Becoming Your Best: Building Professional Competencies
Teaching Young Children, December 2019, Becoming Your Best: Building Professional Competencies by Meghann Hickey
Summarize the attached article, in your own words, by answering the three questions listed below. Each question should have an answer that has at least 5-7 sentences. Please make sure you read the statement on Plagiarism. Also, do not copy and paste the article - that is plagiarism.
1. What is the main focus of the article?
2. What are three strategies/resources/ideas that are discussed in the article?
Regarding skill building, the author suggests developing a set of core teaching skills that can be used to support student learning and provide guidance when needed. This includes understanding how different learners may process information differently, knowing the best techniques for providing feedback, being able to create meaningful assessments, and understanding how curriculum planning works.
Self-reflection is another important aspect of professional development that allows teachers to take time out and assess themselves as individuals so they can identify areas where improvement might be needed or even just gain a greater appreciation for what it is they are doing overall. This can also help them identify any biases or preconceived notions that may potentially hinder their ability to meet the needs of all students equally by creating an environment where everyone feels welcomed regardless of race, culture or background etc.
Lastly, having a growth mindset when approaching everyday challenges both inside and outside the classroom shows students that there’s always room for improvement no matter how competent one might already be in certain aspects - allowing them (and us!) To understand that failure isn’t necessarily bad but rather serves as opportunity for further exploration within various topics instead.
These strategies/resources/ideas could easily be applied in an early childhood classroom by starting off with basic skill building exercises like role playing activities related to different elements such student engagement or problem solving; planning lesson objectives based on what would work best with each individual group; implementing consistent self-reflection checkpoints throughout lessons; making regular use of positive reinforcement whenever possible; fostering autonomy while still offering guidance when necessary ; encouraging discussions between peers based on respectful criteria & lastly pushing themselves along with those under their care towards exploring new ideas & methods often no matter how inconvenient it may seem because it will only benefit everyone involved if done correctly!