Welcome to Working in the Power Zone, Implementing Instructional Fundamentals 2 (IIF2).

Click here to register for IIF2

This micro-credential awards a graduate half-credit for demonstrating proficiency in the instructional practice of working in close proximity to students for a majority of teaching time. Evidence of proficiency must be demonstrated in three areas: Knowledge, Implementation, and Reflection.

Participants may engage with resources and activities described below at their own pace throughout the course term. All are advised to refer to key dates and deadlines for submission and to plan their learning activities within these constraints.

To submit evidence*, link to this Google Form.

Objective: After engaging with the curated resources from the WSWSU Fundamental Five companion site, demonstrate your proficiency in knowledge about working in the power zone by submitting evidence of your critical engagement with at least two curated resources on the webpage linked above.

Proficient knowledge in working in the power zone includes:

• Identifying why working in the powerzone is a high yield instructional practice
• Identifying teaching strategies for improving learning through working in the power zone
• Understanding how to maximize time and efficacy in the power zone
• Understanding how to use working in the power zone for ongoing formative assessment, for building relationships, and for improving behavior
• Analyzing how strategies for working in the power zone may work in my classroom

Recommended Evidence Types (choose one or more):

• Critical writing response(s) with specific references to text or video
• Notes from face-to-face workshops or book study discussions on working in the power zone
• Resource Annotation (e.g., insightful comments on digital stickies)
• Video Annotation ( through time coded notes, or use VideoAnt)

Scoring Rubric (link)

Objective: Demonstrate your proficiency in working in the power zone as an instructional practice by submitting evidence of the following:

1. your use of strategies for maximizing time and teaching efficacy in the power zone
2. an instructional coaching, mentoring, or peer observation cycle on your work in the power zone in your classroom (pre-obs, observation & debrief).

Proficient implementation of working in the power zone includes:

• Spending a majority of time (approaching 75%) teaching in the power zone
• Applying strategies to maximize time and teaching efficacy in the power zone, such as,
  • classroom arrangement (desks, work areas, flow)
  • lesson structure affording time to work in the power zone in various ways (time spent on lecture/directions, independent work, small group talk, etc)
  • active listening, non-verbal engagement and positive affect
  • monitoring student work and offering feedback in close proximity; formative assessment
  • managing behavior in close proximity; esp. recognizing and reinforcing positive behavior
• Analyzing how to employ strategies for working in the power zone to meet specific academic and behavioral needs of my students
• Creating a plan for working in the power zone to meet the specific academic and behavioral needs of diverse learners

Recommended Evidence Types:

1. For demonstrating use of strategies for maximizing time and teaching efficacy in the power zone...
   • Pictures (jpg); gathered into sequence on Google Slides
     • annotation on images or on Google slides pointing out key components of best practice
       • bonus: refer to resources in your annotation
   • Video of you working in the power zone (3 examples)
     • bonus: include clips demonstrating different strategies for improving teaching efficacy in the power zone
   • Classroom arrangement diagrams and lesson plans to show how you use each for maximizing your teaching time in the power zone
     • include explanation of how you use each to maximize power zone time
   • Description or artifacts detailing how you use working in the powerzone for formative assessment, building relationships, and/or managing behavior
   • Description or artifacts detailing how you use working in the power zone to address the academic and/or behavior needs of diverse students
2. For coach/mentor/peer observation cycle
   • [link to guidelines/templates]
   • pre-observation email or meeting agenda
   • observation notes (dated, signed)
   • post-observation meeting notes (dated, signed)

Scoring Rubric (link)

Objective: Demonstrate your proficiency in reflective practice by sharing a reflection on your growth and/or mastery of "working in the power zone," and evaluate the practice for impacting student learning using student reflections.

Proficient reflective practice in working in the power zone includes:

• Evaluating the quality and effectiveness of teaching in the power zone a majority of the time
• Evaluating the quality and effectiveness of specific strategies for improving teaching efficacy in the power zone
• Analyzing student reflections for evidence of how working in the power zone impacts learning

Recommended Evidence Types:

• Teacher's Written or Video Reflection discussing the strengths and challenges of working in the power zone
  • refer to specific examples of your practice
  • discuss your growth in implementing strategies for maximizing time and teaching efficacy in the power zone
• Student Written, Video or Audio Reflections describing how they respond to your teaching in the power zone in relation to their learning in your classroom
  • prompt and refer to examples of how they feel, what they do, and how they learn when the teacher is in the power zone
  • prompt students to compare to how they feel and learn when the teacher communicates or works from a distance

Scoring Rubric (link)