mentoring, coaching & feedback for teacher growth...practice, awareness of their strengths and...
TRANSCRIPT
May 8, 2015
STARTALK student and teacher programs share the goal of effective language teaching and learning. Current and future teachers benefit from a shared understanding of effective practice, awareness of their strengths and areas for growth, and access to peer mentors and instructional coaches. This session will explore the importance of planning systems of support for professional learning and skill development through mentoring, feedback and coaching within STARTALK summer programs.
I can communicate goals for teacher practice
I can visualize a professional culture supportive of teacher growth
I can plan systems of support for teacher growth
“…The single most important determinant of what students learn is what their teachers know. Teacher qualifications, teacher’s knowledge and skills make more difference for student learning than any other single factor.”
(Darling-Hammond, 2009)
Research shows that a teacher's contribution matters
more than anything else within a school. More than class size. More than school funding. More than technology. For decades, most initiatives to improve public education have focused on improving poor performing schools. But studies show that there are bigger differences in teaching quality within schools than there are between schools. This means that in the same school, a child taught by a less effective teacher can receive an education of vastly different quality than a student just down the hall who is taught by a more effective teacher. And the way evaluations are currently conducted don't provide a teacher who is struggling with a roadmap to improve.
Measures of Effective Teaching MET Study 2009
“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” (Albert Einstein)
“The past, present and future walked into a bar. It was tense!”
Think about a colleague whose interactions with you resulted in shifts to your practice.
What do you remember about what they did and its impact on you?
Share your observations and listen for shared elements.
Language proficiency and cultural learning is maximized through standards-based thematic curricula that integrate culture, content and language learning as the foundation for learner-centered classrooms, taught in the target language with authentic materials in which learners prepare for and demonstrate learning through performance assessments.
Standards-based thematic curriculum
Learner-centered classroom Comprehensible target language use Integration of culture, content, and language Culturally and linguistically authentic materials Performance-based assessment STARTALK Principle LookFors - TeacherFolio
Language Proficiency: Interpersonal, Interpretive, and Presentational
Cultures, Linguistics, Literatures, and Concepts from Other Disciplines
Language Acquisition Theories and Knowledge of Students and Their Needs
Integration of Standards in Planning, Classroom Practice, and Use of Instructional Resources
Assessment of Languages and Cultures Professional Development, Advocacy, and Ethics
Preparing, Advancing and Supporting Student Learning Through:
Environment Learning Experience
Collaboration Planning
Performance & Feedback Professionalism
Learning Tools
As you reference the stages of STARTALK teacher development, discuss the following questions: Who is teaching in your STARTALK program? What are their unique and shared strengths
and needs? What systems of support do you have in place
to help your teachers grow?
“Mindset change is not about picking up a few pointers here and there. It’s about seeing things in a new way. When people change to a growth mindset, they change from a judge-and-be-judged framework to a learn-and-help-learn framework. Their commitment is to growth, and growth takes plenty of time, effort and mutual support.” (Carol S. Dweck, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success)
Shift from private to community practice.
Coaches focus on improvement of instructional practice for student learning.
Mentors help teachers transition to new professional roles and responsibilities inclusive of, but not limited to, instructional practice.
Both mentors and coaches support and provide feedback to colleagues.
Effective teaching results from awareness of:
what the students know and can do (assessment
evidence) what the standards and curriculum identify as what
they need to know and do how to design and implement instruction to close the
gap in ways that are responsive to student needs
Key to Process: Formative Assessment
What is it we want all students to learn?
How will we know when each student has mastered the essential learning?
How will we respond when a student experiences difficulty in learning?
How will we deepen the learning for students who have already mastered the essential knowledge and skills.
Identify
Desired
Results
Assessment
Evidence
Learning
Plan
General Observation/Note-Taking Tool (Student/Teacher Behavioral Evidence/Notes) Classroom LookFors & Evidence (STARTALK Principles in Planning, Learning Experience & Assessment) Peer/Self Assessment Observation Tool (Learner-Centered Classroom, Others in Development) Annotated Lesson Plan (Lesson planning - support and review)
Observe: Take notes on what you see and hear teacher and students doing
Describe: Describe what was observed using specific nonjudgmental language
Analyze: Look for patterns giving names to categories and patterns
Predict: Predict the impact of the observed patterns on student learning
Next Steps: Co-plan practices to build upon successes and improve upon areas for development
Adapted from Instructional Rounds in Education: A Network Approach to Improving Teaching and Learning (City, Elmore, Fiarman and Teitel, 2009)
Purpose of feedback is to close the gap between what is taught and what is learned.
Evidence for Feedback ◦ Self-assessment ◦ Student performance data ◦ Formative assessment info ◦ Videos ◦ Observation notes
Individual and Community Process
Effective Feedback ◦ Timely, Specific & Grounded in Evidence
◦ Highlights Strengths
◦ Balance between Message, Value & Relationship
Strategy for Empowerment & Transfer Think about the kind of question to ask
rather than how a problem might be solved.
Clarifies ideas or practice
Communicates positive elements to build upon
Communicates suggestions toward improvement
Invites reflection and collaborative planning
Supports respectful constructive relationships
Pausing Paraphrasing Posing questions Providing data Putting ideas on the table Paying attention to self and others Presuming positive intentions The Adaptive School: Developing and Facilitating Collaborative Groups by Garmston and Wellman, p. 45.
Trustful learning relationships Shared goals and high expectations Focus on student learning Effective feedback & support Time for reflection and planning Opportunities for professional consultation
Collaborative work in service to student learning. Every teacher has students with needs. Every teacher is a learner.
Facilitating Teacher Growth in STARTALK Programs
What has worked? How do you know?
What are the obstacles to growth and what ideas do you have to address those barriers?
Professional Consultancy
Consider how you will measure your program’s success with teacher growth?
ACTFL Teacher Preparation Program Standards
World Readiness Standards for Language Learning (ACTFL)
New Teacher Center Capabiities & Dispositions
Student Centered Coaching - Diane Sweeney
Adaptive Schools & Cognitive Coaching - Thinking Collaborative
Measures of Effective Teaching Report & Resources
The Framework for Teaching - Danielson Continuum of Development