This course is designed with 5 Weekly Modules, each with one Course Learning Objective (CLOs). Each module has a series of Student Learning Objectives (SLOs) corresponding with the chapters and assessments (14 total). 

The Modules and corresponding Course Learning Objectives (CLOs) & Student Learning Objectives (SLOs) are as follows:

Unit I, Module 1 - Managing Student-Centered Learning Environments

• CLO 1 - Develop education management strategies that create respect for a student-centered learning environment.

  • • SLO 1.1 - Analyze teaching strategies that create respect for a positive, student-centered learning environment.

    • SLO 1.2 - Establish classroom values that support a positive learning environment.

    • SLO 1.3 - Organize physical and social classroom resources for an effective learning environment.

    • SLO 1.4 - Develop classroom norms for a cognitively charged, respectful, student-centered learning environment.

Unit I, Module 2 - Encouraging Positive Student Behaviors

• CLO 2 - Design ways to manage student behavior for positive and collaborative learning environments

  • • SLO 2.1 - Construct strategies for establishing effective classroom procedures and routines.

    • SLO 2.2 - Communicate clear social and behavioral expectations to students.

    • SLO 2.3 - Develop systematic communication with students and stakeholders.

Unit II, Module 3 - Managing Engaging Instruction

• CLO 3 - Design engaging curriculum and instruction to make learning meaningful for individual and diverse learners.

  • • SLO 3.1 - Develop engaging instruction that utilizes learning styles, scaffolding, and higher-order thinking.

    • SLO 3.2 - Analyze effective instruction for engagement.

Unit III, Module 4 - Supporting All Learners

• CLO 4 - Analyze ethical issues that create a positive learning environment focused on the respect and achievement of all learners.

  • • SLO 4.1 - Analyze ethical issues related to supporting diverse learners in an inclusive learning environment.

Unit IV, Module 5 - Analyzing Professional Practice

• CLO 5 - Evaluate professional practice, learning, dispositions, behaviors, reflection, and evaluation.

  • • SLO 5.1 - Identify effective teacher practices.

    • SLO 5.2 - Analyze foundational elements of managing the learning environment.

    • SLO 5.3 - Analyze teacher's management and instructional decision-making.

    • SLO 5.4 - Evaluate your learning and professionalism.

• Course Materials - Overview, Syllabus, Orientation & Course Website

*Please make sure to review syllabus and requirements for this course and make sure to introduce yourself to your instructor and classmates. Overall, you should commit to follow instructions and procedures, and create academic routines for yourself. These small efforts should go a long way to securing success. 

It is important that you acknowledge Leeward Community Collegeʻs important history and role. You situate this course as a part of the Teacher Education program. We are here for a reason and its definitely not all about ourselves. 

One of the foundations of a positive and supportive learning environment and classroom is a deep connection to the history of your community and school and recognizing its history in relation to your purpose. 

At the end of the day, every one of us is here for a reason. Some of these reasons are community-driven and some of them are our individual motives. As individuals participating in a group, we need to consider for ourselves why we are here, who came here before us, and who might come in the future. 

In thinking about these questions and concepts, we are participating in identity formation within our role in education.  Identity development is a stage in the life cycle. For most, the search for identity begins in the adolescent years but continues throughout life. During these earlier years, individuals are more open to ‘trying on’ different behaviors, thought patterns, and "goal-driven" appearances to discover who they are and what is important to them. In an attempt to find their identity and discover who they are, individuals in new environments are likely to explore a number of identities (some for reinforcement and others for adoption) to find one that suits them best. Developing and maintaining identity is a difficult task due to multiple factors such as family life, environment, and social status. Research suggests that this process might be more accurately described as identity growth, rather than formation because we engage in a process of change in both content and structure of our thoughts about the self. This is no different than embarking on your journey to becoming an effective educator. 

Finding out who you are in the Teacher Education Program (TEP) or who you are in a classroom in front of students means taking into consideration who you are as a person, where you come from, who your family is, and what your community cares about. You should consider your decisions to study education and classroom management at Leeward CC and want to get credits towards a degree or credential that will help you to make additional money or get a better job. 

However, it can go much, much deeper...

For example, while traveling in Australia (2017) to do educational research on environmental education and indigenous knowledge I came across this story about Deng Adut. There was an exhibit in the Victoria Museum exhibit about contemporary Australians, and in particular, the "Australian of the Year". This young man, Deng, immigrated to Australia after having experienced significant life challenges.  He was able to overcome them and contribute in a meaningful way to his people, himself, and his society. Higher education provided him with this opportunity. 

We are not to say that this is directly related to our identity and our experiences, but we can see the power of an individual participating in transformation, realized potential, and unique opportunity through this man's academic experiences.  

So, when you think about it, what is your why? Who are you? Who will you be?

Born into poverty in Sudan, at age six Deng was snatched from his mother and forced to fight in the civil war that besieged his country. As a child soldier, Deng was taught to use a gun before he even knew how to brush his own teeth. He was forced to wield a huge AK-47 rifle, although his body was barely big or strong enough.

Life in the army as a child soldier was hard, and Deng didn’t have much of a childhood. “A child with a gun is somehow not a child anymore–-they’re a soldier, a killer,” Deng said. Brainwashed by the army and routinely tortured, he lost friends in the war and sustained a range of injuries-–shrapnel wounds from exploding landmines and bombs, and bullet wounds--and contracted a series of diseases like measles, cholera, and chickenpox.

Even when presented with an opportunity to escape he returned to the army. “That’s how brainwashed I was. You don’t want to escape you just want to go back,” Deng said. This mindset was eventually shaken when he received an unlikely visit from his brother, whom he had long presumed dead. It was his brother who managed to convince Deng to finally leave the army.

He told me: ‘if you leave with me, you’re going to go to school, study. You could be somebody.’… I thought: Ok, fair enough.”

So one night Deng, with the help of his brother, made his escape by hiding inside a corn sack on the back of a truck. The brothers somehow miraculously made it through all the checkpoints out of Sudan and across the border into Kenya. Through another very lucky turn of events the brothers befriended an Australian family in the Kenyan refugee camp who in 1998 helped them relocate to Australia.

By this stage Deng was 15-years-old, illiterate, did not speak a word of English, but for the first time in a long time he had a sense of freedom. Through perseverance and a lot of hard work Deng learned English, finished his HSC at TAFE, and eventually went on to study law at university. He now works as a lawyer in Blacktown Sydney, where he is determined to help other Sudanese refugees navigate the court system.

His dream is to one day return to Sudan as an environmental lawyer to address what he sees as the root cause of the conflict: the mismanagement of precious water resources.

Vocabulary Disclaimer - There are no tests or quizzes in this class. The following is a series of words and phrases that are commonly used in this course, specifically, and more generally in education and learning and by teachers. Becoming familiar with vocabulary and concepts used by teachers and experts in the field is an important part of the learning and professional maturation process.  Ultimately, these ideas and words will become part of your register, lexicon, or part of the language you use to express yourself as an educator. While they may be somewhat unfamiliar at this stage, as you learn them, some will stick and help to form a strong conceptual understanding of teaching and learning. 

Some of you may have heard that LCC was often referred to as Last Chance College (similar to where Michael is from and his local community college, ECC, being called "Easy Credit College"). In many places, and in the past, community colleges were looked down upon as lesser than educational institutions. 

At present day, this could not be further from the truth. Education, learning, experiences, and knowledge are some of the greatest pleasures in life and definitely a gateway to being able to create the life that you choose to live. At community colleges, these experiences are more likely to be local, thoughtful, caring, and personalized. 

Think about it for a second, we have heard students say, "I chose Leeward because it was my last choice and my only choice."

Think about this... is this your perspective? Why are you here? What do you want? What do you need? What are you expected to do? What are you being called to do?

We told her, "Wake up and smell the Kona coffee."

To get where you want to go, you need to be socially and emotionally invested in your learning! Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions. With your commitment to learning, your mind is ripe for growth and changes. 

You should know that the State of Hawaʻi has the highest teacher turnover rate in the nation. We routinely hire between 1,000-1,500 new teachers every year, many of whom come from the continent. Of the new hires, approximately 500 are in special education, and 300+ of these are hired in the Leeward Communities. On top of this, we need elementary teachers, science teachers, English Language teachers, and really any kind of teacher you want to be!

This issue is exacerbated because even after all hiring is done, we still have nearly 1,000 classrooms that go without a certified teacher. Uncertified teacher numbers in Hawaii are twice the national average (4.9 percent vs. the national average of 2.6 percent) and are much higher in Leeward Communities that have historically high teacher turnover, a large number of underrepresented students, and a continued shortage of highly qualified teachers. Generally speaking, those schools with the highest need for quality teachers also have the greatest amount of teacher turnover. 

Whatever your motivating factors, we have an opportunity to learn and we should seize it. You almost have a guaranteed job in your community when you complete your degrees and get your teaching license!

Leeward Community College and the TEP program have an incredibly knowledgeable and dedicated staff of instructors, counselors, peer mentors, club presidents, and aides trying to make this program the best on offer anywhere. We know that the work we do influences many, many people. It is a great responsibility. Our staff is a mix of really caring, intelligent, experienced, and thoughtful people who want nothing more than to see you succeed. With your success (becoming a college graduate and teacher) we can support you in the changing of your world ONE STUDENT AT A TIME!  We have graduated over 1,000 students over the past 10 years, making us one of the most successful academic programs in the state. We have EAs, vice-principals, principals, many Master's degrees, a Ph.D., and even a Teacher of the Year from our program, and we will continue to gain more accolades. 

You are not joining a class when you join the Teacher Education Program, you are joining a community of professionals and caring teachers and educators! We care, we collaborate, and we value effectiveness!

Remember, your success is our success. 

We are here for a reason-- and that reason is a context-based solution! 

1. Address the teacher shortage here in the state of Hawaiʻi.

2. Provide good jobs to local people. 

3. Make sure that our students are receiving the best education.

4. Connect communities and cultures in schools by developing relationships.

5. Prepare Hawaiʻi for the future that we all wish to have. 

Filling all of these positions is difficult when we only produce so many teachers a year in the state of HI. 

So, where do you think that the majority of these teachers come from?  That's right: the mainland! 

This isn't always a bad thing; we could view it as a great way to keep our island diversity strong and strong biodiversity makes us all stronger. We are grateful that Hawaiʻi has such mana to encourage people to travel here.  

However, we much recognize that recruiting teachers from the mainland is not sustainable. The average teacher from the mainland usually lasts about 2-5 years in Hawai‘i.  Many of these teachers come while they are young and inexperienced, get trained, and then go back to their communities as they move on towards family age and they want to go home to their communities and serve there. This leaves us with having to replace him/her with another beginning teacher. 

Again, it is great for Hawaiʻi that many people are willing to come and help out the state and people for a few years. But, after this, they go home, and the state is left to rehire someone from Michigan, New York, Connecticut, California, etc. I know many, many teachers who are living in Hawaiʻi that have come from the mainland. Plenty of teachers from the mainland are some of the “best-educated” people in the country. They are often very talented, creative, and driven. But.....

• • How much do you think new arrivals' education and experiences have told them about the ways, values, and customs of the Makaha Valley?

  • How well do they know about experiences growing up in a large Filipino family that has sponsored multiple relatives to come to Hawaiʻi?

  • What do they know about Hawaiian history, or Bishop Museum, plantation houses, and local heiau?

  • What do they know of the struggles of military families making it through multiple deployments?

  • What knowledge do they have to make the connections to the learning of young students with their knowledge of local places and local peoples?

  • What do they know about working at Dole cannery?

In the beginning, probably, not much! This is not to say that these individuals are a great asset to the state of Hawaiʻi. They are bringing ways, customs, and values from their communities, college, and mainland society here to the island. It is usually never a bad thing to expose students and people to all kinds of thinking and ways of doing. This helps them grow into wise and experienced adults. 

It also gives Hawaiʻi the opportunity to decide what is best for Hawaiʻi. We can see some of the clear differences between cultures and people and we can say, "No, this is our way." 

Right now, the Teacher Education Program (TEP) is trying to ensure that our students in the state of Hawaiʻi are exposed to the best of local peoples, local knowledge and ways, and all of the diversity that is Hawaiʻi.  We want our students to grow into the types of adults and citizens that the people of Hawaiʻi and its communities feel are best for the state.

What we need is for you to listen and act!  I urge you to begin to understand your place in passing on knowledge, or continuing local customs and local values to support the needs of local children and communities. 

I do not want to put you in a place of competition against mainland teachers, upper-class peoples, outside values or ideas, as we will all have to work with many types of people from different cultures, places, and countries. All good values and people should be respected and treated in a caring and professional manner. Sharing and caring are important messages we need to pass on to the youth and our students in particular. Respect the diversity of opportunities that might impact students.  

Of course, our main mission is to create public school teachers in areas of teacher shortage (SPED, English, Math, STEM, ELL, etc.), but you may also want to work in a private school, home daycare, home school, immersion school, open a business focused on education, be a cultural expert, become an educational assistant, skills trainer, classroom aides, teach drama, teach band, homeschool, become a vice-principal, principal, reading specialist, school psychologist, child welfare worker, social worker, counselor, or policymaker.  You will have the opportunity to think about this over your time in the various institutions and programs here to support you!  UH-Manoa, Chaminade, West Oahu, Hilo, Mainland, Ka Lama, Kamehameha, etc. are all interested in seeing you become a professional educator!

We are going to do it right here!  We need local solutions to local problems. And in case you did not realize, your family, the taxpayer, the state, and the federal government is pulling for you too!  We all want you to succeed. Just check out the new education building to support the development of local teachers!

It is important to all of us that we develop relationships in this course. You will be relying on one another over the coming years in the AAT program, undergraduate schooling, and graduate schooling and in your professional lives! 

Seriously, this is one of the most fundamental aspects of the educational process! You will teach and learn together for the rest of your lives. Start to respect and learn from one another today. Relationships are the foundation.

Michael Cawdery's Meet & Greet

At the end of the day, I am looking forward to a great semester. The semester is going to gather momentum each week.  Get in the flow and keep paddling. Prepare yourself by opening your mind and beginning the journey of becoming a learned one in your community, state, and society. We have a great responsibility as teachers.

We hold the knowledge that builds the bridges we cross, designs the boats we sail, seeds the dreams we weave, and gives wind to the wings we help spread. Take this opportunity to develop relationships with your classmates. We are only as strong as our weakest link. Let us become caretakers of this chain which will soon include many students of our own.

• Leeward CC - Learning Resource Center, online writing tutors.

• Leeward CC - Learner Support Services

• Leeward CC - Laulima Orientation

Please return to Lamakū and complete the following: 

1. Discussion - Meet & Greet 

2. Assignment (EC) - Getting to Know You Form

Approximate Time Commitment - 45-60 minutes

Chapter 1.1 - Managing the Basics of Teaching & Learning (Link to Google Sites)