Inspired Teacher Leaders facilitate professional development for peers

March 15, 2016

(Photo credit: Caitlin Wolf/Center for Inspired Teaching)

This piece was written by Caitlin Wolf, Program Associate at Center for Inspired Teaching.

This February, I walked into the DC Public Schools’(DCPS) professional development session to find teachers already busy at work. It was one of several district-wide PD days that DCPS hosts throughout the year, when DCPS teachers gather in their respective subject and grade levels to learn and strengthen their practice. This year, Inspired Teaching’s SCALE: Science Curriculum Advancement through Literacy Enhancement Teacher Leaders have been asked to lead many of the sessions, introducing the Cornerstones they’ve developed for use in DCPS schools. I was there to watch our Teacher Leaders in action and to see the response of other teachers to the Cornerstones, as all teachers are now expected to use these core-curricular lessons throughout the year.

Inspired Teacher Leaders LaTasha Boone, from Cardozo Education Campus, and Nicole McGill, who teaches at Charles Hart Middle School, were leading the session. As I walked in, Ms. Boone greeted me at the door. This lesson was her design, and she had just finished introducing the directions to the group of middle school life science teachers. She handed me a piece of paper with one triangular shape on it and told me that participants were drawing a fossil, completing the fragmented image on the page. I shyly told her that I really didn’t know much about fossils, and she smiled and said, “that’s the beauty of it. It can be anything!”

As I went to find a seat, I looked around the room at the participants’ work. One person had drawn a dinosaur foot around the provided triangle image, making it a toe of a giant T-Rex. Another person made it the beak of an ancient-looking bird. I sat down, looked at the image for a moment, and saw it as a tooth in part of a large, carnivorous jaw. I grabbed a colored pencil and began drawing the image.

When we were done drawing, Ms. Boone asked us to write down information about our fossil – in which kind of climate did this creature live? Was it a meat eater, plant eater, or both? Did it swim, walk on land, or fly? Remembering her words at the beginning – “That’s the beauty of it. It can be anything!” – I examined my fossil, and wondered about its story. I had drawn sharp teeth, and sharp teeth could be used to shred meat. It had a big jaw and was probably high up on the food chain. Through an investigation into my own work, I recorded my fossil’s story – that it must have been from a vicious carnivore that resided in a warm climate. As everyone presented their different fossils and descriptions, I felt confident that I could share my drawing and my reasoning with the group. It had come from my imagination, and it was based in my knowledge, after all.

As the teachers and I debriefed about the activity, one participant said the activity was fun and asked if it could be used as an exit ticket to determine what students had learned about fossils. Ms. Boone and the group discussed this idea and how the activity could also be used at the beginning of class to assess prior knowledge of fossils, let students exercise their creativity, and get students engaged.

This is the type of classroom experience Inspired Teaching believes all students should have. Using our background knowledge of how creatures tend to look and what these physical characteristics tell us about their habits, our group of learners was pushed to use both our Intellect and our Imagination to draw something completely new. I could share my work confidentlybecause it was my creation, and I felt comfortable explaining it to others, even in the face of questions. Right there, in the first ten minutes of our class, we exercised the 4 I’s– Intellect, Inquiry, Imagination, and Integrity – through an enjoyable, engaging learning process.

I only wish more classes could be like this – places where student ideas are welcomed with the same message: “That’s the beauty of it. It can be anything!”

Micaiah Anderson

Community Outreach Specialist

As a Community Outreach Specialist, Micaiah is responsible for program promotion and outreach support for Inspired Teaching events and workshops. Micaiah has a passion for collaborating with community members to build-power and connect. She is an educator with a heart for youth and has experience supporting students fight injustices within their schools and communities. She has a BA in Political Science from, the real HU, Hampton University & anticipates graduating in May 2024 with a Masters of Arts degree in Educational Policy Transformation from Georgetown University.

AUTONOMY

"I want to have a say in what happens to me."

Autonomy is the need for independence; the ability to make choices, to create, to explore, and to express oneself freely; to have sufficient space, to move around, and to feel unrestricted with opportunities to exercise free will.

Brady Maiden

Outreach Coordinator

As the Outreach Coordinator, Brady helps maintain Inspired Teaching’s social media presence and supports the organization’s mission to connect with DC community leaders, educators, and parents. Brady has her Master’s in Public Policy from George Mason University and her BS in Political Science from Northern Arizona University. She is passionate about community, equity, and coalition building recognizing that learning and growing with the community at large is how we continue to be impactful.

What brings you joy in life?

I find joy in spending time with my friends and family and meeting new people. I like going to concerts and festivals, and finding new books to read.

The Learner’s Cycle, Wonder-Experiment-Learn, and the Teacher’s Cycle, Observe-Plan-Instigate, comprise Inspired Teaching’s approach to engaging students in inquiry-based learning.

When they are engaged in the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, students are immersed in learning. They take the lead in designing authentic learning experiences around their own interests and their school’s standards of learning. Each discovery leads to a new question which in turn leads to more wondering and more learning. In the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, Learn is not a destination or an endpoint; it is a deeper understanding, leading to a deeper wondering and new possibilities that create new entry points to further exploration. The cycle continues because what students have learned generates more wonderings that require more experiments that foster more learning – and on and on.

The Observe-Plan-Instigate Cycle is the work of an Inspired Teacher. While a student is expected to follow the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, the teacher joins them on the learning journey while following their own cycle of Observe-Plan-Instigate. This cycle ultimately serves to ensure an inquiry-based atmosphere is at play in the classroom.

Jaqueta Abbey

Teaching and Learning Specialist

Jaqueta is the Teaching and Learning Specialist for Inspired Teaching. In addition to her current role with Inspired Teaching, Jaqueta is a first-grade teaching assistant. Her background features a variety of traditional and non-traditional experiences in the field of education, including working as an adjunct professor, teaching summer reading programs to children and adults, and tutoring children in the foster care system. Jaqueta earned a B.A. in Communication Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and an M.A. in Interactive Media from Elon University.

What brings you joy in life?

Creative self-expression! In addition to my passion for storytelling, I love dancing of all kinds. I've studied belly dance, bachata, and Brazilian Zouk among other styles. I also enjoy glass fusing, crocheting, photography, and cross stitching. These art forms allow me to express myself and build connections with other people at the same time. I think life would be a lot less vibrant without artists and storytellers!

Michelle Welk

Communication & Marketing Specialist

As Communications and Marketing Specialist, Michelle is responsible for finding and creating new ways to highlight Inspired Teaching and promote its programs in order to expand and deepen the organization's impact. Michelle has worked in communications in an array of settings, from creative agencies to state politics to national nonprofits. She has a BA in Journalism from Temple University in Philadelphia and is passionate about education, access, and equity.

What brings you joy in life?

My son, the beach, making a persuasive argument and good food!

Max Peterson

Real World History Assistant Teacher

Max received his Bachelor’s degree in History and African American Studies from Boston University in May 2016. He has worked in museum curation at the Museum of the White Mountains in New Hampshire and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Max has worked with young people of varying ages from young children to young adults transitioning to college.

Feedback and Accountability

We grow through feedback and an understanding that the quality of our work is a reflection of what we are learning, but the shift to remote learning this spring disrupted a lot of the tools teachers were used to using to evaluate student growth. How might we do things differently this fall? Participants in this workshop will explore ways to bring meaningful assessment into the virtual and/or socially-distanced classroom and approaches to student feedback that strengthen motivation, and build relationships and achievement.