Over the past few weeks, as my exploration of the edTPA process intensifies, I am learning more and more about the complexity of lesson planning, the finesse of instruction, and the proper means of assessment, reflective practice, and reteaching versus reengagement. These processes all coincide with one another in a delicate balance that all result in an effective teaching process and a highly qualified teacher.
Planning commentaries, Instructional commentaries, and Assessment commentaries are not for the faint of heart. Although I have been creating lesson plans for years, I have never fully immersed myself in the step-by-step thinking of edTPA. That being said, this intensive process is orchestrated to bring reflective practice into teaching, before planning occurs. edTPA is giving educators greater insight into the why of our planning, more differentiated thoughts of how instruction will be given, and more self-reflective thinking as to what can be adapted to meet the needs of students. This may include anything from inclusive/adaptive devices, to changing teaching style. One means of avoiding the need to reteach is to plan integration and inclusive practice into the planning of the lesson, as there is a higher retention rate when lessons are taught to meet the multiple modalities.
Multiple modalities is a relatively new term, as well, although again, high quality educators have been doing this all along. We know that Harold Gardner theorized multiple intelligences and that students have varying ways of learning, from kinesthetic, to musical, to existential. Multiple modalities is just this. As education has developed to meet the needs of learners, we have come to understand more about various modalities of learning, and how to go about integrating what we want to teach with the learning styles and needs of the learner.
Though this is a sliver of all that edTPA is comprised of, it is truly eye opening to me that this process will benefit educators, learners, families, and communities by offering the best practices throughout a student's school career, preparing learners for life outside the classroom as a contributing member of society. I am excited to delve deeper into the edTPA process, as I can feel myself becoming not only more knowledgeable about the processes of planning, assessing and instructing, but more comfortable navigating the processes as well.
