Module Three Welcome and Overview

Welcome After you find a place to sit, come and add your ideas to two charts. Chart 1: Write one of your ‘teaching strengths’ on a sticky note and post. Chart 2: Write one area of your teaching that could benefit from change on a different sticky note and post *Make sure to put your name and address on the back of each sticky note* Slide 2

From A Guide to Prepare Support Providers for Work with Beginning Teachers. Developed by Ellen Moir, University of California, Santa Cruz and Sue Garmston, California Department of Education, Slide 3

— Anticipation — Provide encouragement and confidence building, answer questions — Survival — Focus on one thing at a time and daily goal-setting — Disillusionment — Highlight achievements, focus on specific needs — Rejuvenation — Encourage to try something new and observe master teachers — Reflection — Select what worked well and start to discuss adjustments for next year Slide 4

An Awareness Test How much do you have to think about while you are teaching? Discuss the many issues you have to keep in mind…student behavior, objectives, physical space… Slide 5

An Awareness Test Watch the video and count how many times the team in white passes the basketball…Watch carefully, there will be consequences! Click to play video. Slide 6

Food for thought… Why do people not see the moonwalking bear? Even on watching a second time? What does this have to do with your teaching? How can others help you with your moonwalking bears? How can you help others with theirs? Slide 7

PLC’s What are they? A small group of professionals organized to explore, discuss, research, debate and account for best practices in teaching and learning Click on the picture at right for an introduction to PLC’s by Richard and Rebecca DuFour Time marker 0:01-1:16 Slide 8

How to get started… Identify a topic to study or common interest Invite others who would be interested Find resources Decide how, when and where you will meet Discuss! Follow up with each other Q & A Slide 9

Blue Dots Look at where you placed your blue dot on the chart. Organize yourselves in large groups based on your phase of teacher attitudes. Slide 10

Blue Dots Within your large groups, answer this question: In terms of support, what do you need to help move you forward professionally? As you listen to other’s answers, see if you can find 2-3 others who are similar or complementary to you. You’ve just made a PLC. Exchange addresses. Slide 11

Give and Take… Revisit the sticky notes! Earlier today you posted two sticky notes. Each of you identified one strength and one area of your teaching that could benefit from change. You are your best resources! —If you need help, choose a sticky note from the strengths list to get help in an area where someone else is doing great things! If you want to give help, choose from the struggle list. Make contact with the person on the back of each sticky note and offer them some help in the area where they are struggling, or contact the person whose strength you have chosen and find out how they found success in this area! Slide 12

Why Action Research? When faced with a question about your teaching… the effectiveness of an instructional strategy, the implications for using a particular resource, the best way to motivate your students… what do you do? Don’t let the word “research” scare you! We are all participating in some form of action research in our classrooms, day in and day out. Imagine if we used the action research process to more formally explore the decisions we are making as educators. Student Study Site for Action Research, Third Edition Improving Schools and Empowering Educators Craig A. Mertler Slide 13

Slide 14

Table Talk:What are some simple examples of action research that you could implement? Whole Group Share: Share one example of action research from each of the table discussions. Briefly explain each step of the process using the chart on the previous slide. Slide 15

In conclusion… In what ways are you the kitten? In what ways are you the cat? How do the strategies you learned today apply to the video? Click here for video Beware of ‘Vacooom’! Slide 16

All images copyright “Microsoft Clip Art Gallery”. All rights reserved. BT Matters is a grant program made possible by: The Institute for Emerging Issues NC State Employees Credit Union Slide 6