Self Study- Danielson Framework

Martin Ronan

Planning and Preparation

1.a: Demonstrating Knowledge of Content and Pedagogy

Proficient

I would consider myself proficient in this, teaching special education I am forced to focus more

on the content and how it can help improve the students life. Making lessons and units based on

life long fitness. Making units and lessons that grow and correspond to lessons before. Such as

our golf unit going from learning how to putt first then learning how to swing then learning how

to play the hole. As well as expanding my lessons into other subjects areas, in health relating the

nutrition unit to what they learned in bio about the 6 essential nutrients. Giving the students a

clear path to their learning, helps students to understand more and can fuel their interest and

imagination. In my elementary PE experience it was always good to reference things they may

see in everyday life, such as animal yoga and how different animals are known for different

things. Bear crawl, downward dog, butterflies..

1.b: Demonstrating Knowledge of Students

Proficient
This is something I’ve always been good with. Having the experience in coaching and how to

build relationships with players is the same way with students. I’ve found joking around and

trying to be more yourself is a good way to build trust and a rapport with students. In high school

and middle school I feel like it is best to show you understand and you can relate to them, a lot of

the students are going through tough times and relying on teachers, especially health and PE

teachers for guidance. Thankfully I’ve been around and experienced students with special needs

since I was in 3rd grade. I have always been drawn to help and be kind and supporting to those

who have special needs. As a future APE teacher I feel it is my duty to help improve the lives of

students with special needs through fitness and PE. With other students I like to give more

independence and with that comes responsibility. Some are successful and some fail, thankfully

its health class and we can learn from it. That not only helps build the relationship, it holds the

students accountable for their own grade. Knowing how to relate the content and informat to the

students' life is very important as well. In High school health class it is ever more important.

Explaining the importance of nutrition to their life or how dealing with emotions is a good thing.

Anytime I feel I can offer advice or see them going through something I’ve experienced I try to

offer my take. I don’t think they should take it or leave it. But I think telling them shows them

you care and you are invested in their success. Also knowing what my students need, sometimes

they don’t want to hear my mouth and they just want someone to talk to. I always ask how I can

help, do you need an ear, shoulder, or advice.

1.c: Setting Instructional Outcomes

Proficient
This is something again I took from APE, I learned to always have the goal on the board and

make sure I said it before the start of the lesson and in the lesson. In my elementary experience it

was much the same. Giving students the goal and what we were going to do in class to achieve

that goal was always included. I found the benefit of having a whiteboard in the gym to be

amazing! Being able to write goals and show everyone what we are doing is great. Each student

is going to learn differently and if I can help more students learn who just need to see it written

down or drawn out. Also having the students help me, or acting like I don’t remember the goal or

skill getting the students to show their knowledge and what they are remembering.

1.d: Demonstrating Knowledge of Resources

Proficient

I have found this skill and idea comes from inside and the motivation to always be learning and

teaching the correct information. Having a growth mindset as a teacher to always have a new or

better lesson. Reviewing my lessons for things I can do better and things I can add to other

lessons that went well. Taking advantage of the resources you have, for example I have some

great mentors in APE and teaching that I can go to for ideas or to check my knowledge and how

I am teaching. Using different online resources, there are a lot of different teacher groups for

everything from lessons to how to reach your students. Asking students if they understand and

how I can help them understand more if they do need help. In health this comes up a lot with

students who may have different cultural backgrounds and they don’t get the reference or why

we do it. Having the knowledge ready or being prepared to look it up and learn more for my

students
1.e: Designing Coherent Instruction

Proficient

I felt my experience in elementary school helped me learn how to give the best instruction. A lot

of the students were bi or Trilingual. Knowing this I had to be able to give clear and proper

instructions as well as differentiate to make sure all students understood. Also in my special

needs experience learning sign language to give proper instruction to students who speak sign

language or are non-verbal. Making sure students have more than one way to understand what

they're learning and how they are given instruction, things like pictures and videos associated

with the words. Thankfully I have a diverse student teaching and I am teaching a broad spectrum

of topics. This has elevated my instruction knowing I have to teach different subjects like health

yoga, outdoor education and adaptive PE all in one day brings in a lot of different and unique

techniques that I can use across the whole classroom.

1.f: Designing Student Assessments

Proficient

I became very comfortable in elementary physical education with giving assessments. I found

the best way was to be fast and honest. The students need to hear the information and I have a lot

of students to teach. If I see students who would have the skill or maybe you already know what

they're doing I can check off a 4 or give more attention to those who are maybe a 1 or 2 on the

scale. In pe a lot of the assessments are based on skill and how they can do something, making

sure there is a close setting giving all students the best possible chance to succeed is very

important. Especially in elementary where some students may have hit a growth spurt early or

are late bloomers giving everyone an even playing field will help all students succeed. In APE
developing goals and being able to assess their goals is vital to the students growth and IEP this

has pushed me to become more aware of my assessments and learn more about different

assessments and ways I can improve.

2.a: Creating an Environment of Respect and Rapport

Proficient

This is something I take pride in, I strive to make sure every classroom I teach in has an

environment of respect and kindness. I believe that's a teacher it is my job to invoke this not

only in how I talk but my actions as well as how I grade and how I react to things in my

classroom. making sure everyone understands the rules in my classroom and follows the rules in

my classroom. I think teaching is a partnership between the student and teacher if I can create a

positive environment for the student to feel safe and bro I think this opens the opportunity for

maximum learning. This is done by initiating conversation with students, showing interest in

their life, asking them about how the game went last night or finding out what interest they have

outside of the realm of school. As a teacher I want my students to not only view me as a teacher

but also as a mentor and someone they can go to in a time of need. Giving all students a chance

to grow, make mistakes, learn from mistakes, improve themselves, take risks and mature in my

classroom is going to help them see they can be themselves with me and create that needed

rapport.

2.b: Establishing a Culture for Learning

Proficient
This is something I believe as an elementary PE teacher I see-saw back and forth between fun

and learning. I have to make learning fun enough for the students to feel interested and want to

listen while having them also understand the importance of learning. As the PE teacher it is not

hard to make things fun, it's hard to be certain students want to learn. In my classroom you have

to learn the skill before playing the game and before you get to have the real fun. I think having

that establishes the culture and the understanding that the students need to establish the skills

before they can have fun. In high school it is quite the opposite, in the health classroom there is

a lot less opportunity for fun. In my health classrooms , I like to keep things light as long as the

subject calls for it. I find it helps learning and takes the pressure off students. I know how I

grade impacts the culture of the classroom. Making sure each student feels comfortable to

answer questions and ask questions is one of my top priorities as a teacher. This is done by

calling on a wide array of students oh, making sure everyone's voice our opinion is heard and

validated, Uplifting and encouraging students to ask questions and think further.

2.c: Managing Classroom Procedures

Proficient

I am so thankful for my student teaching in the elementary school. I learned a lot about

classroom management and how to make sure students are in order following rules while having

fun and encouraging learning. Using things like clapping signals or a whistle to stop play, using

positive reinforcement to encourage good behavior such as giving out tickets for a healthy

alternative snack. as well as showing students what happens when they do not follow the rules

and they are misbehaving. I like to have a 3 strike policy if the students are acting up or have

been reminded to not do something 3 times they will be asked to sit out. Normally I let a student
sit out for 5 to 10 minutes and then come talk to them, I will ask them why they think they were

put in time out or away from the group. Depending on the answer I will let the student back in or

say they may need a few more minutes to think about their actions. I always want students to

participate in activities but safety is the number one priority. I also like to establish voice level,

level one is complete silence while level-5 is an outside yell. I feel this gives students a clear

level for their voices and when they can talk.

2.d: Managing Student Behavior

Proficient

I think this may be one of my best abilities as a teacher. With my background in special

education I feel I am equipped and ready to manage and mitigate all behaviors in the classroom.

To be quite Frank it's nothing worse than what I've seen or heard from my EI students. With that

being said, I think it is important to establish an understanding with your students that you are

only going to accept and allow certain things to fly in your classroom. I have no problem

removing students who don't value or respect the rules of my classroom. I will always encourage

and want my students in the classroom but A disruption is something that is going to distract

learning while one student is disrupting the other students need to learn and that is why I’m

never afraid to kick a student out. Having things like a three strike policy will encourage and

promote better behavior from my students.

2.e: Organizing Physical Space

Proficient
I am a neat freak. I like to keep everything organized and all my equipment put away properly. I

always encourage and even make my students put things away twice if they are not put away

properly. I think being neat and organized shows the students that you care and that you are not

only a teacher and professional but clean. I like to draw and add layouts of my lesson plan to

make sure things are spaced out and everything is even. Adding extra cones or markers to

identify where I want students on the floor is always helpful. Color coding things, making green

groups or if there's a green cone there's a green ball in a green hula hoop. I think this is

something that can benefit all students if things are clean, clear and organized there is less

chance for question and misunderstanding especially among bilingual and or special-needs

students. Thankfully I am well-versed in both and more than prepared for the tasks that follow.

Instruction

3.a: Communication with Students

Distinguished

I think this is one of my strongest suits. I make sure all students understand objectives, goals,

skills etcetera. When I was student teaching in elementary school this was done by using the

Whiteboard, writing objectives down on the Whiteboard, writing the lesson plan on the

Whiteboard, keywords for different skills, as well as rubrics or different choices for activities. I

found in elementary school it is a lot easier to show your personality as a teacher and develop

those good relationships with students. We would always be in class A few minutes early to

clean up, once the students were lined up I used this as an opportunity to ask questions, find out

how their day is going and build that relationship that the students want to come back and have

fun and enjoy the class. In my special ed classes I've mentioned this before, I learned sign
language and started to speak more with students who may be non verbal or use sign language as

their main language. To continue that thought, the learning of the speech devices students may

use. Another great thing I have is a communication chain on my lanyard for students that may

need such as bathroom, more, break, stop, too loud… or simple commands that let those non

verbal students know right away they can tell me what they need.

3.b: Using Questioning and Discussion Techniques

Proficient

I think this is my most improved category. At the beginning of student teaching I would say this

was developing now that I've experienced the health classroom and even my experience in

elementary PE has helped as well. Asking questions for critical thinking, having them Reach

beyond the basic level, how will it impact their life. Thankfully, in health there are a lot of

questions and topics that blend well with critical thinking. Asking students how they feel about

the laws and guidelines that impact their life. I've found making things harder on those students

who can take it will help boost their confidence and challenge them to do more. For discussions I

think anything that the students can talk about their personal life or things that will impact their

life, for example in health class we had a fast-food day where we talked all about what fast-food

orders we have and how many different fast food places we see. Then we watched about a 20-

minute video on fast food and the good and bad of it. After the video we had an open discussion

about what changes we would make to our orders after seeing the video and allowed students to

be honest and say if they really wanted to change or not. Letting students feel free to speak their

mind and not the pressure to answer the question correctly opens for better discussion.
3.c: Engaging Students in Learning

Proficient

In my elementary school student teaching, I felt confident that all students were engaged in

learning and wanted to be a part of the gym and what we were going over. Students were excited

to be in the class and sad to leave. of course you have elementary students who will talk too

much but that's always going to be younger children. When it came to the high school I felt a

little learning curve with the students' engagement, in my first few classes a lot of students fell

asleep. After becoming more comfortable I was able to have students engaged throughout the

whole lesson and willing to participate. I found this came with getting to know students

personally being able to call them by name and pudding not necessarily pressure but your name

has been called you need to answer the question. In high school the problem is always the phone,

unfortunately I will never be more interesting than a phone oh, with that being said I have a 3

strike policy in my classroom I see your phone 3 times it's mine for the rest of the hour.

3.d: Using Assessment in Instruction

Proficient

This is something I found very easy to pick up and go with in elementary school. I would use

activity time to help assess students and give them instant feedback on what they can improve

on. This was most beneficial for students, being that unfortunately I saw them once maybe twice

a week with a block schedule system. In high school I found with a power point you need to give

something for the students to write along with like fill in the blanks then in activity at the end as

an exit slip which is their assessment for the day. For any assignments or homework I give I
would always make it do with the end of the week giving students more time for things they have

in other classes, knowing health might not be the top priority.

3.e: Demonstrating Flexibility and Responsiveness

Distinguished

This again is something that is helped a lot by my experience in special education. Being flexible

and being able to work with different students' behaviors or different things that may be going on

in the classroom that the teachers may need help with or taking a few students are holding a

student back. As well as being flexible with students' emotions and their behaviors knowing they

might not be the same every day but I have to be the same, kind and understanding person every

day for them. In my elementary student teaching I was one of 4 male teachers in the building.

For a lot of the students I was a role model and even maybe a father figure with that

responsibility. I think I always have to be professional, responsible, kind, courteous and

understanding. For my high school students and even my upper elementary students I would

always ask for feedback and how can I make the lesson better or how can I improve. what didn't

you understand, What can I make more clear so that you do understand. I have been through a lot

in my student teaching with it being paused for a month to start and the whole pandemic in

general I think has made me very flexible and all my experience in special ed and coaching has

helped as well.

Professional Responsibilities

4.a: Reflecting on Teaching

Proficient
This is one thing I found increasing success in as a teacher and as a coach. Being able to Reflect

and learn from my past lessons and the mistakes I may have made. As well as reflecting upon the

good thing and what went well, how did that work with some students and what students may

have struggled with. I found communicating with other teachers and using their advice or their

wisdom within the craft has helped me a lot to better improve myself as a teacher and continue to

reflect and focus more on what I can improve on.

4.b: Maintaining Accurate Records

Proficient

In my elementary school student teaching I used an old school pencil and clipboard to keep track

of absences as well as mark things like 1 through 4 on different skills for the rubrics we would

use. In high school they have a grading system that they use which is my star. I, as the teacher,

would put in the grades and the computer would add them up and enter the correct grade. also

they have started to use canvas for online assignments which has improved with records and

turning things a lot. I like making things due on Friday. To have all things due one day is easy

and I don't have to worry about who didn't turn what in if it's not there on Friday it's late.

4.c: Participating in the Professional Community

Proficient

With my mentor adaptive PE teacher we attend monthly district-wide APE meetings. As well as

sitting in on many different professional developments within the Wayne State Community. I

was also able to attend CPI training for special education. Once a month there is a half day and

on the half day there is professional development for the teachers, I switch back and forth every
month from the health and PE to the Adaptive PE meetings. I feel going to both gives me an

opportunity to access all my students and prepare best for them.

4.e: Showing Professionalism

Proficient

I have been blessed with great mentor teachers and coaches that have helped me become the

professional I am today. I believe professionalism starts with respect, respecting myself enough

to dress appropriately, to talk appropriately to show respect, to be polite, to open doors to say

thank you and please. Other simple things like saying good morning to everyone I see in the

morning or wishing everyone a good day when they leave the classroom or good weekend or

break when it is necessary. Also something that I think isn't talked a lot about in professionalism

is your attitude, I'm happy to be in the classroom I'm happy to be teaching I'm happy to be here

with the students and I show it with my energy and my attitude how I'm answering questions my

tone if I'm smiling all this encompasses being a professional and a teacher.