Teacher Proficiencies

Just as we know that students need to be aware of exactly what is expected and then given the coaching to reach their goals, so too do employees need to know clearly what is expected in the workplace. Many teachers feel that their work is more of a calling than simply a job (and I agree), but the reality remains that there are standards we must meet in order to ensure that we are giving students the best possible chances of success as they move through our school system. 

Abbotsford has created a set of Teacher Proficiencies which clearly show the essential skills that teachers must demonstrate. It's like having Learning Targets for eight areas of growth, and each level outlines the basic proficiency skills as well as those demonstrating "distinguished performance." While as adults we tend to chaff at the idea of being evaluated - it makes us feel anxious and insecure in a way we'd rather avoid - these proficiencies can give us a method of self-assessment very similar to the one we are working to instill in our students! In fact, we can change the wording of these proficiencies into "I can" statements, and we have our very own set of competencies. It is my hope that just as teachers are becoming more comfortable all the time with a curriculum that focuses on assessment of the big ideas for the whole student, so too will we all become comfortable with assessing our own performance based on the proficiencies that focus on the best we can be as educators.