What is your biggest take-away from the Brown et al. (2014) text Make It Stick? What is concept-based curriculum and how does it differ from skill-based or fact-based curriculum? What aspects of the concept-based curriculum model do you agree or disagree with?

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EDUC872-Discussion Thread: Concept-Based Instruction

Consider and address each of the following questions:

What is your biggest take-away from the Brown et al. (2014) text Make It Stick?
What is concept-based curriculum and how does it differ from skill-based or fact-based curriculum? What aspects of the concept-based curriculum model do you agree or disagree with?
In your opinion, did Jesus teach primarily through a conceptual or skill-based/factual lens and why?

Research a current statute in which the state legislature has made a decision that affects the differentiation needs of early childhood students. Write a letter to your legislative representative either for or against the statute, advocating for the differentiated needs of early childhood students.

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Benchmark – Advocating for Early Childhood Students

Requires Lopeswrite

Assessment Description
Policy and decision makers do not always understand the development and educational needs of young children. It is the job of the early childhood educator to advocate for the resources required to meet the needs of all students. Early childhood educators should be ready to provide the information policy and decision makers need to determine the value of differentiated early childhood education programs.

For this benchmark assignment, research a current statute in which the state legislature has made a decision that affects the differentiation needs of early childhood students. Then, write a letter to your legislative representative either for or against the statute, advocating for the differentiated needs of early childhood students.

Include:

Two or more of the theoretical concepts studied in this course to support your position.
How you identify the students’ readiness for learning in at least two developmental domains (cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and/or physical development).
How educational professionals, such as key researchers, speech pathologists, reading specialists, etc. collaborate to evaluate the outcomes of teaching and learning and to adapt and differentiate planning and practice for all students.
How differentiating instruction for young children can positively influence the developmental domains.

Support your letter with 3-5 scholarly references.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a rubric. Review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. A link to the LopesWrite Technical Support Articles is located in Class Resources if you need assistance.

Benchmark Information

This benchmark assignment assesses the following programmatic competencies and professional standards:

 

MEd Early Childhood Education ITL/NITL

3.6 Collaborate with other professionals, including those with specialized expertise, to evaluate the outcomes of teaching and learning and to adapt planning and practice. [NAEYC 4a; InTASC 7(e), 7(o), 9(c); MC2]

5.4 Engage in informed advocacy to optimize the learning opportunities for young children, strengthen the learning environment, and advance the early childhood profession. [NAEYC 6e; InTASC 10(j), 10(k), 10(l), 10(m), 10(o), 10(p), 10(s); MC4]

How can you create an environment to support the academic, social, and emotional growth of students?

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Skill Building

Assignment Directions:
In this assignment, you will synthesize your learning from Learning Cycle 1 of Skill Building Sessions, as well as your experiences at your Teaching academy by responding to the following prompt::

How can you create an environment to support the academic, social, and emotional growth of students?

In your reflection be sure to:
• Answer the Prompt: The answer to the prompt should articulate your vision of what a supportive classroom culture looks like. Please be sure to consider the impact of the teacher’s words, actions, and body language, as well as the student’s words, actions and body language, and how they interact in creating the classroom culture.

• You may also consider the norms, respect, and rapport that has already been established by the Collaborative Coach, and your approach to
Cite specific strategies and resources from SBS Pre-Work (and listed below) you have implemented in order to build relationships with your students at your respective Teaching Academy.
• Be sure to use tangible strategies from the research provided in the course readings.
• Be sure to explain how the strategies connect to what you have articulated in the prompt response.
Cite specific strategies and resources from SBS Pre-Work (and listed below) you have implemented to create and establish classroom norms and routines at your respective Teaching Academy.
• Be sure to explain how the strategies connect to what you have articulated in the prompt response.
• Also, explain how the norms/routines/structures you’ve chosen will be informed by the information you learn about your students through relationship-building.
Make connections to at least 2 of the following sources from the SBS curriculum: Please refer to a linked assignment description to view syllabus resources to cite.
• Properly cite your sources using MLA format or APA Format for in-text citations, and a works cited page.
Content and Format Directions:

• Your paper should be 2-3 double-spaced pages, in professional font, 10-12 point, using 1-inch margins.

Knowing that skills have to be taught over time, what are TWO self-determination skills that could be developed from early intervention (birth-3) into the elementary grade or age level? What are some barriers, causes, or regression of these skills?

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Discussion Post-

According to Sitlington and colleagues in chapter one (2010), self-determination is an important skill that must be taught while students with disabilities are in school. Knowing that skills have to be taught over time, what are TWO self-determination skills that could be developed from early intervention (birth-3) into the elementary grade or age level? What are some barriers, causes, or regression of these skills?

Review the Developing Myself pod norms document. Identify the 1 or 2 norms that are most important to you. Also, identify 1 or 2 norms that are not listed that you’d like your pod to consider.

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Course Title: Developing Myself

Assignment: Pod Norming:

Step One: Review the Developing Myself pod norms document.

Step Two: Identify the 1 or 2 norms that are most important to you. Also, identify 1 or 2 norms that are not listed that you’d like your pod to consider.

Step Three: Post a short video to share your thoughts about norms, including why they are important to you. Be sure to share:

The 1-2 established pod norms that are most important to you and why they are important, or
The 1-2 norms that you would like to propose your pod members add to the established norms and why they are important

What are the unique opportunities or challenges you experienced throughout your high school career that have shaped who you are today.

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High School hardships

What are the unique opportunities or challenges you experienced throughout your high school career that have shaped who you are today.

Utilize your readings from this week and your personal/professional experiences to apply knowledge learned of planning principles applicable for diverse learners and inclusive settings. Create a slideshow for this assignment.

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Planning and Designing for a Diverse Student Population

Utilize your readings from this week and your personal/professional experiences to apply knowledge learned of planning principles applicable for diverse learners and inclusive settings. You will need to create a slideshow for this assignment. For this slideshow, you must provide:
– Title Slide
– A brief overview of the principles of planning and designing for a diverse student population.
– Choose three of the instructional techniques below and define the technique.
1. Differentiated Instruction
2. Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
3. Compensatory teaching
4. Retrofitting
5. Backwards Design
– Explain how flexible classrooms and flexible grouping is used for inclusive environments.
– Explain environment-centered learning.
– Reference slide

Submit a slideshow of 6-7 slides in length, exclusive of the reference and title slides. Be sure to be creative to include graphics and pictures on each slide that relate to the content presented. All information should stay contained on the slide and not bleed off the sides. The slideshow must cite at least 2 of the readings for this unit and 2 outside sources in APA format and be well-formatted. Check all content for grammar and spelling, and be sure you have properly cited all resources used in APA format.

The files contain reading assignments as PDF files as well as the rubric.

These are the reading assignments if you want to obtain them on your own:

1. Bray, W. (2005). Supporting diverse learners: Teacher collaboration in an inclusive environment. Teaching Children Mathematics, 11(6), 324-329.
– This article reviews challenges to and methods to overcome obstacles to inclusive environments for diverse students. Flexible student grouping and academic learning choices for students are reviewed.

2. Flores, R.P., Monroy, G.V., Fabela, A.M.R. (2015). Compensatory policies attending equality and inequality in Mexico educational practice among vulnerable groups in higher education. Journal of Education and Learning, 4(4), 53-63. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1097791.pdf
– This resource presents a discussion of how social inequality exists in accessing higher education among lower socioeconomic groups and diverse populations in Mexico.

3. Howard, E. R., & Christian, D. (2002). Two-way immersion 101: Designing and implementing a two-way immersion education program at the elementary level. Center for Research, Diversity, and Excellence. ERIC. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED473082.pdf
– This resource introduces an innovative instructional approach for integrating native English speakers and non-native English speakers in inclusive classrooms. Concepts of planning and content design to meet diverse student needs are discussed.

4. McFarland-McDaniels, M. (n.d.). How to organize a classroom for diverse learners. Classroom. https://classroom.synonym.com/organize-classroom-diverse-learners-8235933.html
– This online resource discusses how a teacher can organize a classroom to meet diverse learning needs. Means of identifying student learning needs are presented. Creating classroom environments that are adapted to student needs and differentiated learning centers are reviewed.

5. Stanford, B., & Reeves, S. (2009). Making it happen: Using differentiated instruction, retrofit framework, and universal design for learning. TEACHING Exceptional Children Plus, 5(6), 1-9. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ967757.pdf
– This resource reviews how the traditional classroom environment does not always work well with diverse learners. Aspects of differentiated instruction retrofit framework and Universal Design for Learning are introduced. The article offers vignettes for learning application.

6. Taylor, B.K. (2015, January 14). Content, process, and product: Modeling differentiated instruction. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 51(1), 13-17. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273340707_Content_Process_and_Product_Modeling_Differentiated_Instruction Retrieved from here.
– This resource discussed how differentiated instruction is an instructional strategy to meet the meets of diverse learners through their unique needs, interests, and learning styles. The focus of the article is how preservice teachers can learn to incorporate differentiated instruction by adapting content, process, and products of instruction.
– Differentiated instruction is an educational approach where teachers adjust the content, process, and product to cater to students' different needs, interests, and learning styles. Content differentiation involves varying the complexity of the material, for example, by providing different reading levels. Process differentiation involves varying the learning activities based on students' interests or styles. Product differentiation allows students to demonstrate what they have learned in different ways. In this article, secondary teacher candidates are taught to differentiate their instruction using the Understanding by Design (UbD) framework and cubing as instructional strategies. Cubing requires students to think critically about a facet of understanding and how it can be applied in different disciplines. The teacher candidates also differentiate their instruction to cater to different learning styles.

7. Tomlinson, C.A., & McTighe, J. (2006). Integrating differentiated instruction and understanding by design: Connecting content and kids. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. https://chca-oh.instructure.com/files/3649/download?download_frd=1
– Read Chapter 1. This resource provides an in-depth look at how an educator can combine elements of differentiated instruction and Understanding by Design to create and maintain an inclusive academic environment. The article reviews how to adapt learning materials to respond to student learning levels and styles. Combination of different learning techniques is discussed.
– Understanding by Design (UbD) and Differentiated Instruction (DI) are two approaches to curriculum and teaching that have gained popularity in education. UbD focuses on what is taught and how it is taught for student understanding, while DI focuses on addressing the learning needs of diverse students by adapting instruction to suit their individual differences. These two models complement each other, as effective teaching requires attention to both the content being taught and the needs of the students being taught. The authors of the book describe how UbD and DI work together to provide teachers with tools and guidance for designing quality curriculum and instruction based on current best understandings of teaching and learning. The book also presents axioms and corollaries that demonstrate the ways in which UbD and DI work in tandem towards shared goals, such as developing student understanding.

Optional Videos 1. CAST. (2010, January 6). UDL at a glance [Video]. YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDvKnY0g6e4- This video explains Universal Design for Learning and aspects of UDL to implement to create inclusive environments.

2. UWLSSVideo. (2012, April 21). Educational innovation at UW-Madison: The "Backward Design" framework [Video]. YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cveylXCpUmw- This video resource discusses how to identify learning goals for students while working to teach what is needed. Halverson discusses how to redesign and adapt curricula components through "backward design" framework to meet student needs.

Why do you think most people today are unfamiliar with the history of these institutions? Do you think the staff and doctors at Willowbrook or Pennhurst were just as much victims of the institution as the residents? Why or why not?

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Documentary reflection

Choose one documentary to watch and consider the following: How you might feel if one of your close family members were institutionalized at a facility such as Pennhurst or Willow brook.

Why do you think most people today are unfamiliar with the history of these institutions?

Do you think the staff and doctors at Willowbrook or Pennhurst were just as much victims of the institution as the residents? Why or why not?

What do you think were the biggest factors that contributed to the horrible conditions and abuses at Willowbrook or Pennhurst?

Pennhurst: The Shame of Pennsylvania

Links to an external site.

Unforgotten: Twenty-Five Years After Willowbrook

Explain in detail on one area of Social Emotional Learning and why students with LD may experience difficulty in that area.

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Assignment #6:

Read: Practical Social-Emotional Learning Tools for Students with Specific Learning Disabilities in the United States of America

  • http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.469.863&rep=rep1&type=pdf#page=23Links to an external site.

After reading the article,choose from one of the following areas under Social Emotional Learning as described in the article:

  • Emotional Knowledge
  • Emotional Expression
  • Empathy
  • Social Problem Solving

Using the article, references within the article, and your own research:
1. Explain in detail on one area of Social Emotional Learning and why students with LD may experience difficulty in that area.
2. Provide ten additional intervention strategies, (identified via research) to promote growth within that social and emotional skill. The strategies may be for any K-12 grade level. Be sure to identify social and emotional programs and interventions that employ instructional methodologies found to be effective for students with LD.
3. Present this information in a minimum ten slide Power Point.

What were your key takeaways about specific learning disabilities in writing? How can students with learning disabilities learn the complex skills of persuasive argument writing as discussed by Link (2017)?

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Assignment #4

Read the following articles:

  • Fink, R. (2017). Rap and technology teach the art of argument. Learning Disabilities: A Contemporary Journal 15(1), 39-53
  • Mason, L.H., Harris, K.R., & Graham. S. (2011). Self-Regulated strategy development for students with writing difficulties. Theory
  • Into Practice, 50, 20–27. doi: 10.1080/00405841.2011.534922
  • Fink (2017) highlights-1.pdf Download Fink (2017) highlights-1.pdf
  • Mason et al. (2011) highlights-1.pdfDownload Mason et al. (2011) highlights-1.pdf

After reading the articles, please respond to the following list of items and post to the assignment drop box under assignment #4

1. What were your key takeaways about specific learning disabilities in writing?

2. How can students with learning disabilities learn the complex skills of persuasive argument writing as discussed by Link (2017)?

3. What are some innovative approaches that can be used to improve the writing skills of students as noted by Link (2017)?

4. Discuss a general universal writing strategy that can be used with multiple genres described by Mason et al. (2011).

5. Discuss the example of an informational text strategy that was found to be effective for students with learning disabilities noted by Mason et al. (2011)

6. Mason et al. (2011) discussed SCAN: what is it?