Standard Nine | Professionalism, Leadership, and Advocacy
The competent teacher is an ethical and reflective practitioner who exhibits professionalism; provides leadership in the learning community; and advocates for students, parents or guardians, and the profession.
Artifacts
Spring 2012 | Permission Slip to View R-Rated Film
Knowledge Indicator 9B) Knows laws and rules (e.g., mandatory reporting, sexual misconduct, corporal punishment) as a foundation for the fair and just treatment of all students and their families in the classroom and school
Knowledge Indicator 9B) Knows laws and rules (e.g., mandatory reporting, sexual misconduct, corporal punishment) as a foundation for the fair and just treatment of all students and their families in the classroom and school
jlcmoviepermissionparagraph.docx | |
File Size: | 123 kb |
File Type: | docx |
jlc_movie__alternate_assignment.docx | |
File Size: | 74 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Spring 2012 | Participation in School Improvement Days
Performance Indicator 9P) Participates in professional development, professional organizations, and learning communities, and engages in peer coaching and mentoring activities to enhance personal growth and development
Performance Indicator 9P) Participates in professional development, professional organizations, and learning communities, and engages in peer coaching and mentoring activities to enhance personal growth and development
sipdayschedule.png | |
File Size: | 381 kb |
File Type: | png |
Reflections
Spring 2012 | Permission Slip to View R-Rated Film
This permission slip and corresponding alternative assignment demonstrates I’m aware and accommodating of district policies. At the end of our study of The Joy Luck Club, I wanted to show students the movie version to help them better visualize the four women, daughters, and their stories. Actually viewing them on screen would help students solidify their understanding of the different relationships these women develop throughout the novel. However, the movie was rated R, so in accordance with district policy, I consulted with my cooperating teacher and sent home the above explanation of the value of the movie (explanation was modified from a version my co-op had used in the past), a description of the items within the movie that cause its R rating, and a permission slip that must be brought back signed by a parent/guardian indicating consent for his/her child to view the movie. Most parents consented, but some of them did not, therefore requiring the existence of the alternative assignment (students were required to read any novel dealing with family relationships and then use that text as their comparison for the novel The Joy Luck Club in their final papers). This alternative assignment was an appropriate replacement for viewing the movie, and allowed parents and students to be treated ethically, according to their rights.
Spring 2012 | Participation in School Improvement Days
This screenshot shows an e-mail from my principal outlining the schedule for the most recent School Improvement (SIP) day for the faculty in both high schools in our unit. On this particular SIP day, the morning was spent listening to a presentation by Nancy Frey, which refreshed ourselves as well as geared us up for next year on a couple different fronts: one, using Standards-Based Grading (SBG) (this new grading system was implemented on a limited basis this year and will be rolling out to more classes and grade levels next year); two, understanding the various kinds of and uses for feedback from our students. The afternoon was spent in our large PLC groups (with faculty from both schools), highlighting specifics from the presentation to our own teaching goals and unit plans. My PLC focused on looking at student work and SBG rubrics, noting improvements that were made over the course of this pilot year that will be important for other teachers to keep in mind as they too adopt the grading system.
Both the presentation and the PLC work were helpful to me for slightly different reasons, but both ultimately helped me think about specifics of my own practice and brainstorm ways to improve upon it. The presentation served as an effective recap of a lot of concepts that I had learned in previous semesters in U of I Education courses. It was helpful to revisit this information after having the majority of my student-teaching experience completed, as I now have some substantial “real-world” teaching experience and can better identify which suggested strategies I feel will and will not work for my students. Also, having the refresher reminded me of some pedagogical ideas that I had been overlooking in my practice that will really be valuable and necessary as I embark on my own as a teacher (thinking about a unit in an overarching and thematic way, and not a day-to-day string of activities, for example). Working in the PLC gave me a chance to see how actual teachers think and respond to challenges they face in the classroom, and to add my voice to explanations of SBG in terms of avoiding difficulties I’ve faced when using it.
This permission slip and corresponding alternative assignment demonstrates I’m aware and accommodating of district policies. At the end of our study of The Joy Luck Club, I wanted to show students the movie version to help them better visualize the four women, daughters, and their stories. Actually viewing them on screen would help students solidify their understanding of the different relationships these women develop throughout the novel. However, the movie was rated R, so in accordance with district policy, I consulted with my cooperating teacher and sent home the above explanation of the value of the movie (explanation was modified from a version my co-op had used in the past), a description of the items within the movie that cause its R rating, and a permission slip that must be brought back signed by a parent/guardian indicating consent for his/her child to view the movie. Most parents consented, but some of them did not, therefore requiring the existence of the alternative assignment (students were required to read any novel dealing with family relationships and then use that text as their comparison for the novel The Joy Luck Club in their final papers). This alternative assignment was an appropriate replacement for viewing the movie, and allowed parents and students to be treated ethically, according to their rights.
Spring 2012 | Participation in School Improvement Days
This screenshot shows an e-mail from my principal outlining the schedule for the most recent School Improvement (SIP) day for the faculty in both high schools in our unit. On this particular SIP day, the morning was spent listening to a presentation by Nancy Frey, which refreshed ourselves as well as geared us up for next year on a couple different fronts: one, using Standards-Based Grading (SBG) (this new grading system was implemented on a limited basis this year and will be rolling out to more classes and grade levels next year); two, understanding the various kinds of and uses for feedback from our students. The afternoon was spent in our large PLC groups (with faculty from both schools), highlighting specifics from the presentation to our own teaching goals and unit plans. My PLC focused on looking at student work and SBG rubrics, noting improvements that were made over the course of this pilot year that will be important for other teachers to keep in mind as they too adopt the grading system.
Both the presentation and the PLC work were helpful to me for slightly different reasons, but both ultimately helped me think about specifics of my own practice and brainstorm ways to improve upon it. The presentation served as an effective recap of a lot of concepts that I had learned in previous semesters in U of I Education courses. It was helpful to revisit this information after having the majority of my student-teaching experience completed, as I now have some substantial “real-world” teaching experience and can better identify which suggested strategies I feel will and will not work for my students. Also, having the refresher reminded me of some pedagogical ideas that I had been overlooking in my practice that will really be valuable and necessary as I embark on my own as a teacher (thinking about a unit in an overarching and thematic way, and not a day-to-day string of activities, for example). Working in the PLC gave me a chance to see how actual teachers think and respond to challenges they face in the classroom, and to add my voice to explanations of SBG in terms of avoiding difficulties I’ve faced when using it.