Unit 3: Putting it all Together
Objectives
1. The learner will devise and implement their own strategies to teach for understanding in ways that will demonstrate positive, measurable growth in students.
Teaching for Understanding Strategies & APPR
Although many of us might find it difficult to "squeeze" in a method like the teaching for understanding framework into our daily teaching, considering the pressures that are placed on us as teaching by new mandates, such as APPR, it is important that we not lose sight of what's most important in teaching. That is, and always will be the student.
If we teach for understanding, our students will produce the best results. It has been proven many times over that students who actually understand content are more likely to retain learned information and can recall it at a later time, making further learning easier and more enriching.
There are many parts of the teaching for understanding framework that lend itself well to successful teacher evaluation under the new APPR mandates. Below I have outlined how each component can be used in a way to prove successful teaching.
1. Generative Topic
When developing your SLO you may use generative topics to explain what will be learned over the course of the year. Considering both the framework and APPR are year long processes, the goals would be overarching for both. Also, generative topics can be aligned with the latest learning standards that would be reflected in any state assessment.
2. Understanding Goals
A pre-assessment, like the ones used for SLOs are a great way that students can become aware of what they can expect to learn. After taking a pre-assessment it may be of interest to conduct a whole class discussion on the topics and set goals as a class.
3. Performances of Understanding
If you can, try and document every activity you do with students. Save work done by students and plans you use. These are all great pieces of evidence that you are a "highly effective" teacher. Saving this documentation and putting it into a portfolio or evidence binder will help you show aspects of your teaching that may not be seen in classroom observations.
4. Ongoing Assessment
The use of continuous assessment in the teaching for understanding framework lends itself well to proving student growth, which is a goal of APPR. Also, when students are assessed frequently, they become more comfortable with assessment. Rather than giving just a pre-assessment and a post-assessment to satisfy the APPR requirements, it may be a good idea to give assessments of the same format on a consistent basis, like taking one of these assessments every four or five weeks, if not more frequently. Again, keep documentation of assessments you give.
These are just a few ways that you can use the teaching for understanding framework to prove positive growth in your students and thus prove your effectiveness as a teacher. The key to doing this is saving work and documentation. It may seem like a lot of extra work, but if you make a consistent practice in your teaching it will begin to feel like part of the routine.
Reflection Questions
1. What are some ways that you can use the teaching for understanding framework to prove student growth in your specific subject area and grade level?
2. What are some ways you can collect usable date while teaching for understanding that can be used for APPR?