| "The teacher is the key agent of educational change; effective teaching is the cornerstone of educational reform." (Leadership Orientation and Training manual, New BTSA Directors' Academy, 2000-2001)
"The Board of Education believes that an important factor in student achievement is the quality of the teaching staff." (SMMUSD BP 4111)
"Teaching is so imprecise and maddeningly inexact." (Bill Ayers, CES Fall Forum,
2001)
What exactly is "quality" teaching? We know it's important, but the art of teaching is hard to explain to someone; it doesn't look the same from room to room, and the very notion of a cookie cutter way of doing things in a classroom seems to run contrary to a full, rich experience for students. We know it when we see it, but that's difficult to assess and difficult to explain to the powers that be.
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... Growth and self reflection are key ingredients to quality teaching; if teachers are not continuously learning, students are not either.
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Employers are most concerned with advanced literacy, the ability to problem-solve and communicate with colleagues, in the workplace. They also feel work habits, motivation, curiosity, respect, and teamwork are necessary skills that today's workers often lack. (Tony Wagner, CES Fall Forum, 2001) However, the emphasis in education today, generally imposed by legislators, not educators, is content knowledge. STAR and HSEE testing are key factors of student and school success, and the federal government is imposing more testing in its latest education bill as a way to hold schools "accountable." There is clearly a disconnect between what employers value and what schools "should" be teaching. We can infer that quality teaching would include fostering the skills needed for today's workplace, as well as helping children meet content standards.
This is no small task, but it is the task at hand and the stakes are high. We know that "effective teachers have a marked effect on student achievement" (The Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, "Teacher Quality", 97). Quality teaching seems to be at the core of the solution to the challenge of making a meaningful difference for all students, and especially struggling students. The testing wave seems to complicate rather than support the creation and sustenance of quality teachers.
There are some key ingredients to quality teaching. How the role of teacher is defined by teachers themselves plays a part: "Without an instilled sense of teaching as a profession rather than as a job, it is difficult to inspire the continued growth and self reflection that drives high-quality teaching" (The Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, "Teacher Quality"; 105). Embedded in this assumption is that growth and self reflection are key ingredients to quality teaching; if teachers are not continuously learning, students are not either.
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If there are numerable descriptions of good teachers, and if quality teachers are the keys to student success, what can be done to support and create these quality teachers?
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At Roosevelt Elementary School in Santa Monica, Glen Olsheim's fourth graders have their own ideas about what makes a quality teacher. Kyle says good teachers do not just talk to you about subjects, they "let you watch what you want to learn about" (see his illustration above). Peter has similar sentiments, stressing the importance of field trips, going out into the real world to learn (see his illustration below). Sarah says good teachers help you by balancing intense learning with a playful, party atmosphere. "It helps you learn better the next day."
Other students respond about their ideas of quality teachers by saying teachers need to be fun, challenging, provide quiet time for things like reading, support their overall health, or support free time activities like chess playing. These are just a few student ideas about quality teachers. We offered other thoughts from theorists and teachers earlier, and we have already discussed the research validating the importance of quality teachers. If there are numerable descriptions of good teachers, and if quality teachers are the keys to student success, what can be done to support and create these quality teachers?
On-going, job embedded professional development is one proven way to enhance teacher quality. It ensures that teachers learn and evolve continually. Teachers use relevant, classroom data and dynamics to examine their own practices. Greater than 90% of qualifying teachers across the state of California participate in CFASST, the California Formative Assessment System and Support for Teachers. This two-year process is a part of the state's Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment Program, BTSA. Teachers conduct inquiries into their own classrooms using the "Plan Teach, Reflect, Apply" (PTRA) cycle as a guiding model for their work.
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Statewide, 93% of the teachers who have had BTSA remain in the profession; 55% of those who did not have BTSA have left teaching.
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PTRA is a model that prevents teachers from getting stuck in a cycle of plan-plan or do-do without much reflection or meaningful action. As teachers participate in inquiries using this cycle, they: set goals, collect entry level information, plan curriculum, teach it, analyze student work, talk to colleagues about their findings, then find a way to start applying the new knowledge. Teacher retention rates are one indicator of the effectiveness of these two years of inquiry based on evidence. Statewide, 93% of the teachers who have had BTSA remain in the profession; 55% of those who did not have BTSA have left teaching.
Every BTSA participant works with a Support Provider, a colleague who engages in reflective conversations and who serves as a "vault" for all of these confidential, non-evaluative discussions. Support Providers and participants may plan curriculum together, team-teach specific lessons, conduct research, analyze assessment data, or address any other area for growth self-identified by the participant.
Part of what makes BTSA and CFASST appealing and successful is the relationship between the BTSA participant and the support provider. A BTSA participant will only grow and challenge her assumptions if she feels she is in a safe place. This relationship parallels the relationship between teacher and student. That relationship is the hardest piece of making quality teaching happen. If a teacher engages in PTRA and searches for ways to continually add to his store of knowledge to share with students, if he encourages collaboration among and exploration with his students, is that enough to create a quality teacher? (It certainly is a good start.)
There is a more intimate and most challenging piece, we believe, to quality teaching. bell hooks explains "that there is an aspect of our vocation that is sacred; . . . our work is not merely to share information but to share in the intellectual and spiritual growth of our students" (hook. Teaching to Transgress, 13). We can help shape a teacher’s mind, but we can’t get at her heart and soul. There remains the immeasurable piece of attachment to kids, caring about one’s colleagues, inspiration, and devotion to our students in our profession. Perhaps these most intangible and elusive qualities are the best definition of "quality" teaching.
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