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 Candidates seeking teaching licensure must complete required coursework
structured to include all areas of competency as indicated by the North Carolina
Specialty Areas Standards for their specialty area. Content knowledge requirements
for teacher candidates are broadly cataloged in the North Carolina Specialty Area
Standards for and more specifically detailed for students and curricula in the North
Carolina Standard Course of Studies.
Evidence 2, the Teachers As Scholars (TAS) Project focuses on candidates’
abilities to display the level of scholarship necessary to conduct rigorous in-depth
research into one aspect of their specialty area. Candidates who demonstrate the
ability to acquire and to synthesize knowledge regarding one specific facet of one
particular content area will be assumed to be capable of applying these same
strategies to other areas of teaching and learning. In completing this evidence,
candidates will identify content knowledge from the Specialty Standards particular to
their area OR from the North Carolina Standard Course of Study foundational to a
content area, ask clarifying questions to narrow the focus of this specific content,
gather resources to enhance their understanding of this content, complete detailed
research about this content, and create an interactive multi-media presentation that
showcases their expertise regarding this specific content. Additionally, teacher
candidates must be able to design and deliver effective information based upon
emerging 21st century content and ICT literacy (Partnership For 21st Century Skills,
2004); thus, candidates must possess technological competence. The TAS Project
presumes that candidates are or can become experts in any aspect of the content
they might be required to teach and are also able to display their understandings
using relevant technologies.
By closely examining one topic candidates will narrow the focus of their inquiry
and determine a specific topic to study in depth. They will locate/review a variety of
scholarly resources and references and will research this topic. The goal is to
develop depth of background expertise about this particular content, separate from
the teaching pedagogy required for its subsequent presentation to learners.
Specifically, candidates must satisfy the following requirements to complete the TAS
Project:
1. Select a specific research topic based upon the Specialty Standards OR one

objective of the competency goals presented in the North Carolina Standard

Course of Study. The research topic must be focused enough to allow for
sustained investigation of a precise topic. To ensure depth and rigor, all topics
 must be approved by the cooperating teacher and Salem Supervisor prior to
beginning research.
2. Locate, read, and evaluate information from current professional and content
literature pertinent to the selected topic, including at least 5 print (books or full-
length journal articles) and 5 scholarly online references (be prepared to verify
the legitimacy of online sources).
3. Using these resources, detail facts and synthesize concepts specific to the
selected topic and create a multi-media research project that presents
information, displays depth of knowledge, synthesizes ideas, cites/references
the literature reviewed, and evidences academic rigor in a 21st century format.
The multi-media presentation may exhibit one format or combine a variety of
formats:
• a text-based document (a hyper-linked digital research “paper”). This format

entails the creation of a 10-12 page research paper that is primarily text-
oriented. Content will be enhanced with the inclusion of the required multi-
media elements (see number 4 below).
• a formal research presentation. Although this may be created using a slide-
based format, it will be more in-depth and text-rich than a traditional bullet-
point presentation. In essence, the slide format will be used only for issue of
transition and hyperlink creation; the research contained in it will be of a
depth and as text-rich as a traditional research paper would be. The
presentation must contain a minimum of 20 slides exclusive of a reference
slide or multiple reference slides. Each slide should include detailed
information; additional content may be presented in the note area. Content
will be enhanced with the inclusion of the required multi-media elements (see
number 4 below).
• an enhanced podcast or movie. This is a collection that presents information

in an audio-visual format and blends graphic images (still or moving) with

extensive narration or soundtrack. Because this project is to provide
evidence of deep content knowledge, it is expected that the research
presented in the soundtrack will first have been scripted to a 5-7 page length.
By its nature, this type of project is multi-media; however, care should be
taken to ensure that it exhibits all additional required elements (see number 4
below).
• a web site. This is an interactive research project that provides both vertical
 • a web site. This is an interactive research project that provides both vertical
and lateral connections between sub-components of the research topic. In
order to address content with appropriate depth and rigor, the website must
include at least 3-5 individual pages, topically organized, and hyperlinked
together. It is assumed that a website displays variety of multi-media
content, but all required elements must be present (see number 4 below).
4.Integrate content knowledge with demonstrations of ICT literacy by including
the following in the research presentation: at least one supplemental audio-
visual file (recorded narration, embedded video or mp3 player, music
integration/soundtrack, etc); at least three images/graphics (photographs,
diagrams, drawings, maps, etc.); at least one table, graph, or chart created
specifically for the research presentation to display or to enhance the content;
and at least three hyperlinks (between a table of contents/index and
somewhere in the presentation, between two locations within the body of the
presentation, to a slide not in sequence, or to external content such as an
online book/journal, another research paper, a scholarly website, a
professional or government organization, a video, a podcast, another
presentation, etc.)
5. Utilize APA (2009 edition) format for in-text citations.
6. Create a reference listing to be attached at the end of the research
presentation. All resources cited must be included in correct APA (2009
edition) format.
The TAS Project addresses standard 3b.1, Demonstrates an appropriate level
of content knowledge in the teaching specialty, in terms both of depth and rigor.
Depth of the TAS Project is indicated by the narrow scholarly focus of the research
project derived by careful examination, analysis, and evaluation of the goals and
objectives contained with the NCSOS for elementary social studies, science, or
health. The TAS Project evidences rigor in its underlying expectations that
candidates will locate and compile knowledge from current scholarly resources and
reference material then synthesize this knowledge to create original works that
display both deep foundational understanding of content as well as 21st century
presentation skills of it.