Educator`s Competencies through Socrative seminar (Desai`s Super Students at GHS)

The students successfully conducted their first Socratic seminar in their Environmental Studies Class. I would like to summarize the Educator Core Competencies article using the exemplary teaching strategy Socratic seminar as an example/outcome. In the article the author mentions the words like student-centered, personalized learning models for students. I have struggled for the last eight years in my teaching career since my teaching was more teacher-centered and egoistic in many ways. The switch in my conscious planning towards student centered and personalized learning for students have changed the way I teach tremendously past 1 and a half year.

The four core competencies are practiced in my teaching almost every day and now after having read the article and being more concretely conscious about these competencies, the application of these competencies will be more evident in my teaching moving forward. I agree with the author that learner -centered, personalized teaching models have been pursued by some educators since Dewey`s time and I also like the author appreciate the current massive interest in this mode of teaching due to global markets, career and college ready skill requirements. Using the first core competency , Cognitive Domain,

I had researched a lot and selected the best article for my students to read for their Socratic seminar on Local & Sustainable Food system in their Foody Eco-preneurship Unit. I had made sure that they all had a clear understanding of sustainability and the three legs of sustainability. They were familiar with the involved vocabulary words and understood the content well before evaluating the article and voicing their opinions on these issues. While they were popcorn reading before the socratic seminar, I brought their attention to the key concepts involved.

INTRAPERSONAL DOMAIN: 

I tried out the Socrative Seminar for the first time in all of my Environmental Studies classes. I observed that atleast 30 percent of my students in all these classes were tuned out and these are the same sets of students that I have to put in extra efforts to get their involvement with all the different types of instructions. I will ask  all the students to write down their opinion on their experience with socratic seminar on ticket out of door next week after the second seminar. I shall follow up on those students who were tuned out closely.Make parental contact. Help them see the rewards through splendid reward system and also through the grade book in more involvement on their end.

INTERPERSONAL DOMAIN

This socratic seminar was conducted in the Environmental studies class which I call Global Eco-preneurship class since I have collaborated with the Business teacher, Ms. Kathleen Kennedy and I teach the Science part and Ms. Kennedy helps the students with the business and financial aspect of their final project which is the GHS Global Eco-preneurship contest in May for their Green Business Plans. GHS is a business magnet and this helps my students see opportunities in the current climate, energy, food, waste crisis globally. The students are asked to work in groups and pairs on regular basis on small projects for knowledge acquisition and for collaboration. These builds their interpersonal skills. The teachers sere as their models by being creative, courageous and innovative.

INSTRUCTIONAL DOMAIN

The instructions in my classes are planned carefully where students are provided feedbacks through their returned assignments, Google Classroom posts, Google classroom assignments, Kahoot review, Socrative quizzes etc. Every lesson which is 52 minutes in length is divided into an activating strategy, hook, Bell work, Teacher Directed Instructions, Student -Independent TIME and summarizing activity. I let them know that each second in my class needs to be used for instructions and instructions only. The devices are used appropriately in my classes as per the BOYD  rule. Every two weeks, I started having the individual Student Conferences to help student catch up with their grades, assignments, make-up work etc. All my lesson plans couls be found on my website. Daily transtitional powerpoints are posted on each class calendar and also the supporting documents are uploaded to the calendar for the parent and student`s convenience.

Greenville High School is an ideal school for me to be teaching at. The administration serves as a great model for the teachers in setting high expectations for the students and teacher`s performance, mutual respect, sense of belonging and the culture of Excellence. Most of the educators at GHS are an embodiment of all the four educator`s competencies listed in this article.