Job Details

Teacher

The teacher plans and implements effective instruction as evidenced by meeting the below requirements:

• Learning objectives and state content standards are communicated.
• Objectives and expectations are aligned to the depth and rigor of the standards; lesson content is aligned to the standards and objectives.
• Sub-objectives are aligned to the lesson's major objective.
• Learning objectives are connected to what students have previously learned.
• Expectations for student performance are clear.
• State standards are displayed.
• There is evidence that students are progressing or demonstrating mastery of the objective(s).
• The teacher organizes the content, including curriculum resources, so that it is personally meaningful and relevant to students.
• The teacher develops learning experiences where inquiry, curiosity, and exploration are valued.
• The teacher regularly reinforces and rewards effort.
• Presentation of content consistently includes:
• Visuals that establish the purpose of the lesson, preview the organization of the lesson, and include internal summaries of the lesson;
• examples, illustrations, analogies, and labels for new concepts and ideas;
• modeling by the teacher to demonstrate his or her performance expectations;
• criteria that clarifies how students can be successful;
• concise communication;
• logical sequencing and segmenting;
• all essential information; and
• no irrelevant, confusing, or nonessential information.
• The lesson starts promptly.
• The lesson's structure is coherent, based on the content, and has a beginning, middle, and end, with time for reflection to ensure student understanding.
• Pacing is appropriate and sometimes provides opportunities for students who progress at different learning rates.
• Routines for distributing materials are efficient.
• Little instructional time is lost during transitions
• Activities and materials include a majority of the following:
• Content:
• support the lesson objectives;
• are challenging;
• elicit a variety of thinking;
• provide time for reflection;
• are relevant to students' lives;
• Student-centered:
• sustain students' attention;
• provide opportunities for student-to-student interaction;
• evoke student curiosity and suspense;
• provide students with choices;
• Multiple materials:
• incorporate multimedia and technology; and
• incorporate additional standards-based resources where appropriate (e.g., teacher made materials, manipulatives, resources from museums, cultural centers, etc.)
• Teacher questions are varied and high-quality, providing an appropriate mix of question types based on content:
• knowledge and comprehension;
• application and analysis; and
• creation and evaluation.
• Questions are purposeful and coherent.
• The frequency of questions engages students in critical thinking.
• Questions are sequenced with attention to the instructional goals.
• Wait time (3-5 seconds) is provided.
• Questions require active responses (e.g., whole-class signaling, choral responses, or group and individual answers).
• The teacher calls on a variety of students to engage different students' perspectives and provide opportunities for many students to respond.
• Oral and written feedback is academically focused, frequent, and high quality.
• Feedback is given during guided practice and review of independent work assignments.
• The teacher circulates during instructional activities to support engagement and monitor student work.
• Feedback from students is used to monitor and adjust instruction.
• The instructional grouping arrangements (whole class, small groups, pairs, or individual; heterogeneous or homogeneous ability) adequately enhance student understanding and learning efficiency.
• Teacher sets expectations that are understood by students.
• In an instructional group, students take responsibility for their roles, tasks, and group work expectations so they can have meaningful and productive collaboration.
• Students participating in groups are held accountable for group work and individual work.
• Instructional group composition is varied (e.g., race, gender, ability, and age) to accomplish the goals of the lesson.
• Instructional groups facilitate opportunities for students to set goals, reflect on, and evaluate their learning.
• Teacher displays accurate content knowledge and understanding both of state standards and instructional materials, including their curriculum, for all the subjects they teach.
• Teacher implements subject-specific instructional strategies to enhance student content knowledge.
• Teacher highlights key concepts and ideas and uses them as the basis to connect other powerful ideas.
• Teacher practices display understanding of students' anticipated learning abilities and challenges.
• Teacher practices incorporate student interests, backgrounds, and cultures.
• Teacher provides differentiated instructional content and strategies to ensure students have the opportunity to master what is being taught.
• The teacher engages students in multiple types of thinking:
• analytical thinking, where students analyze, compare and contrast, and evaluate and explain information;
• practical thinking, where students use, apply, and implement what they learn in real-life scenarios;
• creative thinking, where students create, design, imagine, and suppose; and
• research-based thinking, where students explore and review a variety of ideas, models, and solutions to problems.
• The teacher and students:
• generate a variety of ideas and alternatives; and
• analyze problems from multiple perspectives and viewpoints.
• The teacher uses and/or engages students in some the following problem-solving types:
• Abstraction
• Categorization
• Drawing conclusions/justifying solutions
• Predicting outcomes
• Observing and experimenting
• Improving solutions
• Identifying relevant/irrelevant information
• Generating ideas
• Creating and designing

The teacher develops and implements effective lesson plans, assignments, and assessments.

• Instructional plans include:
• objectives aligned to state standards and aligned curriculum, both in content and in rigor;
• activities, materials, and assessments that:
• are aligned to state standards; content, including curriculum; and success criteria;
• are sequenced and scaffolded based on student need;
• build on prior student knowledge; and
• provide appropriate time for student work and lesson closure;
• evidence that the plan is appropriate for the age, knowledge, and interests of learners; and
• evidence that the plan provides opportunities to accommodate individual student needs.
• Assignments are:
• aligned to the rigor and depth of the standards and curriculum content.
• aligned to the lesson's objective and include descriptions of how assessment results will inform future instruction.
• Assignments require students to:
• interpret information rather than reproduce it;
• draw conclusions and support them through writing; and
• connect what they are learning to prior learning and life experiences
• Assessments:
• are aligned with the depth and rigor of the state standards and content, including curriculum resources;
• are designed to provide feedback on progress against objectives;use a variety of question types and formats to gauge student learning and problem-solving;
• measure student performance in more than two ways (e.g., in the form of a project, experiment,