The Changing Face of Education in Iowa: 5 Characteristics of Effective Instruction - 6 views
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So not only will Iowa's high schools develop implementation plans for the content next year, they will also conduct a self-study to determine which characteristics need attention and put forward a professional development plan to improve in that area(s).
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Matt Townsley on 31 May 09ICC is a process. To see this change to its fullest extent, the DE is proposing a plan for each district to create a plan to roll it out over several years. (This is how we should/might view our classrooms...focus on making a few changes at a time, but do them well rather than trying to be Mr. Awesome Teacher in all kinds of areas without enough time/thought/trial & error.) <-- this is KEY. What are your thoughts, Russ?
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Russ Goerend on 31 May 09I like that it is built on reflection and continual improvement. You've explained it to me before as being "what good teachers should be doing." I think all teachers, rookies and veterans, can benefit from an open discussion on that point.
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Evan Abbey on 01 Jun 09I'm leery of the plans becoming planning for planning sake, but the intention is good--trying to get at the process of continual improvement, as you mentioned.
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Teresa Bellinghausen on 07 Apr 10Evan, there's no doubt that some schools/districts will simply write a plan, then check it off the list of things to do. However, many others that recognize the value in the intent, or spirit, of the IC will approach the process seriously.
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Lacy Kolpin on 07 Apr 10Just to piggy back here, I also like it that there are people that are going to reflect on what may or may not be working. Often enough, I don't think that gets done enough. As Teresa said, some and perhaps the majority of schools will just fulfill what they have to, but some will put in time and get some neat things out of this process. I hope that many will take it seriously.
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Karen Waid on 08 Apr 10Our district is currently working on the plan. I hope we do a good job so we can implement and use it!
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Formative assessment is a process used by teachers and students as part of instruction that provides feedback to adjust ongoing teaching and learning to improve students’ achievement of core content.
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I didn't think about this until my 5th year of teaching. What is your "assessment plan"? How will you assess? How often? What will you do if students are absent on assessment day?
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Your comment made me think of the quote we shared with you this past weekend: "our generation wants in 7 years what our parents worke for all their lives." That's what I feel fairly often since I've been surrounded by veteran teachers. There are many times I need to slow down and remember that I'm learning, learning. learning. So, to "answer" your questions, I don't know. I appreciate being able to learn from your experiences.
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A rigorous curriculum is one that is complex, provocative, and personally or emotionally challenging
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This is a never-ending task. I don't expect to "master" this, even when I'm ready to retire. It involves really thinking about the content and the students and how authentic work can be created by them according to their interests. This is TOUGH!
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Evan had a great comment on this point: "The key is to teach students how to learn that advanced content on their own--to become life-long learners. No one is arguing that teachers aren't cognitively limited; they are. But that is (or should be) irrelevant. To continue the transmission model of education, where teachers have all the knowledge and students have to get it in the approved way, will continue to stunt the growth of students."
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That quote came from this post on Scott Mcleod's blog: http://is.gd/KhNX
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Good point. It's the old 'liberal arts' education lingo...becoming a life long learner. From my experience, it's difficult to get some students to learn the basics, let alone do any learning on their own (the few that come to school because they're required...or only desire a passing grade...or some other sort of grade to please parents). Not saying it can't be done, but lots of thought, motivation and modeling needed.
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One thing I've found is that out of the 5, this is the one that teachers say, "Yeah, I've got this one down". It seems everyone has seen the graphic of the quadrants. What's difficult is, even though we all know we need to be rigorous & relevant, we don't often know which of our lessons truly are rigorous & relevant. The best professional development will give teachers some specific, tangible examples to show how to ramp up rigor.
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This definition is adapted from Teaching What Matters Most by Silver, Strong and Perrini. It's a great read (ASCD)
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