Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a) Early
Childhood-Grade 6 pedagogy and professional responsibilities (PPR) standards.
The PPR standards identified in this section are targeted for classroom
teachers of students in Early Childhood-Grade 6. The standards address the
discipline that deals with the theory and practice of teaching to inform
skill-based training and development. The standards inform proper teaching
techniques, strategies, teacher actions, teacher judgements, and decisions by
taking into consideration theories of learning, understandings of students and
their needs, and the backgrounds and interests of individual students. The
standards are also aligned with the Commissioner's Teacher Standards in 19 TAC
Chapter 149 of this title (relating to Commissioner's Rules Concerning Educator
Standards).
(b) Instructional
Planning and Delivery. Early Childhood-Grade 6 classroom teachers demonstrate
understanding of instructional planning and delivery by providing
standards-based, data-driven, differentiated instruction that engages students
and makes learning relevant for today's learners. Early Childhood-Grade 6
classroom teachers must:
(1) develop lessons
that build coherently toward objectives based on course content, curriculum
scope and sequence, and expected student outcomes;
(2) effectively communicate goals,
expectations, and objectives to help all students reach high levels of
achievement;
(3) connect students'
prior understanding and real-world experiences to new content and contexts,
maximizing learning opportunities;
(4) plan instruction that is developmentally
appropriate, is standards driven, and motivates students to learn;
(5) use a range of instructional strategies,
appropriate to the content area, to make subject matter accessible to all
students;
(6) differentiate
instruction, aligning methods and techniques to diverse student needs,
including acceleration, remediation, and implementation of individual education
plans;
(7) plan student groupings,
including pairings and individualized and small-group instruction, to
facilitate student learning;
(8)
integrate the use of oral, written, graphic, kinesthetic, and/or tactile
methods to teach key concepts;
(9)
ensure that the learning environment features a high degree of student
engagement by facilitating discussion and student-centered activities as well
as leading direct instruction;
(10)
encourage all students to overcome obstacles and remain persistent in the face
of challenges, providing them with support in achieving their goals;
(11) set high expectations and create
challenging learning experiences for students, encouraging them to apply
disciplinary and cross-disciplinary knowledge to real-world problems;
(12) provide opportunities for students to
engage in individual and collaborative critical thinking and problem
solving;
(13) monitor and assess
students' progress to ensure that their lessons meet students' needs;
(14) provide immediate feedback to students
in order to reinforce their learning and ensure that they understand key
concepts; and
(15) adjust content
delivery in response to student progress through the use of developmentally
appropriate strategies that maximize student engagement.
(c) Knowledge of Student and Student
Learning. Early Childhood-Grade 6 classroom teachers work to ensure high levels
of learning, social-emotional development, and achievement outcomes for all
students, taking into consideration each student's educational and
developmental backgrounds and focusing on each student's needs. Early
Childhood-Grade 6 classroom teachers must:
(1)
create a community of learners in an inclusive environment that views
differences in learning and background as educational assets;
(2) connect learning, content, and
expectations to students' prior knowledge, life experiences, and interests in
meaningful contexts;
(3) understand
the unique qualities of students with exceptional needs, including disabilities
and giftedness, and know how to effectively address these needs through
instructional strategies and resources;
(4) understand the role of language and
culture in learning and know how to modify their practice to support language
acquisition so that language is comprehensible and instruction is fully
accessible;
(5) understand how
learning occurs and how learners develop, construct meaning, and acquire
knowledge and skills; and
(6)
identify readiness for learning and understand how development in one area may
affect students' performance in other areas.
(d) Content Knowledge and Expertise. Early
Childhood-Grade 6 classroom teachers exhibit an understanding of content,
discipline, and related pedagogy as demonstrated through the quality of the
design and execution of lessons and the ability to match objectives and
activities to relevant state standards. Early Childhood-Grade 6 classroom
teachers must:
(1) have expertise in how their
content vertically and horizontally aligns with the grade-level/subject area
continuum, leading to an integrated curriculum across grade levels and content
areas;
(2) identify gaps in
students' knowledge of subject matter and communicate with their leaders and
colleagues to ensure that these gaps are adequately addressed across grade
levels and subject areas;
(3) keep
current with developments, new content, new approaches, and changing methods of
instructional delivery within their discipline;
(4) organize curriculum to facilitate student
understanding of the subject matter;
(5) understand, actively anticipate, and
adapt instruction to address common misunderstandings and
preconceptions;
(6) promote
literacy and the academic language within the discipline and make
discipline-specific language accessible to all learners;
(7) teach both the key content knowledge and
the key skills of the discipline; and
(8) make appropriate and authentic
connections across disciplines, subjects, and students' real world
experiences.
(e)
Learning Environment. Early Childhood-Grade 6 classroom teachers interact with
students in respectful ways at all times, maintaining a physically and
emotionally safe, supportive learning environment that is characterized by
efficient and effective routines, clear expectations for student behavior, and
organization that maximizes student learning. Early Childhood-Grade 6 classroom
teachers must:
(1) embrace students'
backgrounds and experiences as an asset in their learning;
(2) maintain and facilitate respectful,
supportive, positive, and productive interactions with and among
students;
(3) establish and sustain
learning environments that are developmentally appropriate and respond to
students' needs, strengths, and personal experiences;
(4) create a physical classroom set-up that
is flexible and accommodates the different learning needs of
students;
(5) implement behavior
management systems to maintain an environment where all students can learn
effectively;
(6) maintain a culture
that is based on high expectations for student performance and encourages
students to be self-motivated, taking responsibility for their own
learning;
(7) maximize
instructional time, including managing transitions;
(8) manage and facilitate groupings in order
to maximize student collaboration, participation, and achievement;
and
(9) communicate regularly,
clearly, and appropriately with parents and families about student progress,
providing detailed and constructive feedback and partnering with families in
furthering their students' achievement goals.
(f) Data-Driven Practices. Early
Childhood-Grade 6 classroom teachers use formal and informal methods to assess
student growth aligned to instructional goals and course objectives and
regularly review and analyze multiple sources of data to measure student
progress and adjust instructional strategies and content delivery as needed.
Early Childhood-Grade 6 classroom teachers must:
(1) gauge student progress and ensure mastery
of content knowledge and skills by providing assessments aligned to
instructional objectives and outcomes that are accurate measures of student
learning;
(2) analyze and review
data in a timely, thorough, accurate, and appropriate manner, both individually
and with colleagues, to monitor student learning; and
(3) design instruction, change strategies,
and differentiate their teaching practices to improve student learning based on
assessment outcomes.
(g)
Professional Practices and Responsibilities. Early Childhood-Grade 6 classroom
teachers consistently hold themselves to a high standard for individual
development, collaborate with other educational professionals, communicate
regularly with stakeholders, maintain professional relationships, comply with
all campus and school district policies, and conduct themselves ethically and
with integrity. Early Childhood-Grade 6 classroom teachers must:
(1) reflect on their own strengths and
professional learning needs, using this information to develop action plans for
improvement;
(2) seek out feedback
from supervisor, coaches, and peers and take advantage of opportunities for
job-embedded professional development;
(3) adhere to the educators' code of ethics
in §
247.2
of this title (relating to Code of Ethics and Standard Practices for Texas
Educators), including following policies and procedures at their specific
school placement(s);
(4)
communicate consistently, clearly, and respectfully with all members of the
campus community, administrators, and staff; and
(5) serve as advocates for their students,
focusing attention on students' needs and concerns and maintaining thorough and
accurate student records.
