Running head: ARTIFACT RATIONALE: DOMAIN D

Artifact Rationale: Domain D

George Vega
TED 690
June 21, 2015
Professor Clifton Johnson

ARTIFACT RATIONALE: DOMAIN D

2
Abstract

The following paper is a rationale for my decision to include certain artifacts in Domain D:
Planning instruction and Designing Learning Experiences for Students in my PDQP. The
artifacts included are an image of one of my students using a fractions kit, a writing sample of
one of my students, and a literature review.

ARTIFACT RATIONALE: DOMAIN D

Artifact Rationale: Domain D

I can recall more than one instance this first year teaching when I referred to my students
as, my kids. Students spend their waking hours with their teachers as much as in their own
homes. It makes sense that teachers should get to know their students because of the close
connection that they share throughout the school year. In addition to this reason, teachers should
get to learn about their students interests because it can help them teach more effectively by using
their interests as a tool of engagement.
TPEs 8 and 9 in domain D are centered on learning about our students and instructional
planning based on their interests in order to keep them engaged. The first artifact that I included
to show how I met this expectation was a copy of a student interest survey. I gave this to my
students at the beginning of the year to help me learn about their likes and interests. At first, I
didnt use this information to my advantage, but I later realized how helpful it is to give them
academic choices that interest them, especially with their writing.
The second artifact I included was a sample of one of my students writing assignment. I
actually, included two samples as a comparison. The first sample was a writing assignment that
had a specific prompt, What does honesty mean to you? The student was not very interested in
this topic, so as you can see in the writing sample, he only wrote five sentences. In the other
sample, however, I took the students interests into consideration. I asked him to write a fictional
narrative story about soccer. This time the student wrote two complete pages filled with very
creative writing.
The third artifact I included was a literature review about planning lessons that are
differentiated by instruction. I chose to include this because it shows that teachers can use their
students interests to help them stay engaged and better grasp the learning objective.