Blog Entries, Day 1-3

Day 1: September 10, 2023

Developing your definition of learning

Learning is the process of acquiring knowledge, skills, or comprehension through study, experience, or teaching, leading to a change in behavior or the ability to perform new tasks or become a problem solver. 

*We must look for change in our students' progress. If there's no change, theres no learning!

Day 2: September 11, 2023

Conduct a comparative analysis between your compelling purpose and your school’s compelling purpose

After conducting a comprehensive self-reflection and subsequently engaging in a group analysis with my school's colleagues, it became evident that both my personal educational belief system and our institution's educational beliefs harmoniously embraced the principles of a technologist's mindset.

Day 3: September 12, 2023

Case Study

Based on the provided observations, the performance gaps in regards to effective teaching for Ms. Friendly can be summarized as follows:

Instructional Variety:Ms. Friendly received a 'good' rating in instructional variety. To enhance her teaching effectiveness, she should consider incorporating a wider range of teaching methods and strategies to cater to different learning styles and engage students more effectively.

Meeting Individual Needs: Similarly, receiving a 'good' rating in meeting individual needs suggests that there is room for improvement in tailoring her instruction to address the diverse learning needs of her students. Ms. Friendly should focus on differentiation to provide support and challenges based on individual student abilities and preferences.

While Ms. Friendly demonstrates many positive aspects of effective teaching, addressing these performance gaps in instructional variety and meeting individual needs can help her further enhance her teaching effectiveness and better align with the defined characteristics of effective teaching in the new evaluation system.

Improvement plan to enhance Mrs. Friendly's teaching effectiveness, with a focus on Instructional Variety, Meeting Individual Needs, and Parent Engagement, along with associated KPIs to measure change:

1.Enhancing Instructional Variety

Objective: Increase the variety of instructional methods and strategies to better engage students and promote active learning.

KPIs:

-Count the number of distinct instructional methods used in a given month.

-Keep a record of teaching methods employed in lesson plans.

-Measure and compare student engagement levels through surveys or classroom observations.

-Administer pre- and post-implementation surveys assessing student engagement. Conduct classroom observations before and after changes.

-Collect feedback from students on their preferred learning methods and activities.

-Administer surveys to students before and after the improvement plan. Analyze changes in student preferences.

Action Steps:

-Provide Mrs. Friendly with training sessions and resources on innovative teaching methods.

-Document her participation in professional development activities.

-Encourage collaboration among teachers to share and implement effective teaching strategies.

-Track the number of collaborative sessions and the ideas shared.

-Implement regular classroom observations and peer feedback sessions to assess the use of new teaching methods.

-Document observations and feedback reports.

2. Meeting Individual Needs

Objective: Tailor instruction to address the diverse learning needs of students, ensuring that each student's learning style and pace are considered.

KPIs:

-Track the number of ILPs created for students with special learning needs or specific goals.

- Maintain a record of ILPs and their impact on student progress.

-Monitor and analyze student progress data to identify areas where individualized support is most needed.

-Analyze assessment scores and classroom performance data.

-Gather feedback from parents and students on the effectiveness of personalized learning experiences.

- Administer surveys to parents and students before and after the implementation of personalized learning approaches.

Action Steps:

-Develop ILPs for students with special learning needs or those requiring additional support.

-Track the development and review of ILPs.

-Use formative assessments to continuously monitor and adjust instruction to meet individual needs.

-Document the use of formative assessments and changes made in response.

-Foster regular communication with parents to keep them informed about their child's progress and the individualized support being provided.

-Document communication efforts and gather feedback from parents.

3. Strengthening Parent Engagement

Objective: Improve communication and engagement with parents to create a collaborative learning environment.

KPIs:

-Track the number of parent-teacher conferences held and the participation rate.

-Maintain records of conference schedules and attendance.

- Measure the level of parent involvement in school events and activities.

-Document parent participation in school activities and events.

- Administer surveys to parents to assess their satisfaction with communication and involvement.

-Administer satisfaction surveys to parents before and after the implementation of communication initiatives.