Content Knowledge
Human Development and Learning
Diversity
Planning for Instruction
Learning Environment
Instructional Delivery
Communication
Assessment
Collaborative Relationships
Reflection and Professional Growth
Professional Conduct
The teacher understands the central concepts, methods of inquiry, and structures of the discipline and creates a learning environment that make the content meaningful to all students.
I taught the 7th and 8th grade science classes a unit on earth science. This is a picture of one of my 7th grade classes doing an experiment of pulling out the iron in their favorite breakfast cereal to show them how minerals are used in their everyday lives. I believe it is important to show students how content applies in their lives. I also believe it is important to bring as many learning modalities to each lesson. In this way, more students have the opportunity to learn in their own learning style.
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Human Development and Learning
The teacher understands how individuals grow, develop, and learn and provides learning opportunities that support the intellectual, social and personal development of all students.Each students develops at different rates. A teacher needs to understand each student to know what level of development her students are exhibiting. A teacher also should know the different learning styles her students have and learning modalities they use to learn. After gaining knowledge of this information, a teacher needs to incorporate as many learning modalities as possible.
During the earth science unit, my 8th grade students had to individually plot points where earthquakes and volcanoes had occurred. After the individual work, they had to come together to plot the various points they had picked out to create the "Ring of Fire" on the world map. They had a chance to work individually and to work as a group to accomplish the task. It is important to give different opportunities for learning. A lot of students prefer to work individually, however, they need the opportunity to work together as a group.[Back to top]
Diversity
The teacher understands how students differ in their approaches to learning and creates instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse learning.During my multicultural unit, I taught about immigration and how most of us came from different countries with different customs. My students had to research and learn about an assigned country with a group and research what it would have been like to be an immigrant during the height of immigration.
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Planning for Instruction
The teacher understands instructional planning and designs instruction based upon knowledge of the discipline, students, the community, and curriculum goals.Lessons need to begin with instructional goals in mind. A teacher must look at standards and set goals for the students from those standards and create their lesson from that. Work backwards when creating lessons. All my lessons were standard based to meet district goals for the students. Lessons have to be flexible enough to change based upon students' needs. I feel I have been able to accomplish this because of my experiences with my children and knowledge of children.
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Learning Environment
The teacher uses her knowledge and understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to create a learning that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.
The students had an immigration unit where they had individual research and group research to do. In the group research, they needed to work together to figure out the miles from their "home" country to Ellis Island using the scale on the map. They learned to work together as a team as each team member was responsible for understanding how to figure out the miles. In a safe environment, students are able to work together and learn from each other. After establishing a "team" approach to learning, the students learn to work together to accomplish their goals.
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Instructional Delivery
The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to develop students' development of critical thinking, problem solving and performance skills.
During student teaching, I made it a point to teach the concepts using a variety of learning modalities. I used visual, audio, kinesthetic, and technological modalities in order to reach the most students possible.
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Communication
The teacher uses knowledge of effective written, verbal, nonverbal, and visual communication techniques to foster active inquiry, collaboration, and supportive interaction in the classroom.
As a parent myself, I know how important it is to have communication with the schools. I believe this experience enables me to keep the communication lines open with my students' families. I believe that in order to for the child to achieve to their fullest potential, it is important to work as a team with the family and colleagues.
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Assessment
The teacher understands various formal and informal assessment strategies and uses them to support the continuous development of all students.
During my student teaching, I continually assessed my students learning through informal assessments during the lesson and through formal assessments at the end of the lesson. I strived to use different assessment methods throughout my student teaching experience. Above is a sample of a rubric used during my immigration unit.
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Collaborative Relationships
The teacher understands the role of the community of education and develops and maintains collaborative relationships colleagues, parents/guardians and the community to support student learning and well-being.
I have learned the importance to work as a team for the benefit of all students. In team meetings, it is helpful to discuss signs of any problems with students on the team. Colleagues may have insight that you do not on that particular student and it is very helpful to take a team approach at intervention for the student, if needed. Above is a picture of a team meeting that I had the privilege of being a part.
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Reflection and Professional Growth
The teacher is a reflective practioner who continually evaluates how choices and actions effect students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community and actively seeks ways to grow professionally.
The most important thing to remember as a teacher is you never stop learning. As you teach any lesson, you are learning from your students as your students are learning from you. A teacher needs to be reflective simultaneously as she teaches. If the lesson is not being received as intended, then a teacher needs to make changes. Being reflective after lessons is also needed so that the next time you use the lesson, you know what changes need to be made.
It is also important to continually grow as a teacher and continue to pursue the most up-to-date information on any given content area. In order to do this, a teacher must be willing to take classes, attend conferences and participate in SIP days at the school. The picture below is when I attended the Illinois Reading Council in March.
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Professional Conduct
The teacher understands teaching as a profession, maintains standards of professional conduct, and provides leadership to improve student learning and well-being.
I continually volunteer outside of school time. I volunteered for Destination Imagination and to represent the Pekin Professional Development School at Family Weekend for ISU. The above picture is when I volunteered at Family Weekend. It is very important to be a part of the students' lives outside of the classroom and being part of the extracurricular activities at school is a great way to show the students that you are interested in them as people and not just students.
