Building an Effective Plan of Improvement for Teachers

Building an Effective Plan of Improvement for Teachers A plan of improvement can be written for any teacher who performs unsatisfactorily or has a deficiency in one or more areas. This plan can be stand-alone in nature or in conjunction with an observation or evaluation. The plan highlights their area(s) of deficiency, offers suggestions for improvement, and gives a timeline in which they must meet the goals set in the plan of improvement. In many cases, the teacher and administrator have already had conversations regarding the areas that need improvement. Those conversations have yielded little to no results, and a plan of improvement is the next step.  A plan of improvement is intended to provide the teacher with detailed steps to improve and will also provide critical documentation should it become necessary to terminate the teacher. The following is a sample plan of improvement for teachers. Sample Plan of Improvement for Teachers Teacher: Any Teacher, Any Grade, Any Public School Administrator: Any Principal, Principal, Any Public School Date: Friday, January 4, 2019 Reasons for Action: Performance Deficiencies and Insubordination Purpose of the Plan: The purpose of this plan is to provide goals and suggestions to help the teacher improve in areas of deficiencies. Admonishment: Area of Deficiency Instructional IneffectivenessUnsatisfactory Teaching PerformanceWillful Neglect of Duty Description of Conduct or Performance: I have formally and informally visited Mrs. Teacher’s classroom several times since the beginning of the school year. Most every time Mrs. Teacher has been sitting at her desk, students have been working on worksheets, writing spelling words, etc. I have seen very little teacher instruction occurring and when I have seen instruction it has been a review of previously learned concepts, rather than new information.During my observations, I have noticed that the students are not involved in learning. Most seem disinterested in the classroom proceedings, and many of them hardly bother to go through the motions of responding when called upon by Mrs. Teacher.On Wednesday, December 19, 2018, I walked into Mrs. Teacher’s classroom and noticed the students were left in there unattended. Mrs. Teacher left the classroom to grab a cup of coffee and to use the bathroom and did not have anyone watch her classroom.On, Friday, December 21, 2018, I visited Mrs. Teacher’s classroo m three times throughout the day with the visits lasting about 10-15 minutes each time. When I entered the classroom all three times, Mrs. Teacher was at her desk, and the students were working on worksheets. Many of the students seemed bored and disinterested with their work. On occasion, a student would go up to her desk for help, and she did get up on one occasion and walk around the room monitoring the students’ progress. Assistance: Mrs. Teacher must receive prior administrator approval before leaving her classroom while students are in the classroom.Mrs. Teacher will be given several articles that provide successful tips for classroom management, motivation techniques, and instructional strategies.Mrs. Teacher will be required to observe another designated teachers classroom for one hour on Monday, January 7, 2019, from 8:30 – 9:30 a.m. and again on Thursday, January 10, 2019, from 1:15 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. The other teacher is a veteran teacher and does a fantastic job motivating and instructing students.Mrs. Teacher must not leave any students without adult supervision during any part of the school day. Timeline: This plan of improvement will remain in effect for three weeks, beginning Friday, January 4, 2019, and ending Friday, January 25, 2019. Consequences: This is a plan of improvement that highlights your deficiencies as a professional educator. These are serious enough to admonish you and give notice of deficiencies in the areas listed above. Failure to correct these deficiencies will result in a recommendation for your suspension, demotion, non-reemployment, or dismissal. Delivery Time to Respond: This plan of improvement was delivered in a meeting with Mrs. Teacher on Friday, January 4, 2019. She has until Friday, January 11, 2019, to sign and return a copy of the plan of improvement. Formative Conferences: The initial conference to go over this plan of improvement will be on Friday, January 4, 2019. We will have a review conference on Friday, January 25, 2019. This conference will be used to review and discuss the progress Mrs. Teacher has made towards the provisions listed in this letter of admonishment and plan of improvement. Signatures: ______________________________________________________________________  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Any Principal, Principal, Any Public Schools/Date ______________________________________________________________________  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Any Teacher, Teacher, Any Public School/Date I have read the information outlined in this letter of admonishment and plan of improvement. Although I may not agree with the assessment of my supervisor, I understand that if I do not make improvements in the areas of deficiency and follow the suggestions listed within this letter that I may be recommended for suspension, demotion, non-reemployment, or dismissal.

How Irish Immigrants Overcame Discrimination in America

How Irish Immigrants Overcame Discrimination in America The month of March isn’t just home to St. Patrick’s Day but also to Irish American Heritage Month, which acknowledges the discrimination the Irish faced in America and their contributions to society. In honor of the annual event, the U.S. Census Bureau releases a variety of facts and figures about Irish Americans and the White House issues a proclamation about the Irish experience in the United States. In March 2012, President Barack Obama ushered in Irish-American Heritage Month by discussing the â€Å"indomitable spirit† of the Irish. He referred to the Irish as a group â€Å"whose strength helped build countless miles of canals and railroads; whose brogues echoed in mills, police stations, and fire halls across our country; and whose blood spilled to defend a nation and a way of life they helped define. Defying Famine, Poverty, and Discrimination Defying famine, poverty, and discrimination, these sons and daughters of Erin demonstrated extraordinary strength and unshakable faith as they gave their all to help build an America worthy of the journey they and so many others have taken.† History of Discrimination Notice that the president used the word â€Å"discrimination† to discuss the Irish American experience. In the 21st century, Irish Americans are widely considered to be â€Å"white† and reap the benefits of white skin privilege. In previous centuries, however, the Irish endured some of the same discrimination that racial minorities endure today. As Jessie Daniels explained in a piece on the Racism Review website called â€Å"St. Patrick’s Day, Irish-Americans and the Changing Boundaries of Whiteness,† the Irish faced marginalization as newcomers to the United States in the 19th century. This was largely because of how the English treated them. She explains: â€Å"The Irish had suffered profound injustice in the U.K. at the hands of the British, widely seen as ‘white negroes.’ The potato famine that created starvation conditions that cost the lives of millions of Irish and forced the out-migration of millions of surviving ones, was less a natural disaster and more a complex set of social conditions created by British landowners (much like Hurricane Katrina). Forced to flee from their native Ireland and the oppressive British landowners, many Irish came to the U.S.† Immigrating to the U.S. Didn’t End the Hardships But immigrating to the U.S. didn’t end the hardships the Irish experienced across the pond. Americans stereotyped the Irish as lazy, unintelligent, carefree criminals and alcoholics. Daniels points out that the term â€Å"paddy wagon† comes from the derogatory â€Å"paddy,† a nickname for â€Å"Patrick† widely used to describe Irish men. Given this, the term â€Å"paddy wagon† basically equates being Irish to criminality. Competing for Low-Wage Employment Once the U.S. ceased to enslave its African American population, the Irish competed with blacks for low-wage employment. The two groups did not join together in solidarity, however. Instead, the Irish worked to enjoy the same privileges as white Anglo-Saxon Protestants, a feat they accomplished partly at the expense of blacks, according to Noel Ignatiev, author of How the Irish Became White (1995). Subjugating Blacks to Move up the Socioeconomic Ladder While the Irish abroad opposed slavery, for example, Irish Americans supported the peculiar institution because subjugating blacks allowed them to move up the U.S. socioeconomic ladder. After slavery ended, the Irish refused to work alongside blacks and terrorized African Americans to eliminate them as competition on multiple occasions. Due to these tactics, the Irish eventually enjoyed the same privileges as other whites while blacks remained second-class citizens in America. Richard Jenson, a former University of Chicago history professor, wrote an essay about these issues in the Journal of Social History called â€Å"‘No Irish Need Apply’: A Myth of Victimization.† He states:​ â€Å"We know from the experience of African Americans and Chinese that the most powerful form of job discrimination came from workers who vowed to boycott or shut down any employer who hired the excluded class. Employers who were personally willing to hire Chinese or blacks were forced to submit to the threats. There were no reports of mobs attacking Irish employment. On the other hand, the Irish repeatedly attacked employers who hired African Americans or Chinese.† Advantages Used to Get Ahead White Americans often express incredulity that their ancestors managed to succeed in the United States while people of color continue to struggle. If their penniless, immigrant grandfather could make it in the U.S. why can’t blacks or Latinos or Native Americans? Examining the experiences of European immigrants in the U.S. reveals that some of the advantages they used to get ahead- white skin and intimidation of minority laborers- were off-limits to people of color.