Friday, April 22, 2016

Professional Learning: Where are You Headed?

As I think of professional learning today, a colleague's name and work keeps coming to mind. I've watched this colleague improve steadily over the years. She's moved from a quiet, dedicated teacher to a leader in our school system, and her work is very, very good with regard to student growth and collegial efforts.

What makes this teacher so good?

First, she does the job. Day in day out, she's there doing a good job as an educator.

She's always respectful of all colleagues and kind and caring towards students.

Her professional demeanor is just right for the elementary school setting.

With this model in mind, I am prompted to think about my own professional learning and work in the days ahead.

Where will I put my energy and attention?

Fair Work Conditions
As a Union representative, I want to work with colleagues to make sure that all employees have fair work conditions. I want to understand our rights and benefits well and ensure that no one is left out in this regard. When educators are treated fairly and have what they need to do a good job, then there's a much greater chance that all educators will be able to do the good work possible.

Math Learning/Teaching
I want to continue to develop my skill and knowledge in this area to teach children well.

Quality Share and Presentations
I will give many presentations this summer, and I want to improve the quality of the presentations I give.

Shared Teaching Model
Our team has a successful shared teaching model in place, and I want to think about ways in which we can continue to develop this model in order to serve students well.

Nature Stewards and STEAM Education
I want to read and understand the MA science standards well and employ that knowledge as I build my ability to lead and teach units related to STEAM and nature.

Classroom Organization and Routines
I want to continue to revisit this area of school life to make sure that the organization and routines best support student learning, engagement, and empowerment.

Culturally Proficient Teaching
The more we know about our students' individual cultures, interests, values, and beliefs, the better we can teach those students. I want to look for ways to embed the attributes of culturally proficient teaching into my work regularly.

The goals haven't changed much in the past many days, and looking forward the goal is to organize time well to meet those goals.