Important points about this domain:
- TAP does not provide “traditional” professional development that teachers are probably used to. They are not “sit and get” workshops.
- The professional development does NOT happen outside the school setting
- The PD is specific to the needs of the teachers and students within the school
- The PD is led by colleagues at the school
- The PD is “based on the research of the past 30 years which concludes that in order for professional development to be effective, it needs to be sustained and directly related to the circumstances at the school site” (NIET, 2010, par.2).
**Because this part of the TAP system is one that is probably the most
different for teachers and one that is used weekly, there are many different
activities given below for setting up Cluster teams while understanding the
purpose of professional development within the TAP setting. You will not be
able to complete all of the activities below. Pick and choose which are most
appropriate for engaging your Cluster groups.**
What Role do you Play?
It is up to know your role within the school and your grade level. Attitude is everything! It
is also important to understand that it doesn’t matter what your personality may be, it is important to the group. Understanding each other’s
personalities helps us to be able to understand each other’s actions and
attitudes.
Let's start with a BAD group dynamic:
Click on the picture for a group handout or to display the picture (the "Group Roles Quiz Packet" is also in this download):
Now for the quiz to discover the different personalities in this group:
Follow the directions in the "Group Roles Quiz Packet" (download below)
Discussion questions to ponder:
- Where is the job “teacher” on the job list?
- How could “teacher” fit under ALL categories?
- How can these personalities all work together?
- Look at “page 7” of your quick packet. Discuss with your group what some difficulties might be when you work together based on personalities, what motivates you, and what your pet peeves might be.
Life Map
*Adapted from TRIBES Strategies and Energizers, (Gibbs,
2001)
Draw either a map or a timeline on a
piece of paper by drawing a visual illustration of your life to date. You need to include “road signs’ for ups and downs both personally and
professionally on your map.
Discuss each person’s map, how they are alike and different,
and how you can each give a different contribution to the group.
“Ticket out the door” - name one
professional contribution that you are going to bring to Cluster.
Click on the life map picture below for a handout of examples to use to help build your life map:
Cooperation Squares
*Adapted from TRIBES Strategies and Energizers, (Gibbs,
2001)
What does "cooperation" mean?
- Hand
each pair of Cluster members a puzzle set (see handout below) telling them that
they will need to use the set to make 5 squares.
- They
need to be told that, although the pieces are labeled in their envelopes,
the pieces may have to be jumbled up to make a square (all the “a” pieces
will not make one square, but instead will have different letters combined
together).
- They
are to make the squares and glue them down to a piece of construction
paper.
Discussion:
Was someone dominating the
puzzle? Discuss that dynamic.
Relate the activity to
placing student data together to decide what is needed for the students. We
have to place several “pieces” of data together to understand the “puzzle” of
student needs. Discuss how this is the part that is mostly completed by the
Master Teacher, but the Master Teacher needs input from the classroom teacher
because they are part of the “puzzle” for deciding what strategy is needed to
help student growth. Ask questions such as:
-What would have happened
if someone had hidden a puzzle piece? How is this like not sharing a piece of
data about a child which could be important?
-What would happen if we
made the squares, but didn’t glue them down? How is this like looking at data
and not constructing strategies to help with the data trends?
Perception and Transmission of Information
*Adapted from TRIBES Strategies and Energizers, (Gibbs,
2001)
- Pass
out copies of the young girl/old woman drawing on the Perception and Transmission
of Information Handout (see download below)
- Have
members glance at the drawing briefly, without discussion (about 10
seconds)
- Collect
the copies back immediately
- Ask to
share what they saw in the drawing. Emphasize that people perceive things
differently. Ask questions such as:
“Would you talk to this person on the bus?” or “Who in your family does this person remind you of?”
- Give
copies back to members and continue the discussion asking what each member
sees in the drawing.
- Go
into the discussion of how the brain perceives things – our brain only processes one image at a time
based on what we how and what we focus on first in the picture.
- Remember
“The Dress”? Refer them to the handout and show them the
website explaining the dress:http://abc7.com/science/scientists-explain-why-the-dress-is-both-white-gold-and-blue-black/536894/
- If
time, show different pictures and posters discussing perspective (examples
are on the handout) and discuss.
- Ask
how points of view could be different in our clusters. How does this help
us grow professionally? A Master Teacher’s point of view is different from
the administrators or career teachers and vice versa. It all depends on
what information we are focusing on. Is there a right or wrong piece? No.
What’s important is that, to grow professionally, we must transmit our
point of view to others and respect everyone. All perspectives must be taken
into account to grow. Relate back to those different career cards (refer
back to the First Domain). How might their perspectives be different from
yours and how would that effect learning and personal professional growth?
Growth of the school?
- Think
about how we transmitted our thoughts to others. Did we get mad when they
didn’t see things the way we did? How did we react? How might we need to
react in Cluster with each other?
Click the picture for the handouts:
The Difference Between a “Sit and Get” and a TAP Cluster: The Cat Daddy
During regular professional
developments, you would be expected to sit down for probably only one day,
receive information from an expert in the field, get a notebook of materials,
and get sent back to your schools to implement everything you learned in an
eight hour cram session. During TAP, professional developments happen weekly,
within the school building, and are given by Master and Mentor teachers who
have field tested the strategies being presented.
The “Cat
Daddy” activity developed by TAP Regional Master Teacher, Regina Urueta (rurueta@ed.sc.gov) helps to understand this concept:
*All of the links below can also be found on the Website Links page of
the Blog
THE CAT DADDY
1.
Stand
in front of the room, tell the group that we are going to dance the “Cat Daddy”
and to stand up. They are going to start talking. Get on to them for talking
telling them it’s disrespectful. Turn on the music (see youtube link below) and
start dancing yourself. Get on to those who are not dancing –
“Why aren’t you dancing? What part of the word dance do you not
understand?”
CLEAN
VERSION: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bQPS0aZLUs
- After a few seconds, stop
the music. Tell them, all kidding aside, how is this like some things we
do in our classrooms? (example: “independent” practice after showing 1
problem. How is it like some things
we are expected to implement in the school? (example: “You will administer
DRA’s. Here’s an instructional book. Go do it.”)
- Tell them, “The Cat Daddy!
You know! The one where you look like you’re kind of moving in a
wheelchair!” and show them what it looks like briefly. Turn on the music
again. A few more should join in, but not many. Stop the music again.
- Write down directions. Read
them out loud and have them stand back up and try again.
- · Sit as if you are sitting in a wheelchair
- · Use your arms as if you are rolling yourself in the wheelchair
- · Bounce to the music while in this position
- Start music again. Comment
on how many more are doing the Cat Daddy, but how you still see some not
doing it or doing it wrong. Discuss how this is like a “sit and get”
professional development. I’ve been given directions, but they don’t
necessarily apply to me and aren’t very clear.
- Give more details on how to
do the Cat Daddy by going over each direction with a “think aloud”
- Sit as if you are sitting
in a wheelchair (think aloud: I know that it’s a lot like sitting in a
chair, but maybe lower)
- Use your arms as if you are
rolling yourself in the wheelchair (model by moving your arms and think
aloud: I know that the wheels are really big, so I need to move my arms
big
- Bounce to the music while
in this position (think aloud: well, I can do that! I can bounce!)
Show video of a hip hop instructor doing the Cat Daddy:
- Start music again. Walk
around and help people individually. Comment on how almost everyone is
doing the Cat Daddy better! Ask how this was different – modeling,
thinking aloud with personal experience (this would be like field testing
at our school), and receiving help throughout the process. This is What
TAP professional development is! Strategies are field tested, modeled, and
coached. It is not a “sit and get”!
**Depending
on the age/needs of your group, this process can also be completed easily with:
The
Wobble (only for an older crowd as this is a fairly new song):
Song:
How To:
The
Tootsie Roll:
Song:
How To:
What's the Deal With This Data Wall?
In a TAP school, the Master Teacher should have a data wall. This should show the data of the school – where it has been, where it is now, and where it is going based on the school goal developed by the Leadership Team. The important part to remember about the data wall is that it should be used to administer professional development.
Data Wall Examples (click on the pictures to take you to an explanation of the wall):
For Reading Levels:
In a TAP school, the Master Teacher should have a data wall. This should show the data of the school – where it has been, where it is now, and where it is going based on the school goal developed by the Leadership Team. The important part to remember about the data wall is that it should be used to administer professional development.
Data Wall Examples (click on the pictures to take you to an explanation of the wall):
For Struggling Schools:
No Link – This is based off MAP scores for each grade level:
No Explanation Link – Each kid’s name is on the leg. The color dot
correlates to their first score on MAP.
They move up the ladder throughout the year, so the dot color
correlated to their place on the “game board” shows growth.
Edmodo
Edmodo can be used as a resource for teachers after Cluster
meetings.
The Master Teacher can post Cluster powerpoints, handouts,
and any other resources which may be beneficial for teachers on the site and it
is only accessible to people in the group who have joined the page with a code.
Surveys can be taken on the site as well as quizzes. Collaboration can also
take place online as the forum is set up like a facebook page.
A screenshot
of edmodo is found below. The link to edmodo is : http://www.edmodo.com
Domain 2 Wrap-Up
Answer the reflection questions on this page:
Answer the reflection questions on this page:
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