edTPA cheat sheet

edTPA has three tasks - Planning (Task 1), Instruction (Task 2), Assessment (Task 3) - with 15 rubrics total, 5 per task, each scored 1–5, for a maximum of 75 points.

A learning segment is 3–5 consecutive lessons on one topic; Task 1 submits lesson plans, instructional materials, planned assessments, and the Planning Commentary for that segment.

The central focus is a one- or two-sentence statement of the core concept or skill and how students will demonstrate it; it must be consistent across standards, objectives, materials, and assessments.

Task 1 rubrics 1–5 address: planning for content understanding, supporting diverse student needs, using knowledge of students, identifying language demands, and planning assessments.

Academic language demands are specified as one language function plus the associated vocabulary, syntax, and discourse students need to engage with the content.

The language function is a content-specific verb (explain, compare, argue, describe) that determines which vocabulary, syntax, and discourse must be taught and supported.

Learning objectives must be measurable: an observable student behavior, the content it applies to, and criteria for success that the planned assessment can actually capture.

Justification of planning decisions must cite concrete evidence - student work, prior assessments, IEP/504 records, language proficiency data, or surveys - for the class and for the three focus students.

The three focus students are one with an IEP or 504 plan, one with identified language needs, and one additional student; Task 3 analyzes their work in depth.

Task 2 evidence is unedited, continuous video of the candidate teaching the learning segment, totaling the handbook maximum (commonly 15 minutes), selected to show the behaviors named in rubrics 6–10.

Task 2 rubrics 6–10 address: learning environment, engaging students in learning, deepening student learning, subject-specific pedagogy, and analyzing teaching.

Rubric 6 (learning environment) requires video evidence of respectful interaction, established routines, and behavior management that preserves access to content.

Rubric 7 (engagement) requires evidence that tasks, materials, and groupings make students actively use content and the language function rather than listen passively.

Rubric 8 (deepening learning) requires evidence of questions and response-building that press students to reason, justify, and extend ideas with evidence.

Rubric 9 (subject-specific pedagogy) requires evidence of strategies and representations characteristic of the discipline, such as inquiry, models, or text-based discussion.

Rubric 10 (analyzing teaching) requires the candidate to name specific instructional choices, explain their rationale, and state what would be changed.

Instruction Commentary claims must be anchored to exact video timestamps so the scorer can locate the supporting evidence for each rubric.

Task 3 rubrics 11–15 address: analysis of student learning, providing feedback, student use of feedback, analyzing students' language use, and using assessment to inform instruction.

Analysis covers the whole class (summarized in a chart or table) plus in-depth examination of three focus students' work samples.

Evaluation criteria must be defined before the assessment is given and applied consistently to every work sample scored.

Feedback is scored on specificity: it names what was done well, ties to the evaluation criteria, and gives a concrete next step the student can act on.

Rubric 13 requires evidence, such as revised work or observed response, that students actually used the feedback provided.

Language-use analysis requires quoting or citing student work that shows the language function, vocabulary, syntax, or discourse, plus interpretation of what that use reveals.

Quantitative analysis (score patterns, item-level results) is paired with qualitative analysis of errors to infer what students do and do not understand.

Next steps must be proposed for the whole class and for each focus student, each justified by specific assessment evidence.