Knowledge of Subject Matter OCPS Alternative Certification Program

Subject Matter Florida Accomplished Practice The professional teacher has a good understanding of the subject s/he teaches.

Subject Matter Florida Accomplished Practice The professional teacher understands that her/his subject is linked to other disciplines and can be applied in real world integrated settings.

Subject Matter Florida Accomplished Practice The professional teacher seeks out ways and sources to expand her/his knowledge.

Subject Matter Florida Accomplished Practice The professional teacher’ repertoire of teaching skills includes a variety of means to assist student acquisition of new knowledge.

Subject Matter Subject matter refers to the content and skills learners need to know. It is the curriculum instructors teach.

Subject Matter The effective teacher possesses knowledge of: Ø Elements, logic, possible uses and social biases of subject content Ø State and district content curriculum expectations and standards Ø Pedagogical content knowledge - best practices for teaching the content

Subject Matter Course Descriptions for grades 6 -12: www. fldoe. org Go to the site index on the right side, scroll to course descriptions (click on ‘GO’).

Subject Matter Grade Level Expectations for grades K-8: www. fldoe. org Ø Go to the site index on the right side, scroll to Sunshine State Standards (click on ‘GO’).

Subject Matter www. cs. ocps. net

Interdisciplinary Teaching 1. Interdisciplinary teaching works well in elementary school, but doesn’t translate well to secondary. 2. Math and Science match together and English and Social Studies match together, but all four don’t mix well in the same lesson. 3. Electives are the easiest to integrate with other disciplines.

What is Interdisciplinary Teaching? Interdisciplinary teaching involves a conscious effort to apply knowledge, principles, and/or values to more than one academic discipline simultaneously. The disciplines may be related through a central theme, issue, problem, process, topic, or experience. (Jacobs, 1989)

What is Interdisciplinary Teaching? Interdisciplinary teaching is often seen as a way to address some of the recurring problems in education, such as fragmentation and isolated skill instruction. It is seen as a way to support goals such as transfer of learning, teaching students to think and reason, and providing a curriculum more relevant to students. (Marzano, 1991; Perkins, 1991)

Interdisciplinary Teaching Values and Benefits Ø Applies, Integrates, and Transfers Knowledge Ø Increases Motivation Ø Improves Learning

Interdisciplinary Teaching What is its purpose? Ø The interdisciplinary approach enables teachers to teach the whole student and make links between disciplines. Ø One goal for this approach is to give students a more relevant, less fragmented, and stimulating experience. (Jacobs)

Interdisciplinary Teaching Terminology Ø Discipline—distinguished by the questions they ask about the world (facts, concepts, theories) Ø Multidiscipline–focuses on the separate contributions that disciplines make Ø Interdisciplinary— the integration of the contributions of several disciplines

Interdisciplinary Teaching Student work should: Ø Be well grounded in the disciplines Ø Advance student understanding Ø Show critical awareness

Interdisciplinary Teaching How interdisciplinary learning affects you… Introducing an interdisciplinary element into a curriculum encourages all involved to develop meaningful links among the fields in ways that intrigue and motivate both teacher and students.

Interdisciplinary Teaching How interdisciplinary learning affects your colleagues… When teams of educators work together to develop effective units, they often feel a sense of collegiality and enthusiasm that would not be achieved if they were working in isolation.

Interdisciplinary Teaching How interdisciplinary learning affects your students… Interdisciplinary units further the development of higher-order thinking skills. It can push your students toward more powerful thinking and the ability to make comparisons that bridge disciplines and encourage the application of knowledge.

Interdisciplinary Teaching Tasks for engaged learners have the following characteristics: Ø Challenging—tasks are complex and require sustained amounts of time. Ø Authentic—correspond to tasks in the home and workplace. Ø Integrative/interdisciplinary—blends disciplines into thematic units and incorporates problem-based learning.

Interdisciplinary Teaching How do I plan an interdisciplinary unit? Ø Choose a topic. Ø Brainstorm for ideas that can be organized onto an interdisciplinary concept model. This model has theme in the center and the subject areas are explored in relation to theme. Ø Guiding questions are developed to serve as scope and sequence. The questions are general and should transcend disciplines. Ø After the questions have been developed, the activities that explore the questions can be developed.

Remember to… Please read the article Growing A Thematic Interdisciplinary Unit: From Prairie Ecosystem To Prairie Architecture