Overview
Developed for educators by educators, edTPA is a performance-based, subject-specific assessment and support system used by educator preparation providers (EPPs) to emphasize, support, and measure the skills and knowledge that teacher candidates need from day one to help all students in real classrooms learn.
edTPA builds on decades of teacher performance assessment development and research regarding teaching skills and practices that improve student learning. edTPA’s common architecture consists of three interconnected tasks embedded in clinical practice as shown the following image.
Successful Completion of edTPA to Obtain an Institutional Recommendation:
As of July 1, 2024, the State Board of Education will no longer require a successful score on the edTPA measurement for program completion of a Connecticut educator preparation program provider (EPP). Connecticut EPPs may continue to use edTPA as a diagnostic tool.
edTPA requires teacher candidates to prepare a portfolio of materials during their student teaching experience demonstrating readiness to teach. Teacher candidates must also tailor their teaching to your district context and engage students in learning consistent with your district’s mission, curricula, and national and state standards. Specifically, teacher candidates:
- Choose a learning segment of 3-5 lessons in one class
- Collect artifacts, such as lesson plans, instructional materials, teaching videos, assessments, and sample student work
- Write commentaries in response to prompts in the subject-specific edTPA handbook that provide a rationale to support their instructional practices, based on their students' learning strengths and needs
- Submit their artifacts and commentaries for professional scoring.
Although the responsibility of completing edTPA requirements rests with teacher candidates and their EPPs, cooperating teachers will assist teacher candidates with documenting school context, school demographics, and academic strength and needs of their students.
Connecticut edTPA Links
edTPA Websites: Visit these sites to learn about and use edTPA.
- edTPA.com: This site includes candidate registration links, edTPA scoring and reporting procedures, state requirements, and other candidate and faculty resources, including frequently asked questions and answers.
- edTPA.org: This site includes a resource library with edTPA handbooks, edTPA updates and other secure documents, and general edTPA information. EPPs and organizations that join edTPA can access these secure assessment materials.
edTPA Coordinator Responsibilities and Resources: The edTPA coordinator at an EPP is the central point of contact for receiving information about edTPA, including assessment materials, handbooks, rubrics, and distribution instructions. The coordinator is also the primary source of communication about edTPA for other EPP faculty, administration, and PK-12 partners. If you are a newly-appointed edTPA coordinator, these resources from edTPA.org will help you get started:
- Using edTPA: Learn how edTPA can be used as evidence for program review, teacher licensure, and/or state and national accreditation.
- Teachers Who Support Teacher Candidates: Information and guidance for PK-12 teachers as they partner with preparation programs to support candidates completing edTPA® in their local contexts.
- Guidance for P-12 Administrators and Leaders: This document provides PK-12 administrators and leaders with guidance for using edTPA® evidence to support new teachers during induction, implement teacher evaluation and discuss best teaching practices.
- Accreditation Crosswalks: As part of a multiple-measure assessment system, edTPA can contribute substantially to the body of evidence required for achieving national accreditation. These crosswalks offer potential connections among the standards identified by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) and the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP) standards and edTPA rubric constructs.
- Voucher Order Form: Programs may purchase edTPA program fee vouchers in several denominations for distribution to candidates who may use them in lieu of payment. Be sure to order vouchers in advance of their intended use.
- Submission and Reporting Dates
- edTPA FAQs
- edTPA Resource Library
Video Consent Forms (multiple languages): Connecticut EPPs can download and use these letters to inform Connecticut parents or guardians about edTPA video recording.
edTPA Scorer Jobs: Become and edTPA scorer and earn clock hours.
For more information related to edTPA, please contact Lauren Tafrate at the Connecticut State Department of Education (lauren.tafrate@ct.gov; 860-713-6841).