Introduction
“A man's mind, stretched by new ideas, may never return to its original dimensions.”
-Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
As we continue our work in planning for the future, and continuing to improve our practices, remember this quote. We have seen our minds being stretched and an increased innovation like never before over the past year. Although at times we may find ourselves wanting to throw in the towel, we know that we will not stop our work. Educators have a gift. The ability to mold one’s mind is precious, and we should always strive to continue moving forward. Below you will find the most up-to-date information concerning what you need to know that impacts your candidates in the coming weeks. Please thoroughly read all the sections for reminders, upcoming events, to dos, and FAQs.
We hope that this newsletter provides clarity and platform for access to all the important updates.
If you are not currently subscribed to the newsletter, please sign up at the link below.
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Topic
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Description
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Event Date
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Event Time
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ASEP Mid-Year Update
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Data Reporting Mid-Year Reminders
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March 24, 2021
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10:00-11:00 am (more information below)
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Title II Webinar
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Hosted by Westat to review the IPC report process
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April 1, 2021
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10:00-11:00 am (more information below)
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Action Item |
Due Date |
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Deadline for PASL Task Submission
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April 13, 2021,
1:00 PM CT
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Updates related to Educator Preparation Program Management
ASEP Mid-Year Update Webinar
Please join us for the ASEP mid-year webinar on Wednesday, March 24th at 10:00 am. This webinar is for educator preparation programs (EPP) and will cover mid-year reminders about data reporting. TEA will also provide information about mid-year data sets during this webinar, which will be distributed in late March. The intended audience for this webinar is those who report program data for ASEP. Once you register for the webinar, you will receive an email confirmation.
Upcoming ECOS Outage
Due to an update in the system, the Educator Certification Online System (ECOS) will be unavailable for programs and candidates from Friday, March 26, 2021 through Sunday, March 28, 2021. During this time the system will not be available for any actions, including a candidate’s ability to register for an exam. Please complete any necessary actions in ECOS by the end of the day on Thursday, March 25, 2021, and log out of the system to ensure that all your work has saved.
Save the Date: Title II Webinar on Thursday, April 1st, at 10:00am
Westat will host a webinar to directly support Texas EPPs to complete the IPRC Title II report that is due April 30, 2021. Individuals at EPPs who complete the IPRC report should attend the training and can register here for the webinar. Once you register for the webinar, you will receive an email confirmation.
Updates related to Educator Standards and Certification Testing
New: EdTPA 101 Sessions
Beginning this month and extending through November, all Texas educator preparation programs will have the opportunity to attend an “edTPA 101: Orientation to Perfomance-Based, Subject-Specific Assessment” webinar. This webinar is for faculty, instructors, and P-12 partners who support teacher candidates and are new to the edTPA. In this webinar, participants will be provided with an overview of the purpose, development, and design of the edTPA. Additionally, participants will examine what candidates provide as evidence for each of the edTPA tasks, engage in a review of the scoring process, and learn how to access key resources. *The same content will be provided each month this webinar is offered.*
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“EdTPA 101: Orientation to Performance-Based, Subject-Specific Assessment”, March 17 @ 3-4PM (Register Here)
New: Reading Academies Participant Responsibilities for Program Completion
As a gentle reminder, please complete all course activities and communicate directly with your cohort leader. Your cohort leader can support you with all course completion questions. Participants will not achieve course completion until all course activities have been submitted.
New: STR Website Update—EPP Resource Page
The STR EPP resource page is now live. This page is a hub for access to past training materials and useful resources, including our updated STR Exam Requirements FAQ document. Click here for access to the resource page.
New: Upcoming ECOS Outage - March 26 through March 28
Candidate test eligibility and demographic updates will be unavailable during this outage. This means candidates will not be able to do the following:
- register, cancel, or reschedule exams
- create new Pearson accounts
- confirm test approvals
- submit last minute name change requests on Friday, March 26th
We recommend that you review your candidate Test Registration Report in ResultsAnalyzer and confirm your candidates have the correct first and last name in ECOS. Name change requests can be submitted here.
STR Webinar Series: Text Comprehension and Analysis Deep Dive
Thank you for attending our most recent STR webinar series training. As always, we appreciated the opportunity to collaborate with you. We will share all relevant training materials in the March 23rd newsletter.
Updated: Reminder to Candidates Currently on a WPRO or WINT Certificate to Complete Testing Requirements
Candidates who were issued a waiver probationary (WPRO) or waiver intern (WINT) certificate, under the Governor’s waiver of certification exam requirements in Spring and Summer 2020, will need to complete all testing requirements before the certificate expires. Since the validity of the WINT and WPRO certificates cannot be extended, TEA encourages all programs to proactively communicate with WINT and WPRO candidates to remind them of these requirements well in advance of their certificate’s expiration date. WPRO candidates must meet requirements for standard certification. Remember, candidates are allowed one 12-month intern certificate (which the WINT certificate takes place of) and two 12-month probationary certificates for a total of 3 years to work on preliminary certificates.
In particular, those candidates who were issued a WPRO or WINT principal certificate should be made aware that the deadline for PASL registration (a requirement for standard principal certification) is fast approaching. For additional information around PASL registration and submission deadlines, please see below.
Below, we have included points about communication regarding the WPRO certificates:
- The attached communication was directly emailed to candidates on March 5, 2021.
- District level leadership has also been notified of and received the candidate communication.
- All EPPs have now received their lists of candidates who were issued a WPRO certificate.
Updated: PASL Spring Registration Window and Candidate Support Resources
Please note the following important dates for the Spring 2021 administration window for the assessment.
Registration opened August 4, 2020 and closes April 2, 2021. Task submission began on January 5, 2021 with the deadline to have all tasks submitted closing on April 13,2021 at 1pm CT.
ETS offered a PASL webinar to provide guidance for programs to support candidates with their upcoming submission. We will share the recording in an upcoming edition.
ETS provides a Library of Examples for the PASL assessment. It is a collection of actual written responses submitted by school leader candidates. The examples include both strong and weak written responses that can be used to compare against the rubric of a candidates work in order to evaluate the quality of the evidence being presented.
NOTE: The examples should only be used for comparison purposes. All work submitted is scanned for overlap with previous submissions. If overlap is detected, an investigation may be initiated, and the scores could be voided.
Information and updates related to Educator Certification
There is no new information to share currently.
Updates related to actions by the State Board for Educator Certification, the State Board of Education, and the Legislature.
Every newsletter we take this space to highlight questions that we have heard from EPPs.
Q: Is it possible for our WPRO candidates to get an extension on the WPRO that was issued at the end of the 19-20 academic year?
A:There are no extensions for a WPRO. The WPRO was for candidates who completed all EPP requirements, were finishers in 19-20, and only lacked passing exams to be standard certified. It allowed candidates to continue to be employed while they were taking and passing exams. The WPRO is valid for one year from the date that it was issued. Candidates need to pass their exams and apply for and obtain their standard certificate in order to prevent a gap in certification and employment eligibility.
Reference the COVID-19 Forms and Documents on the Program Provider Resources page for more information.
Your best source for information and support at the TEA
As an Educator Preparation Program, your main point of contact is your Program Specialist.
To view a list of EPPs and their associated Program Specialist, please click here.
Information regarding the Science of Teaching Reading Exam can be accessed at
tea.texas.gov/str.
Information regarding edTPA 2020-2021 information opportunities can be accessed here.
Information and updates regarding the Performance Assessment for School Leaders (PASL) can be accessed at the Important Updates link.
Updated information related to the COVID-19 response can be accessed here.
Texas Educator Preparation Program Weekly Newsletter webpage.
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Practice based preparation resources for virtual field-based experience: Provides model lessons and video of instructional delivery.
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Practice based preparation resources for virtual field-based experience: Provides content neutral pedagogical skill building through observing a model of and practicing the same high leverage skill.
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Full scope and sequence of upcoming edTPA training opportunities.
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