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Curriculum Vitae

Rachael Schuetz

Associate Professor of Practice

Graduate & Research Center 236
650 SW Columbia Street
Bend, OR 97701
United States

Dr. Rachael Schuetz is a senior instructor, the Elementary Education B.S. program lead, and the elementary cohort lead in the Masters of Arts in Teaching program at OSU-Cascades. Rachael is a National Board Certified Teacher who enjoyed teaching in the primary grades over nine years, most of that spent in the Bend LaPine Schools. In 2012, she was honored as a finalist for the Bend LaPine Schools Teacher of the Year award. Along with teaching and advising students in the MAT program, she continues her research in educational technology, teacher preparation, and elementary classrooms.

Research/Career Interests: 

Dr. Rachael Schuetz is engaged with research on educational technology, teacher preparation, and best practices in elementary classroom instruction. Below are three recent abstracts from her research:

  • The edTPA measures a teacher candidate’s ability to plan, implement, and assess, which are all essential skills for the classroom. Compared to past pre-service teacher assessments, the edTPA offers a great opportunity for teacher candidates to be evaluated on these skills in a highly authentic way. For many teacher candidates, the edTPA can seem daunting when it is simply an opportunity to demonstrate best practices in teaching. As a result, teacher preparation programs are searching for effective supports in their implementation of the edTPA. This chapter outlines a ten-step plan that helps programs organize fair and impactful candidate support for the three literacy tasks that are part of the Elementary Education Literacy handbook. These resources have been created by faculty in our teacher education program and in other programs to support teacher candidates in the completion of the edTPA. SCALE has reviewed these resources prior to the edTPA national conference to ensure that the general guidance provided is in alignment with the requirements for allowed candidate support. In the edTPA Steps to Success, candidates are supported with manageable goals and materials to scaffold their work on Tasks 1-3. With these supports, the edTPA will provide another opportunity for teacher candidates to grow in their practice while demonstrating their readiness for the classroom.
  • Teacher education programs across the nation are looking for the best practices in preparing teacher candidates for success in their careers. Modeled after the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification process, the edTPA performance assessment is one measure of a pre-service teacher’s ability. As states adopt the edTPA, programs are looking to a limited body of research on how to effectively prepare candidates. This mixed-methods study investigates the impact of a formative, locally scored assessment, on national edTPA scores. A qualitative survey will share teacher candidates’ perception of their preparation for the national edTPA based on the formative assessment experience. Average scores on the national edTPA will be compared between programs, to determine the quantitative impact of the formative assessment. This research will help inform best practices in preparation for the edTPA and ultimately the classroom.    
  • With millions invested in educational technology, what is its impact on student achievement and engagement? Rachael Schuetz, D.Ed, NBCT, investigates results from her sequential mixed-methods experiment, examining the effects of an iPad-based math intervention, as compared to a traditional paper-pencil approach, on second graders’ achievement and engagement in mathematics. Quantitative pre-post assessments include one engagement and two achievement measures. Qualitative teacher focus group data provides a complete view of student engagement. With finite intervention time and resources, school leaders need to know these exciting findings, in order to best improve student achievement and engagement in mathematics. 

Publications

Schuetz, R.L. (2019). edTPA steps to success: Elementary education literacy tasks 1-3. In L. Barron (Ed.), A practical guide for edTPA implementation: Lessons from the field (pp. 175- 203). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing. 

Schuetz, R.L., Biancarosa, G. & Goode, J. (2018). Is Technology the Answer? Investigating Students’ Engagement in Math. Journal of Research on Technology in Education. DOI: 10.1080/15391523.2018.1490937