Danielson’s Framework for Teaching: An Overview

Danielson’s Framework for Teaching: An Overview DOMAIN 1 EDU 325 Practicum I

Framework Domains • Has 22 components organized into 4 domains • The four domains are: • Planning and preparation • The classroom environment • Instruction • Professional responsibilities

Domain 1 – Planning and Preparation • Describes the work involved in transforming the curriculum so that it is appropriate to diverse learners. • Focuses on how teachers use their understanding of students and subject matter to decide on learning goals. • Concerned with how the teacher thinks about the content to be taught and organizes instruction to benefit the students.

Domain 1has 6 components • 1a: Demonstrating knowledge of content and pedagogy • 1b: Demonstrating knowledge of students • 1c: Setting instructional outcomes • 1d: Demonstrating knowledge of resources • 1e: Designing coherent instruction • 1f: Designing student assessments

Component 1a: Demonstrating knowledge of content and pedagogy • Content covers concepts, principles, relationships, methods of inquiry, as well as skills in analyzing, comparing, and identifying connections between the facts and concepts within the discipline and with other disciplines. • “A person cannot teach what he or she does not know.” • Every discipline has its own pedagogy or approach to instruction.

Elements of 1a • Knowledge of content and the structure of the discipline • Knowledge of prerequisite relationships • Knowledge of content-related pedagogy

Demonstrating proficiency • Teacher displays solid knowledge of the important concepts in the discipline and how these relate to one another. • Teacher’s plans and practice reflect accurate understanding of prerequisite relationships among topics and concepts. • Teacher’s plans and practice reflect familiarity with a wide range of effective pedagogical approaches in the discipline.

Component 1b: Demonstrating knowledge of students • Each age group has distinctive intellectual, social, and emotional characteristics. • Students build their understanding of new concepts based on what they already know based on prior knowledge and experiences. • Students bring out-of-school knowledge, misunderstandings, and opinions with them. • Students’ social and cultural perspectives influence how they interpret events, participate in learning activities, and absorb new information.

Elements of 1b • Knowledge of child and adolescent development • Knowledge of the learning process • Knowledge of students’ skills, knowledge, and language proficiency • Knowledge of students’ interests and cultural heritage • Knowledge of students’ special needs

Demonstrating proficiency • Displays accurate understanding of typical developmental characteristics of the age group, as well as exceptions to the general patterns. • Knowledge of how students learn is accurate and current, and is applied to the whole class and to groups of students. • Recognizes the value of understanding students’ skills, knowledge, and language proficiency. • Recognizes the value of understanding students’ interests and cultural heritage. • Is aware of students’ special needs.

Understanding Students Means Learning about MASLOW

K-W-L Chart • Can be used with any content area to start students thinking about what they KNOW about a topic, what they WANT TO KNOW about that topic, and what they have LEARNED at the end of the unit. • Can be adapted for research by adding a column between the W and the L that requires students to think about HOW they will use resources to find the answers to their questions. Then it is a KWHL chart. (How I will find out.) • Can be used as an assessment for learning because a teacher can quickly tell what students already know and understand about a topic.

KWL Example

Strategies • Gather information on students' background and experiences from files, permanent records, and IEPs. • Communicate with parents or guardians to gather relevant background information. • Communicate with previous teachers and support staff to gather relevant background information. • Observe students in home environment (e.g., during home visits) to gather relevant cultural information. • Interview students to become familiar with students' background experiences.

Component 1c: Setting instructional outcomes • Teaching is purposeful – designed to achieve well-defined goals. • Teachers are responsible for instructional outcomes (objectives) whether they establish them or lead the students to determine them. • Outcomes must take into account the district’s curriculum, requirements of external mandates such as testing, and community expectations. • Outcomes must represent higher-level learning.

Component 1c: Setting instructional outcomes • Outcomes must be stated in terms of what students will learn rather than what they will do. • Outcomes may deal with knowledge & understanding, high-level thinking and analysis, communication & social skills, dispositions (perseverance, open-mindedness, etc.), and values. • Outcomes must be appropriate to the diverse students in the class. • Attention should be given to building connections to other disciplines.

Elements of 1c • Value, sequence, and alignment • Clarity • Balance • Suitability for diverse learners

Demonstrating proficiency • All outcomes demonstrate high expectations (rigor) and important learning in the discipline AND are connected to past and future learning in the target discipline and other disciplines. • Outcomes are clear, focuses on what students will learn (rather than what they will do), and allow for assessment. • Outcomes reflect several different types of learning and opportunities for coordination and integration. • Outcomes take into consideration the varying needs of individuals or groups.

Strategies • Identify what students should learn as a consequence of exposure to the content • Refer to knowledge to be acquired—concepts, facts, or principles • Address other kinds of learning: values, thinking skills, social skills, performance skills, behavioral goals • Articulate how students’ actions, attitudes, knowledge, and/or skills will be modified or enhanced by the lesson • Explain why the goals are appropriate to the particular group of students OR show that goals have been differentiated based on student needs.

Characteristics of learning outcomes or goals • They use verbs that indicate how the student work can be observed. • They focus on what the student should learn, not what the instructor teaches. • They reflect what students should be able to do after a course or lesson ends, not simply what they do during the course. • They usually can be assessed in more than one way. • They can be understood by someone outside the discipline. • Learning objectives specify both an observable behavior and the object of that behavior.

Writing Learning Goals • Note that the verb you choose will help you focus on what you assess. • A more specific verb is easier to assess than a broader example. • For very specific help on what types of verbs to use, turn to Bloom’s Taxonomy (see handout).

Bloom’s Taxonomy • Bloom identified six levels within the cognitive domain, from the simple recall or recognition of facts as the lowest level, through increasingly more complex and abstract mental levels, to the highest order which is classified as evaluation.

Bloom’s Taxonomy

Component 1d: Demonstrating knowledge of resources • Resources are found both inside and outside the classroom and include human resources (the students themselves, parents, other teachers, members of the community, etc.) • Resources include materials that students may investigate on their own (supplemental reading, Web sites, library resources, etc.) • Teachers may utilize their own learning (additional coursework, professional development opportunities, etc.) to provide resources for the classroom.

Elements of 1d • Resources for classroom use • Resources to extend content knowledge and pedagogy • Resources for students

Demonstrating proficiency • Teacher’s knowledge of available resources for the classroom is extensive (school/district, community, professional organizations, universities, Internet, etc.) • Teacher demonstrates extensive knowledge of resources for enhancing content and pedagogical knowledge. • Knowledge of resources for students is extensive

Component 1e: Designing coherent instruction • The teacher is responsible for organizing the environment, managing the learning process, and establishing the framework for investigations. • Coherence is critical in instructional design. All elements hang together and are sequenced logically. • There must be balance between care in planning and flexibility in execution. • Activities should be designed with this question in mind: what could the students do in order to learn the intended lesson content? • Activities should create opportunities for students of varying skill and knowledge.

Characteristics of Activities & Assignments that Promote Learning • Emphasize thinking and problem-based learning • Constructivist activities/assignments require students to solve a problem or answer an important question. • Permit student choice and initiative • Student engagement is at its highest level when students formulate their own questions and investigations. • Encourage depth of learning rather than breadth. • Well-designed activities and assignments challenge students to search for causes, explain their thinking, justify a position, etc.

Elements of 1e • Learning activities • Instructional resources and materials • Instructional groups • Lesson and unit structure

Demonstrating proficiency • Learning activities are suitable to diverse learners, support the learning outcome(s), are designed to encourage high-level cognitive activity, and are differentiated for individual learners. • Materials and resources are suitable to students, support the instructional outcomes, and are designed to engage students in meaningful learning. • Instructional groups are appropriate to the students and the instructional outcomes. • Lesson has a clearly defined structure with reasonable time allocations.

Strategies • Vary activities so that the work does not become tedious. • Vary approaches so that all students have access to methods suitable to their learning needs. • Select materials and resources that clearly support the intended learning outcomes. • If instructional grouping is part of the plan, organize the groups with the learning outcome(s) in mind. • Give careful consideration to the time necessary for each aspect of the lesson. • Make certain that activities connect to one another and to the learning outcome(s).

Component 1f: Designing student assessments • Assessment has two related uses: • Assessment of learning – have the students achieved the planned instructional outcomes? (summative evaluation) • Assessment for learning – how can results from assessments guide future teaching and learning? (formative evaluation) • Each planned learning outcome should be accompanied by a strategy for assessing student success.

Assessments can take many forms: • Teacher made tests • Student portfolios or work sampling • Chapter tests from a book • Observation • Self evaluation • Peer Evaluation Whatever the strategy, assessment should be systematic and provide the teacher with useful information about the extent to which the instructional goals have been met.

Elements of 1f • Congruence with instructional outcomes • Criteria and standards • Design of formative assessments • Use for planning

Demonstrating proficiency • Planned assessments are aligned with instructional outcomes and have been adapted for groups or individuals as needed. • Assessment criteria and standards are clear. • Teacher has a well-developed strategy for using formative assessment. • Plans include a strategy for using assessment results to plan for future instruction for groups or individuals.

Strategies • Make certain that each instructional outcome (objective) can be assessed in some way. • Select a method that is appropriate for the type of learning required. • Use authentic, real-world assessments when possible. • Be clear about how student work will be evaluated. • Inform students about the type of items and the content to be covered. • Analyze results in order to diagnose what the students have and have not learned so that you can plan future instruction.

Danielson’s Framework for Teaching: An Overview