1. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 1: Content Knowledge
Standard 2: Teaching and Learning
Standard 3: Literacy
Standard 4: Diversity
Standard 5: Professionalism
The Alabama Teacher Mentor Program has a three-part framework. The first part are the three arenas, which we just reviewed. Another very important part of the framework are the five major standards in the Alabama Quality Teaching Standards. These are new throughout the state; it will take all of us some time to get familiar with them. But we hope to visit them every time we are together, because really and truly, these are the core of what we are striving to develop—as teachers ourselves and as mentors to beginning teachers. You might remember we did a jigsaw activity to get introduced to the five major standards. We are going to do a quick review of them again.
Direct participants to the handout from the first training, which contains the standards in their complete form. They also have a summary of the standards on the reverse side of the “communication tips” handout. It might help if they refer to these as you review the next slides.

2. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 1: Content Knowledge
Teachers have deep knowledge of the academic discipline they are teaching, facilitate students’ understanding of the subject, and know the state standards and district curriculum for subjects taught.
The first standard, content knowledge, deals with the teacher’s knowledge of the subject matter which they are teaching--including the Alabama Course of Study, state standards, and school system curriculum. It also has to do with the teacher’s ability to communicate that content to students.

3. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 1: Content Knowledge
Academic Discipline(s)
Curriculum
If you look at either of your handouts from the first session, you can see that this standard has two indicators. The two indicators deal with (1) knowledge of the academic disciplines that are being taught and (2) ability to design instruction in such a way that students can learn the content.

4. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 2: Teaching and Learning
In a classroom environment conducive to learning, teachers use “best practice” instructional and assessment strategies appropriate to the students.
Standard 2 is called “Teaching and Learning.” This standard will be the focus of most of your attention as mentors this year.

5. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 2: Teaching and Learning
Human Development
Organization and Management
Learning Environment
Instructional Strategies
Assessment
As you can see, there are five indicators in Standard 2—all of which will need to be addressed during a beginning teacher’s first year. They might not all come up during the first month or two of school, so you likely will not have dealt with them all yet. But let’s think about it:
How many of you had something on your Mentor Reflection sheet that dealt with Indicator 1: Human development, that is, knowledge of student development and its relationship to learning and readiness to learn? Ask for a show of hands. This one may not appear yet; beginning teachers will not usually be ready to delve into this indicator at the beginning of the school year.
How many of you had something on your Mentor Reflection dealing with Indicator 2--Organization and Management? Part of this indicator is the traditional concerns of “classroom management.” Other parts relate to differentiation and the use of data. Expect to see many hands raised for this indicator at this point in the year.
What about Indicator 3, the Learning environment. In this indicator, we are thinking about ways to create a classroom environment that invites learning, that is stimulating and engaging, tat helps students take responsibility for their learning, etc.
Indicator 4 deals with Instructional strategies, dealing with lesson planning; incorporating instructional strategies into coherent and meaningful lessons. How many of you had something related to this indicator on your reflection sheet?
And last but not least, Indicator 5, Assessment. This is looking at how we assess what students have learned, and further, how we will use that information to help re-design instruction. Ask for a show of hands.

6. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 3: Literacy
Teachers model and teach effective oral and written communication, integrating basic reading, math and technology as appropriate.
Standard 3 is called “literacy.”

7. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 3: Literacy
Oral and Written Communication
Reading
Mathematics
Technology
The four key indicators, as you can see on your handout, relate to these four areas.
Have any of you faced concerns from a beginning teacher that relate to any of these areas?
(Pose this question and wait…allow some ideas to begin to surface. Ask for specific examples.)

8. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 4: Diversity
Teachers differentiate instruction in ways that exhibit a deep understanding of cultural, ethnic, and social backgrounds; second language learning; special needs; and learning styles.
Standard 4 has become much more important in the late 20th and early 21st century: teachers being able to differentiate instruction for the diversity of learners in their classrooms.

9. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 4: Diversity
Cultural, Ethnic and Social Diversity
Language Diversity
Special Needs
Learning Styles
General
The key indicators relate to areas in which students may require differentiation.
Have these ideas come up in your interactions with beginning teachers?

10. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 5: Professionalism
Teachers engage in continuous learning and self-improvement through collaboration with colleagues.
This standard, called professionalism, is one you will primarily see outside of the classroom.

11. Alabama Quality Teaching Standards
Standard 5: Professionalism
Collaboration
Continuous, Lifelong Professional Learning
Alabama-Specific Improvement Initiatives
School Improvement
Ethics
Local, State, Federal Laws and Policies
The six key indicators are self-explanatory…and certainly, a beginning teacher will not be proficient in many of these areas during his or her first year of teaching. For most beginning teachers, these will not be a top priority.