In 1992, as a first year teacher, the principal gave me the classroom key, the teacher’s editions of texts, and asked that I teach 9th, 10th, and 12th grade English. I was alone with texts and no one to help or lead me. I reflected on my student teaching experience and missed the guidance and collaboration provided by my supervising teacher. A few weeks after school started, two new English teachers arrived; we became our own learning community, before the word was en vogue. We worked to establish standards and assessments to monitor student progress. We worked with teachers in the core subjects to create a cross-curricular culture that allowed us to identify and track the transferability of skills. We became school leaders, encouraging teachers to share their resources, to provide constructive peer evaluations, and to use data from formative and summative assessments to evaluate the curricular needs of the students. When reviewing what I have done to strengthen and improve the profession, I know that the role of mentor pushed me forward allowing me to be of service, and an example, to my peers.
As I desired to be of better use in the learning environment, I sought mentor certification. I had been an unofficial mentor for five years in the state of North Carolina, and became a Florida State Certified Mentor in 2000. With this certification, I gained insight into the evaluation and accountability of teachers. With this certification, I gained insight into the evaluation of teachers and was able to move from utilizing anecdotal evidence to providing feedback on best practices used in the classroom. When working with my mentees, I combined the state-approved evaluation tool with a system requiring novice teachers to reflect and...
... middle of paper ...
...across the hall asked for instructional strategies for vocabulary development. A permanent substitute from another high school came to Columbia High seeking me out on student recommendations for instructional strategies to deal with reluctant readers. While I know that my knowledge, desire, and dedication improve and strengthen the profession, my additional role as a SAFE-T evaluator allows me to revisit teacher accountability. It allows me to review whether the student and parent survey, self-reflection, and an objective instrument are still viable determinations of professional efficacy. There is no right or wrong answer. However, the combination of those three attributes allowed a teacher who was working in isolation to hold himself accountable and to work with his colleagues so they might all be able to strengthen and improve the profession of the teaching.
In 2010, Charlotte Danielson wrote an article, “Evaluations That Help Teachers”, for the magazine The Effective Educator. The purpose of this article was to explain how a teacher evaluation system, such as her own Framework for Teaching, should and can actually foster teacher learning rather than just measure teacher competence, which is what most other teacher evaluation systems do. This topic is especially critical to decision-making school leaders. Many of the popular teacher evaluation systems fail to help schools link teacher performance with meaningful opportunities for the teachers to reflect on and learn from in order to grow professionally. With the increased attention on the need for more rigorous student standards, this then is an enormous opportunity missed. Students can only achieve such rigorous expectations if their teachers can effectively teach them, and research has shown that teachers who are evaluated by systems that hold them to accountability and provide them for continuous support and growth will actually teach more effectively.
As the time approached, my attitude toward student-teaching was one of confidence and in some ways overconfidence. I believed that I was equipped with all of the tools necessary to be a superior teacher. Little did I know what truly goes on behind the scenes of a teacher. Between grading papers, attending meetings, and preparing lessons, I would often feel overwhelmed. Still, student teaching would prove to be much more valuable than I anticipated. It would teach me to appreciate the wisdom of mentors and experienced teachers, value or being organized and prepared, and lastly the resilience of students.
Marshall, K. (2005). It's Time to Rethink Teacher Supervision and Evaluation. Phi Delta Kappan, 86(10), 727-735.
Growing up, I contemplated a future in the education field; I enjoyed my experiences volunteering with children and I have always been intrinsically motivated to learn. When I started college, I decided to delve into the social sciences, but I never forgot about my interest in education. The summer of my freshman year, I joined the education team through the University of Arkansas’ community development program in Belize. I worked with my co-teacher (a senior education major), and education and literature professors to create creative writing lesson plans and methods to improve literacy for underperforming children. In Belize, my co-teacher and I facilitated daily literacy skill small groups for 2nd and 3rd graders and taught creative writing lessons with 4th and 5th graders. This experience not only strengthened my desire to work in education, but also awakened my awareness of how different levels of educational privileges affect students. I recognized, however, that while I was energized by this experience, I still lacked the skills and training that would allow me to most efficiently help
Milken, L. (1999). A Matter of Quality: A Strategy for Assuring the High Caliber of America’s Teachers. Presented at the 1999 National Education Conference President’s Presentation. Santa Monica, CA: Milken Family Foundation.
Teachers: What Do We Really Know? Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness , 2 (3), 209-249.
Teacher evaluations are very important. Most of the time, they have a negative feeling attached to them. Some teachers view evaluations as a way of them getting written up for what they are not doing and not as a way of growing and improving to help them teach their students. This also depends on how the principals frame and do teacher evaluations. I wanted to focus on teacher evaluations because I want to show how having a good teacher evaluation can lead to teacher and student growth in the school.
A teacher today needs to have an ability to relate to and create partnerships not with their students, but also families, administrators and other professionals. This ensures that all persons involved with the education of the student are on the same page. All involved then work in harmony and help each other achieve the common goal of educating the student in the best possible way for the best possible result. (Wesley, 1998, p 80)
Mentoring is a strong educational tool and is very useful especially within the New York City Department of Education. It is a great way for experience teachers to pass down information. The one and one interaction is more lasting than reading it from a book. This method will allow a smooth transition for new teachers. There are a lot of procedures that are confusing to beginners and mentors can uncoil those kinks. Beginning teacher will also get the opportunity to experience different teaching styles and also decide what will work for them and what will not. Mentoring is a valuable asset in guiding person’s development.
Through exploring multiple learning theories and reflecting on my own teaching beliefs, I have developed my own theory of learning. As I developed my theory, I wanted to consider what it takes to be a highly effective teacher. An effective teacher must have mastery of instructional strategies, classroom management, classroom curriculum design, and use assessments as feedback (Laureate Education, 2010a). By using a variety of instructional strategies, teacher’s can meet the learning styles of all the students in the classroom. Effective classroom management can lead to students feeling safe and more willing to take risks. When a student feels comfortable to take risk, then learning will increase and the students’ confidence will grow. Classroom management also creates order in the environment, which will allow effective learning to occur. By understanding curriculum, the teacher can target skills and causes learning to take place. Teachers need to deliberately plan lessons around standards and specific goals based on curriculum and the school’s mission (Marzano, 2010). Assessments need to be use to guide instruction and used as a “method for improvement and mastery,” (Marzano, 2010). While determining my own theory of learning, I believe that I need to consider what effective teachers demonstrate in the classroom.
The teacher was rated using a rubric with specific criteria in four domains including planning and preparation, the classroom environment, instruction, and professional responsibilities (Hillsborough County Public Schools, 2012). Within each of these domains are components which are the performance factors that are relevant to classroom teachers. In domain one the components include: demonstrating knowledge of content and pedagogy, demonstrating knowledge of students, setting instructional outcomes, demonstrating knowledge of resources and technology, designing coherent instruction, and designing student assessments. The components for domain two include: creating an environment of respect and rapport, establishing a culture for learning, managing classroom procedures, managing student behavior, organizing physical space. In domain three the components included are: communicating with students, using questioning and discussion, engaging students in learning, using assessment in instruction, and demonstrating flexibility and responsiveness. There is only one component that was rated for domain four which is reflecting on teaching.
Professional development is critical to success in a teacher’s career. Teachers need to be opened to continuing their education and consistently reflecting on lessons and interactions with students. At the expert stage of teaching, “the teacher’s practice is characterized by fluency, automaticity, and efficiency” (Garmston,1998). In order to achieve this level of teaching practice, the educator must continue to learn new teaching strategies, understand the curriculum, recognize students and their differences, and conduct self-reflections. A teacher who is dedicated to professional development and wanting to improve their teaching, will make a stronger impact on students. I believe that I am in the Proficient level of performance according to the Framework for Professional Teaching Practices (Danielson, 1996).
Develop teaching expertise is the part of proposition from NBPTS, specifically knowing the subjects they teach and how to teach those subjects to students (1987). One of the methods is continue to pursue their professional development by joining a professional association or organization, attending a workshop, and reading a professional journal, website, or books. These ideas enhance teachers’ cognitive growth by enlarge information of the latest strategies or method, enhance cognitive growth, and learning to help the teachers to become expert in their teaching and influence on student learning.
Becoming a teacher has been the ultimate aspiration for myself since the first day I walked into kindergarten. As a very timid student, it was a difficult task transitioning from being with my mother everyday, to being part of a classroom environment full of strangers. However, my kindergarten teacher helped me through this transition smoothly, and adequately. I very quickly learned to love school. Soon after, I knew I would aspire to become a teacher. I would spend countless hours at home with a blackboard, acting as a teacher to my imaginary students throughout my elementary school years.
My educational journey has been like a roller coaster. I have been in the worst spot of my life time. Where I hate going to school but, also think about my father education. My career goal is one of my most important in my life to better myself than I am today tomorrow I will better than yesterdays.