1. Understanding Students’ Interests and Background
Design Question 8 – Element 36:
What does the teacher do to understand the students’ interests and backgrounds?

2. Before we begin…
Before we begin talking about element thirty-six, let’s be sure that there is an understanding about how the elements in Design Question 8 are related. This is important as you plan your lessons.
Directions: watch the video on the next slide. Please take notes, documenting how the elements in Design Question 8 are related.

3. Video – How do the elements in DQ8 relate to each other?
Please click on the link to view the video from Pasco County Schools that provides an introduction to the elements in Design Question 8.

4. How do the elements in Design Question 8 relate to each other?
You should have noticed that:
Elements 36, 37, and 38 are intertwined. The overall goal of Design Question 8 is for student to feel like they are a part of a community. These three elements work in tandem to ensure that the desired effect is achieved.
Teachers can utilize the strategies related to each of these elements to develop and maintain effective relationships with students.
Now let’s talk about element 36, specifically.

5. Review Teacher and Student Evidence NOTE: This list of evidence is not all inclusive but is instead a list of possible examples.

6. Review Scale for Element 36

7. Desired Effect in the Students
The desired effect is, “Students’ perceptions of acceptance and sense of community are enhanced as a result of the teacher exhibiting understanding of students’ interests and background.” To receive an Innovating rating, the teacher must monitor and make accommodations so that every student in their classroom achieves this desired effect.

8. Task While watching the following video, identify:
The strategy the teacher employs to learn about students’ interests.
How the teacher may be using this information in the future.
If every interaction involving students’ interests and backgrounds must be as involved and well-planned out as the one in this video
*You will need to be logged in at in order to view the following video. If the link does not work, please copy and past this web address:

9. Video Questions
Q: What strategy does the teacher employ to learn about the students’ interests?
A: The class has collaboratively made a list of possible thematic units that they may study. Then, the teacher has had the students vote on the themes they are most interested in studying.
Q: How might the teacher use this information in the future?
A: The teacher is planning to build a unit around the interests of the students.
Q: Does every interaction involving students’ interests and backgrounds need to be as involved as this well-planned out lesson?
A: No, in fact most of these interactions come about more informally as teachers interact with students.

10. Task
While watching the video, identify strategies the teacher uses to demonstrate an understanding of students’ interests and backgrounds.
After watching the video you will be asked to identify the teacher and student evidence to rate the teacher on this element.

11. Video – What strategies does the teacher use to demonstrate an understanding of students’ interests and backgrounds?
*You will need to be logged in at in order to view the following video. If the link does not work, please copy and past this web address:

12. Task
On the next slide is the teacher and student evidence. What evidence did you see and were able to document? Use this to rate the teacher as you walk through the next few slides.

13. Review Teacher and Student Evidence What did you see?

14. Review Teacher and Student Evidence What did we see?

15. How to Rate Teacher and Student Evidence
Teacher builds student interests into lessons.
During a poetry unit, the teacher allowed the students to choose their favorite song and use it to analyze the language. They were also making determinations about the most important language, which couldn’t be left out of the song.

16. Review Scale for Element 36 to Rate the Teacher

17. How we Rated the Teacher
We rated this teacher as applying. The teacher has incorporated students’ interests into the lesson by allowing each to choose his or her favorite song to analyze the lyrics. Each student was able to select a song and thus every students interest was considered. In the video the students appeared to be engaged and interested in the lesson. However, we never see the students actually analyzing the lyrics, so it’s difficult to say whether the desired effect was evident in every student.

18. Additional Resources You need to be logged into www.effectiveeducators.com.
Copy and paste the following link for further reading related to element 36.
Strategies for DQ8 E36 - Understanding Students’ Interests and Background
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19. Is this element in your PGP? Then you need to…
Sign into Click on the Growth tab and then click on the Plans option. Open your current plan and fill out a new Reflection Log, answering the appropriate questions.
Decide how you will change your teaching as a result of viewing this module.
Execute your change, reflect on its impact, and fill out another Reflection Log in iObservation.

20. Further questions?
Here are resources in case you have further questions:
Your evaluator
Another evaluator on your campus
Your school’s Classroom Practice Mentor (CPM)