California Standards for the Teaching Profession

Category: General Teaching Practices

California’s population of higher education students is increasingly diverse, coming from a wide range of social-cultural backgrounds, and all demonstrating multiple learning styles and abilities. To help instructors better understand these challenges, the California Commission of Teacher Credentialing published a report on California Standards for the Teaching Profession (CSTP) in October, 2009. These standards provide a common language and a vision of the scope and complexity of the profession by which all teachers can define and develop their practices, while the guidelines allow instructors to develop, refine, and extend their teaching practices for the benefit of all their students.

Below, we list the six interrelated domains of teaching practices that are identified in the report, together with their key sub-elements. We hope you will find them useful.

And as always, your Center for Teaching and Faculty Development stands ready with consultations, resources, tutorials, workshops, and grant projects to help you reach you own pedagogical goals. Just email ctfd@sfsu.edu--we’re here to serve!

1. Engaging and Supporting All Students in Learning
• Using knowledge of students to engage them in learning
• Connecting learning to students’ prior knowledge, backgrounds, life experiences, and interests
• Connecting subject matter to meaningful, real-life contexts
• Using a variety of instructional strategies, resources, and technologies to meet students’ diverse learning needs
• Promoting critical thinking through inquiry, problem solving, and reflection
• Monitoring student learning and adjusting instruction while teaching
2. Creating and Maintaining Effective Environments for Student Learning
• Promoting social development and responsibility within a caring community where each student is treated fairly and respectfully
• Creating physical or virtual learning environment that promote student learning, reflect diversity, and encourage constructive and productive interactions among students
• Establishing and maintaining learning environment that are physically, intellectually, and emotionally safe
• Creating a rigorous learning environment with high expectations and appropriate support for all students
• Developing, communicating, and maintaining high standards for individual and group behavior
• Employing classroom routines, procedures, norms, and supports for positive behavior to ensure a climate in which all students can learn
• Using instructional time to optimize learning
3. Understanding and Organizing Student Matter for Student Learning
• Demonstrating knowledge of subject matter, academic content standards, and curriculum frameworks
• Applying knowledge of student development and proficiencies to ensure student understanding of subject matter
• Organizing curriculum to facilitate student understanding of the subject matter
• Utilizing instructional strategies that are appropriate to the subject matter
• Using and adapting resources, technologies, and standards-aligned instructional materials, including adopted materials, to make subject matter accessible to all students
• Addressing the needs of English learners and students with special needs to provide equitable access to the content
4. Planning Instruction and Designing Learning Experiences for All Students
• Using knowledge of students’ academic readiness, language proficiency, cultural background, and individual development to plan instruction
• Establishing and articulating goals for student learning
• Developing and sequencing long-term and short-term instructional plans to support student learning
• Planning instruction that incorporate appropriate strategies to meet the learning needs of all students
• Adapting instructional plans and curricular materials to meet the assessed learning needs of all students
5. Assessing Students for Learning
• Applying knowledge of the purposes, characteristics, and uses of different types of assessments
• Collecting and analyzing assessment data from a variety of sources to inform instruction
• Reviewing data, both individually and with colleagues, to monitor student learning
• Using assessment data to establish learning goals and to plan different, and modify instruction
• Involving all students in self-assessment, goal setting, and monitoring progress
• Using available technologies to assist in assessment, analysis, and communication of student learning
• Using assessment information to share timely and comprehensible feedback with students and their families
6. Developing as a Professional Educator
• Reflecting on teaching practice in support of student learning
• Establishing professional goals and engaging in continuous purposeful professional growth and development
• Collaborating with colleagues and the broader professional community to support teacher and student learning
• Working with families to support student learning
• Engaging local communities in support of instructional program
• Managing professional responsibilities to maintain motivation and commitment to all students
• Demonstrating professional responsibility, integrity, and ethnical conduct

Related Documents

• 2009 California Standards for the Teaching Professions
  Download PDF File of 2009 California Standards for the Teaching Professions
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