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Due to copyright law, several readings cannot be hosted on this site. However, we encourage you to ask for assistance locating materials from your library media specialist. Many library services are freely available to educators.

Danielson’s Framework for Teaching

Danielson highlights her Framework for Teaching which is a research-based set of instructional components that mentors can use to help guide new teacher learning. This assessment tool can be used by mentors to engage beginning teachers in conversation about their practice. Danielson incorporates videos in which she explains her Framework here. It’s an interesting and captivating resource that gives specific advice about how to guide new teachers to self-evaluate. This will be very helpful for the “Give it a Try!” activity in this lesson.

Danielson, Charlotte. (2009) A framework for learning to teach. Educational Leadership. Vol #66.

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NOTE: Required reading

The Uniqueness of Adult Learning

In this article, Knowles discusses his theory of Andragogy (teaching adults) and emphasizes specific assumptions research tells us about adult learners. While Knowles theory changed a bit over the years, the essential elements remained intact. The most important points are that adult learners:

1. Adults are often self-directed learners. They seek knowledge or, if knowledge is presented to them, they need to know why it is important and relevant. Knowing this, a facilitator of adult learning can help adults organize their own goals for learning and help adults understand how new concepts might connect to their goals.

2. Adults are experienced. They have plenty of formal and informal learning experienced and bring that to any new learning situation. Adults—especially experts—are sometimes resistant to learning new concepts or skills simply because their knowledge and skills are so deeply learned. Also, adults’ experiences need to be taken into account when new learning is presented. Knowing this, a facilitator of adult learning can help adults make explicit their prior experiences and help adults map those experiences to new learning.

3. Adults can be responsible for self-directing their learning. Many adults like to be involved in planning their learning, including goal-setting and evaluating their own learning. Knowing this, a facilitator of adult learning can help to organize a goal-oriented plan that the adult can be responsible for.

4. Adults, like learners of any age, appreciate direct relevance between what they’re learning and what they need to improve their everyday interactions. The more adults see a connection between what’s being learned and what will help them be more successful as professionals. Knowing this, a facilitator of adult learning can demonstrate the immediate value of what’s being learned.

5. Adult learners usually respond to problem-centered learning. In other words, adults benefit from learning that is in response to mistakes or issues that arise. Knowing this, a facilitator of adult learning can help adults identify issues or problems and act as a guide to problem-solving.

6. Adults are often motivated because of internal motivation. Adults seek learning to solve their problems and feed their interests. Knowing this, a facilitator of adult learning can act as a resource and organizer rather than a lecturer.

Knowles, Malcolm (1973). The Adult Learner: A neglected species. Gulf Publishing: Houston.

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What You Need to Know About Adult Learning and Teacher Development

Studies about adult learning development center around two themes. The first area of study looks at how adults develop their thinking processes, concept information and ego development. For example, as adults, they generally reveal an improvement in their ability to relate new information to old and to make comparisons between themselves and others. The second area focuses on transitions through the life cycle and their impact on adults as they move through them. For example, adults generally move thorough a life span that begins with initial feelings of omnipotence, gradually shifts to stages of greater reflection and reordering of reality, and finally moves to consolidation and acceptance of life.

Glickman (1990) tells us that young adults (20-35) are usually characterized by limited experiences, simple standards of reasoning about concepts, egocentricity, and dependence on authority during a time of unlimited aspirations and feelings of power. The middle-aged adult (35-55) has acquired a vast array of experiences, has developed the ability to draw relationships between self and others, and possesses an awareness of his or her strengths and weaknesses. This stage includes a time of reexamination of one’s abilities and a revision of priorities. Finally, the older adult (55 and older) has had numerous experiences, can understand more easily the situations of others, and can make decisions that take into account more of the total situation. At this time in life, the older adult accepts him or herself and focuses on those activities that are most important.

Glickman (1990) provides us with an instructive discussion about the impact of conceptual development and transitions of teachers as it relates to teacher development. He contends that, similar to the general adult population, the majority of teachers appear to be operating at relatively moderate to low stages of conceptual development. This means that thought is viewed as absolute and concrete with a high dependence on authority. This would be acceptable if teaching was a simple activity and required a limited need for decision making. However, we know a teacher faces more than 100 students of varying backgrounds and ability levels and must make hundreds of decisions on a daily basis. “Concrete, rigid thinking on the part of the teacher cannot possibly improve instruction…Teacher improvement can only come from abstract, multi-informational thought that can generate new responses toward new situations” (p. 54).

So what does all this mean as far as mentoring a novice? It means that part of the mentoring process is designing the teaching experience so that it fosters ways to improve thinking by asking them to think “abstractly and act autonomously.” It does not mean making the teaching situation less complex by disregarding differences among students, by establishing routines and instructional practices that remain the same day after day and year after year, and by omitting time to reflect on practice to explore more ways for teaching students (Glickman, 1990). Thinking improves when teachers interact with one another, when they experiment with novel teaching strategies, when they involve themselves in peer coaching at work, and when they assess and revise their actions. Schools traditionally have not been places where teachers have been supported in ways to improve their thinking, according to Glickman.

We know novices are concerned about survival. We understand this perspective because of their place in the life cycle. As a rule, young teachers have limited experiences to identify with and want very much to be successful. We can help to reduce fears and failures and to increase their feelings of security by sequencing their experiences from simple to more complex, giving timely feedback, and probing their thought processes to ensure the development of reflective thinking skills.

Denmark ,V. & Podsen, I. (2002) Promoting collaborative learning. Coaching and mentoring first year and student teachers (pp. 64-66). Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education

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The Professional Teaching Standards

Originally created in 2004 for California schools, these standards are used throughout the nation by districts and states. They lay out expectations for six areas of professional development that will endure across a teacher’s career. This two-page document summarizes the guiding questions that teachers can ask themselves as they consider their own professional development plan.

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