Complex Instructional Knowledge Made Accessible for Teacher Candidates through the Alignment of Concepts in Visual Format

Abstract

Complex concepts that relate to planning lessons, teaching them, and assessing learning may be very difficult for some teacher candidates. Relationships among ideas are difficult to name and identify as new teacher candidates begin learning about teaching. Five visual organizers have been prepared to support teacher preparation program goals in relation to the planning, teaching, and assessment skills of new teachers. These organizers have been used in both consecutive and concurrent teacher education programs. Teacher candidates’ reflections about these visual supports show that they value their ability to facilitate understanding of complex concepts. The purpose of this paper is to present and explain these organizers and how they are used in one teacher preparation program. Research related to their perceived value is mentioned but is peripheral in this theoretical conceptual paper.

Two Ways to Teach: Direct Instruction and Indirect Instruction/Inquiry: Simplifying Planning Concepts for Early Career Teachers

“…The two frameworks can be used together to show pre-service teachers how these two approaches to new learning are similar and how they differ. The efficacy of these conceptual frameworks is supported by previous research (Maynes & Scott, 2011a;Maynes & Julien-Schultz, 2011b;Maynes & Julien-Schultz, 2012) and our own reflective practice as experienced teachers and teacher educators, thereby supporting the concepts in each framework with a broad range or research and depth of practical knowledge. The resulting diagrams are, therefore, the results of both conceptual and practical frameworks.…”

“…Pre-service teachers can retrieve their understanding and the relationships among instructional ideas more readily when they have a complex graphic representation of these ideas. Indeed, previous research in this area has shown us that pre-service teachers claim that they "see" the diagram for planning that they have been taught in their heads as they sit down to start planning a lesson (Maynes & Julien-Schultz, 2012).…”

“…Previous writing has provided a diagram for direct instruction (Maynes& Scott, 2011;Maynes & Julien-Schultz, 2012). This diagram was developed as a result of watching professional and experienced teachers who were identified by their principals as being strong teachers.…”

“…The responsibility of teaching pre-service teachers effective lesson planning led to an interest in identifying commonly understood approaches that experienced teachers might use to plan their lessons. After considerable work in a variety of classrooms with teachers who were identified by their principals as strong teachers, efforts to capture their professional practice in diagram form were made to help pre-service teachers understand what experienced teachers do with consistency (Maynes & Scott, 2011a;Maynes & Julien-Schultz, 2011b;Maynes & Julien-Schultz, 2012). The resulting diagram has been used in a variety of formats over a number of years with both concurrent and consecutive program pre-service teachers.…”

“…The resulting diagram has been used in a variety of formats over a number of years with both concurrent and consecutive program pre-service teachers. Further study of the impact of the original diagram on self-perceptions of pre-service teachers' competency with lesson planning showed that students who were taught with the diagram early in their lesson planning experience consistently pictured the diagram in their heads as they planned lessons to guide their planning decisions (Maynes & Julien-Schultz, 2012).…”