Introduction to the Monash Teaching Performance Assessment (TPA)

Introduction to Monash TPA

  • The unit begins by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land and recognizing that its sovereignty was never ceded.

  • Alison Bost is the unit coordinator across both campuses for the TPA, supported by 11 tutorials staffed by lecturers.

  • This presentation introduces the Monash TPA, dividing key content into smaller presentations to manage cognitive load and allow easy revisitation of sections.

  • There will be five key presentations focusing on the five main sections, plus additional presentations to support placement preparation and TPA submission.

Rationale: Why Do We Have TPAs?

  • Background: Across Australia, there are over 4545 initial teacher education (ITE) providers, including Monash.

  • National concerns arose due to significant variation in ITE program design and assessment, leading to limited understanding of program consistency and compatibility nationwide.

  • Response: AITSL Standards: In response, AITSL introduced new standards for ITE programs, which build upon the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.

  • Shift in Accreditation: These new standards marked a shift in program accreditation from focusing on content to emphasizing evidence of impact.

  • Required Evidence: The new accreditation approach demands two distinct but interconnected types of evidence:

    • Evidence of graduate teaching outcomes, where the Teaching Performance Assessment (TPA) plays a crucial role.

    • TPAs are designed as evidence-informed, nationally consistent assessments to determine if pre-service teachers are ready to enter the profession.

  • Purpose of TPAs: To ensure all teaching graduates across Australia meet the same high professional standards, regardless of their university.

  • AITSL Definition of TPA: A TPA is a tool to assess the practical skills and knowledge of pre-service teachers, providing an opportunity for them to connect evidence of their final year practice as a graduation requirement.

  • Program Standard 1.2\mathbf{1.2}: This standard specifically mandates that the TPA reflects authentic classroom teaching practice, covering core elements: planning, teaching, assessing, and reflecting.

  • Validity and Rigor: A TPA must be valid and rigorously assessed using the graduate teaching standards.

Monash's Approach to TPA

  • Independent Development: While most ITE providers (around 4040 out of 4545) opted into government-funded standard TPAs, Monash developed and accredited its own unique assessment task.

  • Alignment with Monash Values: Monash's TPA reflects the values and structure of its entire teacher education program.

  • Capstone Project: The TPA is not an introduction of new content but a capstone project that brings together all prior learning from the program.

  • Assessing Classroom Readiness: The TPA aims to assess "classroom readiness," a widely debated and subjective term.

  • Monash's Definition of "Classroom Ready": Monash aligns classroom readiness with three domains of the Australian Professional Standards:

    • Professional Knowledge

    • Professional Practice

    • Professional Engagement

  • The Fourth Element (Unique to Monash TPA): A classroom teacher must also be able to calibrate their knowledge to their practice – effectively integrating what they know with what they do in the classroom and being able to explain it.

TPA: More Than Compliance

  • Initial Impression vs. Reality: While it might initially seem like a box-ticking or compliance exercise, engaging with Moodle content, tutorials, and broader program learning reveals its deeper purpose.

  • Capstone Task: As a capstone task, it offers a clear structure for deep thinking about teaching, always keeping the student at the center of decision-making.

  • Key Considerations for Reflective Practice: The TPA prompts pre-service teachers to consider:

    • Who are their students?

    • How will they support student learning?

    • How does their teaching respond to specific learning needs?

    • How are they assessing what students have learned (and not learned)?

    • How will assessment data be used to adapt teaching and support ongoing learning and development?

    • What impact has their teaching had on individual students or groups?

    • What could have been done differently?

    • What more do they need to learn for future teaching to improve student outcomes?

  • Focus on Growth, Not Perfection: The TPA is not about producing a "polished assignment" or a "perfect lesson" for a high GPA. Instead, it emphasizes:

    • How teachers reflect on their teaching.

    • How they respond to real, in-the-moment classroom challenges.

    • Their capacity for growth: to reflect, think, and make informed decisions to make an impact on learners.

Professional Support for the TPA

  • Designed for Support: The TPA is designed to support graduating teachers through the entire experience.

  • Available Resources: A wide range of professional resources and individuals provide support:

    • Mentor teacher

    • Other teachers and staff at the placement school

    • Professional Practice Consultants (PPCs)

    • TPA lecturer

  • Importance of Feedback: Students are encouraged to draw on feedback from these sources and their own reflections to make informed, evidence-based decisions and build confidence.

Overview of the Monash TPA Structure

  • Core Task: The Monash TPA requires pre-service teachers to examine and explain their planning, teaching, and assessment decisions, and reflect on their professional practice.

  • Evidence Collection: This is done using "artifacts" collected as evidence during the final placement.

  • Timeline:

    • Preparation and understanding commence now.

    • The majority of learning and action occur during placement.

    • The write-up of the TPA occurs after placement, as it documents actual practice.

  • Monash TPA Guidebook: This serves as the template for presenting the TPA content. While unique, it focuses on individual student learning and impact.

  • Sections: The TPA is divided into five interconnected sections, each building on the last to create an evidence-based narrative of teaching.

  • Commentary Prompts: Each section includes specific prompts (e.g., "planning commentary prompts") outlining what content to include.

  • Focus: One Learning Sequence: The TPA centers on one learning sequence, defined as a planning cycle or a sequence of three or more lessons/experiences. This sequence is planned and taught to a group of learners (three or more students or the entire class).

  • Artifacts (Evidence):

    • Ten specific "artifacts" are required as pieces of evidence.

    • These artifacts support the written commentary and are embedded immediately before the commentary in the document.

    • Embedding ensures evidence and commentary are connected for easier reading/grading.

    • Artifacts are not included in the word count.

Unit Structure and Submission Schedule

  • Key Components: The unit is structured around the TPA's key components:

    • Week 11: Topic 1 - Context (with presentation, Moodle learning, and tutorial).

    • Week 22: Topic 2 - Planning and Teaching (with presentation, Moodle learning, and tutorial).

    • Week 33: Topic 3 - Assessing (with presentation, Moodle learning, and tutorial).

  • Placement Awareness: Online tutorials will be run outside of placement hours once placement begins (for many, in Week 44).

  • Two-Part Submission (Unique Feature):

    • The Monash TPA, though a single task, is structured and submitted as two distinct parts, aligning with Monash unit expectations.

    • Part 1: Context, Planning, and Teaching.

    • Part 2: Assessing and Reflecting.

    • This unique structure allows students to receive feedback on Part 1 before submitting Part 2.

  • 20252025 Scheduling Challenges: Due to placement timing, AFL public holiday, and mid-semester break, an exemption was granted from Monash Standard policy (which prohibits assessment submissions on public holidays/breaks).

    • This exemption ensures adequate time for marking and returning feedback on Part 1 before the Part 2 submission deadline.

  • Special Consideration Impact: If a special consideration extension is granted, the due date may extend beyond the Part 2 submission, meaning feedback on Part 1 may not be received in time to inform Part 2.

Conclusion

  • The TPA is more than just another assignment; it is an authentic performance assessment.

  • It is designed to reflect the real-world complexities of teaching.

  • Its core purpose is to provide evidence of a pre-service teacher's readiness for the profession.