Coronado+Bridge

Coronado Bridge

Question 1 Creating and promoting and environment and community focused on student learning

We need to add aquisition to this question. Encourage risk taking and take chances as speakers will create an environment that is good. When teachers and students set goals together allows collaboration between students and teacher. It is not top down this way. We have to allow for the differences in todays students. Teachers as learners needs to be part of the environment as well. They need to see that we struggle and try to find it too.

In our role as supervisors, we need to make sure that students get the clarity and focus to plot their growth. It is powerful for students to set their goals. IIf students and teachers are on the same page, they can reach their goals. If we are on the same page and know where we are going we can get there.

What do we do when the student sets a goal that is different than the standards or what we have set? Do we try to tie it in? Or do we address it now? What do you do with the shared common assessment? What if they have a totally outside the box goal and yet we have to meet our objectives, etc.? What do we do when goals change as the student grows? Can students really set the goals at their age? Teachers then need to set the goals, but allow the students to figure out how to show us or how to get there. Choice boards allows us to do that. The ways that they choose to show us mastery. The end results are not differentiated but how we get there are. Teachers sometimes impose the goals and do not show the road map to get there. When students set the goals and know how to get there then studies show that they reach them. There are documented studies to show what students want which is to speak the language. If we plot their progress then they can see that they are learning. If we as teachers, show them that speaking is limiting, then we can try to expand their horizon. Why would a student want to do anything in the presentational mode? Teachers are not very good at setting goals. They cannot distinguish among activities they choose. This is a crucial piece of what we need. We have to be clear and we have to have buy-in. Balance is a key...we are interdependent as teachers and need to be in our classrooms too. Even taking the most traditional teacher, the students learned as they had a clear sense of goal. Researchers said that the first 2 years, teachers were in the survival mode and then go to how do I construct a unit and finally how do I get them to learn/understand.

If you take piano lessons, you go to a teacher and they give you pieces to play and you learn. At some point though, if you want to play something else, then you find a new teacher. Vast majority of students have no motivation to use the presentational mode. How do we motivate them?

Recommendation for next year...how do I get the newer teachers to understand this?

How can increasing student self and peer:assessment affect student learning?

Students self assessing works as students are more strigent and they can see what they are accomplishing. They become active and not passive learners. We guide them to be self directed learners. I can statements.


 * Topic 2:**

Curriculum is the "run" of things (Latin root). It's the 'what' of what matters. It must be defined as "my curriculum" and "the curriculum" Instructional methodology as an integral part of curriculum -- it can't be content and process separately

Curriculum includes elements of both delivery and assessing the performance of students. It includes supervision and open dialogue.

21st century skills tools need to be embedded, providing authentic publication to a greater audience. This is rarely seen as part of the curriculum, but it promotes performance-based learning. Using the same approaches also allows spaces for us as teachers to create shared understanding about our approach to curriculum.

Performance-based learning means that learning can't be textbook driven and drives our approach to be more student-centered and student-directed.


 * Topic 3:**

Utilizing a variety of appropriate and research-based teaching and learning strategies to ensure learning by all students.

Role play, on-line interactions; visit to target language communities; interaction with Heritage language groups.

Scaffold; provide tools to ensure student efforts can lead to success; reflection on metacognition; learning centers;

DI: allow choices for students; multiple modes of input; multiple modes for processing; multiple modes of expression.

Modeling, modeling, modeling!!!

Topic 4: Common student summative assessments guide the planning using backward planning and ensure that all students are receiving an equal education. Self-assessment is possibly a useful tool but it is not valid or reliable. Alternative assessments include portfolios, performance-based tasks that have an open-ended element that allows student to demonstrate their level of proficiency and that offers a choice in process and product. Evidence can be tangible such as teacher observation using a check list or rubric as well as teacher observation and conclusions of most students or some students, etc. and adjusting instruction, graphic organizers that students complete based on an oral activity. Authentic assessments include providing students with situations that are real-world - and to trust that students have imaginations.

Topic #6: All topics/essential facets are intertwined. If PLC's are truly being implemented correctly, then they are creating opportunities for teachers to articulate across teams, schools, and districts. Within these teams, the teachers take on more leadership responsibilities and roles, and motivate each other to be more involved and to grow. As teachers model these collaborative strategies for their students, they help their students to develop the same 21st century skills.