1A.3
Sharing Perspectives:
Who are we as a group?


This first conversation is a "picture in time" of peoples' perspectives about teaching and learning. You will need to find others in the group with whom you can discuss your ideas and questions as you pursue your inquiry study. Consider this first conversation an informal assessment to determine which people share your understanding or perspective about teaching practices.

Five summaries in the resource section contain information about what educational experts believe constitutes good instructional practice or what "quality" teachers should know and be able to do. They include:

• Best Practice Teacher Standard. Developed by the Minnesota Arts Quality Teaching Network


• INTASC Teacher Standard. Developed by the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC)


• Instructional Strategies that Increase Student Learning. From Classroom Instruction that Works: Research-Based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement by Robert Marzano, Debra Pickering and Jane Pollock


• National Staff Development Council Standards for Staff Development


• Thirteen Principles of Best Practice. From Best Practice: New Standards for Teaching and Learning in America's Schools by Steven Zemelman, Harvey Daniels and Arthur Hyde
  
  These summaries are the texts for this first conversation. The facilitators or the group as a whole may decide to use all of the summaries or select two or three, but you will need to use more than one to get a variety of perspectives.
  
  Take time to review the summaries so they are fresh in your mind just before the conversation begins even if you've read them earlier. The conversation and other activities including the listener summaries and walk and talk should take less than two hours.
  
  The facilitator will give you step by step instructions for having the conversation using "I" statements, assigning listeners who will summarize the conversation, and closing the activity with a paired walk and talk.