Article - Educator Competencies

Cognitive Domain
This domain includes content knowledge and the development of intellectual skills. This includes the recall or recognition of specific facts and concepts that serve developing intellectual abilities and skills.  Students need to be able to recall, analyze, create and evaluate.  I think this is probably the domain most of us are comfortable in.  We became teachers in a certain subject because that is what interest.  I am so passionate about my subject and showing students how it relates to things all around us.  I like seeing the light come on when they experience science at work in a lab.  It is also rewarding when something doesn't work out the first time and they reevaluate the process and it works the 2nd or 3rd time.

Intrapersonal Domain 
This domain is arguably the most important category of skills for success in college and careers, and also the most difficult to address in school. Together, cognitive, interpersonal and intrapersonal skills are the “what” that students need to learn in high school so that these skills can develop into established competencies when students leave high school.  We teach these skills everyday regardless of our specific role in schools, whether we are teachers, guidance counselors, or administrators.  These skills are important because students need to be able to cope with uncertain, new, and rapidly changing conditions on the job, including responding effectively to emergencies or crisis situations and learning new tasks, technologies, and procedures.  This not only helps in the classroom but also in the workplace.  


Interpersonal Domain
This domain is the social, personal, and leadership skills educators need to relate
with students, colleagues, and the greater community, particularly in multicultural, inclusive, and linguistically diverse classrooms.  Interpersonal skills are extremely important in a PBL classroom.  Students need to be able to communicate with each other and the teacher.  Students need to be able to work on these skills in small activities before they start on the big projects.  While some students will step into the leader role and others will follow, communication verbally or non verbally is a must.  Students need to be able to problem solve and decision make when they are working on a product.  

Instructional Domain 
This domain is the pedagogical techniques that educators use—what they need to do—in

order to sustain a personalized, learner-centered environment for all students.  Since most classes have standards it is easy to create learning experiences based off of this information.  The hard part is making sure that all the diverse needs of students are met.  Students should take some ownership in their learning.  Many just want to regurgitate facts but I feel it is necessary to be able to apply what you are learning.  This is why I feel real life examples and experiences are important.

I feel that all of these domains can be covered through the PBL process.  The process covers all 21st century skills while incorporating, technology and collaboration between students, educators and community members.  While not all teachers will buy into the PBL teaching method, there are many who will try to incorporate some of the processes.  I think the hardest part for people is the process of giving up some of the control to the students, worrying about having to justify failure (the process) to both students and parents, and getting people to accept that all classes do not have to be the teacher at teh front of the class lecturing and then the students doing a worksheet.  This is what people in the past generations went through so they expect the same for their children.  I feel completely sure that educators do not want to see students left behind in the learning process.  Not all students will go to college but the skills that PBL learning can foster in students will be helpful in all types of workplaces.  The whole education system is changing.  Students can leave high school and enter college as sophomores or juniors through dual credit courses, they can go straight into manufacturing jobs at seventy thousand dollars a year or they can, learn skills to discover what they want to try.  I think PBL is the way to go.  I know I still have a lot to learn but the process is one that I am willing to sell to others.