Glossary
Cloze Procedures A reading comprehension activity in which words are omitted from a passage and students are required to fill in the blanks. This procedure is incredibly useful in reading instruction because it can be easily done by any teacher and provides valuable reading comprehension information.
Diagnostic Tests After screening, administered as often as needed. Identify specific strengths and weak areas in reading. Detailed profile of student’s reading to guide intervention.
Differentiated Instruction To differentiate instruction is to recognize students’ varying levels of
background knowledge, readiness to learn, language ability, learning
preferences, and interests, and to react responsively.
Differentiated instruction (DI) is based on the idea that because students differ significantly
in their strengths, interests, learning styles, and readiness to learn, it is necessary to adapt instruction to suit these differing characteristics. One or a number of the following elements can be
differentiated in any classroom learning situation (Tomlinson, 2004):
• the content of learning (what students are going to learn, and when);
• the process of learning (the types of tasks and activities);
• the products of learning (the ways in which students demonstrate learning);
• the affect/environment of learning (the context and environment in which students
learn and demonstrate learning).
Don Graves’ Challenges Researcher and visionary teacher Don Graves (2006) posited: adults should not attempt to teach children anything until they know at least ten things about each person. When you think about your students, are you seeing them as they would define themselves, or in the terms we often use to describe kids: struggling reader, low at math, hyper, talkative?
Challenge 1: Visualize a student and consider the ten things that you know about them. How easy or challenging might it be to do that for your entire roster? Next to each name, keep a running list of the ten things that they share with you about themselves (things that they have trusted you with).
Challenge 2: Try seeing and describing your students using only nouns and verbs. Make a three-column chart with “Students’ Names,” “Nouns,” and “Verbs” as the column headings.
The Ethical Standards for the Teaching Profession represent a vision of professional practice. At the heart of a strong and effective teaching profession is a commitment to students and their learning.
Care
The ethical standard of Care includes compassion, acceptance, interest and insight for developing students’ potential. Members express their commitment to students’ well-being and learning through positive influence, professional judgment and empathy in practice.
Respect
Intrinsic to the ethical standard of Respect are trust and fair-mindedness. Members honour human dignity, emotional wellness and cognitive development. In their professional practice, they model respect for spiritual and cultural values, social justice, confidentiality, freedom, democracy and the environment.
Trust
The ethical standard of Trust embodies fairness, openness and honesty. Members’ professional relationships with students, colleagues, parents, guardians and the public are based on trust.
Integrity
Honesty, reliability and moral action are embodied in the ethical standard of Integrity. Continual reflection assists members in exercising integrity in their professional commitments and responsibilities.
Formal Tests Standardized tests which set benchmarks and allow comparisons with a peer group for objective, precise results.
Global Competencies Our curriculuar transferable skills that are aligned with the six “global competencies” developed collaboratively by ministers of education across Canada on the basis of the competencies outlined in 21st Century Competencies: Foundation Document for Discussion (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2016). Ministers have endorsed the following six pan-Canadian global competencies:
- critical thinking and problem solving
- innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship
- learning to learn/self-awareness and self-direction
- collaboration
- communication
- global citizenship and sustainability
Harkness discussion is a collaboratibe learning method where students lead discussions about a topic while sitting aroudn a table with the teacher. The goal is to make learning more participatory and to empower students to take charge of their own learning.
Informal Tests Have more flexibility and options than formal tests, but no norms. They give a holistic view of strengths and weak areas.
Land Acknowledgement –
Multimodal Literacy Multimodal literacy is a process of generating meanings in transaction with multimodal texts, including written language, visual images, and design features, from a variety of perspectives to meet the requirements of particular social contexts (Serafini, 2014). Instructional approaches intended to develop students’ multimodal literacy should focus not only on an individual’s perceptual and cognitive abilities, they should also address how visual images and
multimodal texts function in broader sociocultural contexts, and how practices of looking inform our lives and identities (Sturken & Cartwright, 2001).
Multimodal Texts Multimodal texts are print-based and digital texts that utilize more than one mode or semiotic resource to represent meaning potentials, where mode is defined as a socioculturally shaped resource for meaning making (Kress, 2010). Photography, sculpture, painting, poetry, and mathematics are examples of different modes. Each mode adds to the complexity of a multimodal text and communicates in different ways through different material and semiotic resources. By its very nature and forms of publication, the contemporary picturebook is a multimodal text. The degree of complexity of these picturebooks grows as they are converted into digital texts and software applications.
Pedagogical Documentation Making learning visible to the learner by: listening, tracking and reflecting; and naming and noticing the capacities, competencies and achivements of your studnets. See: Don Grave’s challenges.
Professional Standards of Practice provide a framework of principles that describes the knowledge, skills, and values inherent in Ontario’s teaching profession. These standards articulate the goals and aspirations of the profession. These standards convey a collective vision of professionalism that guides the daily practices of members of the Ontario College of Teachers.
Commitment to Students and Student Learning
Members are dedicated in their care and commitment to students. They treat students equitably and with respect and are sensitive to factors that influence individual student learning. Members facilitate the development of students as contributing citizens of Canadian society.
Professional Knowledge
Members strive to be current in their professional knowledge and recognize its relationship to practice. They understand and reflect on student development, learning theory, pedagogy, curriculum, ethics, educational research and related policies and legislation to inform professional judgment in practice.
Professional Practice
Members apply professional knowledge and experience to promote student learning. They use appropriate pedagogy, assessment and evaluation, resources and technology in planning for and responding to the needs of individual students and learning communities. Members refine their professional practice through ongoing inquiry, dialogue and reflection.
Leadership in Learning Communities
Members promote and participate in the creation of collaborative, safe and supportive learning communities. They recognize their shared responsibilities and their leadership roles in order to facilitate student success. Members maintain and uphold the principles of the ethical standards in these learning communities.
Ongoing Professional Learning
Members recognize that a commitment to ongoing professional learning is integral to effective practice and to student learning. Professional practice and self-directed learning are informed by experience, research, collaboration and knowledge.
Progressive Monitoring Every 1-4 Weeks. Regular spot checks of student progress to measure growth, and to adjust instruction, and to see if intervention is working.
Scaffolding (instructional scaffolding) is a strategy that breaks down complex tasks into smaller, more manageable chunks, and provides the necesssary supports and guidacne to help studetns successfully engage in each of those chunks. Most important, any supports provided through instructional scaffodling are gradually removed as learners gain proficiency within the task and become more independent.
Summative Tests Check overall reading performance. Typically given at the end of a unit of study or end of school year. One tool to gauge program effectiveness.
Universal Screening 1-3 times per year. Given to all students in a class, grade or school to identify students with potential reading problems and children who need extra support.
ZPD (Zone of Proximal Development) is the area between what students can do on their own and wha tthey can achieve with the help of a teacher or more knowledgeable other.