“EWU’s TPA Guidelines & California State Universities Expository Reading and Writing Course Assignment Template”

            Developing an effective lesson plan requires a well devised plan and EWU’s TPA guideline provides the perfect structure to help teacher candidates formulate their own process.  The form utilizes fifteen boxes that comprise the necessary components for teacher candidates to consider which ensures that lesson objectives align with instruction and assessment in an efficient way that engages student learning.  The form reminds teacher candidates to carefully consider their students and their individual learning needs.  It also requires teacher candidates to utilize proper academic language and to back-up instructional methods with adequate research.  Creating lessons with the TPA provides teacher candidates the opportunity to practice lesson planning as they prepare for student teaching and beyond.

            The CA State reading and writing template is a great resource for teacher candidates as they prepare lesson plans utilizing the TPA. The template contains information and models to help teachers help their students improve reading and writing skills.  I was struck by the use of the word “rhetorically” as I read through the template. The text notes that “to ‘read rhetorically’ means to focus not only on what the text says but also on the purposes it serves, the intentions of the author, and the effects on the audience” (4).  I believe this process encourages the development of critical thinking for students by breaking down the process into pre-reading, reading and post-reading activities.  The template also points out the importance of allowing students time to fully consider the text they have read and how it will connect with a writing assignment.

After students have reflected on the text in conjunction with the assignment, they need to begin the writing process.  The CA template emphasizes “Writing rhetorically emphasizes contextualized thinking, sense making, and persuasion as prerequisites for considerations about form or genre” (19).   The template provides a clear and thoughtful step-by-step process to engage students in the writing process.  I have prior experience with this particular model as a student and can attest to its effectiveness.  I also believe highlighting the difference between revising and editing helps students improve their drafts by participating in each distinctive process.  I also believe that feedback is imperative for student success throughout the writing process. 

            I plan on utilizing this document as I prepare my lessons.  I think Appendix B for formative assessment will be very useful because it provides the student with a plan of action and strategies. (Where am I going? How am I going? Where to next?) (37). Appendix C provides different reading strategies and I plan to use the “Picture Walk” as a pre-reading strategy in my Social Studies classroom (41).

https://www.calstate.edu/EAP/englishcourse/piloting_packet/Assignment_Template.pdf

“The Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts Instruction in Grades 6-12”

     The purpose of Common Core State Standards (CCSS) is to standardize learning expectations across the country providing ALL students with a K-12 education experience that will prepare them to be successful in their endeavors beyond high school that might include college and/or workforce training.  The education community has a myriad of different ideas on how to achieve this lofty goal and as a new teacher, it is overwhelming to know which practices and methods I should use for my students.  Teaching is a complex profession that requires the ability to multi-task and I appreciate the text’s specification that teachers take on “the roles of social planner, facilitator and co-learner” in the classroom.  Getting to know my students and building relationships with them will be a critical piece in determining “what or how to teach” them.  I appreciate that CCSS provides a flexible framework to work within while determining the needs in my classroom. However, I am a little leery of any initiative where funding is granted on the adoption and participation of certain standards. I am also concerned with testing with a one-size fits all mentality. I am grateful that the text pinpoints specific pitfalls to CCSS that might render my efforts ineffective.  Because each student is a unique individual possessing his or her own unique gifts and challenges, curriculum should not be standardized.  I also appreciated the reminder that my students will have culturally and economically diverse backgrounds that need to be considered when selecting curriculum and planning lessons.  The most impactful lesson I received from reading this text is that teachers and the public school system cannot be responsible for saving children from all the societal ills they encounter in their lives, however, I can do my best to provide them with enriching and engaging learning opportunities and love and support.

www.corestandards.org

“Discussion as a Way of Teaching”

     As a student, I enjoy participating in group discussions because it provides me the opportunity to hear different perspectives and expand my own ideas and knowledge base.  As a teacher, I intend to utilize discussion activities with my students to enhance their learning. In order to accomplish this task, I need to provide students with the necessary tools to foster positive and productive discussions.  I found Stephen Brookfield’s “Discussion as a Way of Teaching” useful because it offers strategies to help establish sound foundational principles for engaging students in group discussions that are positive and beneficial for each individual member.  His article offers a plethora of ideas and strategies to help teachers and students carryout meaningful discussions structured in a way to foster learning and growth. Although a thorough reading of Brookfield’s article is strongly encouraged to grasp the full intent of his message, I would like to share a few of the highlights I found particularly helpful.

     First, students need to have clear expectations and rules for group work.  Writing, verbalizing, modeling, and practicing rules and expectations helps students understand the best practices for group discussions. Teacher feedback is essential to encourage students when they are on the right track or help them refocus when they get off-track.  Brookfield suggests using reflection activities or video vignettes to help students recognize behaviors that are conducive to constructive discussions and contrast them with behaviors that are not.  Another way Brookfield suggests engaging students in group discussions is to give them a specific role to perform.  Having a specific responsibility helps keep each individual focused on the discussion while giving each student a mechanism in which to self-regulate behavior beneficial to the whole group experience.

     Maintaining a focused and engaged discussion might be daunting and difficult for students.  Brookfield promotes the use of open-ended questions to enhance and invigorate a discussion.  Providing students with a list of questions that require group members to clarify, support, link, synthesize and/or summarize the details of the discussion helps the flow of the discussion as well as promotes deeper thinking and the use of critical thinking skills for the participants.  Brookfield also suggests offering students the opportunity to perform a “Discussion Inventory” for self-reflection after participating in a group discussion.  This type of activity benefits the teacher as well because it provides formative assessment in the form of student voice, which helps the teacher know if learning targets have been met.  Encouraging students to participate in group discussions by expressing themselves verbally as well as actively listening to others is a fun and engaging way to learn!

 http://webshare.northseattle.edu/Sustainability_in_Healthcare/Discussion_as_a_Way_of_Teaching%20INC-Learning%20Circles.pdf