ABOUT US
Teaching Point is impact committed, mission driven and dedicated to serving the educational community by addressing the issue of the unequal distribution of highly-qualified and highly-effective teachers – without moving them around from school to school.
Click here for Getting to the Teaching Point.
Teaching Point is a provider of teacher training solutions through a patented and registered program that offers 3 distinct levels of professional development support:
- Subject-specific instructional support materials (details posted below)
- Subject-specific mentoring teacher access
- Subject-specific university hosted online courses to assist teachers in their efforts to be highly-effective and, where necessary, certify teachers in additional subject-areas
Teachers with new assignments have different needs. Some may be technically qualified to teach a subject, yet as they have never taught it before, will benefit from instructional support materials and/or access to a subject-specific mentor. Others new to a subject assignment (or those unavoidably assigned out-of-field) will benefit by taking the university hosted online course for continuing education credit as a practical way of working toward recertification credits (the online courses include the materials and mentoring).
The Problem
The problem: Thousands of schools in the United States have been given failing grades by their state Departments of Education. In the meantime, the existing shortage of qualified teachers is so obstinate that some school districts are waiving the established teaching certification requirements. District administrators, principals and teachers are under amplified pressure to improve student achievement scores on standardized tests in the face of the unequal distribution of experienced teachers in every subject.
Declaration of Purpose
Declaration of Purpose: Teaching Point is dedicated to 1) developing a knowledge base for teaching in all subjects and grade levels in all major languages for the benefit of both teachers and students globally and 2) by doing so, addressing the problem of the unequal distribution of effective teachers through a method unique and innovative enough to be patented and trademarked: U.S. Patent 8116674 (see description beginning page 18 of Patent PDF file)
The Solution
The solution: TEACHINGpoint was established to develop comprehensive teacher preparation and instructional support materials written by expert teachers who understand the needs of novice teachers, teachers with new assignments and teachers facing out-of-field assignments — The Expert Systems for Teachers™ Series of TEACHINGpoint instructional support materials is grounded in research-based best practices and presently serves schools in all 50 U.S. states and over 85 countries.
TEACHINGPOINT COURSE MATERIALS
practical and accessible, with features designed to support out-of-field, new and overworked teachers including: Detailed pacing guide in an easy-to-use format to ensure coverage of standards and reduce classroom prep. Daily lesson plans with point-of-use teaching strategies and classroom management tips. Daily content summaries for teachers needing background knowledge Class notes, in editable PowerPoint form or PDF files that support each lecture portion of your teaching Complete, editable, assessments including quizzes, performance assessments and end-of-course exams.
Teaching a new subject or, more problematic, teaching unavoidably out-of-field, may have a negative impact on student performance when inadequate pacing means required content is not covered. Teachers with new subject assignments or too many preps struggle preparing lesson plans & activities, adding to an already stressful workload.
Unit at a time: Although our main purpose is to prepare teachers for new assignments with complete course materials, we realize that sometimes an experienced teacher just needs a unit or two or three. So, to answer that need, contact us with the course name and unit(s) you want and we’ll reply with purchasing details for download versions.
Expert teachers, authors of this series of instructional support materials, have written everything you need to teach your subject assignments effectively. The materials work with any text (where necessary) that you choose. We are dedicated to helping educators get their students to the “teaching point” where learning begins and serve thousands of schools in all 50 U.S. states and 87 countries. How can we serve you?
President Barack Obama: said the pool of teachers is deep enough but many aren’t getting the training, professional development and support they need. “Of particular concern is the fact that typically the least experienced teachers…often end up in the poorest schools,” Under the initiative, states will be required to analyze data and submit plans to ensure students are taught by “effective educators.” (WSJ, July 8, 2014).
Bill Gates: “Better teachers are more likely to result in higher achievement” remarked while speaking at the National Conference of State Legislatures. (Philadelphia, July 22, 2009)
Michelle Rhee (Director, Students First): “Research shows that teacher quality is the single most important in-school factor affecting student performance. We need comprehensive classroom support and professional development to help teachers improve their craft.” (WSJ, July 7, 2014)
Teaching Point agrees with each of these comments and the answer is that it is much less costly to help better prepare an in-service teacher for new subject assignments with this series of instructional support materials (and companion courses through participating universities if necessary) than replace a teacher. Let us help you save substantially on recruitment, development and retention of teachers while improving student achievement, graduation rates, college and workforce readiness.
Empirical evidence: Grants funded by the State of Florida for Florida Teachers, provided empirical evidence that the Teaching Point program improved content knowledge among enrolled teachers.
Micro-credentials through online courses: Partnering universities host an initial series of 100 Teaching Point online distance learning continuing education courses. Ultimately, universities in multiple U.S. states and other countries will host this series to certify teachers by subject. The series will offer teachers convenient access to online coursework to support content knowledge and content-specific instructional skills and the opportunity to earn credit toward re-certification and HOUSSE certification in subject-specific areas. The tuition for these professional development courses in the U.S. may be funded through districts allocations from Title I and Title IIA (Improving Teacher Quality State Grants), Title 5 (Innovative Programs), state professional development and school improvement budgets and in other countries by their own teacher development budgets.
TEACHINGpoint course materials support teachers and students in public schools, charter schools and home schools globally, in over 75 countries on 5 continents: North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia.