Principle #1: The teacher understands the central concepts,
tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s) he or she teaches and can
create learning experiences that make these aspects of subject matter meaningful
for students.
KNOWLEDGE
The
Middle School environment consists of many factors and variables that affect
the students and their abilities to learn.
The teacher, in preparation for the situations that may make learning
difficult, is responsible for the structure and maintenance of the discipline
they teach. In so accepting the
responsibilities inherent in creating a safe and proactive environment, the
teacher must be able to exhibit knowledge; not only in the specific discipline,
but, also, within the parameters of central concepts, tools of inquiry, and the
structures of the discipline. When
creating the learning experiences, that make up the subject matter, the teacher
is responsible for facilitating and encouraging the growth of meaningful understanding.
As
I engage in the process of teaching, I utilize several core techniques couched
in methods, and grounded in a matrix of pedagogy to produce results that show
meaningful understanding of subject matter.
Drawing from the understanding that students need to have subject matter
bent to them to achieve the highest level of internalization (Dewey), I have
found that students relate to the teacher and to each other when sufficiently
engaged with the material. I build tools
that encourage the output of the highest caliber that shows how much the
learner has internalized. These
assessments have been fun and rewarding for the students as well as the
teacher. They provide a wealth of
information upon which future experiences can be designed
It
is necessary for the teacher to remain cognizant about situations that are
influenced by flaws in the conceptual framework and lend to misconceptions
about material being made. These moments
seem to occur when the structure of the learning environment has been
compromised. it is here, at this crucial
moment, that the management must influence the learner to want to re-engage
with the material. The material must be
made more interesting. As Dewey stated
such a short time ago, “The problem of direction is thus the problem of
selecting appropriate stimuli for instincts and impulses which it is desired to
employ in the gaining of new experience.”
Problems in subject matter are adverted if the students are permitted
and encouraged to guide themselves in the pursuit of the knowledge, then the
teacher will be successful at achieving learning goals. All disciplines of knowledge acquisition
incorporate universal elements into matrices, then the knowledge must be built
into some base or fundamental component for the knowledge to be constructed
into some meaningful configuration. This
configuration is what the learner draws upon to function in response to not
well defined problems. In all pursuits
of knowledge, problems will arise, and decisions need to be made. Universals, such as the above, translate one
ostensibly simple truth: To have
meaningful knowledge construction, the learner needs to self-engage with the
material. The material, in other words,
must be presented in an appealing way and with consistency upon which the
learner can manufacture their own meaningful experience.
Being
in the teaching profession means that I must keep my theology and methodology
current and well read. The practice and demeanor
of the teacher is very mush dependent on the information that one continues to
gather in search of professional development.
For example, as I taught the Mathematics lessons at the University
School to second and sixth grade students, I realized the importance of keeping
current on standards updates. The
National Council Of Teachers Of Mathematics publishes a curriculum Evaluation
that outlines expected standards for the Mathematics teacher to study and
become practiced in the application of such standards. Science teachers follow those standards
outlined in BenchMark, the guide for Science teachers.
Using
mathematics as a way of structuring students’ schema and so supporting their
quests for knowledge, problem solving skills become of absolute
importance. Indeed, in the social
realities of the time, problem solving is of vital importance for each
individual; mathematics is a important way for students to realize the order
and logic of the natures of things. Case
in point, the NCTM standards identify this sometimes neglected truism: “No
student should be denied access to the study of one topic because he or she has
yet to master another.” (p89). As a
result of formulating ideas and techniques based on the standards such as the
NCTM I become a better communicator and guide on the quest of knowledge.
In
the areas contributing to the instruction of Language Arts (English, reading,
writing, drama) I blend my own pedagogy by utilizing techniques and notions related
in Reading Process And Practice, by Constance Weaver. From a socio-psycholinquistic platform, I
attempt to get readers and writers to learn about the metacognitive process they
use in creating meaning. Emerging
readers in any grade gain an appreciation for the types of learning strategies
that work for them when I as a teacher initiate a sequence of experiences that
allow the student to interpret the ways the arrive at knowledge.
EVIDENCE
Discussions
Free-Writes
Tornado
Study -- grade two
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