Standard 6:

Regarding standard 6.1, my colleagues and I often identify scaffolding needs of the second language learners. Although we do not use the APST, we use pedagogical resources which support the ideas in the APST. For example, we use books like Assessment for Teachers, Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design, and Putting CLIL Into Practice. 

Standard 6.2 is met through the professional learning communities established in Tamagawa Academy. At this school, I attended a math professional development meeting one to two times a month. I also attended an English program-focused professional development meeting one to four times a month. Additionally, I independently pursued my master’s in international education and outside professional development opportunities like Toddle’s The Inquiry Educators Summit and ADDItude webinars. 

In the weekly professional development meetings mentioned previously, I engaged with my colleagues to improve our professional knowledge and practice, meeting Standard 6.3. In Evidence 1 – Math PD, you can see how our team used Google Docs to enhance our professional collaboration. Tamagawa Academy also holds learning walks, where teachers have the opportunity to circulate classrooms and observe teaching practices. 

Through the English program and math professional development meetings, I have applied professional learning to improve student learning (Standard 6.4). Evidence 1 demonstrates how we used professional development time to explore the use of anchor tasks in math classes. Now, I begin nearly all math lessons with an anchor task as a focus for the lesson’s learning objectives.