Delivery, Enrollment, and Facilitation
This is a mastery-based course with no discussion forums. The course will be delivered in a fully online format. This course is non-facilitated, and is designed to be completed independently. It is self-paced, with an enrollment period of 60 days, which begins immediately upon confirmation of registration. A Help Forum is included in the course that will be carefully monitored by an online facilitator.
Description
The purpose of this learning module is to provide further background and provide a possible resource for teachers who might be looking to refine, extend, or support their understanding of the concept of teacher content knowledge. In this learning module, participants will explore the importance of implementing a variety of subject-specific instructional strategies to enhance student content knowledge. Participants will examine the value of focusing on key concepts and ideas of content taught to connect to and build upon other powerful ideas. The importance of teaching limited content in sufficient depth to allow for the development of student content knowledge and understanding will be addressed. Participants will be given an opportunity to reflect on ideas and practices concerning teacher content knowledge. Participants will also be offered an opportunity to identify examples of how they might demonstrate an appropriate level of content knowledge in their specialty and how they relate the interconnectedness of content areas/disciplines to other disciplines so as to encourage students to expand their knowledge and their natural curiosity. This module is not designed to enhance or replicate evaluator training, but rather to refine and extend an educator’s growth and development.
Major Assessment Artifact
For this Major Assessment Artifact for this learning module, you will be creating a PowerPoint that explains the things you routinely do to extend teacher content knowledge in all learning domains you teach. You will describe the process you use to plan daily lessons, describe subject-specific strategies you use that enhance student content knowledge, and give examples that demonstrate how limited content is taught in sufficient depth to allow for development of student understanding.
Prerequisites
This is an intermediate level course for teachers, literacy coaches, curriculum specialists, professional development specialists, or other school personnel. Participants are expected to have regular access to computers with Internet access. In addition, participants should be proficient with browsing the Internet, uploading and downloading content, navigating to computer files, and with using word processing software, email, and attachments.
Required Materials
All materials in this course are the property of the South Carolina Department of Education Office of VirtualSC PD. All course materials needed/required for the workshop are available online.