisors, and school administrators also communicate frequently throughout a semester’s Student Teaching placement. More formal communication occurs during the mid and final Benchmark assessment conferences as well as through the Classroom Supervisor Evaluation form. Assessments of the Classroom Supervisors and/or University Supervisors by teacher candidates provide opportunity for candidates and interns to be involved in the improvement of field experiences. (Classroom Supervisor Evaluation, Evaluation Survey forms for ED492, PE492, and ED498).

The Coordinator of Fieldwork works closely with school principals, and program coordinators to arrange undergraduate Student Teaching and Internship placements. These placements vary from semester to semester according to school and student needs.

The following matrix is an example of Student Teaching and Teaching Internship placements using placements from Fall Semester 2005. Teaching Internships are available where Teacher Candidate or Certification-Only Candidate may be already employed or where a principal is willing to hire a teacher on an emergency basis.

Table 1: Student Teaching and Internship Placements Fall 2005

Program	# Candidates	Supervisor	Schools
Early Childhood Education	4	Dr. M. Jackson	Wettengel Elem, Agana Hgts Elem
Elementary	12	Dr. Jackson, K. Sachuo , Dr. L. Klitzkie	Tamuning Elem, Agana Hgts Elem, Finegayan Elem, Wettengel Elem, Talofofo Elem, St. John’s School, J.M. Guerrero Elem, Marcial Sablan Elem
Special Ed	1	Dr. L.  Klitzkie	Merizo Martyrs Elem
Secondary Ed	4 English Ed	Dr. L. Kodiyanplakkal , Dr. L. Klitzkie, Dr. Sachuo	George Washington HS, F.B. Leon Guerrero Middle, Sanchez HS
	2 Social Studies (1 internship)	Dr. Kodiyanplakkal, Dr. L. Klitzkie	George Washington HS, Inarajan Middle School
	2 TESOL	Dr. Kodiyanplakkal, Dr. S. Sachuo	George Washington HS, Agueda Johnston Middle
	4 Candidates under Option A (major in specialization and core SOE courses) (Math, Music, Japanese, Language Arts)	Dr. Kodiyanplakkal, Dr. Sachuo	Simon Sanchez HS, Agueda Johnston Middle, Untalan Middle, George Washington HS
Physical Education PK-12	4 candidates Elementary placement	Dr. N. Schmitz	M. U. Lujan Elementary
Certification only (Internships)	Math, Social Studies, Science Ed, Language Arts, Agriculture, Community and Family Sciences, Business Ed, Elementary Ed	Dr. S. Sachuo, Dr. Kodiyanplakkal, Dr. Klitzkie, Dr. Jackson	Jose Rios Middle, Untalan Middle, Notre Dame HS, Oceanview Middle, Inarajan Middle, J.Q. San Miguel Elem, F.B. Leon Guerrero Middle, Department of Youth Affairs School, J.P. Torres Alternative School

All the public schools of Guam belong to one school district, Guam Public School System (GPSS), under the direction of the Superintendent. Guam also has schools operated by the Catholic Diocese, various Christian churches, and the Department of Defense. Placements in GPSS are most typical. Overall our teacher candidates are most often placed in public schools in the more populous northern or central areas of Guam because this is closer to where they live and wish to ultimately work. This can be seen by the number of teacher candidates placed in northern schools during Fall 2005 (13) and in central schools (20), versus those placed in southern schools (7). The lone exception is the physical education elementary practicum that is held at only one site in the southern village of Yona because of limitations on elementary physical education placements elsewhere except at the Department of Defense schools. Department of Defense School placement is difficult as access to the military bases present complications for both Teacher Candidates and UOG Supervisors. Any time the base is on heightened alert because of national threats or maneuvers, it is impossible for student teachers and UOG Supervisors to gain access. One Certification-only Candidate completed an internship in classes held at the Department of Youth Affairs and another at a GPSS Alternative School.

Internship is the capstone for all students in the M.Ed. program in Administration and Supervision. Internship contains all three components of the Conceptual Framework, namely, knowledgeable scholar, effective communicator, and reflective decision maker. Internship opportunities in the GPSS system have been recently strengthened by the development of two excellent handbooks, one for the candidate and second one for the principal. Systematic use of these handbooks has greatly improved the internship experience for all parties.


Our UOG supervision faculty is most gracious in accommodating the needs of teacher candidates for placements close to their homes while adjusting to available resources within the school settings. These resources change from semester to semester according to transfers within schools, between schools, leaves of absence, teacher burn-out, exodus of qualified teachers from the island or to administration, or other unidentified reasons. Supervision accommodation sometimes becomes difficult due to class scheduling, advisement hours, service commitments, and travel time to student teaching sites around the island.

Teacher candidates receiving scholarships under the Yamashita Educator Corps are required to return to the public schools to pay back their scholarship. Field and clinical experiences with the populations our candidates will typically find when employed benefit both the candidates and the schools.

Over the last several years, GPSS has initiated a 4-hour plus day of Direct Instruction (DI) in reading, writing, and math at the elementary level for all students and a 90-minute Corrective Reading (CR) program at the middle school level. Our faculty is concerned that student teachers will be unable to meet the beginning teacher standards set out by some of the Specialty Professional Associations and the principles set out by INTASC. In particular, the teacher candidates in the public schools must teach using the Direct Instruction scripts approved by the school district in reading, writing, and math in Kindergarten through grade 5. Corrective Reading taught by all teachers at the middle school level uses a scripted plan. With so much of the school day taken by the scripted lessons, SOE faculty is concerned that teacher candidates are not having enough practice writing and implementing their own unit and lesson plans at the elementary level. They are not having enough experience using different teaching styles. However, during student teaching all teacher candidates including those in physical education are getting training to implement the DI and CR programs.

A formal Memorandum of Understanding regarding Fieldwork and Clinical Practice was once signed with the Department of Education (now the GPSS). With the reorganization of the University of Guam and most importantly, the change of the College of Education into the School of Education (SOE) within the College of Professional Studies (CPS) and the addition of the concentration in Physical Education faculty to the School, the former Dean of CPS, Dr. Sheying Chen, agreed to undertake revision of this memorandum to cover all teacher candidates, as well as interns in TESOL, Administration, and Language and Literacy. Currently, in order for individual or several teacher candidates or other school personnel to be placed in schools a letter of introduction and permission is sent to the principal, a phone or face-to-face conversation is initiated, permission is secured, one or more classroom supervisor names are suggested, and the Fieldwork Coordinator along with the Program Coordinators decide the appropriate placements. This is reworked back through the Principal or Assistant Principal. This system works because of the relatively small number of placements (30-40 per semester) that are needed for student teaching and internships K-12 each semester. For other school personnel, the Coordinators of the Programs work directly with the school administrators to secure the most effective placement in coordination with the candidate who may be a teacher within the school district already.


The Advisory Council is an important sounding board for changes to our policies and curriculum prior to recommendation of these to our Curriculum Committee. The Advisory Council includes key members of GPSS, Guam Community College, Yamashita Educator Corps, as well as representatives of the private, parochial, and Department of Defense schools. At least one meeting is held each semester with this group. Advisory Council individuals are also invited to be members of various SOE working committees.

Informal involvement of Classroom Supervisors with student teacher candidate occurs during visitations, meetings, conversations, and email. More formal opportunity occurs for Classroom Supervisors through an Evaluation Survey at the end of the Student Teaching. Advisory Council suggestions and solicitation of input from Classroom Supervisors and school principals allows for an interchange of ideas from the professionals in the community. On a small island, professional associations such as the International Reading Association and Phi Delta Kappa have become an effective means for communicating with a broad group of island professional educators monthly. This occurs on a more informal basis and provides valuable input.


In Fall 2004, a new Student Teaching Handbook and evaluation system was pilot tested with twenty-seven (27) ED492 Teacher Candidates and ED498 Interns including three individuals seeking certification only. Responses from Classroom Supervisors provided essential documentation on the new Handbook and evaluation system. Based upon an analysis of this data, modification of the Student Teaching Handbook was carried out. One immediate specific outcome of this process was the development of a Secondary Handbook that continues to be revised from input from Classroom Supervisors as well as from Teacher Candidates and Supervisors. An Internship Handbook as well as a Classroom Supervisor Guide sheet developed in Fall 2005 and revised for Spring 2006 provides specific policies and procedures to Interns and to Secondary Classroom Supervisors.

Thirteen of the Classroom Supervisors in Fall 2004 chose to respond to the Evaluation Survey for Classroom Supervisors. Of these, 77% of the teachers representing both elementary and secondary areas believed that the INTASC Rubric and Handbook as well as the new process for student teaching are effective tools. They noted that the INTASC Rubric was particularly helpful to pinpoint specific areas to work on with their student teachers. Of the responses received in 2004, 23% (all at the secondary level) felt that the use of the INTASC Rubric and Developmental Portfolio was too time consuming and overwhelming for the student teacher. Based upon the success of the pilot study, the system has been continued. Fifteen Classroom Supervisors responded to the Spring 2005 survey. Ninety-four percent of the Classroom Supervisors surveyed responded that the INTASC Rubric was an effective tool for them to evaluate the progress of their student teacher. However, two points were raised that were addressed during Spring 2006. Classroom Supervisors are now receiving a guide to mentoring that explains the use of the INTASC rubric and the required assessments of the Student Teachers. Additionally, the INTASC system is introduced during the initial meeting with the Classroom Supervisors using a PowerPoint presentation. Questions from the floor allow clarification as needed. Additionally, Classroom Supervisors may contact the SOE Fieldwork Coordinator either by email or telephone as needed.

Some Classroom Supervisors noted difficulty in transferring the generic INTASC rubric to the specifics of their teaching level or content. Some suggestions provide important considerations for future development of the system. These include: Increase number of observations made by UOG Supervisors including a conference on the Developmental portfolio; increasing the fieldwork required prior to student teaching so that Teacher Candidates are better prepared (particularly for secondary placements); decreasing the number of principles that are mandatory for evaluation, and urging the UOG Supervisor to make use of the INTASC Principles and Rubric in discussing progress with the student teacher. Based upon the feedback regarding Supervisors use of the INTASC principles and an evaluation of the written feedback received by the student teachers from the Supervisors, student lesson feedback forms for the secondary level tailored to address the ten principles are currently being developed. Supervisors are tailoring their comments to the INTASC principles and a new form specifically for this purpose has been developed. This particular issue noted by a Classroom Supervisor brought about the review of this feedback and highlighted the need that is being addressed. The elementary program and the physical education program both have tailored specific forms to address the concerns. However, these forms do not fully address all the principles either. However, they do provide more specific focus on more of the principles. In particular, they look very specifically at content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, teaching diverse learners, implementation of technology, and management. Additionally, more preparation in developing Teacher Work Samples needs to be addressed in classes prior to the student teaching seminar and preparation of rubrics that assess this work need to be developed and included in the Student Teaching Handbooks. Currently this is assessed during benchmark assessments using the holistic INTASC rubric for student teaching. (Classroom Supervisor Survey results)

As the Student Teaching Handbooks and the Internship Handbooks were edited, simplification of the process of the developmental portfolio and showcase portfolios occured to fine tune them to each program’s needs.

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Fieldwork and clinical practice is a developmental and sequential process beginning early in the candidate’s program. The earliest field experience, Observation and Participation (ED192) begins as a co-requisite of Introduction to Teaching (ED110). Observation and Participation was created to provide the teacher candidate with opportunities to observe and participate in several different classroom settings under the guidance of professional teachers. Each teacher candidate completes observations of 4 hours of classes at each of the elementary, middle and high school levels. Each teacher decides the extent to which they wish the teacher candidate to participate within the classroom. Some SOE teacher candidates will observe only, while others will have opportunity to work with individual students or with small groups. Students in ED192, Observation and Participation, are assigned to observe teachers in action at elementary, middle and high school settings. The onsite learning experience is combined with weekly seminars. Other activities include completion of observation instruments, presenting an oral reflection of one of the lessons observed, and completing three reflection essays. Teacher candidates are placed within school settings that have a population representative of the diverse races, cultures, socioeconomic levels, family backgrounds and place of origin found in most schools of Guam. All teacher education programs within the School of Education require this early field experience. This experience allows the teacher candidate to gain a wide understanding of the culture of schooling and teaching, become familiar with teaching practices, gain firsthand knowledge of students, and witness the practical application of basic theory of education. This early experience permits pre-candidates to explore the possibility of a career in teaching.

The programs in Early Childhood, Elementary, Second Language/ Elementary Education, Special Education, and Physical Education have one or more additional field experiences preceding student teaching. The major in Secondary Education has fieldwork that is embedded within their methods courses. (Field Experiences and Clinical Practice by Program)

Special Education requires its teacher candidates to enroll in ED292, Observation/Participation With Exceptional Children (1 credit) concurrently with ED215 Introduction to Exceptional Children, and ED 220 Education of Exceptional Children. This Practicum course requires a total of 15 hours of observation (one hour weekly of observation) during the semester and bi-weekly seminars to discuss observations. The seminar includes different methods of observation, the writing of observational reports, and sharing of completed observational reports. Practicum students focus on teacher-pupil interactions, behavioral characteristics and learning characteristics of pupils as well as the physical arrangement of the learning environment. The course is graded as “A”, pass, or fail.

Teacher candidates majoring in Elementary Education take ED 392a (Methods Practicum) for 2 credits concurrently with ED 360 (Effective Teaching in the Elementary Multicultural Classroom) and 392b (Methods Practicum) for 2 credits concurrent with or after ED361 (Integrated Math/Science Methods: Elementary) and ED362 (Reading – Language Arts Methods: Elementary). ED392a includes twelve hours of observation and participation as well as 15 hours of classroom seminar. Experiences for these various practices include the following activities:

• Observing unique abilities, interests and skills of individual children
• Observing interactions between teacher and students
• Observing the use of teaching styles, instructional strategies, and assessment.
• Observation of uses of technology within instruction and to enhance preparation of lessons or assessment
• Observing school environment and culture
• Observing the school community
• Observing school efforts to provide a safe and healthy environment
• Observing administration/structure of specialized programs within the school setting to meet the special needs of students (Culturally diverse, students with English as a second language, students with disabilities, students who are at-risk, and gifted and talented)
• Assisting the teacher by gathering resource materials and operating audiovisual equipment.
• Assisting teacher by distributing and collecting materials and paperwork.
• Creating and arranging bulletin boards and other displays around the room.
• Assisting the teacher by correcting papers and recording grades.
• Preparing materials for instruction including researching topics and collecting supplementary materials and visuals.
• Interacting with students through tutoring or mentoring individual students.
• Interaction with small group instruction.
• Supervising make-up or enrichment work of students.
• Reading to students or listening to them read.
• Assisting with field trips, art, music, drama, or learning centers.
• Interact with teachers and staff in a professional way through working to plan future lessons or class, grade, or school activities.
• Familiarizing self with policies and practices of the school.
• Demonstrating appropriate professional behavior and appearance.
• Signing in and out systematically as appropriate to the school setting.
• Acquiring skills to accommodate a wide range of learning, cultural, and behavioral needs of the students.
• Developing a positive professional working relationship with the Classroom Supervisor, students, and university supervisor.
• Demonstrating active engagement in the classroom and school culture.
• Following the professional code of confidentiality.
• Preplanning for all instructional experiences within the classroom.
• Designing instructional plans to support the students needs, the school’s curriculum, and Guam standards.
• Exploring a variety of teaching styles and situations.
• Embedding assessment within lesson and unit plans in order to gauge student learning. Collect student work samples).
• Teaching at least two full-period, large-group lessons.
• Assisting instructor with preparations of materials for class, grading papers, preparation of tests and assignments.
• Reflecting on the learning environment, teaching, learning, and assessment.

As a further example, ED392 B requires 24 hours within the school setting with a Classroom Supervisor and 30 hours within the classroom. This clinical requires all of the above activities with the addition of the following activities:

• Refining skills of planning, implementation and evaluation of instruction
• Demonstrating growth through development and presentation of lessons based upon knowledge gained through self-assessment and/or feedback from students and Classroom Supervisor.
• Developing lessons based upon program standards or outcomes.
• Demonstrating sensitivity to the diverse emotional, social, cognitive and physical differences in elementary children.
• Demonstrating growth in managing a class by setting and monitoring cooperating teacher’s protocols.

Teacher candidates enrolled in the Early Childhood/Elementary Education Major complete the initial field experience ED 192. They also complete additional fieldwork attached to their coursework that allows them to observe different early education and elementary education classroom settings. During their ED392A Practicum, teacher candidates select a Classroom Supervisor with whom they establish a close professional working relationship. Most often this teacher becomes their mentor teacher through part or all of their ED492 Practicum in Student Teaching experience.

Teacher candidates enrolled in Special Education complete the initial fieldwork plus a special education fieldwork concurrent with enrollment in ED220 Education Practices in Special Education. This course provides an overview of curriculum, methods, and materials that are applied in the instruction of students with disabilities and other special needs. The Practicum: Observation and Participation with Exceptional Individuals (ED292) provides supervised observations and participation in various agencies involved in the care and treatment of exceptional individuals. Each student completes two hours of observations and participation per week as well as participating in a weekly one-hour seminar. This fieldwork is a prerequisite to more advanced special education courses. The final Practicum in Student Teaching (ED492) is the capstone of the Special Education major.

Teacher candidates majoring in Secondary Education complete the initial fieldwork (ED192). They also currently complete fieldwork as part of two required courses for the major, a methods course within their specialty area, and ED462 Reading for Secondary Teachers. In each of these courses, two observations and one teaching of a complete lesson is required. Faculty discussions regarding a more extensive field experience concurrent with the methods courses took place during the Spring Semester 2005.

Teacher candidates with majors in Elementary Education with a Chamorro Language and Culture Teaching Specialty complete fieldwork at the initial level prior to the student teaching practicum, ED492.

Teacher candidates majoring in Teaching Physical Education complete three formal and three informal field experiences prior to their final two student teaching experiences. The formal field experiences include the initial field experience of ED192. The second field experiences include an extended experience of 45 hours assisting with the coaching of youth soccer (PE392c) while simultaneously taking a course in Coaching and Managing Youth Sport (PE325) and 30 hours of observing, assisting, and teaching during the Practicum in Teaching Elementary Physical Education (PE392a) that requires co-registration with Methods in Teaching Elementary Physical Education (PE352) (syllabi) Placement for this practicum is in a variety of elementary grade levels from PK – 5. This field experience concludes with the implementation of at least a three-day individually written unit to one grade level with full-evaluation including an extensive self-reflection of the videotaped unit. During PE392a, teacher candidates work under direct supervision of a university faculty member, teamed with a UOG PE 492a teacher candidate, and assigned to a team of classroom teachers. The close working relationship between a UOG Physical Education faculty member, student teacher, teacher candidate peer, and classroom teachers develop strong professional interactions and a sense of responsibility for development of content, management, assessment, and student learning.

Throughout the field experience in PE392, teacher candidates maintain daily reflective logs, unit and lesson plan resources, and share in the assessment of students. (syllabi) During PE392c, the teacher candidate maintains a daily reflective log, a “play book”, and a development plan. During Methods of Teaching Middle and High School Health and Physical Education (PE353), a third field experience is required (PE392b). (syllabi) This also requires thirty hours of observing, assisting, and teaching and parallels the experience in PE392a. Placement for this experience is in grades 6-12. Field experience manuals outline the extent of the field experience including the nature of the reflective logs, unit and lesson plan formats, and rubrics for grading of the final teaching/reflective project, observation/participation log. Other courses within the Physical Education program have informal field experiences. These involve projects embedded within required courses. PE422 Motor Development, Learning and Performance has two projects that require at least 6 hours of work with clients from ages 3 through 8. (syllabus) The first project requires motor testing of three clients using either a standardized norm or a criterion based test or the implementation of a hypothesis of a criterion based developmental sequence and observation plan. The second project requires at least 6 hours working with 3 clients of different ages using different types of feedback and different intervals of feedback. Reflections and outcomes of both projects are developed and submitted as well as presentations made via poster or Power Point.

The field experience connected to Adapted and Developmental Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, PE454, requires teacher candidates to spend 10 hours working with clients with diverse needs either within a school setting or within a recreational setting such as swimming or Special Olympics. (syllabus) Teacher candidates work directly under the guidance of special education faculty, adapted physical educators, or leisure education specialists. Reflective logs are kept throughout the experience. After successful completion of these field experiences, the major in Teaching Physical Education applies for first a Practicum in Student Teaching: Elementary (PE492a) for 3 credits and then Practicum in Student Teaching: Secondary (PE492b) for 9 credits. The application process for each of these practica are similar and include application by stated deadline, transcript review with completion of all requirements as articulated in the UOG Catalog (p.9 of Student Catalog 2006-2007 physical education PE492a and b). The first experience totals 280 hours while the second experience totals 540 hours including weekly seminars. Student teaching handbooks, Classroom Supervisor handbooks detail the requirements, observation instruments, and rubrics used throughout these practicum. (Student Teaching Handbook: Secondary and Elementary Student Teaching Handbook).


All teacher candidates in the final Practicum in Student Teaching (ED492, PE492a and PE492b) follow Handbooks that provide specific information for the completion of the Student Teaching Experience. (syllabi and Secondary and Elementary Handbooks) Teaching responsibilities during the student teaching experience are incremental with less teaching and management responsibilities at the beginning of the practicum to total teaching responsibilities during the second half of the student teaching assignment. The Teacher Candidate works closely with the Classroom Supervisor. Classroom Supervisors perform primary supervision and daily mentoring. The SOE Faculty Supervisor visits the teacher candidate a minimum of four times during the semester (6-8 times for Physical Education) to evaluate the progress and assist in the development of the teacher candidate. Throughout the student teaching experience the teacher candidate maintains a developmental portfolio of their work. This is available at any time for inspection by the SOE Supervisor or the Classroom Supervisor. Evaluation of the teacher candidate is based upon the 10 INTASC Principles and/or specialty Professional Association Standards based on using a modification of the rubric created by Ball State University under a grant from Phi Delta Kappa. (INTASC rubric).

At the completion of the practicum, students majoring in Elementary, Special Education, and Physical Education also present Showcase Portfolios. This Presentation is evaluated using the Rubric for Oral Presentation identified within the Student Teaching Handbook. (rubric) Teacher candidates demonstrate throughout their program and student teaching or internship that they can use technology to assist in preparation, implementation, and assessment of teaching. Teacher candidates must also demonstrate reflection in the teaching/ learning process. They document reflection within logs, observation instruments, lesson delivery, video evaluations, artifact reflections, and summative reflections on their teaching as well as during their benchmark evaluation sessions with their Classroom Supervisors and their tri-partite evaluations with their Classroom Supervisors and SOE Supervisors. Whenever possible, teacher candidates are encouraged to work on committees with other teachers for school or curriculum improvement or accreditation projects. These include teacher candidates’ self-assessment of their use of the SOE Conceptual Framework. (ST self-assessment of Conceptual Framework)

Another important part of the student teaching experience is the engagement in the Teacher Work Sample. This includes researching student needs, the curriculum, and the setting. At least one unit is planned with goals, objectives, a block plan, and lessons created to develop intended learning outcomes. Informal and formal assessments are planned throughout the unit to monitor student learning. During implementation of the Teacher Work Sample, the teacher candidate evaluates the results of the assessments so that through reflection the knowledge, skills, strategies for learning, and dispositions of the teacher candidates may improve over time. Documentation of the results of student work is an important aspect to demonstrate what students have learned from their instruction. This is documented within their developmental portfolio as well as their showcase portfolio. (samples at unacceptable, basic, and proficient)

Students completing practicum in Administration and Supervision as well as Language and Literacy complete their practicum guided by handbooks prepared for those programs. In each of these programs, teacher candidates complete the equivalent of a Teacher Work Sample. This sample is presented in the portfolio completed within their program.


The Conceptual Framework is the basis of all work in the SOE. Fieldwork evaluation is aligned to the Conceptual Framework. The Conceptual Framework focuses on three elements: Knowledgeable Scholar (KS), Reflective Decision Maker (RD), and Effective Communicator (EC). These three elements are at the heart of activities involved with all fieldwork from the ED192 level through the ED492 and PE492b level. Alignment is seen within the overall assessment that is completed by Classroom Supervisors and UOG Supervisor as well as the Student Teacher using the INTASC Assessment Form. All of the INTASC principles are aligned to the sub-dimensions that define the Conceptual Framework.

Beginning teachers exiting from the University of Guam will be Knowledgeable Scholars, Effective Communicators, and Reflective Decision-makers. As a Knowledgeable Scholar the educator will possess skills in their content area that provide opportunity for children and youth to master their content as well as become a critical thinker. To demonstrate that they are Knowledgeable Scholars in their field, beginning teachers possess general education knowledge that informs and provides a base for understanding broad subject matter especially in psychology, philosophy, history, language, culture, writing and literature, as well as science and mathematics. The Knowledgeable Scholars develop a strong professional knowledge based on mastery of foundational core as well as pedagogical knowledge through integrating theory with graduated field experiences from freshman through senior year. The Knowledgeable Scholar also develops empathy with diverse populations and skills to effectively engage diverse learners with the learning environment. The Knowledgeable Scholar uses technology to gather new information, develop new content, explore possibilities, and increase understanding. Use of technology encourages curriculum development, lesson planning, as well as utilizing linkages with other education-based resources. Knowledgeable Scholars graduating from the SOE use technology to help students and themselves collect and analyze data, interpret results and communicate findings to improve instructional practices and maximize student learning. The Teacher Candidate’s knowledge is reflected in the accomplishments of the students. Informal assessment of the students as well as the student work sample completed during the student teaching experience/s address content and pedagogical knowledge.

As an Effective Communicator, the beginning educator develops the skills to work with students, other teachers, administrators, and parents. The Effective Communicator uses their language skills to build communities of learners and for networking with parents and the community. The Effective Communicator is articulate regarding student needs, the content area curriculum, the National Standards for K-12 students, as well as how to integrate or embed other subject areas into their lessons. The beginning teacher develops the technological skills to deliver his/her knowledge, share understanding as well as concerns with other professionals, and develops new resources and ideas to integrate into the lessons. The beginning teacher as an Effective Communicator uses multiple communication modes and styles to communicate effectively with students with different cultural backgrounds, experiences, and abilities as well as with parents and colleagues within a diverse setting. As an Effective Communicator, fieldwork and student teachers must communicate with a variety of individuals including students, teachers, supervisors, parents, and administrators. During the student teaching experience, Teacher Candidates present the evidences of their development in four Benchmark Conferences that are spaced throughout their practicum. Two of these conferences include the Classroom Supervisor and the UOG Supervisor. In these conferences, the Teacher Candidate presents their best evidence to support development in each INTASC principle. Additionally, the Teacher Candidate presents a rationale for selection of these artifacts as well as their own evaluation of their development of this principle. The final assessment is based upon a consensus of those evaluating.

Effective beginning teachers must be Reflective Decision-makers. The process of planning, implementing, and assessing requires an educator who has the ability to reflect upon the needs of the children or youth, upon the environment, the content, the style of teaching, and the outcome of the lesson. As a beginning teacher uses their reflection skills, they develop professionally. Reflection by a beginning teacher on their methods, content, student learning and outcomes provides insight that leads to improved practice and confidence. The Reflective Decision-maker uses technology to engage in on-going professional development, planning new learning environments, developing higher-order skills, and creativity within students, as well as developing means to assess students within authentic contexts appropriate to developmental level of skills and knowledge. To demonstrate effectiveness with the reflective cycle, beginning teachers collect samples of student learning. In this part of student teaching and earlier field work, Teacher Candidates assess student learning, plan appropriate lessons, and assess student development throughout the teaching as well as summatively. The summative reflection reveals student development over the time period as well as having the student teacher look specifically at methodology to determine personal success at effecting change.


Throughout the Student Teaching Experience, teacher candidates meet for seminars in large and small specialty area group sessions to discuss requirements of the practicum, the INTASC or SPA rubrics used for assessment, portfolios, and issues regarding teaching/learning. This is an especially important opportunity for teacher candidates to interact with peers in similar teaching situations and learn from their experiences. (sample seminar schedule)

Additionally, a variety of Service Learning experiences are required of teacher candidates throughout their programs within required courses. This encourages involvement in community-based partnerships, projects, and service-oriented activities. Activities such as developing on-campus forums on youth suicide, Direct Instruction, programs honoring contributions of educators on-island, and implementing Halloween children’s events, provide means to build organizational skills as well as use presentational, technological, and teaching skills. Volunteering for Island Girl Power, work with religious education groups, or with persons with disabilities, or with elderly populations are examples of opportunities explored on short and long-term bases by our teacher candidates as part of classes or SOE student professional organizations. One class in 2004 engaged in car washes to purchase goats for villagers in Central America through a foundation that promotes self-sufficiency.

Graduate students in the Language and Literacy, and Administration programs also meet regularly with their mentors as well as UOG supervisors to assess their KSD’s. These KSD’s are monitored throughout the variety of their clinical experiences. Each experience builds skills and abilities beyond the previous one.

The Special Education practicum experience is infused into all graduate coursework and includes: field experiences that observe the identification, assessment, and intervention of children from culturally diverse backgrounds with disabilities, an extensive experience in conducting psycho-educational assessments with practice subjects, and experiences which require graduate students to do conduct training for other teachers (i.e. training the trainers in the identification of disabilities).


The evaluation of the new model for ED492 and PE492: Secondary occurred initially at the end of Fall Semester 2004 and Spring Semester 2005 respectively. This included a total of 27 student teachers and 5 internship students (Note: Some of these students are certification students completing minimum courses needed for Guam certification requirements rather than a completing BA program of study). Teacher candidates responded positively to the new model of student teaching using the outcome rubric focused on the ten INTASC Beginning Teacher Principles. Teacher Candidates in Physical Education used a modification of the rubric using the NASPE (National Association of Sport and Physical Education) standards for beginning teachers. Only 3% of the ED492 teacher candidates responded negatively to the use of the rubric (one secondary education teacher candidate). None of the five PE492 students responded negatively. The sudden implementation of a new student teaching program and assessment system usually brings negative responses, as students and faculty have not had the opportunity to build skills and familiarity with the content at earlier parts of the program. Opportunity needs to be made for integrating aspects of the student teaching requirements, particularly those relating to the portfolio contents and reflections, within earlier course and field experiences. By the time teacher candidates reach student teaching they are prepared to assume the responsibility for teaching and are not overwhelmed by the variety and scope of the portfolio contents and rubric focus. Currently, most negative comments focused on the developmental and showcase portfolio requirements. With so many new forms and entirely new set of responsibilities, some students were overwhelmed (See Table below). None of the PE492 Secondary Teacher Candidates responded negatively to any of the practicum experience components. Their practicum during the prior semester prepared them to use the forms, rubrics, develop a portfolio, as well as assess students using formative and summative strategies. (documentation of assessments)

However, by Fall 2005, 100% of all Student Teachers responded positively to the use of the INTASC Beginning Teacher Principles including the use of Developmental Portfolios. This trend has continued through Spring 2006 with only one negative comment at the Secondary level. Positive comments noted that the INTASC standards helped candidates “formulate specific goals to meet each standard”, the sub-standards and rubric “helped to give more focus regarding what needed to be done”, and “it was a great tool to measure performance”. The negative comment related more to the context of instruction in the public schools of Guam than to the Standards or the rubric, “The INTASC standards do not account for limitations that are not overcome able [sic] as far as resources available. Many things could only be done with direct instruction/lecture and bookwork because of this.” Unfortunately, it is difficult for teacher candidates to make use of technology, cope with the specifics of the mandated direct instruction curriculum, and to try to be creative in lesson planning and implementation. For our teacher candidates, it is sometimes challenging to implement the theory of teaching within the context of the Guam Public Schools.

Summative Response of Teacher Candidates Regarding Use of the INTASC Beginning Teacher Principles
	ED492				ED498
Fall 2004	Positive Responses		Negative Responses		Positive Responses		Negative Responses
	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
Elementary Placement PK-5	7	87.5%	1	12.5%	1	100%	0	0
Secondary Placement 6-12	8	66%	4	33%	2	50%	2	50%
Spring 2005	Positive Responses		Negative Responses		Positive Responses		Negative Responses
	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
Elementary Placement PK-5	11	84.6 %	2	15.4 %	0	0	0	0
Secondary Placement 6-12	4	100%	0	0	0	0	0	0
Fall 2005	Positive Responses		Negative Responses		Positive Responses		Negative Responses
	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
Elementary Placement PK-5	3	100%	0	0	0	0	0	0
Secondary Placement 6-12	5	100%	0	0	3	100%	0	0
Spring 2006	Positive Responses		Negative Responses		Positive Responses		Negative Responses
	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
Elementary Placement PK-5	10	100%	0	0	1	100%	0	0
Secondary Placement 6-12	1	50%	1	50%	0	0	0	0

The SOE’s Advanced Programs have different requirements according to specialty focus. For candidates focusing on Supervision and Administration, the Internship ED698 provides experiences in a school setting under the mentorship of an administrator. This internship is a full semester experience requiring at least 300 hours. An Internship Handbook for Administration and Supervision and a Handbook for School Principal and Supervisors guides the internship experience. These are excellent tools.

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In order to gain candidacy within the School of Education, students must present evidence that they have completed at least 54-60 semester credit hours at the end of the semester the application is filed, including the following General Education courses: EN 110, EN 111, CO210, ED 265 or BI201 or HI211 or HI243 or PS225, one elected science course, MA110 or MA161a or MA165, and the Education core prerequisites ED110 (or equivalent), ED192, ED201, and PY101. Additionally, the student must submit an application including a developmental portfolio, official transcripts for all earned credits, 3 letters of recommendation, a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.7 or more based upon all credits earned at the time of application, and an essay as determined by the SOE Admissions Committee. Finally, a formal interview with the School of Education Admission Committee is required of each applicant. [Decision Point I]. (Catalog 2006-2007 pp. 84, 85)

A grade of “C” or better must be earned by SOE undergraduate majors in all SOE courses. Secondary major students must maintain a grade of “C: or better in all relevant content areas. Physical Education Teaching majors must maintain a grade of “C” or better in all listed courses for the degree. All undergraduate School of Education majors must have an overall cumulative grade point average of 2.7 in order to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Education degree. All Physical Education Teaching majors must maintain a GPA of 2.75 in requirements to graduate.

The initial field experience ED 192: Observation and Participation is graded as a Pass or Fail course. Individual instructors of the sections of the field experience provide their grades. A passing grade is provided if the required hours of observation are completed, if the oral presentation is completed according to the outline required, and the portfolio submitted with all requirements included within it.

Upper level field experiences are assessed using a variety of strategies. Most fieldwork requires portfolios that include a variety of components that are assessed separately using rubrics for lesson plans, unit plans, reflections, etc. Teaching is evaluated using rubrics based upon the level of fieldwork or student teaching and specialty area. Rubrics for lesson plans and delivery are provided for microteaching and practicum. (Lesson Plan Rubrics and Lesson Delivery Rubrics). Additionally, ED492 uses the Ball State/Phi Delta Kappa Rubric focusing on the 10 INTASC Beginning Teacher Principles during 4 Benchmark assessment conferences between the Teacher Candidate and the Classroom Supervisor. Both the Classroom Supervisor and the SOE Supervisor use similar forms to assess Teacher Candidate progress throughout the fieldwork and practicum.

Specialized rubrics for physical education are used during fieldwork at the 300 level and 400 level based upon whether the setting is for elementary level or secondary level. These are used in conjunction with rubrics for other components of the developmental and showcase portfolios during PE492a and PE492b. (Physical Education rubrics-Best Practices and NASPE/INTASC rubric)

Teachers at the PK-12 level are determined to be eligible to become Classroom Supervisors by recommendation of the respective school administrators, the SOE Fieldwork Coordinator, and specialized area coordinator. A Classroom Supervisor must have had at least 3 years successful teaching experience within the grade level or subject area that he/she will be mentoring the teacher candidate. After the first experience as Classroom Supervisor, continuation as a Classroom Supervisor is based upon a joint decision between the school administrator, SOE Fieldwork Coordinator, and specialized area coordinator.


Decision Point II varies from program to program. In general it requires completion of most program requirements, including the methods classes. Additionally, the candidate presents their developmental portfolio, a copy of their teaching philosophy, their official transcript or transcript evaluation showing a GPA of 2.7 overall, and a student teaching application. Those students accepted into SOE during 2006 Spring Semester must develop an electronic portfolio. These portfolios must include the graded key assignments that have been designated by each program.

Decision Point III marks program completion. For completion of the program for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Education, the teacher candidate must demonstrate the following minimum acceptable criteria:

Exit Assessment	Acceptable Criteria
Developmental Portfolio and Showcase Portfolio	Teacher candidate’s portfolio includes all required materials as outlined in the Student Teaching Handbook.  Portfolio artifacts and accompanying reflection pieces have been evaluated at the level of “Basic” or better.  A Teacher Work Sample is required among the artifacts.
Teaching	Teacher candidate completes the student teaching experience with a grade of “basic” or better.  Teacher candidate has received an overall evaluation rating of no lower than “basic” in all ten areas of the INTASC rubric.
Grade point average	Teacher candidate’s cumulative GPA meets or exceeds the 2.7 minimum.

The INTASC Rubrics for teaching identified that of 71 students graduating during 2004 Fall through 2005 Fall, 42.3% of our candidates were evaluated at the Distinguished level, 49.3% at the Proficiency level, 7% at the basic levels and none were measured as Unacceptable (Summary of Grades). Further, Teacher Candidates in student teaching are assessed by SOE Supervisors and Classroom Supervisors at the mid and end points of the student teaching experience. The average student achievement between the mid point and the end point show growth of .3 points using a scale of 0-3 to assess performance. The average over two semesters for candidate’s assessment at completion of the student teaching experience shows a 2.47 on the 0-3 point scale. This indicates that most candidates are completing student teaching successfully. The weakest areas are in Standards 2, 3, 4, and 10. These average at a 2.3 level. (worksheets containing Summaries of INTASC assessments)

Grading for practicum are normally “A” or “P” or “NC”. Ninety-one percent of Student Teachers receive grades of “A”. Only 4.5% of Student Teachers receive the “Pass” grade. Another 4.5% of Student Teachers withdrew or receive incomplete. 64.3% of Interns in teaching receive “A” grades. 28.6% of Interns receive passing grades.

For advanced programs, the assessment system specifies Decision Point II as admission to the field experience. Field experience at the advanced level is defined as an internship, practicum, active research, or other approved PK-12 school related activity. In general Decision Point II criteria for advanced programs represent differences in the programs. (Decision Point II criteria for each advance program).

Completion for advanced programs is Decision Point III. This requires completion of the internship, project, or clinical practice plus a thesis and defense of the thesis. (criteria for each program).


Yes. All programs monitor dispositions for learning and teaching throughout the different program levels. An assessment rubric for key dispositions consistent with all programs is used. A few programs have more extensive and specialized disposition rubrics that are used. Assessing dispositions for learning and teaching provides important information on pre-teacher candidates through Decision Point III. Assessing these also allow faculty to counsel pre-candidates to get them to rethink their interest in teaching. Continual assessment of dispositions during courses and at Decision Points helps to monitor the development of these important behaviors.

In Special Education, candidates are required to complete a certain number of hours in a variety of special education contexts. Candidates must be assessed by their cooperating teachers in lesson delivery, class management, and pre-/post instructional assessment.


Placements of students in the public and private schools of Guam are intensive experiences in working with diverse students. Guam public schools include students who are Chamorro, Filipino, Micronesian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Indian, African-American, and Caucasian. Some are children who were born on Guam and have never seen their family homeland and others have more recently immigrated to Guam because of opportunities for education and work. This presents challenges in the school regarding language acquisition and special needs for supportive language services. Additionally, virtually all the schools include students with disabilities.

Field experience placements highlight for Teacher Candidates the reality that Guam schools are diverse in student composition and that diverse methods are needed by classroom teachers and other school personnel to accommodate these needs. All teacher candidates participate in core education classes where classroom diversity is examined and the effects of appropriate management and instruction for this diverse population is discussed. Within each program, specific methods courses address understanding of different methodology and behavior management styles to meet the needs of diverse learners. Teacher Candidates in early childhood education, elementary education, physical education, and special education all take courses specifically focused on working with students with disabilities.

Language and Literacy candidates work specifically within the clinical setting as well as the classroom setting to help students in the acquisition of language and literacy skills and to ameliorate deficits in these areas. TESOL candidates complete fieldwork and summative experiences with students who are non-native language speakers of English. For each experience, reflective projects are assigned that examine the value of the experience from the perspective of the Teacher Candidate and demonstrate their application of appropriate theory to the setting.

Administration and Supervisor candidates are pre-approved for this field experience. A supervisor at SOE and a mentor at the local school/educational setting both observe the aforesaid student within a school environment, and the Intern works on and completes assigned tasks which sum is a total of 300 hours. During the Internship, these prospective administrators are exposed to day-to-day operations of a school or educational setting. Several unique cultures are represented on our island; therefore, the placement of our Interns, within our public and private schools, is truly a multicultural experience. From this partnership among SOE, private schools and Guam Public School System, the student administrator has an excellence opportunity to become an employed assistant principal or principal.

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UOG’s School of Education has responded to the challenge of building effective programs for the preparation of teachers throughout the entire candidacy period. Building a Conceptual Framework and then revising course syllabi, content, and assessments to focus on the framework concepts has been a difficult but rewarding task. The faculty has recognized that the Conceptual Framework provides the means to focus on what we believe. Aligning our courses and entire programs to the framework strengthens the connection of each program to the unit and our teacher candidates to each other and to the students they work with.

Major improvements in field experiences and practicum have provided more focused and more easily assessed candidate outcomes. As Faculty and Classroom Supervisors continue to use the rubric for student teaching, greater agreement is reached about the benefits of its use. Most of the programs have initiated beneficial changes affecting their own field experiences and the final practicum. Further articulation between the student teaching rubric and specific SPA standards is also needed to more completely assess student teachers within the individual programs. However, the current rubric for student teaching is providing consistency within all programs in assessing standards achieved by students. This allows for unit self-assessment in regards to Teacher Candidate performance and overall achievement.

 

Course Syllabi (3)
ED492 – Student Teaching (85)	ED110 – Introduction to Teaching (70)
ED192 – Observation & Participation (71)	ED215 – Introduction to Exceptional Children (76)
ED392B – Methods Practicum (69)	ED292 – Practicum Observation/Participation With Exceptional Children (77)
PE352 – Methods of Teaching Elementary Physical Education (151)	ED462 – Secondary Reading (88)
PE392a – Field Experience in Teaching Elementary Physical Education (153)	ED353 – Methods of Teaching Health, Physical Education and Dance: Secondary (152)
PE422/G – Motor Development, Learning, and Performance (159)	PE392b – Field Experience in Teaching Physical Education and Health: Secondary (154)
PE492a – Practicum In Student Teaching HRERD: Elementary (157)	PE454/G Adapted and Developmental Physical Education (155)
ED201 – Human Growth and Development (72)	PE492b – Practicum in Student Teaching Physical Education and Health: Secondary (158)