Although students often find a way to move the class discussion into topics not covered on the lesson plan, the planning of lessons is essential to good teaching. When a teacher knows the needs of their students and plans accordingly both parties benefit. The seventh INTASC principle is crucial to teaching as it ensures the teacher is proficient in planning lessons based on the individual needs of students, and that teachers are working toward satisfying the curriculum goals. Planning for a lesson allows a student to address the individual needs of students; in a classroom of twenty-five students there will students on very different levels of proficiency. In a classroom where all students are expected to read on grade level, or write essays frequently the students that are not capable of such activities would fall behind. Planning the lesson to meet the needs of students will allow the teacher to give each student the tools they need to learn. Also, by planning lessons before the class starts, the teacher will be able to ensure their lesson meets curriculum guidelines and works toward goals. Lessons plans are important in all subject areas, and English is no exception. While some may not think reading a novel in class warrants a lesson plan, the inclusion of one could allow the teacher to regain composure and remember their purpose if events do not go as planned. For instance, if a teacher has planned thirty minutes of reading in their classroom they may soon realize that the students are unable or willing to read for such an extended period. If the teacher had not completed a lesson plan, the remainder of the class could be wasted. Students may be told to sit quietly, or work on homework for another class. If the teacher had a lesson plan, however, there would be alternate activities planned for the students in the event that something did not go as planned. The students would complete the alternate activities and no time would be wasted. Ensuring the direction of the classroom is always known and that activities are working toward the curriculum goals are very important. Using a lesson plan allows teachers to plan accordingly.
Artifact A is a unit plan that was created during a class I completed at Towson University. The unit plan was intended for a class that had students at varying proficiency levels. This artifact demonstrates my proficiency in this principle because I have planned the unit based on what I believe to be important within the text The Giver, and planned the lesson based on the state standards for the English content area. The skills that students are learning in the unit plan I have created correlate directly with the state curriculum. As a teacher, I must ensure my students are learning the content that the state deems most important. In order to graduate the students must pass state tests, and the content they learn must directly impact their performance on the tests. The unit plan guides students through the novel while also teaching the skills necessary to do well in English, and the standardized tests they will ultimately take. The assessments and activities taught through the unit all have counterparts in the curriculum and on the state tests. The unit plan is also influenced by my knowledge of the students I am teaching. I integrate an audio book into the unit to benefit struggling readers, and introduce all readers to the importance of pacing and emphasizing important passages. This unit plan has a positive impact on student achievement because the goals that I have set for them align with state standards. The unit plan that I have created was created to ensure students are prepared to take the tests they need to graduate, and ensure they become better readers. Teachers need to be sure their goals for students meet the requirements the state has created; students need to pass the tests in order to graduate, and teachers will be held accountable for their students scores. The inclusion of the audio book in the unit also ensures struggling readers are able to keep up with the rest of the class. This unit plan demonstrates the "planning instruction" aspect of the Planning-Teaching-Learning cycle because I used information gathered in classes and real world experience to plan an effective unit for my students. By planning instruction in advance I am able to set long term goals for my students, and include assessment to ensure the students are keeping a reasonable pace in their learning. Planning whole units allows an instructor to know what is coming in the future, and allows the instructor to create coherent units that make sense as a whole.
Artifact B is a teaching segment that I planned during my professional year at Towson University. The lesson was planned to teach poetic elements to students of varying proficiency levels. This artifact demonstrates my proficiency in this principle because I planned my instruction based on what I knew about my class. Based on previous classes it became clear to me that the students were unfamiliar with various poetic elements. In order to prepare the students for the unit they were approaching, the lesson I planned introduced students to poetic elements and had them practice using them. Instructors must be able to recognize the needs of their students, and this teaching segment shows my ability to judge the needs of my students and apply those needs to lesson planning. Because the students were unfamiliar with poetic elements I realized that I needed to do vocabulary priming for various elements, and that the students needed to practice using the new content before moving into the new unit. Recognizing the needs of students is the first step to teaching effectively, but the implementation of the information gained through tapping prior knowledge and experience makes the difference in the classroom. While some students may have been familiar with the poetic elements already, all students benefited from learning the new vocabulary. Students unfamiliar with the content learned what was needed for the next unit, and students who already had the knowledge benefited from practicing and reapplying the information. This lesson segment has a positive impact on student achievement because it recognizes the needs of students in the classroom and introduces them to new information that will be needed for the new unit. If students were introduced to the new unit without learning the poetic elements it would have resulted in confusion amongst the students, but learning the content early based on the needs of the class directly benefits them. This lesson segment demonstrates the "assessing" aspect of the Planning-Teaching-Learning cycle because I used information gathered from previous experience with the students to create a lesson that would directly benefit them. I assessed what the students have done in the past in order to plan lessons for the future. After assessing their prior knowledge I applied the information to create a lesson that fills in the gaps. The ability to assess prior knowledge and plan lessons accordingly is incredibly important in the classroom, and my lesson segment reflects my ability to do this.
Planning for Instruction
A. Plans instruction based upon knowledge of content, students, community, and curriculum goals, and
B. Knows when and how to adjust instruction/ plans to meet student needs and enhance learning for ALL students
Reflection
Reflection on INTASC 7.docx
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Although students often find a way to move the class discussion into topics not covered on the lesson plan, the planning of lessons is essential to good teaching. When a teacher knows the needs of their students and plans accordingly both parties benefit. The seventh INTASC principle is crucial to teaching as it ensures the teacher is proficient in planning lessons based on the individual needs of students, and that teachers are working toward satisfying the curriculum goals. Planning for a lesson allows a student to address the individual needs of students; in a classroom of twenty-five students there will students on very different levels of proficiency. In a classroom where all students are expected to read on grade level, or write essays frequently the students that are not capable of such activities would fall behind. Planning the lesson to meet the needs of students will allow the teacher to give each student the tools they need to learn. Also, by planning lessons before the class starts, the teacher will be able to ensure their lesson meets curriculum guidelines and works toward goals. Lessons plans are important in all subject areas, and English is no exception. While some may not think reading a novel in class warrants a lesson plan, the inclusion of one could allow the teacher to regain composure and remember their purpose if events do not go as planned. For instance, if a teacher has planned thirty minutes of reading in their classroom they may soon realize that the students are unable or willing to read for such an extended period. If the teacher had not completed a lesson plan, the remainder of the class could be wasted. Students may be told to sit quietly, or work on homework for another class. If the teacher had a lesson plan, however, there would be alternate activities planned for the students in the event that something did not go as planned. The students would complete the alternate activities and no time would be wasted. Ensuring the direction of the classroom is always known and that activities are working toward the curriculum goals are very important. Using a lesson plan allows teachers to plan accordingly.Artifact A
Unit Plan (For Portfolio).docx
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Artifact A is a unit plan that was created during a class I completed at Towson University. The unit plan was intended for a class that had students at varying proficiency levels. This artifact demonstrates my proficiency in this principle because I have planned the unit based on what I believe to be important within the text The Giver, and planned the lesson based on the state standards for the English content area. The skills that students are learning in the unit plan I have created correlate directly with the state curriculum. As a teacher, I must ensure my students are learning the content that the state deems most important. In order to graduate the students must pass state tests, and the content they learn must directly impact their performance on the tests. The unit plan guides students through the novel while also teaching the skills necessary to do well in English, and the standardized tests they will ultimately take. The assessments and activities taught through the unit all have counterparts in the curriculum and on the state tests. The unit plan is also influenced by my knowledge of the students I am teaching. I integrate an audio book into the unit to benefit struggling readers, and introduce all readers to the importance of pacing and emphasizing important passages. This unit plan has a positive impact on student achievement because the goals that I have set for them align with state standards. The unit plan that I have created was created to ensure students are prepared to take the tests they need to graduate, and ensure they become better readers. Teachers need to be sure their goals for students meet the requirements the state has created; students need to pass the tests in order to graduate, and teachers will be held accountable for their students scores. The inclusion of the audio book in the unit also ensures struggling readers are able to keep up with the rest of the class. This unit plan demonstrates the "planning instruction" aspect of the Planning-Teaching-Learning cycle because I used information gathered in classes and real world experience to plan an effective unit for my students. By planning instruction in advance I am able to set long term goals for my students, and include assessment to ensure the students are keeping a reasonable pace in their learning. Planning whole units allows an instructor to know what is coming in the future, and allows the instructor to create coherent units that make sense as a whole.Artifact B
Teaching Segment 5 (Reflection) Complete.docx
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Artifact B is a teaching segment that I planned during my professional year at Towson University. The lesson was planned to teach poetic elements to students of varying proficiency levels. This artifact demonstrates my proficiency in this principle because I planned my instruction based on what I knew about my class. Based on previous classes it became clear to me that the students were unfamiliar with various poetic elements. In order to prepare the students for the unit they were approaching, the lesson I planned introduced students to poetic elements and had them practice using them. Instructors must be able to recognize the needs of their students, and this teaching segment shows my ability to judge the needs of my students and apply those needs to lesson planning. Because the students were unfamiliar with poetic elements I realized that I needed to do vocabulary priming for various elements, and that the students needed to practice using the new content before moving into the new unit. Recognizing the needs of students is the first step to teaching effectively, but the implementation of the information gained through tapping prior knowledge and experience makes the difference in the classroom. While some students may have been familiar with the poetic elements already, all students benefited from learning the new vocabulary. Students unfamiliar with the content learned what was needed for the next unit, and students who already had the knowledge benefited from practicing and reapplying the information. This lesson segment has a positive impact on student achievement because it recognizes the needs of students in the classroom and introduces them to new information that will be needed for the new unit. If students were introduced to the new unit without learning the poetic elements it would have resulted in confusion amongst the students, but learning the content early based on the needs of the class directly benefits them. This lesson segment demonstrates the "assessing" aspect of the Planning-Teaching-Learning cycle because I used information gathered from previous experience with the students to create a lesson that would directly benefit them. I assessed what the students have done in the past in order to plan lessons for the future. After assessing their prior knowledge I applied the information to create a lesson that fills in the gaps. The ability to assess prior knowledge and plan lessons accordingly is incredibly important in the classroom, and my lesson segment reflects my ability to do this.Planning