ED 541A 2000 Course Title: Improvement of Instruction Credits: Three Course Description: This course covers the problems, principles and techniques involved in the improvement of instruction. The course explores the roles of the supervisor, teacher, and other school personnel in the improvement of instruction. Objectives: The goal of this course is to examine recent research and practices, including our own and research in the literature on effective teaching, with an emphasis on the application of teaching and learning theories. At the completion of this course the student will be able to: 1. Identify characteristics of effective teaching; 2. Demonstrate an understanding of effective teaching strategies through lesson modeling; 3. Evaluate teaching episodes using characteristics of effective teaching; 4. Identify characteristics of effective schools; 5. Compare and discuss strengths and weaknesses of recent effective schools research; 6. Discuss strengths and weaknesses of the models of instruction presented in class; and 7. Discuss the promotion of critical and creative thinking in the classroom Topical Outline: Topics addressed in the course include, but are not limited to, the following: 1. Effective schools research: Research focusing on identifying effective schools and the characteristics of those schools. 2. Effective teaching research: Characteristics of recent effective teaching. 3. Models of effective teaching: Ten different models of instruction. 4. Critical and creative thinking: Definitions of critical and creative thinking and the need for teaching critical and creative thinking skills. 5. Authentic assessment: The use of portfolios, rubrics and other forms of authentic assessment for evaluation. 6. Learning styles: Recent research on using learning styles to improve student learning. Performance Assessment: Students create a professional portfolio, which includes the following components: 1. Professional diary a. Journal entries summarizing key points from class discussion, reflecting on new learning, raising questions, and giving personal reactions to class sessions and readings. b. Definition of an effective teacher (first and last class sessions) c. Definition of an ideal classroom (first and last class sessions) d. A two-page summary of learning experiences in this course.2. Critiques of recent educational journal articles focusing on effective schools and effective teaching strategies in the classroom. 3. Critical incident analysis that come from students’ experiences in a school. It should be significant to learning about teaching and their development as a teacher. 4. On in-class teaching demonstration using effective teaching strategies, including a detailed lesson plan. 5. A critique of the in-class teaching demonstration. 6. A videotaped lesson using a teaching model other than the one for the in-class demonstration. This lesson should be in a regular K-12 classroom, including a detailed lesson plan. 7. A critique of the videotaped lesson. Connection to Teaching Practice: This graduate course is intended to create an opportunity for educators to reflect on their knowledge, skills, and dispositions at work in their own educational settings and to explore relevant literature to improve their educational