This course is designed to enhance a participant’s knowledge of assessment and grading practices. The following themes will be investigated: formative assessment, summative assessment, learning targets and outcomes, methods of assessing, types of assessment protocols, grading practices, providing feedback, and defining mastery. This course prepares teachers by providing them with the essential elements needed to translate assessment of learning to assessment for learning. 

Categories:

Instructional Strategies Positive Classroom Management

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Site Based

View Course

This course provides participants with a solid framework for planning, implementing and maintaining successful co-teaching relationships that improve the learning instruction of all students. Participants will reflect on the definition of co-teaching, components of the co-teaching relationship, examine a variety of co-teaching models and how they support student learning, and evaluate their current co-teaching programs. Participants will leave the course knowing several co-teaching practices between general and special education teachers, as well as, between two general education teachers in the same classroom, and how to effectively work as a co-teaching partner to create opportunities for success for all learners.

Categories:

Instructional Strategies 21st-Century Teaching

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

Differentiated assessment is the key to helping every student have success within their own learning style. This course is designed to help educators discover new ways to assess students from a variety of different learning styles. A focus on strategies for performing pre-assessments, formative assessments, and summative assessments as well as alternative assessments such as performance-based assessments, portfolios, presentations and more to give options for students to have success other than the traditional pen-and-paper assessment. Classroom examples will be reviewed to help see how differentiated assessment can provide direction for improvement, promote confidence, and motivate students to do their best. Participants will leave the course with a better understanding of assessment practices and a wealth of resources to effectively differentiate assessments in their classroom.

Categories:

Instructional Strategies Positive Classroom Management

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

This course is designed to help educators build a classroom structure where all students feel empowered and included in the classroom environment. Through the use of videos, readings, personal reflection, and online forum questions, participants will experience the multicultural classroom, as well as learn methods to implement strategies in their own classroom. Participants will learn to shape and maintain learning conditions that facilitate a multicultural perspective during instruction, including how to identify and promote diversity, multicultural learning styles, create culturally aware lesson plans and activities, using social emotional learning strategies to impact classroom management, and strategies/ideas to educate parents on the multicultural classroom. Participants will leave the course with resources and strategies to reach students in a variety of cultures and educate them on the importance of understanding a multicultural classroom and the benefits of being multiculturally competent.

Categories:

Equity & Diversity Positive Classroom Management

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

This course is designed to teach participants the importance of metacognition, provide background knowledge of the core executive function processes, and help apply their knowledge of executive function processes to help students better understand themselves as learners. Participants will learn how executive functioning skills are the cognitive powers that help develop good habits which leads to effective school and life management. The course will also look at the process of how to create effective assessments. Assessments are essential to the learning process, as evidenced in that assessments inform the instructor on the effectiveness of their instruction, as well as they provide a way to measure students' mastery of the course's educational learning targets. The course will explore how to identify course goals for assessment, determine test structure and design, write effective questions, and apply a variety of testing methods to differentiate testing methods.

Categories:

Positive Classroom Management 21st-Century Teaching Instructional Strategies

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

This course is designed to help K–12 teachers navigate the ever-growing complexities of the education profession while simultaneously helping them to balance their lives and careers. Teachers will learn the tenets of Positive Psychology (Seligman) and related theories and strategies. These, in turn, will provide the foundation for increasing personal and professional resilience, maintaining flexibility, and tending to physical and mental health as a basis to improve classroom experiences for all. Teachers will also survey current initiatives, standards, and skills, such as the Common Core State Standards, RtI, the Danielson Evaluation model, the Flipped Class model, and 21st century skills. 

Categories:

Instructional Strategies Content-Area Teaching

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Site Based

View Course

This course is designed to give educators at all levels an overview of recent research on mindfulness practices and to provide step by step guidance on how to integrate these practices into the classroom. Participants in this course will learn what mindfulness is, why it is important, and how to creatively apply research-based mindfulness techniques in meeting the diverse learning needs of students. Attention will also be given to ways educators can use mindfulness to enhance their own professional and personal experience as teachers.

Categories:

Positive Classroom Management 21st-Century Teaching

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

Participants in this course will learn how to build academic success for at-risk students by developing student resilience, designing active learning experiences, motivating underachievers, and fostering social emotional skills. Participants will explore strategies for reaching students of poverty and students with ADHD, and learn how to work effectively with at-risk students and their parents.

Categories:

Equity & Diversity Instructional Strategies

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Site Based

View Course

With the soaring concerns of mental health issues, students need to be supported more than ever with their social and emotional development. Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) involves teaching and modeling five lifelong skills: self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, social awareness, and relationship skills. In this course, participants will learn how to weave SEL into the curriculum, which has been shown to increase academic outcomes and promote overall positive mental health among students. Participants will also explore strategies to support and enhance their own mental health and well-being.

Categories:

Positive Classroom Management Instructional Strategies 21st-Century Teaching

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

Participants in this course will examine student-centered classrooms with a constructivist approach - a significant shift away from the typical teacher-centered classroom. In a student-centered classroom, much of the direction and leadership is passed onto the students and the teacher becomes the classroom facilitator. This course provides participants with an in-depth exploration of how student-centered classrooms can engage and enhance the learning of all students. Effective student-centered teaching strategies, lesson planning, classroom management methods, and differentiated assessments will be explored. Participants will learn how having a constructivist approach to the student-centered classroom can have students take charge of their learning at any grade level and become independent learners who can create, discover, and problem solve on their own.

Categories:

Instructional Strategies 21st-Century Teaching

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

This course is designed to help educators build a classroom structure where differentiated instruction can occur on a daily basis for varying abilities. Through the use of videos, readings, personal reflection, and online forum questions, participants will experience differentiated instruction as well as learn methods to implement strategies in their own classroom. Participants will learn to shape and maintain learning conditions that facilitate differentiated instruction, including how to identify learning styles, create tiered activities, differentiation strategies, effective classroom management, and design the physical space for classroom differentiation scenarios. Participants will leave the course with resources and strategies to reach students of varying abilities, grades, and learning styles and help them take ownership of their education.

Categories:

Equity & Diversity Instructional Strategies

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

This course will educate participants on the difference of a fixed or growth mindset, and how Appreciative Inquiry (AI) can cultivate the classroom environment into a place of risk taking and success. Participants will learn about their own mindset and how it impacts students, as well as techniques for evaluating the growth mindset, strategies for reframing failures to successes, and devising lesson plans with the growth mindset in mind. Participants will also learn about Appreciative Inquiry and how it is among the growing trend of approaches to human development and organizational change. Focus on the power of positive question and imagery, sharing stories, and implementation of Dr. David Cooperrider’s 4-D cycle will be reviewed, along with implementation strategies. Participants will leave the course understanding how to create a dynamic classroom that fosters growth and compassion; that will create bonds with students to push them further and increase test scores.

Categories:

Positive Classroom Management Instructional Strategies

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course

Poverty, suicide, abuse, divorce, and community violence are some of the many traumatic, yet common, life experiences and events students of today’s society face. In addition, factors including social media and high stakes testing have been linked to the increasing rates of stress and anxiety among youth. This insightful course provides practical applications on how to understand, connect with, and accommodate students and their families experiencing the adverse effects of trauma, stress, and anxiety. Participants will research the short and long-term outcomes associated with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), learn how to incorporate effective trauma-informed practices, and build relationships with students and their families based on respect, trust, and empathy. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), stress management, suicide prevention awareness, students living in poverty, and educational procedures used to respond to traumatic events are additional topics accentuated in this course. Finally, educators will focus on their own well-being and discover ways to strengthen resilience and manage stress and anxiety associated with the soaring demands of the profession. Course participants will become better equipped to effectively respond to students’ complex needs.

Categories:

Positive Classroom Management

Formats:

Online Self-Paced Online Structured Site Based

View Course