Reflective Teaching Practice

The Standards Continuum Guide for Reflective Teaching Practice work as a support and evaluation system for educators. This guide not only grounds teachers, in regards to their subject material, it also develops self-awareness in the classroom, and encourages teachers to continue learning. Standards are essential to classrooms growth and should be used by all teachers.
Organization
According to the Standards Continuum Guide for Reflective Teaching Practice, standards “are broken down into indicators and three interrelated components: Essential Knowledge, Critical Dispositions, and Performances” (2015, p. 6). These three sections are then dissected through the use of reflective questions. Often, reflective questions then lead into activities that promote teaching
The Standards can also improve practice, because they create a roadmap for teachers. Essential Knowledge acts out as the transportation for learning, Critical Dispositions acts out as the road, while Performance acts as the driver. Without all three a class cannot arrive to its final destination. The Standards Continuum Guide for Reflective Teaching Practice shows a teacher what stopping point they need to reach, while still allowing the teacher to choose which path they want to take to get there. Finally, Standards improve practice, because they establish professionalism. They create standardization in classrooms across the globe while holding teachers to higher standards. According to James Milgram, a Mathematics Professor at Stanford University, when standards are enforced by teachers, the new improved classes “are better than 85 or 90 percent they replace” (2014). The fact is, standards incorporate all manners of essential learning. They tell a teacher what needs to be done, and because of this, teachers are able to create educationally sound