Certification

edTPA

edTPA is an assessment process designed by educators to answer the essential question: “Are you ready for the job?” edTPA includes a review of your authentic teaching materials (lesson plans, video clips of instruction, student work samples) and demonstrates your ability to effectively teach your subject matter to all students. You also submit commentaries that provide a rationale to support your instructional practices based on student learning strengths and needs.

To provide additional support to teacher candidates impacted by COVID-19, as of April 6, 2020, all registrations have been extended to expire on December 5, 2021. The extension will apply to open registrations (e.g., initial submissions and retakes) without the need for candidates to contact Pearson. For additional guidance for candidates impacted by school closures, including a virtual learning environment option, visit edTPA’s COVID-19 Guidance Page.

  • edTPA Outline
    1. Register for edTPA and follow the instructions to select your content and specialty areas, institution, and answer background questions. Additional information can be found on the edTPA Registration Overview document (pdf).
    2. After you register, indicate your portfolio system: Tk20. Select “Integrated Platform Provider.” An authorization key will be generated and emailed to you.
    3. Once you have registered, let your advisor know and copy Gretchen Adams at gadams@bankstreet.edu in the email in order to have the correct template uploaded to Tk20. Include your authorization key in the email to your advisor along with your template selection (Early Childhood, Elementary Education Literacy with Mathematics Task 4, Elementary Education Mathematics with Literacy Task 4, Special Education).
    4. Complete your portfolio in Tk20.
    5. From Tk20, transfer your portfolio to the Pearson system and enter your authorization key when prompted. Follow the instructions in the Tk20 Guide for edTPA Candidates (pdf) for detailed information on steps 5 and 6.
    6. In the Pearson system, review and submit your portfolio for scoring.

    Be sure to allow adequate time before your planned submission date to upload and review your files in the Pearson system and to complete the submission process for scoring.

  • Resources

    To view the edTPA Handbooks and Materials, visit bankstreet.tk20.com and enter the information below. When you login for the first time, you will be required to change your password.

    Username: Bank Street email address
    Temporary password: Your ID #

    Once you are logged in, select the “Document Room” tab in the upper left of the screen. You will find the following resources:

    • edTPA Handbooks for Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, and Special Education
    • Tk20 Guide for edTPA Candidates, a general guide on using Tk20 for your edTPA portfolio
    • Making Good Choices, a support guide for edTPA candidates
    • Understanding Rubric Level Progressions

    To view the handbooks and materials, you must download them to your computer or flash drive. To open a folder in the Document Room, click on the + to the left of the folder. To download a file, click on the name of the file (it will have a paperclip next to it) and a new screen will open. Scroll down to the file name and click the blue hyperlink. Please note there is a 24-hour helpdesk support from Tk20 at support@Tk20.com. For questions, contact Gretchen Adams at gadams@bankstreet.edu.

    Additional Resources

  • Workshops

    CPS offers an edTPA information workshop over the summer and at the beginning of each semester as a prerequisite for the four-session edTPA Support Workshop which is offered each fall and spring. The description is below or view the CPS current schedule for upcoming workshops.

    These workshops are an opportunity for educators to work with a facilitator and peers for support in preparing the eportfolio; they are not designed to be individualized training or support. This workshop will help participants understand and use the edTPA handbook and other support materials toward preparing their eportfolio. When possible participants will be grouped according to content area in order to differentiate learning and provide peer consultation around the specifics of their edTPA area. The edTPA workshop takes place online with synchronous sessions and optional asynchronous sessions to provide educators an opportunity to work with others, to get support, and to provide and receive peer feedback. The pre-requisite for this four-part edTPA workshop is participation in one of the informational sessions (EDTPA 501N) within 6 months of the start date of the Support Workshop. (Fee is waived for matriculated students at Bank Street College. Email gadams@bankstreet.edu for the fee waiver code.)

    *This synchronous workshop meets online Eastern Time. Directions for accessing the course page will be emailed upon registration. A computer with high-speed internet connection is required. A microphone and video camera are highly recommended.

    For more information on the edTPA workshops, please view this video:

  • Who do I go for help?

    If you need help with logging into Tk20, resetting your password, accessing the edTPA Handbooks and materials, or registering for an edTPA workshop, contact Gretchen Adams at gadams@bankstreet.edu Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM. If you need help with questions about equipment, recording, and editing, contact the Bank Street Help Desk at helpdesk@bankstreet.edu Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM – 10:00 PM. If you need help with uploading your materials to Tk20 or resetting your password, contact the Tk20 Help Desk Support at support@tk20.com, available 24 hours.

  • edTPA Passing Scores

    The Board of Regents has approved new edTPA passing scores beginning January 1, 2018:

    Early Childhood & Special Education edTPA Passing Scores Elementary Education edTPA Passing Scores
    January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2021 39 47
    January 1, 2022 – 40 48
  • Technical Requirements for Video Submission

    File types for video submission should be one of the following: .flv, .asf, .qt, .mov, .mpg, .mpeg, .avi, .wmv, .mp4, or .m4v. File size for video submission should be up to 300MB, but 100MB is recommended

    Length

    • Early Childhood edTPA requires 2 video clips totaling no more than 15 minutes. Clip 1 should show whole-group interaction; clip 2 should show small group interaction.
    • Elementary Education edTPA requires 1 to 2 clips together totaling no more than 15 minutes that demonstrate how you interact with students in a positive literacy environment to develop essential literacy strategy and requisite skills and to support students to independently apply the essential literacy strategy to comprehend or compose text.
    • Special Education requires the selection of 1-2 video clips to submit (totaling no more than 20 minutes).

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Which edTPA should I register for and do I need to take more than one?

    Depending on your program, you might have options as to which edTPA you can register for (Early Childhood Education (national), Elementary Education (national), Special Education (national)). If you are in a Childhood General Education program, you must register for Elementary Education. If you are in the Early Childhood Special and General Education program, you can register for either the Early Childhood or the Special Education edTPA. You should consider the classroom you will be using when making this choice. If you are still unsure, speak with your advisor for additional guidance.

    You only need to register for one edTPA. You might have options as to which one you register for (see above), but you only need to do one.

  • Why should I use Tk20?

    Tk20 is an integrated platform provider for the edTPA that Bank Street utilizes. The benefit of using Tk20 is having your portfolio linked to your advisor so they can provide feedback as you work through the edTPA. Additionally, you would have support from the Graduate School and Tk20 should any issues arise. The Tk20 Document Room is also Bank Street’s central repository for edTPA (and other certification) resource materials.

  • What if I accidentally select Pearson as my platform provider?

    You can change your platform selection by logging into your account on the edTPA website. Click “Manage your portfolio” on the lower left of the page and log in with your email address and password. Once logged in, you will be taken directly to the Portfolio Summary page where you can select “Switch to edTPA Platform Provider” in order to receive an authorization key. Once you receive the authorization key, email Gretchen Adams at gadams@bankstreet.edu with the key, your advisor’s name, and the edTPA you are doing and she will load your portfolio into your Tk20.

  • I'm ready to transfer my portfolio to Pearson. What's next?

    Congratulations! Once you are ready to submit your edTPA, follow the instructions on the Tk20 Guide for edTPA Candidates (beginning on page 9) to transfer it to Pearson and then submit it.

  • How long do I have to complete the edTPA?

    You have 18 months from the time you register to complete your edTPA and submit it for scoring. However, we recommend you complete it within a school year, as during the summer there may be an update to the handbook.

  • What happens if I failed TPA?

    There are options if you fail to pass the edTPA. Speak with your advisor about retaking all or a portion of the exam. If you do not pass the edTPA but score within two points of the passing score (see next question for passing scores) and can demonstrate you are prepared to become a teacher of record, you might be eligible for the edTPA Multiple Measures Review Process.

    edTPA Multiple Measures Review Process (MMRP):

    A panel of nine members from the P-12 and higher education communities will decide if the teacher candidates who apply for the MMRP should receive a waiver for the edTPA requirement for teacher certification.

    Eligibility:

    To be eligible for a waiver of the edTPA requirement through the MMRP, teacher candidates must:

    • Have an edTPA total score that is one or two points below the passing score effective January 1, 2018 and the status of the exam is “F” in TEACH
    • Have a cumulative grade point average of a 3.0 in their program area or its equivalent (as determined by the Commissioner)
    • Have already received satisfactory passing scores on all other certification examinations (or available safety nets) required for the teaching certificate sought and, for those not enrolled or formerly enrolled in a New York State teacher preparation program, have also met all other requirements for certification (e.g., coursework, workshops)

    Candidates can apply for the MMRP at any time based on the passing score at the time of their score release date. Additional information can be found on the New York State Education Department Certification Page.

    More Information on MMRP and to Apply

Video & Editing Tutorials

Selecting Equipment
  • Transcript
    Transcript With this video we’ll cover selecting equipment and basic recording tips for your edTPA video submission. The quality of your video must be sufficient for scorers who will be reviewing your clips to be able to view and hear the classroom activities you recorded. It’s important to note that you will not be required or expected to create a video clip that is professional quality production. You should not need any professional level software or equipment for this project. Do not use any sophisticated features such as title openings and closing credits, music, special effects, or any editing other than making sure the video is only 15 minutes long. It must be unedited in its entirety. When selecting equipment for this project try to use things that you have on hand in your classroom or in your school's inventory. An iPad, for example, with the right settings can record up to 50 minutes of video. Your smartphone can also record up to an hour of video with the right settings. Laptops or the webcam can be positioned near the teacher, same with a desktop with a webcam such as iMac or PC with an external webcam. You can use an old camcorder or even a VHS style recording device. Bank Street has the converting equipment in order to turn a VHS tape into a digital file. If you need help setting up any of these pieces of equipment you can contact the help desk using the information provided at the end of this video.
    The first thing to do is think about where you're going to put your device. Put it near the teacher so his or her voice is clear. This will also allow your recorder, the person recording your activity for you to capture everything with little movement. So in this example if the teacher is object B and the camera is object 2 the person recording for you can very easily move and record you, and then your students just by swiveling the camera. Make sure to position your device with light behind your recording device or you won't see faces. It's important not to point your camera towards a window or everything will become dark and unviewable. Make sure it's on a stable surface, ideally a tripod would be great but if you don't have a tripod put your recording device on a pile of books or other steady stable surface to make it easy to view. Try to avoid zooming in and out too much. Sit far enough back to capture the group without too much movement but close enough to record sound. It’s important to test these things out before your official lesson. Can you hear everything clearly? Can you see everything clearly? Have you reached a recording limit on your device? For example, if you know your device should be recording for an hour but it is cutting off at 20 minutes you might need to change the quality of recording. The Help Desk can help you with that. Make sure to record the entire activity so you have more material than you need to work with for editing. So even though you only have to submit 15 minutes, record the full hour so you can select the best 15 minutes for your submission.
    If you need help with any of these steps such as setting up your device for recording, you can call the Help Desk at 212-875-4642 or send an email to helpdesk@bankstreet.edu. The Help Desk is open Monday through Friday, 8am to 10pm and is closed major holidays.
  • Description
    Description

    This video is of a PowerPoint presentation discussing edTPA Equipment Selection and Recording Tips per edTPA guidelines.

  • Transcript
    Transcript This brief video will cover how to edit using QuickTime. Once you've opened your file, go to file, edit, trim. Trim allows us to pull. On the left to get rid of portions at the beginning of the clip and to pull on the right to get rid of portions at the end of the clip. Once you have a 15-minute clip in the middle, everything within these yellow brackets will remain, everything outside of the yellow box will be removed. Click trim. I'm going to click file save, and I'm going to save it to my desktop. Once you've trimmed your video, it's a good idea to see how big the video is. Click on it once and go to file, get info. It'll tell you the size of the video here. So, this video is 22.7 megabytes. edTPA suggests a maximum of 500 megabytes for your video with a suggested more comfortable range of 300 megabytes for your video. You go to file, export, and you can lower the quality of the video in order to get a smaller file size.
  • Description
    Description

    This video is of a PowerPoint presentation describing how to edit a video using QuickTime per edTPA guidelines.

  • Transcript
    Transcript In this brief video we will cover how to edit and compress a movie for your edTPA
    submission. We're going to use Windows Movie Maker. It should come included free on your PC but if you don't have it you can download it for free using the links included on the edTPA page or the link included as a pop-up on this video. The first thing you need to do is hit add photos and videos and you'll select the video that you recorded from your classroom and click open. Next you're going to go to the edit button, across the top you'll see Home, Animations, Visual Effects...go all the way to the right. Click on Edit. We're going to use the trim tool and you'll notice that two brackets appear. These brackets will help you select content to get rid of at
    the end of and beginning of the video. So I move this bracket on the Left forward and I'm getting rid of content at the beginning of the video. And this bracket on the right if I move it back, I'm getting rid of content at the end of the video. The actual length of your video will vary depending upon your certification so check the edTPA website before trimming your video. Then I click Save Trim. First I have to save the project, give your project a name and click save. Once I've saved it as a project I can export the movie and this file is the one I’ll submit to edTPA. Click on Save Movie, for computer click Save if you find that the file is too big to submit to edTPA and edTPA suggest a file limit of 300 megabytes to 500 megabytes. You can go back to Save Movie and select For Email and that'll produce a much smaller file size which you easily be able to submit to edTPA.
  • Description
    Description

    This video is of a PowerPoint presentation describing how to edit a video using Windows Movie Maker per edTPA guidelines.