(a) Purpose. The standards identified in this section are performance standards to be used to inform the training, appraisal, and professional development of teachers.
(b) Standards.
  (1) Standard 1--Instructional Planning and Delivery. Teachers demonstrate their understanding of instructional planning and delivery by providing standards-based, data-driven, differentiated instruction that engages students, makes appropriate use of technology, and makes learning relevant for today's learners.
    (A) Teachers design clear, well organized, sequential lessons that build on students' prior knowledge.
      (i) Teachers develop lessons that build coherently toward objectives based on course content, curriculum scope and sequence, and expected student outcomes.
      (ii) Teachers effectively communicate goals, expectations, and objectives to help all students reach high levels of achievement.
      (iii) Teachers connect students' prior understanding and real-world experiences to new content and contexts, maximizing learning opportunities.
    (B) Teachers design developmentally appropriate, standards-driven lessons that reflect evidence-based best practices.
      (i) Teachers plan instruction that is developmentally appropriate, is standards driven, and motivates students to learn.
      (ii) Teachers use a range of instructional strategies, appropriate to the content area, to make subject matter accessible to all students.
      (iii) Teachers use and adapt resources, technologies, and standards-aligned instructional materials to promote student success in meeting learning goals.
    (C) Teachers design lessons to meet the needs of diverse learners, adapting methods when appropriate.
      (i) Teachers differentiate instruction, aligning methods and techniques to diverse student needs, including acceleration, remediation, and implementation of individual education plans.
      (ii) Teachers plan student groupings, including pairings and individualized and small-group instruction, to facilitate student learning.
      (iii) Teachers integrate the use of oral, written, graphic, kinesthetic, and/or tactile methods to teach key concepts.
    (D) Teachers communicate clearly and accurately and engage students in a manner that encourages students' persistence and best efforts.
      (i) Teachers ensure that the learning environment features a high degree of student engagement by facilitating discussion and student-centered activities as well as leading direct instruction.
      (ii) Teachers validate each student's comments and questions, utilizing them to advance learning for all students.
      (iii) Teachers encourage all students to overcome obstacles and remain persistent in the face of challenges, providing them with support in achieving their goals.
    (E) Teachers promote complex, higher-order thinking, leading class discussions and activities that provide opportunities for deeper learning.
      (i) Teachers set high expectations and create challenging learning experiences for students, encouraging them to apply disciplinary and cross-disciplinary knowledge to real-world problems.
      (ii) Teachers provide opportunities for students to engage in individual and collaborative critical thinking and problem solving.
      (iii) Teachers incorporate technology that allows students to interact with the curriculum in more significant and effective ways, helping them reach mastery.
    (F) Teachers consistently check for understanding, give immediate feedback, and make lesson adjustments as necessary.
      (i) Teachers monitor and assess student progress to ensure that their lessons meet students' needs.
      (ii) Teachers provide immediate feedback to students in order to reinforce their learning and ensure that they understand key concepts.
      (iii) Teachers adjust content delivery in response to student progress through the use of developmentally appropriate strategies that maximize student engagement.
  (2) Standard 2--Knowledge of Students and Student Learning. Teachers work to ensure high levels of learning, social-emotional development, and achievement outcomes for all students, taking into consideration each student's educational and developmental backgrounds and focusing on each student's needs.
    (A) Teachers demonstrate the belief that all students have the potential to achieve at high levels and support all students in their pursuit of social-emotional learning and academic success.
      (i) Teachers purposefully utilize learners' individual strengths as a basis for academic and social-emotional growth.
      (ii) Teachers create a community of learners in an inclusive environment that views differences in learning and background as educational assets.
      (iii) Teachers accept responsibility for the growth of all of their students, persisting in their efforts to ensure high levels of growth on the part of each learner.
    (B) Teachers acquire, analyze, and use background information (familial, cultural, educational, linguistic, and developmental characteristics) to engage students in learning.
      (i) Teachers connect learning, content, and expectations to students' prior knowledge, life experiences, and interests in meaningful contexts.
      (ii) Teachers understand the unique qualities of students with exceptional needs, including disabilities and giftedness, and know how to effectively address these needs through instructional strategies and resources.
      (iii) Teachers understand the role of language and culture in learning and know how to modify their practices to support language acquisition so that language is comprehensible and instruction is fully accessible.
    (C) Teachers facilitate each student's learning by employing evidence-based practices and concepts related to learning and social-emotional development.
      (i) Teachers understand how learning occurs and how learners develop, construct meaning, and acquire knowledge and skills.
      (ii) Teachers identify readiness for learning and understand how development in one area may affect students' performance in other areas.
      (iii) Teachers apply evidence-based strategies to address individual student learning needs and differences, adjust their instruction, and support the learning needs of each student.
  (3) Standard 3--Content Knowledge and Expertise. Teachers exhibit a comprehensive understanding of their content, discipline, and related pedagogy as demonstrated through the quality of the design and execution of lessons and their ability to match objectives and activities to relevant state standards.
    (A) Teachers understand the major concepts, key themes, multiple perspectives, assumptions, processes of inquiry, structure, and real-world applications of their grade-level and subject-area content.
      (i) Teachers have expertise in how their content vertically and horizontally aligns with the grade-level/subject-area continuum, leading to an integrated curriculum across grade levels and content areas.
      (ii) Teachers identify gaps in students' knowledge of subject matter and communicate with their leaders and colleagues to ensure that these gaps are adequately addressed across grade levels and subject areas.
      (iii) Teachers keep current with developments, new content, new approaches, and changing methods of instructional delivery within their discipline.
    (B) Teachers design and execute quality lessons that are consistent with the concepts of their specific discipline, are aligned to state standards, and demonstrate their content expertise.
      (i) Teachers organize curriculum to facilitate student understanding of the subject matter.
      (ii) Teachers understand, actively anticipate, and adapt instruction to address common misunderstandings and preconceptions.
      (iii) Teachers promote literacy and the academic language within the discipline and make discipline-specific language accessible to all learners.
    (C) Teachers demonstrate content-specific pedagogy that meets the needs of diverse learners, utilizing engaging instructional materials to connect prior content knowledge to new learning.
      (i) Teachers teach both the key content knowledge and the key skills of the discipline.
      (ii) Teachers make appropriate and authentic connections across disciplines, subjects, and students' real-world experiences.
Cont'd...