Impact of content‐specific seminars on candidate edTPA preparation and performance

Abstract

edTPA is a performance‐based assessment used in teacher licensure programs across the country as evidence of a candidate's readiness to teach. Although multiple studies have indicated it to be a challenging assessment and have offered multiple recommendations for candidate support, few have examined the impact of specific means of support. In this mixed‐method study, the authors used surveys, interviews, classroom observations, and edTPA performance data to investigate the impact of content‐specific edTPA support seminars on the preparation and performance of world language and English as a second language teacher candidates. The study provided evidence that content‐specific support seminars can provide opportunities for more tailored support, instructors who are more familiar with content standards and resources, and more consistent messaging than non–content‐specific seminars. Results also indicated that clustering candidates in content‐specific seminars can lead to stronger performance outcomes than seminars involving teacher candidates from a variety of different content areas. Implications for teacher preparation programs are discussed.