Unlock document.
This document is partially blurred.
Unlock all pages and 1 million more documents.
Get Access
California Standards for the Teaching Profession
Standard 3
Understanding and Organizing Subject Matter
for Student Learning
Standard for Understanding and Organizing Subject Matter for
Student Learning
"ž¢ Demonstrating knowledge of subject matter content and student development
"ž¢ Organizing curriculum to support student understanding of subject matter
"ž¢ Interrelating ideas and information within and across subject matter areas
"ž¢ Developing student understanding through instructional strategies that are
appropriate to the subject matter
"ž¢ Using materials, resources, and technologies to make subject matter accessible to
students
Understanding and Organizing Subject Matter for Student Learning
When I stepped into my first teaching assignment I did not think much about how I would
organize and present students with content. In fact, I remember the teacher that was
leaving gave me instructions on how I could finish the unit she was teaching. There were
no class sets of textbooks of any subject available for students. Instead, I would find three
or more variations of textbooks in every subject. I began creating lessons that would
follow the chronological order that material was presented based on the few resources that
were made available to me. I believed that textbooks and other academic materials would
present material in a scaffolding manner that would benefit all students. I must also admit I
believed that teaching from the textbook in the order content was presented was common
practice among educators. I remember staying up many nights, wondering if I was
prepared to teach content matter and whether I would be successful at being able to reach
the diverse student levels that would be present in my classroom. Every morning, the hour
before my students walked through my doors I experienced knots and stomach pain
because of my uncertainty in being able to deliver content and I knew that negative
behaviors would be exhibited if I was failing them. As I began to understand my
students"€™ needs and began observing mentor teachers, attending workshops and
in-services, and collaborating with other colleagues, I began developing my own teaching
methods. In discussing and describing this standard I will share the journey that I have
taken in order to understand and organize subject matter for student learning.
Demonstrating Knowledge of Subject Matter Content and Student Development
Working at Fullerton Day School has allowed me the unique opportunity to teach English
language arts for four periods and teach an elective subject of my choice for one period. I
was initially hesitant about teaching one subject since I had taught in a day school class
where I was responsible for teaching all subject matter to a class of students that were with
me for the entire school day. I remember being concerned I would be stepping on the toes
of other teachers at the site if I integrated other subject matter since they were responsible
for that specific subject. After a few days of working at Fullerton Day School, I learned I
was mistaken. By the end of my first week, I was collaborating and working on unit plans
with the other teachers as we would be supporting one another across the curriculum by
teaching topics simultaneously in each of our core subjects. Throughout this standard, I
will show my understanding and the opportunity to organize subject matter for student
learning in English language arts, social sciences, mathematics and science.
The first area of concern that I must address is my ability to understand the content that I
am responsible to teach to my students. Having a bachelors degree, passing the Multiple
Subject Assessment Test (MSAT) and having two years of classroom experience as an
instructional assistant were the basic requirements that I had obtained upon receiving my
first teaching assignment. I believed that all I needed was to be resourceful and could rely
on the foundation I already had to successfully teach and assess student learning. At that
time I was satisfied and felt that I could accomplish my goals of teaching students the
content they needed to master in order to graduate from high school. Of course there were
good days and bad days, where I would wonder what went wrong and try to figure out how
I could have changed a lesson or addressed a student question better. Aside from what was
occurring in my classroom, I was receiving inquiries from other agencies and parents
regarding specific students needing to be tested for special education services. I did not
understand how other people who were not in the classroom observing and assessing
student needs daily could dictate whether or not a student "might"€ be a candidate for
special education services. The fact of the matter is that based on the transient student
population and their unique experiences, I was not sure whether a student had a disability
that had not been identified or if there were other factors contributing to their lack of
academic success. That was when I decided to pursue a special education mild/moderate
disabilities teaching credential through California State University, Fullerton (CSUF).
I successfully earned my clear education specialist instruction credential in February of
2003 and continued to fulfill the requirements for my masters in education, which I
completed in August of 2003. Upon completing my teaching credential, I learned that I
would need to obtain a multiple subject teaching credential if I desired to stay in the day
school setting that I am currently teaching in, which led me to the District Intern Program.
As you can see I have had the opportunity to continuously evolve as a student, a
professional educator, and an individual. I have been able to read, see and practice research
based strategies that have been proven to be effective when using state frameworks, and
teaching across multiple subject content areas. I now see and understand clearly that the
domains of English language arts: reading, writing, speaking and listening are the
foundation for all other content areas as specific standards are being taught. One of the
guiding principles of the California State Frameworks states:
The framework provides guidance to ensure that all educators and learners
understand that (1) specific skills in reading, writing, speaking, and listening must be
taught and learned; (2) the language arts are related and reciprocal processes that build on
and strengthen one another; and (3) the language arts can be learned across all academic
disciplines. (Reading/Language Arts Framework, 1999, p.5)
I plan and organize content using the frameworks as a guide to teach content in social
science, mathematics and science while I lead students to master English language arts
standards.
I can still remember the look on the faces of my students when they were asked for the
first time to write out how they solved a word problem during our consumer math class.
There were students who were confused, others who stated "I just did it"€, and still those
who knew how to solve the problem, but were unsure of how to explain their thinking.
During one of my methods courses, I remember reading the mathematics frameworks and
reflecting on the following:
the standards emphasize computational and procedural skills, conceptual
understanding, and problem solving. These three components of mathematics instruction
and learning are not separate from each other; instead, they are intertwined and mutually
reinforcing. (Mathematics Framework, 2000, p.18)
I remember reflecting on my own mathematics instruction and how I just wanted to know
the process, the how and was not concerned about the why. Today I am responsible to
ensure students are developing their critical thinking and problem solving skills as they
apply the knowledge they have to appropriate situations, not only in mathematics, but in
all other content areas as well. My daily instruction provides students with the
opportunities to apply their knowledge in all content areas through reading, writing,
speaking and listening activities that I plan and organize for the development of their
diverse literacy needs.
I have found that teaching students through multiple subject integrated units allows for an
in-depth study of topics and keeps them interested as they are making new discoveries.
Students with special needs, and English language learners are more apt to retain and use
the appropriate academic language as their needs are being met comprehensively. With this
knowledge, I plan to be consistent in collaborating with my colleagues, attending
in-services, watching television programs developed for teachers, researching on the
internet, and reading various resources so that I can continue to evolve as an educator and
inspire my students"€™ learning.
Organizing Curriculum to Support Student Understanding of Subject Matter
I mentioned earlier in the introduction of this standard that I allowed textbooks and other
instructional materials to dictate the order that I presented and organized curriculum for
my student learning. I often did not know how to handle a new student entering my class
on day three of an on-going lesson. How could I get them up to speed with the content that
we had already built on? Once I became familiar with the value of thematic units, also
known as integrated units, I was able to facilitate a rich and deeper understanding of
subject matter. A new student entering the class could find a print rich environment; simply
