Core Proposition #3: Teachers are responsible for managing and monitoring student learning. By: Cassandra Dobson, NBCT and Beverly Witherspoon, NBCT Summary: Accomplished teachers maintain high expectations for all students. They view themselves as facilitators of student learning, helping children and young adults reach their fullest potential. To achieve that goal, educators create vibrant, productive work-spaces for their students, adjusting and improving organizational structures as needed while establishing effective ways to monitor and manage traditional and nontraditional learning environments. First and foremost, teachers facilitate the educational process by designing opportunities for learning—planning for and presenting students with inspiring materials, promoting their participation, supporting substantive discourse, and sustaining long-term engagement by collaboratively working with students. To track their success, teachers carefully monitor activity within the learning environment—observing student interactions, evaluating classroom performance, assessing all aspects of student development, and measuring learning outcomes relative to objectives. To increase students’ success, teachers diligently manage the systems, programs, and resources that support every educational endeavor—fostering positive relations in and out of the classroom, making sure classroom materials are used appropriately, maintaining schedules, ensuring students safety, and otherwise maintaining all aspects of a well-functioning learning environment. As masters of pedagogical practice, accomplished educators teach efficiently, making the most of every instructional moment to maximize learning. They are dedicated to helping young people thrive by respecting, encouraging, and advancing student interests and student learning at all times. (What teachers should know and be able to do. p. 24) When teachers regularly assess they can: · See areas of strength and areas for improvement through assessment · Draw conclusions from assessing students’ progress toward objectives · Make adjustments in instruction and other meaningful feedback to students Body of Knowledge consists of three components: · The Five Core Propositions · NBPTS Standards · NBPTS Architecture of Accomplished Teaching
Architecture of Accomplished Teaching
Core Proposition #3 and the AAT Accomplished teachers design instruction based on the needs of their students (1st) and the goals of the intended learning outcomes (2nd). To maximize learning, teachers use a wide range of pedagogical skills, from traditional to innovative, to achieve the goals of the lesson (3rd). Learning is constantly monitored to determine what modifications to the structure of the lesson or to the classroom environment must be made (4th). Teachers evaluate their methods for strengths and weaknesses of their pedagogical approach to ensure the suitability for their current students (5th). Teachers reflect for the purpose of evaluating student learning in light of the goals and the instruction before moving on to the next lesson (6th). Teachers Are Responsible for Managing and Monitoring Student Learning Teachers call on multiple methods to meet their instructional goals. Teachers support student learning in varied settings and groups. Teachers value student engagement. Teachers regularly assess student progress. Teachers engage students in the learning process. (TaCCL Lab) Reflecting on Teacher-Made Test Results · Was the key correct? · Were there ambiguous questions? · Were there culturally-biased questions? · Was all of the content taught? · Were the test questions at the relevant level of depth? (for example, identify vs. analyze) · Were there common misconceptions? · Did the students study for the test? · Were the assignments meaningful and prepare students for the test? · Do I need to re-teach the material? · Do I need to offer test corrections? · Do I need to curve the test grades? · Were students missing prior knowledge? · What are the trends? · What are common factors among successful students? Unsuccessful students? · Were there outside factors which affected test day? (for example, Halloween or the big football game))
Teachers Call on Multiple Methods to Meet Their Instructional Goals Accomplished educators understand the full breadth of pedagogical options available to them. They use traditional methods, and they employ innovative strategies to advance student learning in pace with the dynamic conditions of the classroom. Alternate Teaching Ideas: · Problem-based Learning · Flipped classroom · Student journals · Model building Accomplished teachers modify their learning environments and their instructional materials as needed. Teachers invite stakeholders and colleagues to the classroom so they can share their experience and communicate their expertise on specific topics. Accomplished educators enlist a wide range of support— from students, teachers, and paraprofessionals to family and community members—to provide their students with instructional opportunities that will augment their learning. Accomplished teachers examine pedagogical issues regularly and reflect on their practice so that they use classroom time constructively . Activities may include outdoor experiments, classroom simulations, journaling or notetaking. (What Teachers Should Know and Be Able to Do) Teachers Support Student Learning in Varied Settings and Groups Accomplished teachers know how to work with different groups of students. They manage those interactions carefully, establishing space for constructive communication, helping students adopt productive roles. Accomplished teachers use time and materials to foster student success, and their teaching provides each student tools for learning. (What Teachers Should Know and Be Able to Do)
Teachers Regularly Assess Student Progress Thoughtful assessment requires diligence. Accomplished teachers find ways to accommodate what they know and learn about themselves and their students within plans for the whole group. They take individuals into consideration, thinking across the full spectrum of ability within their classrooms. Individuals may not learn the same thing or move at the same pace, but accomplished teachers are dedicated to ensuring that they all increase their knowledge, strengthen their skills, and expand their abilities. (What Teachers Should Know and Be Able to Do , p. 28) · Accomplished teachers evaluate their students throughout the learning process, from start to finish. · They monitor student behavior at various times, in various situations, and for various purposes. · When asking questions during group discussions, teachers may determine how well students comprehend information. · When speaking with individuals working independently, they may consider ways to augment student learning. · When using an online assessment that provides immediate feedback from the class, they may gauge the relative value of an instructional technique.
Teachers Engage Students in the Learning Process Student engagement can be refereed to as the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion students show when they are learning or being taught (Strong). Engaged students : 1. Are attracted to their work; 2. Persist in their work despite challenges and obstacles; 3. Take visible delight in accomplishing work. Vantharp.com Golden Rules for Engaging Students in Learning Activities Make It Meaningful Foster a Sense of Competence Provide Autonomy Support Embrace Collaborative Learning Establish Positive Teacher -Student Relationships To ensure that activities are personally meaningful, we can, for example, connect them with students' previous knowledge and experiences, highlighting the value of an assigned activity in personally relevant ways. Be only slightly beyond students' current levels of proficiency. Make students demonstrate understanding throughout the activity. Show peer coping models (i.e. students who struggle but eventually succeed at the activity) and peer mastery models (i.e. students who try and succeed at the activity). Welcoming students' opinions and ideas into the flow of the activity. Using informational, non-controlling language with students. Giving students the time they need to understand and absorb an activity by themselves. Modeling how collaboration is done while avoiding homogeneous groups and grouping by ability, fostering individual accountability by assigning different roles, and evaluating both the student and the group performance. When students form close and caring relationships with their teachers, they are fulfilling their developmental need for a connection with others and a sense of belonging in society (Scales, 1991). Caring about students' social and emotional needs. Displaying positive attitudes and enthusiasm Increasing one-on-one time with students. Treating students fairly. Avoiding deception or promise-breaking. Promote Mastery Orientations Consider various approaches, such as framing success in terms of learning (e.g. criterion-referenced) rather than performing (e.g. obtaining a good grade). You can also place the emphasis on individual progress by reducing social comparison (e.g. making grades private) and recognizing student improvement and effort. (Pino-James)
Notes.
Reflection Questions for Core Proposition 3 1) What methods are used to meet instructional goals in your best lesson? 2) What varied settings and groups do you use? 3) How do you regularly assess student learning? 4) How do you track student’s progress? 5) What is the purpose of each evaluation method you use? 6) When are your students most engaged? What activities are their favorites? 7) How is student engagement evident in your classroom? 8) What adjustments do you make to future lessons when students did not master a lesson? Sources Moin-Afshari, Ali. “Reflective Learning, part 2.” Tharp’s Thoughts: Weekly Newsletter. Dec. 19, 2012. Vantharp.com National School of Business. Multiple Teaching Methods. http://www.nsbindia.org/teachingmethodology/ Pino-James, Nicolas. “Golden Rules for Engaging Students in Learning Activities.” Edutopia. Dec. 11, 2015. “The TaCCL Lab.” Teacher, Learner, Content. tccl.arcc.albany.edu/wpsite/. Tomlinson, Carol. Fulfilling the Promise of the Differentiated Classroom: Strategies and Tools for Responsive Teaching. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. 2003. For a full explanation of how accomplished teachers manage and monitor student learning read chapter three of What Teachers Should Know and Be Able to Do published by National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. (http://accomplishedteacher.org). Our Partners: Authors: Cassandra Dobson and Beverly Witherspoon Layout & Design: Debra Coram Troxell
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