What did they try?

The Education faculty at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore had several goals for the project:

• Inservice teachers, teacher educators, and teacher candidates would develop differentiated lesson plans aligned with national and state standards using TaskStream Tools of Engagement.
• Teacher educators and teacher candidates would develop formative and summative assessment tools using TaskStream Tools of Engagement
• Inservice teachers, teacher educators, and teacher candidates would interpret and use Maryland School Assessment data to generate reports that inform classroom teaching.
• Teacher candidates would use Webquests to show evidence of student learning outcomes.
• Teacher educators and teacher candidates would collect and analyze data to assess student outcomes and make modifications/accommodations to lessons.
• Teacher educators would collect and analyze data to assess student outcomes using TK20 Campus Tools for Higher Education.

In order to reach these goals, they initiated a series of professional development initiatives, which included workshops for

• full-time and part-time faculty and PDS inservice teachers on current assessment and technology issues;
• teacher educators and inservice teachers related to:
• Maryland Teacher Technology Standards
• Maryland School Assessment
• TaskStream Tools of Engagement;
• student interns and reading methods students related to:
• TaskStream Tools of Engagement
• WebQuest DevelopmentLesson Differentiation
• Student Learning Outcomes
• Maryland School Assessment

Task Stream Tools of Engagement was purchased initially to facilitate the development of lesson plans and rubrics; however, TK20 Campus Tools for Higher Education eventually replaced Task Stream because it was a more user-friendly and sophisticated method for data collection and analysis. They then provided a series of workshops to teacher educators and adjuncts at UMES to orient them to TK20.

What worked and why?

Teacher educator and inservice teacher workshops were effective strategies to develop relationships between campus and school-based educators. The TaskStream Tools of Engagement workshops were effective in helping faculty and, subsequently, teacher candidates upgrade their skills in lesson and unit development using rubrics and standards. The Webquest workshops were effective in aiding teacher candidates in developing innovative lessons. Middle/Highschool teacher candidates developed Webquests that were modified by special education teacher candidates for use by students with specific learning challenges. This taught both collaboration and sensitivity to learning differences.

The switch to TK20 was also an effective strategy. The system is working well and now used to

• track course, program, and unit-level assessments;
• provide a centralized access to student records, assessments, and other advisement information; and
• provide an organized approach for developing e-portfolios.

The TK20 support staff provides excellent support. The workshops have been successful, as evidenced by the fact that 90% of full time and part time faculty use TK20 and 100% of undergraduate and on-campus graduate students use TK20.

What didn't work and why?

The investment in TaskStream Tools of Engagement was useful but limited. Individuals used it only for lesson and unit plan development. It was less user-friendly when it came to data collection and interpretation. Some teacher educators learned how to use TaskStream but had difficulty maintaining their knowledge and skills during their non-education semesters.

The Webquests worked well and were enthusiastically received; however, there was insufficient classroom time to determine that student learning outcomes were a result of the Webquest presentations.

What will they do next?

There are several next steps for the project:

• Rubrics are being developed for all artifacts.
• Systematic program improvements are being made.
• Ongoing professional development is planned for various TK20 components.
• E-portfolio development will be required for all teacher candidates.