Mastery of Program Competencies.

Mastery of Program Competencies.

Teachers know the subjects they teach and how to teach those subjects to students.

When developing my curriculum map, I had to become familiar with the national and state standards in technology, and on the solar system. What I had to do was ensure that my lessons and activities were in alignment with those standards. However, what was also important was the lesson delivery. In order to be an effective educator, it was important that the lessons were diverse and student-centered (Gabler & Schroeder, 2003).

Students participated in inquiry-based activities that asked them to model the phases of the moon, examine how the moon moves, compare total and partial eclipses, and look at what causes tides. Through their own investigations, students answered their own questions, made predictions, recorded data, and used the data to draw conclusions. By creating a thinking environment, I am giving my students opportunities to develop their critical thinking skills (Gabler & Schroeder).

Teachers are committed to students and their learning.

Gardner (1993) recognized that students have diverse strengths. His theory of multiple intelligences has had great implications for educators. Teachers must differentiate their lessons to make the content available to all students. In my curriculum map, the approach to lessons that I planned was varied to meet the needs of my students. There were videos and visuals, skits and lab activities, and interactive presentations. There were also group discussions and whole class discussions in the plans. For my more advanced students, there were also enrichment ideas incorporated in the curriculum map. To be an effective educator, I must teach to the strengths of every one of my students. By mapping my curriculum, I was able to import activities and lessons, and look at the method of instruction to ensure that my approach remained diverse.

Teachers are responsible for managing and monitoring student learning.

According to Nitko and Brookhart (2007), “Teaching and learning require you to constantly gather information and make decisions” (p. 3). Throughout my curriculum map, I designed formative and summative assessments. I used the formative assessments to keep my finger on the pulse on my students’ learning. My curriculum map showed that I used a variety of formative assessments: from Activotes and Activexpressions to more informal assessments—thumbs up, thumbs down. The summative assessments were also varied. They ranged from a pen and pencil test to keeping moon and tidal charts.

Using assessments as a tool will help me monitor students learning and know when to continue and when to re-teach.