Preparing Your Video Entries

If you know someone who has gone through the NB certification process, chances are that person will tell you that getting the videos was among the most time-consuming and frustrating parts of the process. In other words it drove them crazy! Let's see if we can take some of the guess work and frustration out of it for you. But first, why did the NBPTS design video entries in the first place? The reason is that a video is the only way to showcase your real teaching in real time.It's a snapshot to be sure, but there is just no other way to do it.

Now that you know the WHY of making videos, let's move on to HOW to plan them. Most candidates try to plan the perfect lesson and video early on and often. Both are admirable goals, but are hit or miss. What you need is a targeted plan.

WHAT WORKS! VIDEO SMART - NOT MORE!

• PLAN THE LESSON BACKWARDS. Instead of blindly filming and hoping that the evidence assessors expect to see is there, begin with the prompts, then plug the evidence into the lesson.

1. Start with the prompts and determine what they are asking you to do.
2. Brainstorm how to show the outcomes asked for in light of the standards.

• SHOW THE EVIDENCE THAT ASSESSORS EXPECT TO SEE. It's really not a secret! The clues are in the entry directions and they highlight these types of evidence:

1. The goal matches the instruction.
2. Multiple teaching strategies/options are evidenced.
3. Teacher to student interaction about the content.
4. Student to teacher interaction about the content.
5. Student to student interaction about the content.

Regardless of the certificate, the planning process is the same. To illustrate the thinking that might play into this strategy, read the following prompts and plans from the Middle Childhood Generalist, Entry 3 (Integrating Mathematics with Science), Analysis of the Video Recording section:

EXAMPLE #1: What evidence of inquiry, intellectual engagement, discussion, and content are demonstrated in your video recording? How did you further the students' knowledge and skills and engage them intellectually?

• I need to show a discovery/inquiry activity that the students find interesting so they will be highly engaged.
• They need to talk with each other about the content - not just procedures and social talk.
• I need to show I am moving them forward in their knowledge of the topic using more than just the textbook.
• I need to ask higher level questions to stimulate their thinking, not just ones that call for a yes or no response.
• The topic needs to be important in science and their daily lives.
• The math can't just be an "add-on". It must be tightly integrated into the science.

EXAMPLE #2: How does the discussion/activity featured on the video reveal students' reasoning and understanding? Cite specific examples of student understanding, misunderstandings, misconceptions, errors, and progress.

• I'll plan questions/scenarios so that student responses are likely to be comprehensive and not just yes or not answers.
• I'll write some questions on an index card to carry from group to group.
• I need to make student thinking evident by showing their decisions and inferences, and by listening to their conversations.
• I'll ask for explanations, plan ways to show student understanding of the material,and use follow-up questions if confusion, misunderstandings, or misconceptions arise.

Basically, I took apart the prompts, and made a plan to address each part. This works for all certificate areas.

THE ULTIMATE GOAL IS TO DEMONSTRATE THE STANDARDS! At each planning step, ask yourself what could occur in the video to show that standard? When students are engaged in the content, what standard is evident? When students interact with each other, what standard is evident?When students make choices, what standard is evident?

You have the tools to make videos that show the standards. Next month I'll go further and discuss what evidence in a video might look like, how to choose the video segment, and how to write about the video. If you go into the filming process with a clear idea of what the video needs to show, and you know how to plan to show the evidence, you stand a much better chance of getting a quality video in fewer tries.

GOOD LUCK!

Please post your questions or comments. YOU are each other's best resources if you talk with each other.