ANNUAL PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCE REVIEW (APPR)

TEACHER OBSERVATION REPORT

Teacher Name: Dvora Dusowitz Teacher ID: 1672820
22K234-J.H.S. 234 Arthur W.
School Year: 2022-2023 School Name/DBN: Cunningham

CLASSROOM OBSERVATION (OBS):

In each observation, all components for which there is observed evidence must be rated. Each form must
contain lesson-specific evidence for each of the components observed during a classroom observation.

This observation was: (check one)

Formal Observation (full period) Informal Observation (15 minutes minimum)

Date of Observation: 11/07/2022 Time/Period: 8:53am/Period 2

Component Ratings

1a (obs): Demonstrating knowledge of content and pedagogy 3- Effective

During the lesson, you provided a student-friendly definition of mood and gave
examples. You explained the different between mood and tone. You used the
weather to make real-world connections concerning how our environment impacts
our moods. You related Poe's work to how we feel during horror movies. You had
students focus on Poe's word choice through "The Tell-Tale Heart." You modeled
fluency and thinking about the impact of Poe's language on the reader before you
had the students work on their own task. You display solid knowledge of the
important concepts in the discipline and how these relate to one another. You
demonstrate accurate understanding of prerequisite relationships among topics.

1e (obs): Designing coherent instruction 3- Effective

The lesson's instructional objective was "I can determine how the mood of "The
Tell-Tale Heart" impacts the reader by interpreting quotes about the old man's
death." You began the lesson by reading the IO and explaining the plan for your
presentation. Your "Opening Assessment" was "How does the weather affect your
mood? Use the gifs to elaborate on your answer." Your mini-lesson included
defining mood as "Expresses the writer's attitude toward or feelings about the
subject in writing" and "Created through word choice, sentence structure, character
actions, and descriptions." You provided images and words for students for mood
like "frightening," "chilling," "horror," and "concerning." Students had materials like
chunked versions of "The Tell-Tale Heart" with key vocabulary defined on the
margins of the text (ex. hearken, vulture) and questions next to specific
paragraphs that allowed students to process the chunks of the text. Your lesson
included "I do, we do, you do" steps. You had students use their assigned devices
to log into Google Classroom to access the task which was "Elaborate on the
mood of 'The Tell-Tale Heart's' murder scene." After students crafted their own

Last Revised: 11/12/22 4:46:30 PM By awachtel

responses, they were prompted to comment, in writing, on a classmate's via the
Google Classroom. The Fall 2022 DRP score range for class 805 is 57 to 82.
There are no 'red zone' students in class 805, but two students scored in the
'orange zone.' You outlined some criteria for the responses and for responding to a
peer in the Google Classroom. Modeling during the "I do" step supported students
in working on the task. You modeled the specific fluency of "The Tell-Tale Heart"
by reading it aloud for the class. By the end of the lesson, at 9:38am, 16 out of 30
students had completed their short responses in Google Classroom. Most of the
learning activities are aligned with the instructional outcomes and follow an
organized progression suitable to groups of students. The learning activities
represent cognitive challenge.

2a: Creating an environment of respect and rapport 3- Effective

During the lesson, students commented on one another's responses verbally and
in writing. You politely asked students to clarify, when needed. You allowed
students to share and take questions in a different direction, like James who
appreciated the opportunity to share his thoughts with you. Interactions between
you and students are friendly and demonstrate general caring and respect.

2d: Managing student behavior 3- Effective

During the lesson, there were minor behaviors addressed by you like when you
said, "Guys, let's stop with the pens, okay?" Students responded to your
prompting. Student behavior is generally appropriate. You monitor student
behavior against established standards of conduct.

3b: Using questioning and discussion techniques 3- Effective

During the lesson, you posed questions/prompts like "What is your idea based
on?" "What is the purpose of Poe's repetition in this paragraph?" "Why is Poe
repeating the word nervous?" "Why did you highlight these specific words in the
text?" "What about the sentence structure in this paragraph?" "Poe says 'My blood
ran cold.' How does that make you feel as a reader?" "Is the madness of the
narrator logical?" The students answered a written prompt about elaborating on
mood language in the murder scene via Google Classroom. Once students
finished their own response, they were asked to select a response from any peer
in the class and respond to a classmate in writing. All students could see one
another's responses. While you may use some low-level questions, you pose
questions designed to promote student thinking and understanding.

3c: Engaging students in learning 3- Effective

During the lesson, the "opening assessment" about weather and how it impacts
mood began students thinking about mood. Many students wanted to share during
the opening activity. When you modeled the task about mood, students followed
your thinking evidenced by their verbal participation. The students used their
assigned devices and logged into Google Classroom to work on their responses.
The thinking for the response was more involved than you anticipated, so you
adjusted the task demands to one response instead of several when you realized
this during the lesson timeline. Students were challenged by looking at the scene
paragraph to elaborate on the language, but once they returned to the text, most
were able to bring their thoughts together. Although 16 out of 30 had completed
responses by the end of the lesson (this was noted in your Google Classroom at
9:38am) and some students commented on a peer, most had a large chunk of a
thorough response completed. The learning tasks and activities are aligned with
the instructional outcomes and are designed to challenge student thinking, inviting
students to make their thinking visible. This technique results in active intellectual

Last Revised: 11/12/22 4:46:30 PM By awachtel

engagement by most students with important and challenging content.

3d: Using assessment in instruction 2- Developing

During the lesson, you realized during the second half of the period that students
would likely only be able to submit one written response, so you adjusted the task
requirements. By the conclusion of the lesson at 9:38am, 16 out of 30 students
had clicked 'submit' for you to review their responses, leaving 14 incomplete for
you to assess. Some students were able to comment on others, but a chunk of the
class was still completely writing their own responses and they were not able to
review the work of a peer. I also did not see students self-assessing their
responses against criteria (although there was some criteria outlined in the Google
Classroom). You did rotate to some groups and provide feedback, but you did not
sit with a target group to offer a re-teach or a re-model. You did model for students
during the mini-lesson, but students did not have a written model in front of them to
a similar type of question to help them while they worked independently which
resulted in several students, like Nia and Defne, exhibiting difficulty in getting their
responses started. Students appear to be only partially aware of the assessment
criteria. Few students assess their own work.

4e (obs): Growing and developing professionally N/A

Last Revised: 11/12/22 4:46:30 PM By awachtel

Teacher ID 1672820 Teacher Name Dvora Dusowitz

ASSESSMENT OF PREPARATION AND PROFESSIONALISM (P&P):

In this section of the form, evaluators should rate evidence for components 1a, 1e, and 4e that was
observed within fifteen (15) school days prior to the classroom observation as part of an assessment
of a teacher’s preparation and professionalism. Each form must contain teacher-specific evidence
for each of the components observed.

Component Ratings

1a (p&p): Demonstrating knowledge of content and pedagogy N/A

1e (p&p): Designing coherent instruction N/A

4e (p&p): Growing and developing professionally 3- Effective

You have been working to strengthen your understanding of AIS to provide Tier I
interventions in the classroom. You found the opportunity to be trained in Rewards
in early November to deepen your ability to support students with phonics and
fluency. You have volunteered for school events, like the Open House. You seek
out opportunities for professional development to enhance content knowledge and
pedagogical skill.

Additional Evaluator Notes (please attach more pages, as necessary):

Dear
Ms.
Dusowitz,

Thank you for inviting me for a formal observation to see a lesson about Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" with
class
805.

I commend you for exposing the students the classic work of Poe and for modeling the 'chilling' nature of the
language in his short stories. I also commend you for asking the students to complete a rigorous task about
language
in
the
story.

Moving forward, please provide students with written models to help them with their independent responses.
While checking in with students, take note of who needs more time and who struggles with getting started.
You should sit with a target group of students who exhibit struggles and spend a few minutes re-teaching
and/or re-modeling for them. This may require you to regroup the students in the middle of the lesson (also
know
as
flexible
grouping).
This
will
support
their
writing
process.

My
colleagues
and
I
look
forward
to
seeing
these
suggestions
implemented
by
your
next
observation.

Respectfully,

April Wachtel

Last Revised: 11/12/22 4:46:30 PM By awachtel

Teacher ID 1672820 Teacher Name Dvora Dusowitz

Teacher's signature: Date

(I have read and received a copy of the above and understand that a copy will be placed in my file.)

Evaluator's name (print): April Wachtel

Evaluator's signature: Date

Last Revised: 11/12/22 4:46:30 PM By awachtel