EDUC+524&+592SS-Work+of+the+Middle+and+H.S.+Teacher

**Education 524 & Educ 592SS** The Work of the Middle and High School Teacher and Pre-Practicum (TEACH STEP Bridges to the Future) Fall 2011 Ruth-Ellen Verock-O'Loughlin, Erik Sussbauer Furcolo Hall Room 108 Office (413) 545-1565 cell (978) 660-0145 ruth-ellen@educ.umass.edu Office Hours: Mon. and Tues. and by arrangement  **COURSE OVERVIEW**  **An Introductory Study** This course is designed as an introductory study of the work of the middle and high school teacher with an emphasis on the sociopolitical and organizational contexts in which the work is embedded. It is designed to encourage you to begin the process of reflection on observations, practice, and theory in order to consider the choices you will make in your classroom. You will be asked to observe in your own school, as well as to participate in field experiences at other schools, with the goal of noting and reflecting upon patterns, assumptions, questions and surprises. You will be asked to reflect upon yourself, your social identity and your school experiences in order to understand who you are as you enter the classroom and what this means to your teaching.

** [|Approaching Teaching as a Researcher] ** You will be asked to examine the realities and challenges of a teacher’s life, including working hours, organizational support and constraints, relationships to family and community. You will examine how teachers approach their work and how the setting impacts what happens in the classroom. In conjunction with EDUC 592SS, Seminar in Prepracticum, you will develop and implement lessons and consider factors such as differentiated instruction, cooperative learning, classroom management, and assessment.

** [|Work and the Self] ** This course will ask you to examine yourself - your attitudes, behaviors, beliefs, expectations, identities, and world views - as situated knowledge that may or may not encompass the realities of the student, the classroom, the school and the larger society.

**COURSE OBJECTIVES** Education 524 is designed to:
 * • • Introduce prospective teachers to the complexities of the work of teachers.
 * • • Explore prospective teachers’ understanding of historical, sociopolitical, and organizational contexts for teachers’ work.
 * • • Relate participants’ motives and goals for becoming teachers to the reality of the work of the middle and high school teacher.
 * • • Develop initial skills in the design and implementation of lessons and unit planning.
 * • • Develop a habit of reflection on the practice of teaching that allows for the incorporation of new ideas and experiences into thoughtful choices in the classroom.