Just as assessment is an ongoing process, observation should be as well. Watching one's students on a daily basis should be the best guide for what's next to come. For example, if one student in the back seems to finish work early and disturb others, maybe he or she needs to be challenged more (the observation). Therefore, you, as the teacher, as that student to assist a struggling student in the classroom (the response). I observe my PDS teacher responding a lot by childrens' ability levels. They are grouped by ability when it comes to stations and she judges her planning and teaching around what their current needs are.
Responsive teaching isn't limited to behavior problems, though. Responsive teachers tend to teach with a learner- or student-centered approach rather than a cut and dry direct scheduled instruction. Students needs are rarely consistent; they may vary by day or by content area being taught. The teacher willing to go the extra mile and respond to whatever that need may be will most likely make the biggest impression. Honestly, it's a quality we should all desire to possess by the time we are in classrooms of our own.
I agree with everything that you said. From my 460 and 312 classes this week I learned how important constant note taking and observation can be. It is important that all of the notes that you take about your students are kept in some sort of file so then you can reference them whenever you need to. I think that the most challenging part of observation will be making sure that I get a chance to observe all of my students and that the notes that I take are adequate enough that I can learn from them. I believe that once you get organized and get a system in place for observation that this process will become seemless and second nature.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree that responsive teaching is a skill that all students going into teaching should be familiar with and learn how to do. My teacher that I am observing now seems to be doing a great job already as being a responsive teacher. In our class we have some students with special needs and he is doing a fantastic time making sure that every student is satisfied and learning even with the few distractions that occur. He has a lot to deal with in the classroom, but in the end he respects all of his students and response well to their needs with differentiated instruction and changing up the lessons he creates. He gives himself time to observe the classroom as he teaches and he has already helped me to see how observations are important for when I have my own classroom. Once I graduate, I hope that I will get enough out of these education classes as well as my time spent at my PDS.
ReplyDeleteI think that becoming a responsive teacher is key to becoming a great teacher as well. In my PDS this semester I have observed my mentor teacher using multilevel learning centers. The students are placed in groups of their same learning ability. The centers are set up so that students who learn faster are challenged more, and so that the students who are struggling get more help and the attention they need to learn. So far this semester we have learned about several different ways to observe our students and the progress they are making. I hope that when I become a teacher I will be able to utilize these methods so that my students are able to gain the most from me. Hopefully this will take me one step closer to becoming a responsive teacher.
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