Strategies for Professional Learning: Culturally Responsive Practices
Instructions:
Write a 3 pages essay as a basis of equity audit to evaluate the professional development / evaluate strategies for professional learning given at your school . Be sure to use the Danielson framework for professional learning community.
Solution
Strategies for Professional Learning: Culturally Responsive Practices
Teachers and educators focus on promoting effective learning through creating an effective learning environment. A collaborative approach focusing on the development of the quality of education allows the integration of skills and expertise from educators, teachers, and experts within the educational sector. An evaluation of the strategies for professional learning contributes largely to understanding the effectiveness of the learning and professional development and the areas that require improvement. Most importantly, culturally responsive practices are critical for enhancing efficacy in learning and teaching. Therefore, the provision of culturally responsive learning environment in the classroom is essential. This equity audit applies the Danielson Framework to evaluate the professional learning strategies and how teachers address responsive practices (CRPs) in our school.
Communication plays an important role in promoting students’ cultural competence and improving their ability to communicate and interact with others effectively. Disseminating information and holding discussions on diversity promotes the provision of a culturally responsive environment (CRE). According to Burns and Parker (2014), communicating with students requires the application of efficient communication strategies. In the school, communication is a shared process that involves the teachers, students, and the parents. This process allows each party to contribute towards the learning process where the needs of each group are valued. Diversity remains a central issue, which all parties strive to support to ensure CRE for learning. Most importantly, communicating with students in the school involves focusing on student needs and concerns in a way that shows the prioritization of the student learning. The process involves proactive advice about what it is required of a student among other critical components of the learning process. This continue to enhance the learning process in our school.
CRP focuses on ensuring all students benefit equally from the instruction and, therefore, the assessment of outcomes. Instructional outcomes define what students should understand/learn by the end of a unit (Burns & Parker, 2014). Teachers focus on ensuring that student all students show an understanding of the content at the end of the lesson. The application of student outcomes in our school allows teachers to focus on boosting student learning through articulate objectives. However, to determine whether the objectives are met in accordance with the instructional outcomes, teachers must employ student assessment to determine their understanding of the content. As Danielson (2007) asserts, setting instructional outcomes and developing some forms of student assessment work concurrently to boost the effectiveness of the learning process. The Danielson Framework states that the identification of the specifics of what students are expected to learn by setting instructional outcomes is critical for enhancing the efficacy of the learning process. These outcomes should show the instructor’s understanding of diversity in classroom.
Teachers in our school have clearly outlined instructional outcomes and assessment tools including summative and formative assessment techniques where teachers assess learning and check for learning to determine whether students have acquired the understanding required or if there is a need for devising or modifying the instruction (Danielson, 2011). The Danielson Framework requires teachers to ensure effective learning by designing assessment techniques/tools. In our school, teachers ensure that the outcomes developed before the commencement of the unit learning may be assessed through the assessment tools identified. However, there is minimal involvement of students in the processes of designing the student assessment such as participating in developing rubric, but they participate in information collection from formative assessment. The application of different expert and persuasive teaching techniques improves the effectiveness of the learning process and allow teachers to develop professionally as student benefit significantly.
The establishment of an effective learning without promoting CR practices. Teachers in our school demonstrate knowledge of teaching in the development of the learning environment. According to Danielson (2007), the management of teacher-student relationships is fundamental to developing positive and assertive relationships between the teachers-students and among students. Key elements in developing an effective learning environment, according to the Danielson Framework, are respect and rapport. Teachers interact effectively with all students irrespective of their race, religion, ethnicity, and culture or any other feature and encourage the establishment of good relationships between students. Most students in the school agree that teachers play an important role in the development of respectful relationships between students. However, while most teachers show respectful, warm, and caring interactions with students, some students feel that some teachers are unconcerned with the student interactions and thus give less effort in encouraging better student relationships.
In conclusion, the promotion of a
culture of learning and effective management of classroom procedures are important
techniques that contribute to effective learning and professional development. A
culturally responsive learning environment enhances student understanding and
promotes academic performance and social interaction. Danielson (2011) asserts that
teachers must place emphasis on developing a culture of learning by applying strategies
that boost CR environments and make the classroom cognitively busy and set high
expectations for students. The ability of a teacher to communicate the
erxpectations and involve students among other good teaching practices in the
process of learning shows professional development. Most importantly, the effctive
management of time and sticking to routines and classroom procedures
contributes largely to the learning process (Burns & Parker, 2014). Teachers in our
school are effective in the management of the procedures and continually focus
on developing the culture of learning and a more diverse and culturally
competent school society.
References
Burns, M. K., & Parker, D. C. (2014). Curriculum-based assessment for instructional design: using data to individualize instruction. New York: The Guilford Press.
Danielson, C. (2007). Enhancing professional practice: a framework for teaching. Alexandria, Va: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Danielson, C. (2011). Enhancing professional practice: a framework for teaching. Alexandria, Va.: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.