What's New in the Alludo Catalog ?
“It would take us years to roll out all the PD that we can on Alludo." - Kathy Jackson, Director of Teaching and Learning for K-12, YCJUSD
6 min read
Damon Torgerson : Feb 23, 2023 5:00:00 PM
“Technology can become the ‘wings’ that will allow the educational world to fly farther and faster than ever before – if we allow it.” ~Jenny Arledge
Teacher effectiveness is essential if students are to get the education they need and deserve. While permanent teachers must have a degree and a teaching license, substitute teachers may not have the same background and training. The ongoing substitute teacher shortage makes it all the more important to make sure that subs have the training they need.
At Alludo, we understand the importance of substitute teacher onboarding and training. We’ve seen the impact it can have on students and school districts. Proper onboarding can even lead to hiring substitutes as full-time teachers. And with the use of digital tools and technology on the rise in classrooms around the country, substitute teachers must learn how to use these tools effectively to connect with students.
It’s for these reasons that we’ve included training on how to select and use digital tools in the Alludo professional development catalog. Here are 8 digital tools that substitute teachers in your district can use to be more effective in the classroom.
Effective teachers are teachers who have the training and experience to manage a classroom and engage students. While not all effective teachers are alike, they do all share certain qualities:
Effective educators will demonstrate all of the above teacher characteristics and attributes, bringing them to the classroom every day.
Now that you understand the qualities of an effective teacher, here are some of the ways that effective teaching manifests itself in the classroom.
When a teacher is effective in the classroom, their relationships with students will be mutually respectful and positive. Students afford the teacher their courtesy and respect while teachers reciprocate. Teachers set and maintain healthy boundaries and students respect the classroom rules and the teacher’s boundaries, all of which are necessary for effective learning.
The overall learning environment in an effective teacher’s classroom is positive. That means the teacher allows for and adapts to students’ varied learning styles and allows students to have a voice in their education. A positive classroom climate should include collaboration and allow students to participate in discussions and activities.
While there is a time and a place for a classroom lecture, the most effective teachers encourage students to actively participate in classroom learning, collaborating with one another. Students should develop their own inquiries, ask questions of the teacher and one another, and put new concepts into practice.
Today’s K-12 students are all digital natives and technology is an essential part of their daily lives. Effective teaching brings technology and digital tools into the classroom, integrating their use with lesson plans. Using digital tools in the classroom is an important part of preparing students for their lives beyond the classroom.
Substitute teachers can and should be provided with the tools and training they need to be effective replacements when teachers are away from school. It’s the responsibility of school districts to provide onboarding and training, so that all approved substitutes are prepared to be effective in the classroom. Here are some things that can help substitute teachers be effective:
Providing these things means that substitute teachers can enter a classroom with confidence and armed with the information they need to be effective.
There are thousands of digital tools that can be useful in the classroom, but here are 8 that we believe are particularly helpful for boosting substitute teacher effectiveness:
These 8 tools are some of the most effective to help substitute teachers connect with students and be their most effective in the classroom.
There is a well-documented link between educator effectiveness and student outcomes. Multiple studies have shown that students who are placed with effective teachers reap the rewards even if they later move to a classroom with an ineffective teacher. The reverse is true as well, with ineffective teachers impacting student achievement even if they have effective teachers later in their school career.
These studies have found that student test scores were significantly impacted by teacher performance, particularly when students had effective teachers for multiple years in a row. Teachers who are effective in general were found to be effective with students at every level, which is proof that teaching effectiveness is driven by a collection of teachable skills that are useful in any classroom.
At Alludo, we understand the impact of effective teaching and since we know that every student spends a significant amount of time with substitute teachers, we’re believers in a robust system of substitute teacher onboarding and training. That’s why we have incorporated training related to teacher effectiveness and digital tools in our professional development catalog, including classroom management and assessment.
When handled properly, substitute teacher onboarding and professional development can serve as an onramp to hiring new teachers, something that we saw happen at the Yucaipa Calimesa JUSD after they partnered with us.
When substitute teachers are trained and effective, they can have a positive impact on student learning and achievement that extends far beyond their time in the classroom. The 8 digital tools we’ve listed here can help substitute teachers increase their effectiveness and connect with students — and they’re all included in the Alludo professional learning platform.
Do you need to create a training and onboarding system for substitute teachers in your district? Alludo can help! Click here to download your free trial of our professional learning platform, Madagascar, with our content catalog preloaded for you to review..
“It would take us years to roll out all the PD that we can on Alludo." - Kathy Jackson, Director of Teaching and Learning for K-12, YCJUSD
“One test of the correctness of educational procedure is the happiness of the child.” ~Maria Montessori
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