National Board Certification Renewal

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nPGE #1

nContext of the professional situation that indicates what need you are addressing

nDue to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), the state developed rigorous goals to ensure students were reading on grade level or above by the end of third grade. The reading program for -3 students focused on literacy skills development. The process of developing literacy skills for every student takes a lot time and efficient instructions. Besides, the programs were designed for K-3 grades and students who were at risk. The state provided various several intervention services that ensured that student are able to read at early stages of their education. The state also introduced Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) that helps to assess the performance of students at grade 3 level. In addition, DIBELS ensured that students received the interventions on reading.

nThe program for reading is designed to help K-3 students in learning to read by applying and practicing strategies in reading. In addition, they help to increase their sound relationships, spelling patterns, word families and knowledge of letter. When student at lower levels of education are able to read, they increase their chance to comprehension, analysis of information such as content textbooks, nonfiction and fiction at advanced stages of learning. Furthermore, students acquire their literacy foundation, which enables them to expand their vocabularies as well as using words that uses suffixes, prefixes and Latin. The state has initiated the interventions on reading skills for students in Grades K-3 aiming to create and draw on the knowledge base of children. It was also designed to assist learners to understand expository and narrative text structures. In addition, the interventions were allocated time for regular independent reading. In Grade K-3 students were supposed to analyze new information in the text by comparing with patterns and words. Teachers were required to teach new patterns in language and words that were very crucial to the students. In particular, teachers were supposed to teach and model children how to use strategies such as retelling, questioning, predicting, and self-monitoring. Furthermore, in the reading programs, teachers were required to use illustration to assist learners on how to make inferences. Students that did not meet this requirement could be retained in the third grade up to two times. In response to the states movement for students to meet these standards, teachers underwent rigorous training in the teaching of reading – highly qualified teachers, funding for initiatives to help students meet those requirements became available, and districts began calling on teachers to find ways to identify and remediate those students that were the lowest readers in grades K-3.

nTeachers were required to have professional development that could provide reading intervention to K-3 students. In addition, teachers were required to have sufficient skills that could enable them to use data to determine certain areas of reading for appropriate interventions. Teachers were required to be competent in systems such as reading intervention response, Spalding, classes endorsement reading and interpretations. Teachers were required to monitor the performances and learning of students in classrooms using new technology that would support and promote the small- and large-group instructions.

nDescribe the PGE. How does it demonstrate a response to identified needs of students, the professional community, parents and/or self?

nIn response to the need to ensure, our students could read on grade level by the third grade, it was important to identify the students that were at the greatest risk of entering the third grade 1 or more grade levels behind in reading. Using beginning of the year reading assessments as well as, previous grade level assessments, and teacher- recommendation students in the lowest 25%ile were identified.

nDuring this time, I was teaching an undergraduate reading class for pre-service teachers at a local university. One of the requirements for the pre-service teachers was 15 hours of field experience with students in K-2 applying instructional reading strategies learned in the course.

nWith all this in mind, I found a great opportunity to assist the schools lowest readers in first and second grade, while giving my pre-service teachers the experience required for the reading course. Identified students were invited to participate in a literacy program for one hour on Tuesday evenings. Pre-service teachers, under my guidance, worked with the students one-on-one on beginning reading skills (phonics, decoding, vocabulary, and fluency) by the students teachers and/or revealed by assessments. Moreover, in response to the program requirement, I enrolled for training on crucial elements that are suitable to execute the recommended literacy model on the state level. Indeed, I received training on crucial practices for effective literacy coaching. While the pre-service teachers worked with students, I worked with parents on how they could assist reading learning at home.

nDiscuss your acquisition and/or effective and appropriate use of technology.

nThe administrator of the elementary school was an expert in learning technology that was available for students, teachers, and parents to use in assisting students in the process of learning to read. Programs were purchased for the school (i.e., Riverdeep, NCS Learn) and every student in the school had an access code for those programs. In this respect, I was trained on Riverdeep and NCS Learn that offered assistance in reading aides. The school management under my guidance, held a special meeting for state reading experts and K-3 teachers to review the assessment data for students and establish suitable instructional interventions and practices to support poor readers. Each of the classrooms was equipped with six desktop computers with internet access and a printer. The pre-service teachers were able to access the students account they were working with and allow the student to use this assistive technology in reading outside of the school day to further their reading growth and track success.

nDiscuss how your interaction with colleagues, other professional groups, parents, and/or community members has enhanced your professional growth.

nThe interactions that I had with colleagues, pre-service teachers, and the parents in order to make this program available were extensive. I worked with colleagues and the administration at my school to identify the students in greatest need. My colleagues and I met over a period of 3 hours –during their planning time- to identify students and the skills that each student needed to address.

nThe interaction that took place with my pre-service teachers took place over a period of 15 weeks, two hours once a week. I instructed the pre-service teachers on reading instructional strategies that could be used with their beginning reader. I assisted the pre-service teachers in developing lesson plans, selecting reading materials, and incorporating pedagogy that would be appealing and beneficial for the beginning readers. Teachers in K-3 classrooms were trained on scientifically based reading research (SBRR) that helped to enrich their professional development practices and ultimately improve reading skills for learners. In particular, these teachers were trained on how to use SBRR practices to teach phonics, spelling, vocabularies, fluency, comprehension and phonemic awareness. Moreover, teachers were trained on how to use the SBRR on Three Tier Model. They increased their professional capacity on how to apply SBRR practices in Tier 1-3 to make decisions when appropriate interventions should be implemented.

nThe interaction that took place with the parents was extremely beneficial. The time I spent with the parents was truly a learning process for me. Through my interaction with the parents I got to know the challenges they faced at home in trying to assist their children in the process of learning to read, and this lead to do further research and call on the experts within the university I was working at to get ideas on how to assist the parents. This lead to finding programs at libraries, the university, on the computer, as well as instructional and learning resources that could be used at home by the parents that fit their lifestyle, challenges, and time constraints.

nPGE #2

nContext of the professional situation that indicates what need you are addressing

nDue to the push to produce excellence in Mathematics, my district implemented the Singapore Math method for teaching mathematical skills. The main aim of introducing Singapore math is to help children with new approaches to solve problems. In addition, through the Math in Focus it was aimed at helping students to improve their capacity on mastery of concepts of mathematics, problem solving skills, computational skills and utilization of mathematical concepts in the daily activities. Students were also supposed to have strategic and conceptual thinking processes. Teachers were required to cover a few topics in details. They were required to possess skills on how to use concrete illustrations in the process of teaching. Besides, they were supposed to give the development of concepts in mathematics based on the problems. In order to apply Singapore mathematics, teachers were to be trained on computational strategies, pictorial and concrete that make mathematics relevant, interesting and purposeful. For instance, I received training on how to use a wide range of computational strategies to make division, multiplication, subtraction and addition an easy thing for to the learners. Most of my focus during these last 10 years in teaching has been in the area of literacy, so I felt training and focus in this area of my professional growth was important.

nDescribe the PGE. How does it demonstrate a response to identified needs of students, the professional community, parents and/or self?

nAfter the introduction of Singapore Math strategies of teaching mathematics, I organized continuous assessment test to determine their ability to solve problems as well as their attitudes in the subject. Moreover, I mobilized the school management and the district educational officers on how to provide textbooks, computers and the necessary resources that would be required in teaching Singapore math. Consequently, learners were assigned textbooks on Singapore Math that matched what they were prepared to learn next. Meanwhile, most of the instructional time was concentrated on essential math skills rather than re-teaching concepts that had been taught before. Some my colleagues reported that Singapore Math was slower as compared to what they used to teach. Nevertheless, they were informed that students acquire crucial skills in math at a faster rate. Learners were taught on how to master concepts in division and multiplication of fractions as well as multi-step word problems. These concepts acted as a foundation to prepare the students to do algebra in advanced grades. The school reduced repetitive drills, but increased sequencing of math topics. For example, the curriculum introduced the multiplication topic by 2, 3, 4 and 5 in Grade 2 followed statistical data from graphs.

nThe main of purpose of this curriculum is to reinforce the multiplication fact learning when the scale began to change from two to five objects in every graphical unit. Most importantly, the teaching strategies provided careful guidance to learners. Indeed, teaching mathematical concepts were conducted in a child-friendly pictorial language to ensure technical mastery and understanding. The teaching of Singapore Math was different from normal U. S curriculum – that aims at memorization of ‘rules” and anticipate learners to restructure ideas in mathematics from activities with little guidance.

nExplain how you have acquired and deepened your content knowledge to remain current, including research and/or use of other professional activities.

nI began attending Learning Labs presented by colleagues from other schools throughout the district. These labs allowed me to observe first-hand how other teachers taught using the Singapore Math methods and strategies. After the observations, I was able to debrief with the presenters and ask questions regarding instructional strategies, classroom set up, student work, grouping, etc. In terms of research, I was involved in determining the kind of mathematical concepts that were useful to the student. The research increased my knowledge on how to provide on-site monitoring of students in the new program. Besides, I also attended seminars to increase my knowledge on problem solving skills, computation and mathematics facts. I also learnt how to accommodate ideas learned via reflection, practice and drills. Through peer interaction, I acquired more knowledge on how to stimulate learning process through creative thinking. Furthermore, I attended capacity-building forums where I learnt to use learning theories and learning and teaching based on daily life experiences.

nIn these forums, I increased my expertise on how to develop attitudes of students to love and learn mathematics and how to introduce new concepts and reflection of knowledge. My colleagues also enabled me to learn expertise of interrelationships where the students could understand the links between topics and concepts that assisted learners to solve problems such understanding the connection between geometry and numbers. Additionally, I gain knowledge on Bruners theory that suggest that mathematical concepts should be represented based different stages of students thinking. In addition, the representation depended on the concrete, pictorial and abstract (CPA). The theory suggested that students at a particular age could only intellectualize concepts in mathematics based on their stage of mental development. In this respect, Bruners idea highlighted concrete illustration that is in accordance with some students ability to conceptualize concepts in mathematics at early levels.

nDiscuss your acquisition and/or effective and appropriate use of technology.

nSingapore Math requires students to have skills in computation that would help them to handle mathematics concepts such as algebra and problem solving. In this respect, I acquire necessary skills in use of technology that could be used in teaching Singapore Math. For instance, I gained skills new technology where I could use Smart board demonstration. The skills enabled the teacher to solve two-step word problem applying bar models. The tool was helpful as it ensured that students could solve Common Core math. Smart Board also could assist the student to break down word problem and halt to process knowledge after every punctuation mark. In this respect, the new technology was a beneficial resource for student, teachers and parents. The Smart Board technology also provided interactive activity between the students and teachers. Therefore, I could give instructions easily to the students that acted as efficient strategies for efficient integration in classroom. Most notably, I could use the new technology to support students with disabilities to be successful in mathematics.

n The Smart board technology enabled the students to understand Singapore Math in arithmetic, such as division, multiplication, subtraction and addition. It also featured pictures that helped students to count a set of numbers and correspond to the whole and ordinal numbers. In addition, I could use the new technology to help students to identify the missing number. Students could fill the blank numbers in mathematical statements as well as understand missing integers in algebraic equations. Students benefited from the technology via categorizing and recognizing items, naming shapes, sorting and counting money.

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nPGE#3

nContext of the professional situation that indicates what need you are addressing

nIn response to the need to ensure our students were on grade level in reading by the end of third grade, I implemented a program that utilized parent volunteers to come and read with and to the lowest 25% of our second graders three times a week for 30 minutes each meeting. The program was aimed at helping English Language learners (ELLS) to benefit maximally from their parents engagement in the education.

nDescribe the PGE. How does it demonstrate a response to identified needs of students, the professional community, parents and/or self?

nI worked with the second grade teachers to identify the students that were in the greatest need of additional help. Fortunately, parents at our school had to do a mandatory 30 hours of volunteer service. I got an opportunity to recruit volunteers and pair them up with students. I helped other teachers to adjust their assessment, learning and teaching activities in order for some students with reading problems to participate in parent-student reading session. I facilitated adjustment via collaborative process of planning that engaged the parent, student and teachers. To ensure successful implementation of the program, I educated the parents on important aspects of the U.S school systems. Parents needed to understand how the culture of school works. In addition, I organized meeting with parents to address their concerns and respond to their question and offer material written in their preferred languages such as Spanish that would help them understand school curriculum, benchmarks and standards.

nFurthermore, I engaged parents to understand the importance of language programs that the school has and why they are most suitable in the program to assist their children. Indeed, in case the parents expressed dissatisfaction, we discussed their opinions and I invited them to visit and observe the class. With respect to the program, I ensured that parents in the school understood their rights in what they required to know such as ELL curriculum in the school. Moreover, I organized procedures for recruiting volunteers from parents depending on their skills and interests in the program. To ensure that parents were aware of their learning opportunities I reached out to them. Therefore, I worked with the school administrator to compile resources such as Family literacy programs.

nDiscuss your acquisition and/or effective and appropriate use of technology.

nFor the need to integrate parent in the learning process of their children, I learnt on suitable application of technology. In my school, there was an adequate technology that the parents and teachers could use to assist students in the learning process. The main purpose of using technology is because it facilitated faster learning of reading skills. It assisted parents to teach their children on how to improve vocabularies, fluency and comprehension. The new technology offered opportunities to the parents and students to practice recognition of words and make sound-letter relationship. Furthermore, computer software facilitated the parent to enable the student to use word order (syntax) as well as word meaning (semantics).

nFortunately, I also learnt to use the new technology to assist both the parents and student on how to decode words and gain access the meaning of words. Parents could use computer software to help student with reading disabilities to relate their writing to reading and spelling. Initially, the phonetic approximation of students words was stimulated to stimulate writing. As the students learnt to read words, they parents assisted them on how these words could be spelled using the computer software.

nDiscuss how your interaction with colleagues, other professional groups, parents, and/or community members has enhanced your professional growth.

nI ensured that there was an appropriate collaboration of my colleagues, parents and school administrators for successful implementation of the program. The interaction with teachers was beneficial as they ensured that there was meaningful conversation between the parents and the students to enable oral language development. The teachers assisted parents on how to help their children do their homework. Indeed, parents were advised to create home libraries by establishing a special collection of textbooks, and storybooks at their homes. Teachers took part in activities for oral languages that addressed on the concept of vocabulary enhancement. They discussed with students what they read under the guidance of their parents. The interaction between the parents, teachers and students was very helpful as it ensured that students mastered their reading skills.

nThey provided guidance to their children that helped them in effective word-recognition and following instructions. Additionally, through parents engagement students acquired the skills in independent wide reading, reading aloud, and development of oral language. When students interacted with parents, they able to read with confidence, and understood what they were reading. Ultimately, children with problems in reading realized that reading is a source of pleasure and knowledge. The parents ensured that students learnt phonics by relating spoken words to letter patterns in a predictable way. They also facilitated students to combine their knowledge on sounds to read with enjoyment and meaning.

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nPGE #4

nContext of the professional situation that indicates what need you are addressing

nThere were a large number of first year teachers entering our school the first year I was out of the classroom and working at the Curriculum Administrator. One of my duties in my new position was “In-service Coordinator” and to secure and develop professional development opportunities for the teachers. Due to the large number of first year teachers and teachers that were seeking Alternative Certification, I developed a training based on the Harry Wong book, The First Days of School.

nDescribe the PGE. How does it demonstrate a response to identified needs of students, the professional community, parents and/or self?

nFirst year teachers who are seeking Alternative Certification requires an appropriate framework that would ensure that they became effective teachers. These teachers required induction program in school that encompassed professional networking, mentoring and structured supervision. The new teachers require learning the needs of the students in this school as well as the aspiration and expectations of the school community. Moreover, they are supposed to learn and understand on the responsibilities and roles of the new teachers. Furthermore, they needed to develop understanding and knowledge about the Code of Conduct for teachers and roles associated with the accreditation process. The professional requirement for new teacher suggest that not only should a teacher improve learning process of the student but also should be effective.

nIn addition, new teachers required collaboration with experienced teachers in order to meet the educational requirement in their district. A skillful and knowledgeable teacher can make a significant difference in the learning of students through taking meaningful interventions. In this regard, I prepared programs that would make the new teachers to have mastery of concepts, which would affect students positively. In addition, the program would help new teachers to have better management skills of their classroom. The program stressed the importance of class management because it determines how the teacher organizes the class for success or failure of the students.

nExplain how you have acquired and deepened pedagogical skills to remain current, including use of current research and/or use of other professional activities.

nIn my new position as an In-Service Coordinator in the Curriculum Department, I have acquired my pedagogical skills in class management. Failure to acquire pedagogical skills of experienced teachers, a large number of new teachers are unprepared to meet challenges in education. New teachers often lack a wide range of instructional strategies. As they enter teaching, they have mastered low level of pedagogical skills and knowledge. In most cases, new teachers have not received teaching on how to develop an organized and positive learning environment for the students to learn. Since Alternative Certificate programs do not offer formal training for teachers, they enter the field of education without mastery of crucial pedagogical skills.

nThrough my experience in the Curriculum Department, I have learnt that new teachers learn a repertoire of teaching approaches via trial and errors. Therefore, they are often unprepared and struggling when teaching in classrooms. In the curriculum, teachers are supposed to create a higher standard of student thinking, but only a few teachers have experience on how to create instructions in classrooms and create active learning. In this respect, my knowledge in the Department of Curriculum has enabled me to understand that new teachers face challenges in classrooms because of lack of high-quality preparations. Unfortunately, most of the new teacher may not teach at all and may end up quitting. In this regard, new teachers require support on pedagogical knowledge that is necessary for their success in classroom.

nDiscuss how your interaction with colleagues, other professional groups, parents, and/or community members has enhanced your professional growth.

nIn response to the pedagogical needs of the new teachers, I collaborated with my colleagues to help and support their activities. I worked with my colleagues to assist new teachers in time management, lesson designing and planning their classes. Moreover, in collaboration with other teachers I assisted new teachers in classroom management and advance work. Veteran teachers organized approaches that would assist new teachers to master skills that would help them plan for their classes. Furthermore, mentors assisted them with instructional planning, especially unit planning.

nIn particular, they were helped on how to form concepts, ideas and information that learners needed. Besides, I organized veteran teachers to help the new teachers on how to understand the student they are teaching and the community in which they work. Through regular meetings between the new teachers, veteran teachers and I were able to help them in classroom management and creation of class rules and results of breaking them. Moreover, they were helped on how to use student-centered instructional strategies rather than teacher-centered approach. Therefore, they learnt how to use student-to-student discussions and to incorporate cooperative structures in learning. Finally, the veteran teachers organized forums to assist new teachers to develop assessment strategies in a professional way. In this respect, they received induction on how to conduct self-assessments through student feedback.

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nReference

nNational Board for Professional Teaching Standards. 26555 Evergreen Road, Suite 400, Southfield, MI, 48076.www.nbpts.org