Professionalism & Culture
According to Doctrine and Covenants 121:41-46, how can an MTC teacher become "powerful" and "influential"?
By persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned; By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile—Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy; That he may know that thy faithfulness is stronger than the cords of death. Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly;
What are the four objectives of the MTC?
Help missionaries...
- Understand their missionary purpose
- Learn and teach the doctrine
- Grow in their spiritual development and personal conversion
- Improve their ability to invite and help others receive the restored gospel
Which MTC Objective is this series of outlines designed to accomplish?
Learn and Teach the Doctrine
When both teachers are teaching language, is it a "TRACK" system or a "HANDOFF" system?
Track system. Teacher A focuses on one task (for example, Task 5) and Teacher B begins working on the following task (Task 6). When Teacher A is finished with task 6, they jump to Task 7.
How do I know if I should use Spanish or English?
SYL Icon in the bottom right corner
"If teachers focus on ______ students, rather than ______ them, it will improve their behavior in class."
"When middle school teachers _____ students at least as often as they _____ them, class-wide on-task behavior improved by 60–70%."
"If teachers focus on PRAISING students, rather than REPRIMANDING them, it will improve their behavior in class."
"When middle school teachers PRAISED students at least as often as they REPRIMANDED them, class-wide on-task behavior improved by 60–70%."
What was the purpose of the "turtle-drawing" activity?
If we plan activities without locking in on objectives, it can feel like planning a lot of random things that don't lead to anything meaningful.
When we starting our planning by locking in on objectives, those same "random" activities gain purpose, direction, clarity, and power.
The three adjectives/criteria that describe how we want missionaries to teach are....
SIMPLE: What they share is true and is not beyond the scope of PMG.
CLEAR: Missionaries use simple terms. If they do use a more difficult word, they define it.
BRIEF
What are the two activities that require more teacher creativity in planning?
Practice Out Loud (part of Practice the Patterns)
Practice for New Situations (part of Expand the Context)
What is comprehensible input?
Teacher speaks the language at a level just above missionaries' current level (i + 1), using strategies like visuals, gestures, context, repetition, etc. to help missionaries get the gist.
What do we mean when we describe a teacher as a "thermometer" or a "thermostat"?
Thermometer: can reflect the temperature but does not change it.
Thermostat: can reflect AND change the temperature.
We want to be like "thermomstats"--actively influence the culture in your class, don't be an object that is acted upon.
What are the four parts of a Practice Model outline?
- Explain
- Demo
- Practice, Coach, and Re-practice
- Evaluate and Apply
What happens in the outline "Gospel Principles in Chapter 3"?
Missionaries engage in lots of 5-minute practices, where they practice explaining/articulating the lessons simply, clearly, and briefly.
How should a teacher evaluate and give feedback on Speaking Checks and Task Assessments?
How do I know what feedback or suggestions to give a missionary regarding their language study plan?
Give suggestions and feedback based on the section "Create a Language Study Plan" in PMG Ch. 7
In our effort to be an example of a “model missionary,” we want the photos on the Missionary Dress and Appearance website to be _______ rather than ______.
In our effort to be an example of a “model missionary,” we want the photos on the Missionary Dress and Appearance website to be OUR BOUNDARIES rather than OUR STARTING POINT.
Beginning of class devotionals (should be brief and powerful; 5-7 minutes).
Breaks (should be brief and intentional; usually ~7 minutes is a good default).
What are the four outlines repeated once for lessons 1-3?
-Gospel Principles in Ch. 3
-Deepen Your Doctrinal Foundation
-People May Wonder
-Practice Teaching
What are the 5 "criteria for success" in an Interact with Input activity?
- Use immersion
- Use good comprehensible input
- Focus on Embark phrases and vocabulary, moving on after 15+ repetitions
- Require short interactions from missionaries
- Call attention to the appropriate grammar principle
What are the five language objectives of the MTC?
- Prepare spiritually and seek the gift of tongues
- Create, follow, and adjust language study plans
- Master MTC core vocabulary and grammar
- Master MTC core language tasks
- Reach the Intermediate level
What does the Spanish area use to measure and report teachers' professionalism?
Shift leads record and report attendance, punctuality, and dress and appearance each day.
ALSO ACCEPTABLE: Supervisors will give feedback on professionalism and culture in every observation.
A DEMO in a Practice Model activity should follow which 5 criteria?
-Brief
-Simple
-Replicable
-Relevant (only focused on criteria)
-Evaluated according to criteria
What are the four sub-objectives of "Learn and Teach the Doctrine"?
- Memorize the principles in lessons 1-3 (UNDERSTAND)
- Be able to explain the lessons in simple, clear, and brief ways (EXPLAIN/ARTICULATE)
- Briefly identify and quickly share relevant doctrine in response to People May Wonder questions (EXPLAIN/ARTICULATE)
- Apply relevant teaching skills from Chapters 10-11 (TEACH)
Write out the whole Language Teaching Model from Task Overview through Task Assessment. Include the sub-elements in "Practice the Patterns" (4) and "Expand the Context" (5)
What are the two main goals of the tutor?
1) Help missionaries retake assessments
2) Help all missionaries with their language study plans
Tutors will be present at missionaries language study a few times each week. That language study is hard-scheduled and happens on the tutor's Zoom link (online) or in the classroom (in person).