Excerpt
Beginning with the first edition of this book, we have aspired to make it much more than an academic textbook. Our goal has always been to inspire and encourage teachers to become as reflective, creative, and independent as possible throughout their teaching careers. We have tried to achieve this goal by searching out the most creative and adventurous teachers we could find and weaving their real-life stories into the text.
At this time in history, we recognize that creativity and independence do not appear to be as highly valued as being able to follow guidelines and meet standards. We struggled with how to balance the reality of today's rather uniform educational expectations with our message that true satisfaction in teaching comes from being a caring and creative artist in the classroom.
At first, this edition seemed like it was going to be difficult to write. But, as we began to collect the stories of teachers who are not only coping in a standards-based environment but also excelling at it, we became much more positive. So, we are happy to be able to offer this edition with what we believe is a balanced description of the realities of a standards-based curriculum with the truly exhilarating stories of teachers who see these standards not as a goal but as a baseline.
Our new aspiration is to inspire teachers to view federal, state, and local standards as meaningful and important, but not the end goal of teaching. We provide the stories of real teachers who begin with standards and then exceed them by creating highly original and creative curricula that take into account and meet the diverse needs of their students. This edition provides you with the knowledge base you need to become highly professional and creative teachers who meet and exceed standards with confidence.
New Features of This Edition
To accomplish our new aspiration, we have revised this edition to emphasize these new features:
- A new, updated Reflective Action in Teaching Model is introduced in Chapter 1 that takes into account the need to plan with standards in mind. Teachers can learn how to become more reflective and proactive in the thousands of decisions they face every day.
- New chapter endings called Reflective Action Experiences for Your Professional Portfolio provide simulated experiences and reflective essays that are drawn from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) requirements. After completing these simulated activities, we believe that many teachers will have the confidence and experience they need to attain this important credential.
- For those who are searching for materials to meet the Praxis II "Principles of Learning and Teaching" exam, you will find that we have highlighted the materials that illustrate Praxis-related topics. Look for the Praxis Notes in all chapters.
- Many new Reflective Action Stories model how teachers create school curricula and programs, select teaching strategies, and plan appropriate assessments for their students that achieve the standards of their school districts. These real-life examples of teachers' reflections can serve as models for beginning teachers to think and act with creativity and originality. They can be found in Chapters 2, 9, 10, and 11.