EDUC 424: Process for developing a Practicum Instructional Plan (PIP)

In collaboration with the mentor teacher, each teacher candidate is required to develop a working plan of his/her teaching responsibilities during practicum. The suggested school visit dates to work on this are noted below and in the School Experience Schedule. Sample Practicum Instructional Plans (PIPs) are available from the School Experience Coordinator.

Teacher candidates: the method for constructing your PIP is as follows:

  1. Create an overview of your practicum timeline: Make 9 copies of your mentor teacher’s timetable - one page for each week of the practicum. Label each page: Introduction Week, Week One, Week Two etc. and note the teaching load for each week (30%-60%-80%-80%-80%-80%-80%-50%) (Target date: October 16/School visit 4)
  2. Look at the school calendar and note any important dates on the relevant days/weeks of your overview (e.g. staff meetings, early dismissals, Pro D days, special assemblies etc..)

(Target date: week of October 9 - 13, no school visit)

  1. What will you teach? Ideally, the core of your teaching assignment will consist of taking on one or two key subject areas (e.g. math, LA, science, socials etc.) at the beginning of the practicum. For example: teach the lessons for one subject in Week 1 (and teach this subject for the whole 8 weeks), then add another subject or a mini-unit in Week 2 (and teach that for a number of weeks) and build your teaching load from there. This will allow you to develop/implement a complete unit in at least one or two subjects. However, every mentor teacher approaches assigning teacher candidates’ duties slightly differently… so be flexible- but also be willing to suggest subject(s) and/or topics you’d be interested in teaching. Your teaching load and the subjects you teach must complement the class program established by your mentor teacher and there is a great deal of variation across teachers, grade levels and schools. (Target date: October 23/ School visit 5)
  2. For each week during practicum, discuss with your mentor teacher the subjects/classes you will be teaching. As you decide on the subjects/classes, circle or highlight these times on each weekly schedule. (Target date: October 30/School visit 6)
  3. What should you know about the subjects you will teach? You will need to know the specific learning goals that your mentor teacher expects you to teach. These learning goals define the focus of the teaching/learning and you cannot start planning learning sequence overviews until you have this information. Your mentor teacher should also provide some resources for you to ‘adopt and adapt’ as you develop your overviews. (Target date: November 6/School visit 7)
  4. Talk about Term 2 report cards: Discuss your role in developing the Term 2 report cards for your class. What assessment evidence will you provide? Which subjects will you be ‘in charge’ of reporting? Who will write the reports? When are the reports written? What will your role be during parent/teacher interviews and/or student-led conferences? (Target date: November 20/School visit 8)
  5. ‘Special’ short term assignments should be considered only after your core teaching load has been established.
  6. Complete a Practicum Instructional Plan (PIP) Summary(cover sheet) that will provide your faculty advisor and mentor teacher with a snapshot of ‘where you are at’ with regard to preparation. The PIP Summary template is included in the Field Guide and an electronic copy will be posted on the School Experience webpage. (Target date: November 27/School visit 9)
  7. Remember: you are under no obligation to carry a teaching load that goes beyond the recommended guidelines.
  8. Please ensure that both you and your mentor teacher have a copy of your PIP.
  9. Submit one hard copy of your PIP to the School Experience Coordinator by the due date specified in the School Experience Schedule. The School Experience Coordinator will review your PIP and then forward that copy to your faculty advisor.

Assessment:

A ‘Complete/Pass’ PIP will include

a)Sufficient details: include all required information as outline in the Field Guide

b)Appropriate content-focus: units/themes to be taught must be appropriate for your grade level and personal skill sets

c)Appropriate teaching load: progression of teaching load must align with the criteria specified in the Field Guide

An ‘Incomplete Class Profile or PIP’: does not meet these criteria. Teacher candidate will be given one week to revise the Class Profile or PIP to meet these criteria.

‘Unacceptable’ (Fail): Class Profile or PIP is either not submitted or the submitted work reflects a significant negligence with regard to due diligence. Eligibility for practicum will be under review.

ETEP 2 Practicum Instructional Plan (PIP) Summary

Teacher candidate: Teacher candidate’s email: School: Grade(s):

Mentor Teacher(s):Mentor Teacher’s email:

Faculty Advisor: Faculty advisor email:

Provide a brief description of your class community: (# of students, boy/girl ratio, interests/hobbies, learning goals for the class, students on IEP’s (adapted/modified programs), CEA assistance (for whom?, how often?), etc.)

SUMMARY OF TEACHING RESPONSIBILITIES:

Learning Sequence Overviews / Start date / finish date / est. # of lessons / Learning Goals
are identified / Resources
(for each subject, select all that apply) / Preparation: By the pre-January 8, 2018 date(s) agreed upon by my FA & MT, I will prepare draft plans of the following unit overviews and intro. learning plan(s):
are identified / still need to be identified / I have plenty to work with now / I have some and still need to collect more / My mentor teacher will share his/her resources / I need more info. & would like some help
working plan of the learning sequence overview / detailed learning plan for the start up
Subject Area(s):
Topic(s)/Theme(s): / /
Subject Area(s):
Topic(s)/Theme(s): /
Subject(s):
Topic/Theme: /
Subject(s):
Topic/Theme: /
Subject(s):
Topic/Theme: /

Comments and/or questions from the mentor teacher or the teacher candidate: (Use an additional page if necessary)