Boston Public Schools Continuum of Teacher Development

Boston Public Schools Continuum of Teacher Development

(2006-07 Draft Copy) page 4

Demonstrate Excellence, Equity, and High Expectations for All Students

Demonstrate a commitment to excellence, equity, and high expectations for all students with an emphasis on building on the strengths that students bring to the teaching/learning process and closing the achievement gap between subgroups within the school.

EXPECTATIONS FOR TEACHERS / Beginning / Emerging / Applying / Integrating / Innovating
Sets high standards and shows through words, actions, and instruction that they believe all students can meet them. / Acknowledges students’ efforts and approaches learning activities with positive beliefs
Posts learning objectives / Uses some strategies and activities to develop students’ self-esteem.
Uses posted learning objectives to guide instruction. / Uses a variety of strategies and language stems to enhance students’ feelings of self-worth and communicates a belief that all students can learn
Uses outcome-based learning objectives / Provides students with a variety of strategies that they can use independently when faced with academic difficulties / Facilitates discussions in which students demonstrate their thinking.
Asks probing questions to deepen students’ learning.
Explains and posts each day’s learning objectives and how class time will be used.
Ensures each student has access to challenging, grade-level appropriate content and uses a variety of strategies to ensure they meet the standards. / Follows lessons as planned.
Monitors whole group progress during specific lessons. / Uses strategies to pace and adjust instruction to ensure more continuous engagement.
Offers guided and independent practice. / Solicits comments, questions, examples, connections, and other contributions from students throughout lessons.
Implements instructional opportunities in which students are interacting with ideas, materials, teachers, and one another to meet the standards. / Encourages students to select from a range of materials and instructional practices to meet the standards. / Analyzes, adapts, and creates a wide range of resources which support student development.
Provides opportunities for student and community collaboration to meet goals and standards.
Identifies each student’s learning needs and explicitly teaches student to identify their own strengths and learning needs. / Identifies students’ strengths and areas in which they need support. / Communicates strengths to individual students through informal and formal discussions. / Provides opportunities for students to highlight individual strengths and build on these areas to learn new skills and content. / Structures learning activities that enable students to monitor their own progress and strengths. Actively engages students in self-reflection and goal setting around their individual strengths and learning. / Encourages students to share methods of monitoring their own progress and strengths with peers, teachers, and families.
Introduces new material by building on what students already know and helps them use it to learn new skills and content.
Explores themes that are relevant to students’ lives and experiences. / Presents lessons in a clear, logical order.
Lessons build upon one another. / Uses more than one appropriate teaching strategy to present subject matter and facilitate student understanding. / Facilitates activities that are appropriate for student development and encourage student understanding and critical thinking skills. Strategies connect themes and concepts to students’ interests and backgrounds. / Develops and uses multiple strategies that make connections across disciplines and between concepts, that challenge all students. Encourages students to think critically. / Uses a variety of appropriate instructional strategies that challenge and support all students to independently apply and think critically about the subject matter and apply it to real-life situations.

Model Professional Behavior

Model professional behavior that addresses job responsibilities, district policies and procedures, and the expectations of professionals working in a multi-lingual, multi-cultural, and economically diverse community.

EXPECTATIONS FOR TEACHERS / Beginning / Emerging / Applying / Integrating / Innovating
Arrives on time, stays for the full workday, meets all responsibilities before leaving, and when necessary, completes work at home.
Dresses and behaves in a manner that demonstrates respect for students, families, and the teaching profession. / Knows expectations and procedures regarding attendance, punctuality and professional appearance. / Assumes responsibility for adhering to expectations and procedures regarding attendance, punctuality, and professional appearance. / Consistently adheres to expectations and procedures regarding an excellent attendance record, punctuality, and professional appearance. / Models excellent attendance, punctuality, and professional appearance for others in the learning community. / Assumes a leadership role in addressing expectations and procedures, an excellent attendance record, punctuality, and professional appearance for others in the learning community particularly when faced with challenging situations.
Understands major BPS curricular initiatives. / Is aware of major BPS curricular initiatives / Begins to work toward implementing major BPS curricular initiatives. / Consistently works toward implementing major BPS curricular initiatives. / Models the implementation of major BPS curricular initiatives for others in the learning community. / Assumes a leadership role in the implementation of major BPS curricular initiatives for others in the learning community.
Performs routine duties of the job in a professional manner e.g. lesson planning, record-keeping, grade reports. / Is aware of the routine duties of the job and informally attends to classroom responsibilities. / Assumes responsibility for performing the routine duties of the job in most instances. / Consistently performs routine duties of the job and attends to classroom responsibilities. / Consistently performs and models routine duties of the job for others in the school community, by sharing successes and learning with colleagues. / Assumes a leadership role in performing routine duties of the job as a part of whole school reform to address school-wide goals.
Functions effectively in a multilingual, multicultural, and economically diverse community. / Is aware of similarities and differences in language, culture and economic status of students, their families, and colleagues. / Attends to similarities and differences in language, culture and economic status of students, their families, and colleagues in most interactions
Uses acceptable modes of communication (written and oral). / Demonstrates respect and understanding of linguistic, cultural, and economic differences in all interactions with, students, families, and colleagues.
Uses appropriate written and oral modes of communication. / Strives to better understand the complexities of language, culture, and economic status as it relates to teaching and learning in the classroom through meaningful conversations with students, families, and colleagues.
Explicitly considers these issues and addresses them in teaching. / Models a commitment to continuous learning about the complexities of language, culture, and economic status as it relates to teaching, learning, and school through meaningful conversations with students, families, and colleagues.
Ensures students of all linguistic, cultural, and economic backgrounds to reach high standards.
Uses respectful language and discretion when discussing challenging situations and maintains confidentiality.
Strives to make the workplace a positive environment for colleagues. / Is aware of issues of confidentiality and ethics as they apply to teaching and learning.
Tends not to address interpersonal concerns and conflicts directly. / Attends to issues of confidentiality and ethics as they apply to teaching and learning. Consults with colleagues regarding appropriate behavior.
Addresses inter-personal conflicts directly at times. / Relates to colleagues, parents, students and others in a confidential and ethical manner, where appropriate.
Resolves interpersonal conflicts in a timely and constructive manner. / Maintains confidentiality and ethics appropriate to teaching assignment and school-wide needs.
Analyzes professional interactions and serves as a model for resolving concerns and problems in a timely and constructive manner. / Assumes a leadership role in the school for conflict resolution and ethical decision-making.
Supports others in the school building to resolve concerns and interpersonal conflicts in a timely and constructive manner.

Establish Safe, Respectful, and Culturally Sensitive Learning Communities

Build and maintain safe, fair and respectful learning environments that celebrate the diversity of the student population.

EXPECTATIONS FOR TEACHERS / Beginning / Emerging / Applying / Integrating / Innovating
Organizes and manages the classroom to ensure safety and maximize learning. / Arranges room for teacher accessibility and student visibility.
Classroom wall displays relate to the curriculum. / Arranges and manages room for easy movement and access to learning materials.
Classroom wall displays represent current topics of study. / Designs movement patterns and access to resources to promote individual and group engagement.
Room displays are used in learning activities. / Designs and manages room and resources to accommodate students’ needs and involvement in learning.
Classroom displays are integral to learning activities. / Uses physical environment as a resource to promote individual and group learning. Students are able to contribute to the changing design of the environment.
Develops, with students, classroom rules to ensure safety, respect differences, and manage conflicts – with clear consequences for violations. / Communicates rules and consequences. Responds to disruptive behavior. Focuses attention on presenting lessons. / Establishes expectations and consequences for student behavior. Responds appropriately to disruptive behavior and promotes positive behaviors. / Uses strategies that prevent or lessen disruptive behavior and reinforce expectations for behavior. Monitors behavior while teaching and during student work time. / Equitably reinforces expectations and consequences and supports students to monitor their own behavior and that of their classmates in a respectful way. / Facilitates a positive environment in which the teacher co-creates with students classroom rules, frequently reviews the rules and expectations, and consistently addresses violations.
Establishes classroom routines – and modifies them as needed.
Expects students to hold themselves and others accountable for following classroom rules. / Establishes some behavior and classroom management procedures to support student learning. Students are aware of the procedures. / Develops and guides students to learn routines and procedures for most activities. / Identifies, supports, and monitors students in following routines and procedures that are appropriate and efficient for the learning activities. / Assists students in developing and maintaining equitable routines and procedures. / Assists all students in developing and demonstrating equitable routines and procedures. Students show ownership of routines and procedures.
Provides daily opportunities for students to explain their thinking and ask questions that deepen their learning. / Responds to student questions and needs, and begins to establish rapport with students. / Builds caring, friendly rapport with most students. Models equitable and respectful relationships
Encourages questioning and problem-solving / Creates and promotes caring, respectful, and equitable interactions with all students.
Models questioning, problem solving, and experimentation and encourages students to do the same.
Encourages students to understand and respect differences. / Uses specific strategies to regularly check in with students and give them the opportunity to discuss issues that impact their learning.
Supports students in developing skills to respond to inequity and disrespect. / Fosters a safe, inclusive, and equitable learning community.
Students participate in maintaining a climate of equity, caring, and respect and initiate creative solutions to conflicts.
Gives students regular opportunities to work independently and together. / Directs students’ learning experiences through whole group and individual work with opportunities for interaction and choice. / Varies students’ learning experiences to include work in large groups, small groups, and individually.
Students have choice within learning activities. / Uses individual and group structures to develop student independence and collaboration. Students make choices about and throughout their work. / Uses a variety of learning experiences to assist students in developing independent work skills and group participation skills. Supports students in making appropriate learning choices. / Integrates a variety of challenging learning experiences that develop independent learning, collaboration, and choice for all students.

Partner with Family and Community

Initiate and maintain consistent communication and develop constructive partnerships with families, community members and agencies, building on their strengths and recognizing them as co-educators.

EXPECTATIONS FOR TEACHERS / Beginning / Emerging / Applying / Integrating / Innovating
Integrates students’ cultures and experiences in the classroom. / Recognizes the value of students’ prior knowledge and life experiences.
Delivers instruction with available resources and materials. / Asks questions that elicit students’ prior knowledge, life experiences, and interests.
Uses some strategies, resources, and visuals with consideration of students’ cultures and experiences. / Elicits student participation through a variety of instructional strategies and resources that draw from their cultures and experiences. / Uses a repertoire of strategies and resources to encourage students to share their cultures and experiences throughout classroom life. / Involves students in designing instructional activities that reflect all students’ cultural and experiential needs.
Works with before- and after- school partners and community-based organizations to help align their activities with the school’s. / Learns about students’ and schools’ communities.
Utilizes available community resources provided by the school. / Finds community resources to support lessons and engage students.
Uses some available school, district, and community resources to support learning. / Brings community organizations into the classroom to share with students their valuable intellectual and cultural knowledge.
Expands knowledge of, and connections with, the full range of community resources. / Partners with local community resources to deepen student learning and wellbeing.
Strengthens connections with community resources to support student learning. / Provides students with a full range of community experiences that benefit their learning and wellbeing.
Promotes school and community partnerships.
Provides families with regular progress reports and feedback on homework and schoolwork. / Provides families with information about student progress through school-mandated communication procedures. / Provides families with information about current student progress.
Families and support personnel are contacted as needed. / Uses a variety of strategies to establish regular communication between school and home to convey student progress.
Demonstrates flexibility in planning meetings with families. / Engages families and support personnel in regular discussions regarding student progress and improvement plans.
Extends support and communication to families by meeting with resource personnel in the community and families in their homes as appropriate. / Forms partnerships with families and support personnel to provide comprehensive information about and support for student progress.
Begins all interactions with families positively, recognizing them as co-educators and learning from them about each student’s strengths. / Begins all interactions with families in a positive manner, recognizing student progress, strengths, and family contributions.
Recognizes the role of the family in student learning.
Alerts parents and guardians to concerns. / Provides students with information about their current progress as they engage in learning activities.
Contacts families and support personnel regularly.
Invites family participation in classroom events.
Respects family backgrounds and their role in student learning. / Responds promptly to parental and family concerns.
Promotes parental involvement in the classroom and school.
Initiates communication with families concerning student progress or problems in a timely manner. / Partners with families to understand and address concerns.
Structures ongoing classroom partnerships with all families which support student learning. / Engages families in respectful, ongoing, productive, and two-way communication in support of student success.
Structures a wide range of opportunities for families to contribute to the learning community.

Plan Instruction and Use Strategies Effectively