Standard 2 - Content Area and Pedagogical Knowledge – The competent teacher has in-depth understanding of content area knowledge that includes central concepts, methods of inquiry, structures of the disciplines, and content area literacy. The teacher creates meaningful learning experiences for each student based upon interactions among content area and pedagogical knowledge, and evidence-based practice.
The first artifact I chose was my paper on teaching strategies for individuals with Down Syndrome. The purpose of this paper was to research a disability and then create teaching strategies based off of what I had learned. Not only did I learn many new strategies that can be utilized for many students other than just those with Down Syndrome, it also gave me valuable resources for researching other disabilities I will encounter as a teacher.
This artifact aligns with performance indicator 2J which states that a teacher "uses differing viewpoints, theories, and methods of inquiry in teaching subject matter concepts". It is important to take on the mindset that we are all lifelong learners and use that mindset to continue to research new teaching practices and collaborate with other educators to gain new insight on different strategies. This paper allowed me to begin to practice finding evidence-based practices and learn not only how to incorporate them into my teaching, but also how they may benefit students and build growth.
The second artifact I chose is another research paper but on a different topic. Rather than looking at teaching strategies, this paper required me to look at different teaching environments and the positive and negatives that each may have. I looked at the difference between mainstream inclusion and full inclusion for the special education population in school settings.
This artifact aligns with knowledge indicator 2E stating that a teacher "knows how to access the tools and knowledge related to latest finding (e.g. research, practice, methodologies) and technologies in the disciplines". Aside from learning about various ways to incorporate inclusion in the classrooms, I learned how to research different sources on the same content. I also learned which sites were opinion based and which were reserch-evidence based articles.