How to apply the ELCC Standards to your knowledge, skills and dispostion
What is the role of an educational leader in supporting a child who might fit the scenario in this comedy skit?
How would you support the student, the teacher and which standards suggest the role of the educational leader in the facilitation of a classroom situation similar to the description in this skit?
Cite the ELCC Standard, selected element(s) and why it was selected.
5 comments:
Here, Katt’s attitude towards his teacher can be seen as representative of all three types of student, existing on two complete opposite ends of the learner spectrum: the “regular” and special ed student, the gifted student (I’m actually a little iffy on where exactly the regular ed student would fall on the spectrum considering they’re a quite diverse learning group consisting of low “regular” students and high achieving “regular students. Clearly, the term “regular” is quite ambiguous). Regardless, all types of student can perceive a teacher in the same way as Katt did in his boyhood; however, their perceptions may differ based on varying degrees of competence, readiness, and preparedness. The regular ed. student, oftentimes, may react as Katt did because of where they may be cognitively; or, they may react that way simply because of lack of in-depth understanding of a concept, even if it is rudimentary spelling. However, the gifted student sometimes views himself as intellectually superior to most of their school-age peers, and sometimes even the teacher (teaching gifted kids is challenging. I have one gifted class I teach and there are a few who are a little too pompous for me). So either way, there’s a “Katt” within any given classroom. So now the question is, as a school leader, how do you deal with a situation similar to what Katt highlighted in his own experience?
To answer this question, we must first have an understanding of ELCC Standard 3 which states that educational leaders must be committed to, “providing an effective instructional program, applying the best practices to student learning, and designing comprehensive professional growth plans for staff.” As a school leader, I think practical staffdevelopment opportunities designed to help teachers deal with various types of issues that may arise in the classroom. We all know the teacher ed programs in undergrad do very little to prepare you for what you will most certainly have to deal with once you get in the classroom. At my school, we do countless hours of staff development on instructional strategies which is a great thing, but I also feel teacher development programs should focus on real-life case studies and discuss effective strategies to handle them.
For student support, several creative instructional programs should be implemented to provide the necessary academic support so that the slower students don’t fall behind, the “performing on grade-level” do not fall through the cracks, and the high flyers don’t get bored. These solutions include, but should not be limited to, early morning and after-school tutoring programs, peer mentorships, and teacher-incentives to give up planning time to teach remedial and/or enrichment courses. Student recognition and small reward for progress would demonstrate necessary academic support for students.
I hope I responded to the question(s) correctly…
The Kat William's skit on school is comedic representation of what takes place in classrooms every day. Teachers, at times, fail to recognize that learning styles will have some students fall between two extremes: figurative and literal. The figurative student tends to excel in reading while the literal student often does exceedingly well in math. The student Kat portrays as himself is one who is literal. An effective teacher will be able to identify which style a student possess and an effective leader will ensure that their educators would have adequate training to make this possible. This would be, for the leader an opportunity to embody ELCC Standard 3 because they would have to allocate resources to ensure their staff is adequately trained as well as ELCC Standard 2 since the training is to provide instructional effectiveness for the success of students. To maximize the staff development within a school, a school leader should possess knowledge of pedagogical practices. In strong schools, principals are not mere managers but instructional leaders. As they visit from class to class, they would observe the type of interactions demonstrated in the video and would use them as a springboard to develop their staff's capacity to deliver quality instruction.
The Significance of Understanding the Learner in the Organization
In the comedic skit, Katt William employs the method of realism. It is evident that the student Mr. Williams emulated possesses creative thinking skills. He questions the use of silent letters and realizes that some words are not spelled as they sound. Furthermore, he deducts basic mathematical reasoning but cannot conceptualize the use of variables in an algebraic expression.
Given the wide range background and interests of learners, it is imperative that educational leaders support students that are creative thinkers. I believe that is the responsibility of school leaders to assist teachers in developing essential skills that attribute to and maximize student achievement. It is mandated that 21st century leaders base their school vision on relevant knowledge and theories, including an understanding of learning goals in a pluralistic society, the diversity of learners and learner’s needs (ELCC Standard 1). Moreover, ELCC Standard 2.1 is cited and serve as a reference because it focus on developing a sustained approach to maintain a positive district culture for learning that capitalizes on multiple aspects of diversity to meet the learning needs for all students. It is their task to ensure that teachers value, commit, understand, and engage in activities that promote instructional planning that employ a variety of developmentally appropriate strategies. Critical thinking, problem solving and the performance skills of all learners are paramount to make sure academic growth does not become stagnant.
Katt Williams is a true comedian and practices realism every chance he gets. Katt talked about a student who was very smart and creative but lacked skills in math and the understanding that not all words are spelled as pronounced. Katt mentioned he hated his teacher, which we hear a lot from students. When this happens, the child shuts down and the learning that once occurred now has been cut off. An effective leader/teacher should accommodate all types of students despite how they learn. Creative thinkers are not be ignored but treated as all students who may not get it the first time around. For teachers, the goal should be to appropriately support the development of motivation so that there is a proper foundation for optimal educational growth. Teachers should be very cautious about the use of many extrinsic rewards, as this can severely interfere with the child's motivational development. When teachers are able to identify learning styles it makes it easier to work with all types of children. ELCC Standard 2 is cited and serves as a reference because it focus on developing a sustained approach to maintain a positive district culture for learning that capitalizes on multiple aspects of diversity to meet the learning needs for all students..
First of all, the teacher should support the student by moving forward to answer the students question concerning the silent letter. This may prevent initiation if the answer is unknown, but this cohort will be too responsible and advanced for such a standard violation to occur. The proper response could correct the misunderstanding and revalidate the previous instructions. If previous instruction are flawed the leader is responsible for correcting the misunderstanding, bringing clarity, and moving forward with additional knowledge as needed.
ELCC Standard 3 requires leadership to provide an effective program that applies the best practices for students learning. For example, best practices must be applied to a student that is failing to apply principles practically. This appears to be one of the many issues in the skit. The leader is also responsible for designing a fully encompassing professional plan of growth for the staff. A very wise person said that leaders that fail to create a complete plan for personal growth will fail to provide a growth plan for the organization. Future personal growth may spur the idea of assisting other with the same.
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