1. Planning for the Upcoming School Year
1.1. What will be taught When it will be taught How/when learning will be assessed What methods/materials will be used How to establish learning env needed
1.1.1. This planning results in: Excellent instruction Enhanced student learning Exemplary environments
1.2. Teacher-centered Approach: Teacher determines content and sets academic and social tone Student-centered Approach: Teacher acknowledges that students construct their own understandings (constructivist perspective)
1.2.1. Learners in the driving seat (Watkins, 2012) When learners drive the learning: - greater engagement - students setting higher challenges - students evaluating their own work - better problem-solving
1.3. Collection information before school begins?
1.4. Curricular Approach -> Top-Down Approach: Determine for year, then term, then units and then daily Teaching Approach: What's your approach to this? What are your methods?
1.5. 4 commonplaces of education: Teacher, Topic, Setting, Student
1.5.1. Goals of Educational Psychology: Use knowledge and methods of psychology to evaluate classroom instruction and learning. Includes: 1) learning and cognition 2) development 3) sociocultural 4) motivation 5) behaviour and classroom management 6) individual differences 7) assessment and evaluation 8) teaching and instruction 9) psychological foundations of curricula
1.5.1.1. Step 1: Observation of phenomena Step 2: Development of theories Step 3: Development of guiding principles Step 4: Application of research methods Step 5: Formation of questions
1.6. Be a Reflective Practitioner! - Be open-minded - Embrace self-enquiry - Feel an ethical responsibility to best facilitate your students' learning
2. Intellectual Abilities and Challenges
2.1. What are considered "exceptionalities"?
2.1.1. Behaviour
2.1.2. Communication
2.1.3. Intellectual
2.1.4. Physical
2.1.5. Multiple
2.2. What is intelligence?
2.2.1. Carroll's Hierarchical Model 1) Fluid Intelligence 2) Crystallized Intelligence 3) General memory and learning 4) Broad visual perception 5) Broad auditory perception 6) Broad retrieval capacity 7) Broad cognitive speediness 8) Processing speed
2.2.1.1. Ken Robinson's story about choreographer being mislabelled as disabled as a child
2.2.1.1.1. She meerly possessed strengths in a different type of intelligence
2.2.2. Ability to learn from experience
2.2.3. Ability to adapt to one's environment
2.3. Recommended Approaches
2.3.1. Examine your own beliefs
2.3.1.1. Do I possess negative attitudes about individuals with exceptionalities?
2.3.2. Work with the school team
2.3.2.1. Implement programming in a collaborative way with the individual in question
2.3.2.1.1. Take the curriculum view rather than the individual student view
2.3.2.2. Extend inclusion to the whole school
2.3.2.2.1. Trifecta of Support
2.3.3. Use a variety of instructional methods
2.3.3.1. Differentiated instruction
2.3.3.2. Universal Design for Learning
2.3.3.3. Be sensitive to external stimuli, physical space
2.3.3.4. Assistive technology
2.3.4. A "laminated system"
2.3.4.1. Draw information from medical, social and cultural models
2.4. Labeling
2.4.1. Disability: Inability to do something
2.4.2. Handicap: A disadvantage in certain situations
2.4.3. People FIRST language: Refer to "students with learning disabilities" not "learning disabled students"
2.5. Tier Model
2.5.1. Tier 3: Where all students go
2.5.2. Tier 2: Supplemental interventions for some students
2.5.3. Tier 3: Core program for specific student
2.6. Mild disabilities: Learning, behavioural disabilities, giftedness, intellectual disabilities
2.6.1. Moderate or severe disabilities: Autism, hearing or visual impairments, multiple or health disabilities
2.6.1.1. Physical access to the curriculum (sensory and motor access) is just as important as cognitive access (understanding, ability to plan and execute)
3. Sociocultural Considerations
3.1. Change the system to fit the child, not change the child to fit the system
3.1.1. Banks Model
3.1.1.1. Content integration
3.1.1.1.1. Varied examples
3.1.1.2. Equity pedagogy
3.1.1.2.1. Incorporating every issues of families and community into curriculum
3.1.1.2.2. Students are guided in making interest-based learning choices
3.1.1.2.3. Include many teaching styles for various learning styles
3.1.1.3. Empowering school culture
3.1.1.4. Prejudice reduction
3.1.1.4.1. Equitable grouping practices
3.1.1.5. Knowledge construction process
3.1.1.5.1. Help students understand how cultural assumptions influence how knowledge is constructed within a discipline
3.1.1.5.2. Using language they know to bridge gap
3.2. Diverse languages, cultures, religions single-parent families, same-sex couples etc.
3.3. Individualism: Acting within a unique identity and exclusive purpose Collectivism: Act within a shared identity and common purpose
3.4. Critical Consciousness: - Political values and beliefs - An ideological clarity - A sociocultural consciousness
3.5. Teachers must: - Know their own cultural assumptions - How to inquire about backgrounds - How to develop approaches to meet needs of diverse students - How to establish links across cultures
3.5.1. Stereotype threat: - Fear that one's behaviour will confirm stereotype about identity group - Those with strong ties are most vulnerable - Brought on by innocuous comments
3.6. Aboriginal Education Protective Factors: - Early intervention - Resiliency - Positive self-image - Family engagement - Community involvement - Relevant programming - Aboriginal role models
3.6.1. Risks: - Early school failures - Moving school to school - Lack of parent support - Lack of teachers with aborigninal knowledge - living in remote communities - lack of resources - special needs
3.7. Socioeconomic status has the biggest impact on scholastic achievement more than any other sociocultural factor
3.7.1. Tips include: - Create a genuine relationship - Do not judge, discriminate or believe them to be incompetent - Be an advocate and demand more ressources and support
4. End of School Year (Standardized Testing)
4.1. • Original purpose: to test effectiveness of instruction • All contain the same questions • All administered the same way • All scored the same systematic, uniform way
4.1.1. Different from aptitude test cause they measure specific cognitive, social and behaviour skills (what is the student able to do vs. what knowledge/skill level has the student achieved)
4.2. Criterion-Referenced: Student's score compared to established data Norm-Referenced: Student's score compared to those of others
4.3. Preparing students for the test: - positive attitude about testing - teach test-taking skills - simulate time limits - familiarize students with types of questions - involve students in marking questions
4.4. Goals should be: - To assess important curricular goals - Teachable - Assessed knowledge must accurately reflect effective learning - To be minimally intrusive - To be specific enough to directly guide instruction
4.5. Debate: For: Means to evaluate student and teacher, assure "system stays in check" Against: Consumes classroom (stress, teaching to the test, takes up a lot of time), content does not reflect instruction, biased
4.5.1. The test does not tell you how competent you are as a person or even as a learner!
5. Development Differences
5.1. What is development?
5.1.1. Physical, cognitive and social changes
5.1.1.1. Prefrontal cortex cortex (decision-making, goal-setting, cognitive flexibility, etc.) takes 20 years to become fully developed
5.1.2. Learning becomes more organized
5.1.3. Behaviours become more adaptive
5.2. Teachers must choose instructional methods that are age-appropriate!
5.2.1. Has the student acquired to skills? Does the student typically learn slow than others? Has the student had enough practice? Was the material presented in meaningful ways?
5.3. Principles of development: - Gradual, orderly progression - Quantitative and qualitative changes - Some fast and some slow growth periods - Individual differences in growth rate - Genetics set potential, but environment determines what potential is realized
5.3.1. Early numeracy and literacy best determine future academic success
5.4. To take account of this development, we must first take a student-centered approach
5.4.1. Adora Svitak: "Kids have little say in making rules - reciprocal adult should learn and take into account wishes of younger population"
5.5. Growth Mindset: Belief that abilities can always be further developed
5.5.1. Teachers should make use of the"not yet" grade - children understand they can still achieve their goal
5.5.1.1. Fosters persistence
5.5.2. Embrace challenges because you can learn from them
5.5.3. Learn from feedback - understand the importance of improvement rather than taking criticism personally
6. Views of Learning
6.1. Cognitive Pespective
6.1.1. Learners use previously acquired memories, heuristics and languages to construct meaning from new information
6.1.1.1. Schemas: Organizing behaviours and thoughts into coherent systems
6.1.1.2. Adaptation: Adjusting to one's surrounding environment
6.1.1.3. Focuses on connections between new and old concepts
6.2. Behaviourist Perspective
6.2.1. All behaviour is shaped by the environment
6.2.1.1. Classical conditioning: We learn behaviours through association between a naturally-occurring stimuli and a neutral stimulus
6.2.1.2. Operant conditioning: Consequences (rewards or punishments) shape behaviour
6.2.1.3. Social Cognitive Theory: We learn new behaviours by observing and modelling those around us
6.2.1.3.1. Reinforcements not necessary
6.2.1.3.2. Reciprocal Determinism: Our behaviour influences the social environment and vise versa
6.2.2. Focuses on observable behaviours rather than inferred cognitive processes
6.2.2.1. Only gives partial explanation to human mind
6.3. Constructivist Perspective
6.3.1. Learners are actively seeking meaning from their experiences
6.3.2. Teacher enables students to help themselves solve problems and learn from their own experimentation
6.3.2.1. Zone of Proximal Development: When a student is "in between" what they can do and what they can't, a teacher gives them the extra boost to achieve the task via guidance and support
6.3.2.1.1. This is related to scaffolding: - relate new content to what students already know - divide task into smaller, more manageable sub-tasks - verbally guide and support students
6.3.2.2. Create challenging learning environments with real world situations!
7. Instructional Designs
7.1. Make use of your diagnostic assessment
7.1.1. Initiating instruction at the correct curricular level
7.2. Create lesson plans that assure student satisfies all 6 levels of cognitive learning
7.2.1. Stiggins furthered this by creating a hierarchy of achievement targets
7.2.1.1. Knowledge
7.2.1.1.1. Declarative knowledge (facts, concepts, etc.)
7.2.1.2. Reasoning
7.2.1.2.1. Answering questions via problem-solving
7.2.1.3. Skills
7.2.1.3.1. Putting knowledge to use
7.2.1.4. Products
7.2.1.4.1. Student creations that depict their skills
7.2.1.5. Attitudes and Dispositions
7.2.1.5.1. The desire to learn more
7.3. Constructivist Approach
7.3.1. Multiple representations of content
7.3.2. Student-centered instruction
7.3.3. Real-world situations
7.3.4. Inquiry-based Learning
7.3.4.1. Start with asking general, then specific questions
7.3.4.2. Fosters curiosity
7.3.4.2.1. Child as an explorer
7.3.4.3. Also include problem-based and project-based learning
7.3.4.3.1. Students help design tasks
7.3.4.3.2. Complete tasks with peer collaboration (problem-based)
7.3.4.3.3. Create specific education products (project-based)
7.3.4.3.4. Students reflect on their learning experiences
7.3.5. Collaboration
7.4. Universal Instructional Design
7.4.1. Bears in mind the needs of the LEAST independently able students
7.4.2. Instruction for all
7.4.2.1. Various instructional models
7.4.2.2. Various ways for students to show their progress (assessment)
7.4.2.3. Create a welcoming classroom environment
7.5. How People Learn (HPL) Framework
7.5.1. Knowledge-Centeredness
7.5.1.1. Students feel motivated when they understand what they're learning is useful
7.5.2. Learner-Centeredness
7.5.2.1. Students feel motivated when the teaching connects with their interests and strengths
7.5.3. Community-Centeredness
7.5.3.1. Students feel motivated when they feel like they're part of a learning community
7.5.4. Assessment-Centeredness
7.5.4.1. Students feel motivated when they receive feedback showing their progress and are allotted chances to improve
7.6. Developmentally Appropriate Classrooms (compared to Direct Instruction Classrooms)
7.6.1. More inattention, stress
7.6.2. Less confidence
7.6.3. Less enjoyment
7.6.4. Less end-of-year progress
7.6.5. Poorer study habits
7.6.6. Peer aggression
7.7. SOI Information-Processing Model
7.7.1. Meaningful learning occurs when students engage in
7.7.1.1. SELECTING relevant infromation
7.7.1.2. ORGANIZING the selected information
7.7.1.3. INTEGRATING organized information with prior knowledge
7.7.2. Allows educators to make ALL material cognitively stimulating, not just the "interesting stuff"
8. Knowing that the Students Know
8.1. Education today requires a culture shift from the teacher as a JUDGE to the teacher as a MENTOR
8.1.1. Assessment for improvement not measuring "the mark"
8.2. BIG IDEAS
8.2.1. Assessment serves different purposes at different times
8.2.1.1. Diagnostic
8.2.1.1.1. What the students already know
8.2.1.2. Formative
8.2.1.2.1. Ongoing assessment to further students' learning (exit tickets)
8.2.1.3. Summative
8.2.1.3.1. To evaluate what the students have learned
8.2.1.4. Self-Assessment
8.2.1.4.1. Students consciously think about their learning so they can identify where they should improve (growth mindset) and facilitates self-regulated learning
8.2.2. Assessment must be planned and purposeful
8.2.2.1. Backwards Design
8.2.2.1.1. Examine the expected learning outcomes within the curriculum
8.2.2.1.2. What assessment strategies will be used to evaluate the achievement of those expectations?
8.2.2.1.3. What instructional designs will be most effective in demonstrating this achievement?
8.2.2.2. Multiple opportunities to improve
8.2.2.2.1. No marks until the final attempt
8.2.2.3. Students should be able to self and peer assess
8.2.2.3.1. "I understand where I stand"
8.2.2.4. Useful and timely feedback
8.2.2.4.1. "I know what to do next"
8.2.2.5. Encouragement/affirmation of capability
8.2.2.5.1. "I choose to keep trying"
9. Establishing a Positive Learning Environment
9.1. Teaching effectiveness is the #1 factor for improving quality of education
9.1.1. 1) Design curriculum to foster student learning
9.1.1.1. Teachers should also view themselves as learners!
9.1.1.1.1. Reflective dialogue
9.1.1.1.2. Collaboration
9.1.1.1.3. Student-centered approach
9.1.2. 2) Find most effective teaching strategies - graphic organizers - cooperative learning - homework and questions
9.1.2.1. Consider: - Learning Profile: How student learns (visual, auditory, kinesthetic) - Interests: What appeals to them? What's relevant to them? - Readiness: Skill development level
9.1.3. 3) Effective classroom management
9.1.3.1. Goal is to provide all students with optimum opportunities for learning
9.1.3.1.1. Students need to feel connected and respected by the teacher
9.1.3.1.2. Students need to feel autonomous
9.1.3.1.3. Students need to feel competent
9.1.3.2. Bump System
9.1.3.2.1. The Look
9.1.3.2.2. The Pause
9.1.3.2.3. Proximity
9.1.3.2.4. Signal to Begin/Signal for Attention
9.1.3.3. Motivations behind bad behaviour 1) Gain Attention 2) Gain power/control 3) Exact retribution for personal slights 4) Conceal inadequacy
9.1.3.3.1. To diminish these: - Provide positive feedback - Ask questions/assign tasks with high probability of success - Only rarely use punishment
9.1.3.4. All rules should be fair and reasonable, be democratically decided upon, posted on the wall for everyone to see and finally, enforced.
9.2. Creating resilient students
9.2.1. Reinforce their self-esteem and sense of competence
9.2.1.1. Make students actively involved in learning process!
9.2.1.1.1. Self-evaluations
9.2.1.1.2. Personal goal-setting