Power to the Profession!
Powerful words from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), right? NAEYC describes their initiative as: "a national collaboration to define the early childhood profession by establishing a unifying framework for career pathways, knowledge, and competencies, qualifications, standards, and compensation."
At Teachstone, we spend a lot of time thinking about what these words mean to us as an organization, and specifically to our mission of making sure every child has access to life-changing teachers. By supporting and empowering teachers, we work towards our goal of supporting and empowering children.
So we’re curious - what do you think about when you hear “Power to the Profession?” What should happen to make sure teachers are confident… valued…. skilled… rewarded? What matters most in the process of empowering life-changing teachers?
One thing we know for sure matters is effective professional development for teachers. To understand the key ingredients of powerful PD, we turn to experts in the field, like Linda Darling-Hammond and colleagues at Standford and the Learning Policy Institute, who describe how effective PD includes:
These principles drive the development of all of our tools and methodologies at Teachstone. To support life-changing teachers, we do our best to make sure our materials are reliable, engaging, trustworthy, and grounded in best practices.
That’s step 1.
The next step is the incredibly difficult process of adapting tools and methods to unique contexts and stages of teacher development. We all know you can’t just plop a coaching model onto an existing system without a lot of careful thought about how to leverage and protect internal resources to make the model work. Planning matters. Context matters. And teacher stage of development matters - what works with teachers who have been in the field for years, won’t work as well for teachers who are brand new to the classroom.
One partner we follow closely in this space is Deans for Impact, which is a group that is committed to bringing power to the newest professionals. Lead teacher preparation programs across the country collaborate to share and grow research-based tools and resources to ensure more teachers are consistently ready for the classroom on day 1.
To achieve their mission that “every child deserves a well-prepared teacher,” Deans for Impact:
This year’s InterAct theme in Nashville next week gets right at the heart of these core issues:
How do we together build, nurture, and sustain a talented workforce that has the power to make a difference in children’s lives?
A few of the related sessions we’re looking forward to exchanging ideas with you include:
You’ll also get a chance to learn more about our new release, CDA Renewal with CLASS which is now open for enrollment! This is the only CDA program that is based on a CLASS lens, and focused on skills and strategies that boost interactions, the most critical component of teaching quality.
Can’t join us at Interact this year? We’ll miss you but know that this theme is going to carry through our work in many different ways via webinars, blogs, and other professional resources. The best way to contribute to this important - and ongoing - conversation is by joining the CLASS Learning Community. There you can connect, ask questions, access resources, attend events, and highlight your credentials. You’ll also find links to recordings of various sessions and keynotes held in Nashville. We look forward to interacting with you online!
Whether you are writing your transition plan, preparing to return, or have already returned to in-person learning, you, like many other educational leaders, are likely facing many challenges and unknowns.
As you continue to craft and refine your plans, reflecting on the considerations below can help you more effectively build a blueprint for a successful reopening.
The dysfunctional design flaw that separates systems of caregiving (childcare) from systems of education (public schools), has been laid bare during the pandemic. For instance, rather than experiencing even hybrid moments of normalcy, most children started the school year virtually, because teachers with young children took permissible and understandable leaves to care for their families. Let’s be clear, the lack of teaching staff has contributed to a deficit of meaningful interactions for this country’s children.
In today’s world, there isn’t much technology can’t do. It can help you stay connected to family and friends, keep you on track to achieving your fitness goals, and can even adjust your thermostat while you’re away from home.
And now, with myTeachstone, it can promote positive child-outcomes through facilitating on-going, meaningful, and continuous improvement efforts.
As a CDA with CLASS facilitator, I now recognize that CLASS also helps us think about how we can be present and responsive in supporting the curiosity, engagement, and persistence of adult learners.
I am blessed to be able to support CDA learners, many of whom are returning to formal education for the first time in many years. Some of these learners come from previous educational experiences that were not supportive, that left them feeling that they weren’t good at school or weren’t competent students. But with the right support, these learners can grow their persistence as well as their sense of competence and confidence.