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Specialization Assessment (CI 6317)

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Demographics

School & Community Discussion and Paper
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INTASC principle seven states that: The teacher plans instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, students, the community, and curriculum goals.This is important for a number of reasons. It is, of course obvious that a teacher should have knowledge of the subject matter being taught. This, along with curriculum goals and standards are part of the law now, particularly with legislature such as No Child Left Behind (NCLB), which calls for increased accountability and highly qualified teachers among other things (Webb, Metha, & Jordan, 2010). However, consideration of the students and community is something that is crucial to the learning process, though it may not always have a place in law. One must be aware of the community, because it will influence the students, their attitudes, ideas, culture and what they bring into the classroom. In addition to meditation on learning styles and intelligences, being aware of students and the community in which they grow allows one to better accommodate the needs of young learners. Different cultures often have distinct approaches to learning, emphasizing presentations, abstract thinking or preference for people over things (Woolfolk, 1998). Consequently, because of these cultural variations between different races, ethnicities, or socio-economic status, one may need to explain a lesson in another way or alter it to be more inclusive.

 
This artifact comes from CI 6317: Foundations of the Public School System and focuses on the ability to locate both demographic data and accountability ratings and performance. Some of this infomation may be available through the county, state or city government site, while other information must be obtained from the local school district. After data was obtained, students were asked to analyze the information on a community and school level to determine how best to utilize it. Demographics and NCLB report cards may be used as a starting point for trend analysis of typical learning stereotypes such as gender bias and achievement gaps. This may be a great asset when determining action research plans, indicating potentially struggling learners, or the best way to present information. However, it is important to remember that these methods are not fail-proof and may exaggerate the situation since they provide only a portion of the picture.
 
References
 
Webb, L., Metha, A. & Jordan, K. (2010). Foundations of American Education. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.
 
Woolfolk, A. (1998). Educational Psychology. Massachusetts: Allyn & Bacon.
Author: Elizabeth Seibert
Last modified: 5/7/2012 4:01 PM (EST)