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Assessment, Communications, and Professional Growth Resources

Letter from Teacher Notifying Parent of Conference Time - Use this form letter to notify parents of a scheduled conference and to give them some preparation for the conference. When parents and teachers prepare for a conference, the time is more focused on the child and on collaboration. More preparation leads to more positve conferences. To use the form letter, simply tab between the form fields and add your information before printing.

What to Expect Your First Year of Teaching -- This book lets teachers speak for themselves whenever possible. Each section includes narration summarizing and putting teachers' comments into context. The book also provides a section listing resources and offering a tips checklist for new teachers. Teachers were asked to describe their most formidable challenges and then offer their advice for overcoming obstacles. Teachers then discussed how principals and administrators could help new educators and how colleges and universities could better prepare teachers for their first year on the job. Finally, teachers offered their thoughts about kids. The closing section of the book includes a bonus—a list of resources followed by tips for first-year teachers from their veteran colleagues.

Tennessee Department of Education Evaluation and Assessment Division Homepage -- The function of the Evaluation and Assessment Division is to implement the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP), which includes state-mandated, student assessment programs. This office provides assistance to schools and systems concerning state tests, testing schedules and procedures, and the appropriate use of state assessment results for the improvement of classroom instruction and student achievement in grades K-12. The Division’s homepage includes information on all TCAP assessments--Achievement Test (grades 3-8), the Writing Test, the Competency Test, the Gateway Tests, and the End-of-Course Tests.

Thinking Maps -- Holly Tree Elementary School offers eight thinking maps at this web page. Each includes an explanation of the organizer, directions for using it, an example, and activities students could do at home with it.

Checklist for Verbal Communications (Especially for Parent-Teacher Conferences) -- A good teacher effectively uses conferences with parents to learn more about students, to communicate student progress and teacher concerns to parents, and to enlist parents as partners in the classroom and their children's education. These good teachers will all agree that conducting productive parent conferences requires a number of skills. New teachers can utilize this checklist (with or without a mentor's guidance) to reflect on those skills and their own parent conferences to improve their communications with parents.

Student Work Analysis Worksheet --Teachers can use this tool to plan instruction based on students' needs by articulating expectations for student work, sorting students according to performance, identifying patterns and trends in performances, looking for learning needs, and then planning strategies and next steps. The tool is part of the "Preparing for the Second Year" course offered each summer to teachers entering their second year.

Best Practices For High School Teachers --How can high school teachers "be the best that they can be"? This Power Point offers some good suggestions.

Breach of Test Security --This 2004 document outlines the test procedures for administering standardized tests.

Characteristics of a Good Teacher --An outline of the basic qualities of all good teachers.

General Tips about Taking Reading Tests --An extensive list of things students should know and skills they should have when taking standardized reading assessments.

Filamentality -- Filamentality is a fill-in-the-blank interactive Web site that guides teachers through picking a topic, searching the Web, gathering good Internet sites, and turning Web resources into activities appropriate for learners. The site developers have created a friendly, funny, easy-to-use system that's teacher-savvy and requires little or no web experience to use. "You'll end up with a Web-based activity that lives right on the Web so that you can immediately share it. And this is all done without you ever having to know anything about HyperText Markup Language (HTML), Web servers, or those www-dot. things."

TCAP Resources --A list of published materials, videos from Memphis City School Media Services, and a web site to assist with preparing students for TCAP tests.

Ten Test-Taking Strategies --How can you help your students become better test takers? Teaching students these tips can help.

Test Strategies for Students, Parents, and Teachers --Tips for before, during, and after tests for all three groups and a section of tips for lessening test anxiety.

Test-Taking Strategies --Help your students use time wisely and avoid errors on standardized tests.

Parent-Teacher Conference Worksheet --The best, most productive parent conferences are conducted by teachers who have planned for the conference beforehand. Teachers could use this worksheet to prepare for, follow up on, and reflect on conferences with parents.

Interpersonal Communication Skills Self-Assessment --This resource can be used for reflection--to become aware of communication behaviors. Awareness is the first step in change.

Test Prep Review --This web site includes self-assessment module quizzes that could be used with students to reveal gaps in their learning and online resources to improve their weak areas and enhance their scores on TCAP tests. It also includes a section on the Praxis II test.

MiddleWeb Parent and Community Resources Page --These middle grades resources can help parents and communities work more effectively with schools that serve young adolescents. You will find resources that can help forge stronger community partnerships.

MiddleWeb Teacher Professional Development Resources Page --Use this page to find out more about teacher collaboration, critical friends groups, looking at student work, best practices, job-embedded staff development, National Board certification, coaching and mentoring, and many other topics.