No Teacher Left Behind!
Changing the way the world is taught
New Techniques and Strategies for the Successful Teacher
To ensure that no teacher is left behind, the best techniques would be to allow teachers to have worry free training every month. When I say worry free I mean give teachers free training that has mandated attendance and allow them the opportunity to choose what courses they would like to attend as long as they achieve 8 hours per month with a successful testing score of 80% or higher in the course. The courses should be offered by accredited facilities that are approved to offer credentialing, certification, licensing, ECE and CUE classes.
The lack of opportunity and funds seems to be two of the many problems teachers face when trying to engage in continued education . The cost of courses for extended learning can be expensive and the mandated training varies from state to state, in California teachers are required 40 hours a year. Teachers should be required to attend a course monthly. As laws, new technology and teaching tools are constantly changing and expanding so should a teachers knowledge and professional practice. Another idea would be to have monthly continuing education catalogs sent out to licensed, certified or registered teachers. Sometimes there is a wealth of information available that goes undetected because teachers do not know it’s available. The catalog would headline the new innovative changes in the education field and outline new regulations or laws. I think that consistency is the key to success so yes all teachers should be required to take monthly courses regardless of what country they reside.
The current standards for teachers according to the ISTE is that teachers must "facilitate and inspire learning and creativity, design and develop digital age learning, model digital age work and learning, promote and model digital citizenship and responsibility and engage in professional growth and leadership" (ISTE Standards, 2008).
Make teaching your passion
Share your aquired knowledege
Continue to expand your knowledge
Preparing for the ISTE
The teacher who can effectively model all standards and apply them to a child's opportunity to grow and learn has mastered the ISTE. I believe that teachers who are passionate and continue to learn in their career will be capable of passing any standardized testing required. Teacher education in learning technologies is essential for teachers to realize technology’s full potential in language learning and teaching. However, if one looks at course offerings and course descriptions within programs, especially ECE, it is evident that few model the use of the emerging technologies for continuing education courses. I think that as the 21st Century nears so should teachers requirements to further their knowledge by attending courses that support the new era.
References
ISTE Standards. (2008). Retrieved December 16, 2014, from International Society for Technology in Education: iste.org/standards