What will a TC do while in an EDPR2000 placement?
- EDPR2000 will focus on the development of professional understandings and relationships within the school community. This is NOT an observation placement. Teacher Candidates will have responsibility for participating actively alongside the mentor teacher, undertaking a range of experiences such as working with small groups and/or individual students, deconstructing their understandings of teaching and learning with a focus on links between theory and practice, facilitating classroom transitions, co-planning and co-teaching with the mentor teacher, and engaging in lesson study. Schools are encouraged to welcome a cohort of Teacher Candidates who will also have the opportunity to experience different school settings (divisions, non-classroom, rotary, ELL, special education, etc.) throughout the year.
What are Culminating Days?
- Year 1 TCs enrolled in EDPR2000 will have the opportunity to experience three-weeks consecutive "culminating" teaching days. Although this is not a formal "teaching block", TCs will continue to engage with co-planning and co-teaching with a gradual responsibility to independent practice. Teacher Candidates will begin to understand how lesson planning and implementation respond to the daily needs of learners. TCs should be actively engaged with the teaching and learning alongside their mentor teachers and are encouraged to expand their experience and independent practice.
What are the specific learning outcomes for EDPR2000?
Teacher Candidates will focus their attention on Orientation to the Profession in Community.
TCs will:
- Actively engage in the work of the school and classroom to understand the role of all stakeholders in creating and sustaining an engaging, inclusive, safe and equitable learning environment.
- Demonstrate a professional manner in keeping with the Ontario College of Teachers Standards of Practice and Ethical Standards of Practice (https://www.oct.ca/public/professional-standards).
- Develop professional relationships with students, teachers, other teacher candidates, school staff, parents and others.
- Actively engage 100% of the day in the work of the school to support student learning.
- Reflect on how the school structure (physical environment, committees, extra-curricular activities, etc.) impacts student learning.
Teacher Candidates will focus their attention on Learners.
TCs will:
- Reflect critically on the links between theory and practice in Ontario schools.
- Investigate learning from a micro-level perspective in support of small group and/or individual student learning.
- Observe the impact of Ontario Ministry of Education policy and/or documentation on learners and on the school’s learning environment (e.g. Safe Schools Act (2000), First Nation, Métis and Inuit Education Framework (2007), Growing Success: Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting in Ontario Schools (2010), Supporting Minds: An Educator’s Guide to Promoting Students’ Mental Health and Well-being (2013), and others).
- Observe and reflect on the impact of strategies and resources on learners (teacher talk, text books, technology, manipulatives, transitions, success criteria, timing, planning, assessment, etc.).
What documentation will be required for successful completion of the practicum?
- TCs in EDPR2000 will be responsible for conferencing with the Mentor Teacher to present a portfolio of documented evidence to demonstrate their achievement of the learning objectives for the fall and winter semesters. At the end of each semester, the Mentor Teacher will submit to the faculty a brief written comment on the documentation presented by the Teacher Candidate. Additional evaluation of TC Orientation to the Profession in Community and TC understanding of Learners will be embedded in coursework that is closely linked to the practicum experience.
Why is it important to focus on inquiry, active engagement, co-planning and co-teaching in EDPR2000?
- The opportunity to engage with learning in multiple ways leads the learner to inquire, deconstruct, analyze, implement, reflect upon, revise and wrestle with new understandings in meaningful ways. Active engagement and co-planning/co-teaching allow the TC to make sense of the foundational theories of learning in a collaborative mentoring environment.
