Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Developing Relationships

Go to Course: https://www.coursera.org/learn/teacher-relationships

Introduction

### Course Review: Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Developing Relationships on Coursera If you’re looking to enhance your teaching skills and foster a positive learning environment, Coursera’s “Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Developing Relationships” course is an excellent place to start. This innovative program is designed for educators across all contexts—whether you're teaching in schools, at home, or in professional settings. Delivered through a series of dynamic lessons from respected professionals across the Commonwealth, this course paves the way for developing crucial relationships that impact educational outcomes. #### Course Overview The “Foundations of Teaching for Learning” program is an eight-course series that focuses on the vital role that relationships play in the learning process. The first course, “Developing Relationships,” lays the groundwork by emphasizing the importance of cultivating connections not just with students, but also with colleagues, parents, and the wider community. Drawing from contemporary educational theories, it offers practical strategies and insights to help educators create a nurturing environment conducive to learning. #### Key Components of the Course 1. **The Importance of Relationships in Educational Settings**: Relationships are fundamental to educational success. This segment examines how relationships impact learning outcomes and outlines strategies for fostering positive connections among students, educators, and the curriculum. Students are encouraged to engage with fellow educators to reflect on their practices and enhance learning collaboratively. 2. **Developing Positive Teacher-Student Relationships**: This section delves into the dynamics between educators and their students, offering practical approaches for establishing rapport. It highlights the role of self-awareness and conscious decision-making in shaping behavior and underscores the ethical responsibilities teachers hold in creating a safe, respectful learning environment. 3. **Collaborating with Colleagues and School Leaders**: The course encourages educators to evaluate the concept of school improvement through professional collaboration. Participants explore the crucial role of trust in educational settings and how establishing strong professional learning communities can support growth and development. 4. **Engaging Parents for Student Success**: Recognizing parents as pivotal figures in a child’s education, this module discusses effective strategies for parental involvement. It explores the frameworks developed by Joyce Epstein on how parents can contribute positively to their child’s academic journey. 5. **Building Community Connections**: This segment emphasizes the significance of integrating community involvement into education. Students learn about the symbiotic relationship between schools and their communities and how establishing these connections can enhance student achievement. 6. **Understanding Diversity**: With an increasing diversity in classrooms, this module encourages educators to reflect on various aspects of diversity beyond nationality and culture. Acknowledging differences in gender, socio-economic status, and motivation helps educators adapt their teaching strategies to cater to diverse learning needs. #### Personal Reflection Having completed the course, I can attest to the transformative impact it has had on my educational practice. The lessons are not merely theoretical; they are infused with real-world examples and actionable strategies that can be implemented immediately. Engaging in peer discussions throughout the course enhanced my understanding and provided multiple perspectives on relationship-building in various contexts. #### Recommendation I highly recommend the "Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Developing Relationships" course to any educator dedicated to improving their teaching craft. Whether you're just starting out in your teaching career or looking to refine your existing skills, this course provides invaluable insights into the effective practices that nurture relationships in educational settings. With its emphasis on collaboration, community involvement, and a respectful understanding of diversity, this course has the potential to significantly enhance your teaching efficacy and student outcomes. Enroll today and take the first step toward becoming a more effective and empathetic educator!

Syllabus

The importance of relationships for educational settings

Relationships are critical to everything we do. They impact on our learning and how we see the curriculum and its assessment. They make a difference to our learning by ourselves and with others. They will enable us to work well, or not so well, with other people in the school. This week we will look in detail at what relationships are and how they are formed. We look back briefly at something that was discussed in course five, that is, how to support the development of a growth mindset. We hope that right from the start you will be discussing the course content with another educator. Since our relationships for so much of the time involve other people, it is important to think about these things with others to enable us to practice some of the things that are talked about in the course.

This week we are going to focus on establishing relationships with students. We will start by considering the connections between how and what we think and how we behave. Sometimes we behave habitually, but sometimes, if we want to change our habits, we have to consciously make decisions about what to think or how to act. We will discuss how these two types of behaviour play out in the classroom and look at why one type is more productive. To take this a little bit further, we will explore the role that questions play in learning. We will also look at some of the strategies that you can use to develop positive relationships in the classroom, remembering that students are forming a range of relationships: relationship with themselves, with learning, with the curriculum content, with the teacher, with other students and with the wider community. Finally, we are going to talk about the need to behave ethically in the classroom, treating students with respect and ensuring that no harm comes to them. At the end of the week, you will write a short essay where you will consider the factors involved in establishing relationships and think about activities that you can use to improve student learning.

This week we will focus on the concept of school improvement and effectiveness. There are several important factors that contribute to the success of a school. We will identify what these factors are, and look at each of them in detail. We start by looking at relationships, especially your relationships with your colleagues and school leaders. This will include a study of teacher unions and teacher associations, which both have a role in building professional relationships. Teacher unions offer a platform for development that will bring about educational reform. Next we will look at trust. We will explore what the concept of trust encompasses, and consider how certain behaviours can help to build trust. Finally, we look at working with leaders, teachers, and support staff. Here we will be looking at establishing Professional Learning Communities. At the end of this week we hope that you will be prepared to establish Professional Learning Communities and enhance you professional development.

This week we will consider the importance of establishing good relationships with the parents of your students. We will focus on why we need to involve parents in the education of their children and how we can go about it. The first two lectures are themed on the statement ‘The parent is the child’s first teacher’. These lectures focus on the important role that parents play in their child’s learning. We know that having children well prepared for the first day of school is an important first step for their learning. Teachers can play a role in reaching out to parents and giving them the information they need to give students the best chance of being successful. Weeks three and four look at the work of Joyce Epstein and her colleagues and their six different ways in which parents can be productively involved in their child’s education. These include the important roles of parenting, having good communication with the school, volunteering to do things in the school, helping their child learn at home, helping the school to make decisions about what it will do, and actively being involved in the community. At the end of this week you will be asked to write a short essay where you will consider the factors involved in establishing relationships with either other teachers and school administrators or parents.

This week we consider the importance of looking beyond the school and establishing relationship with the outside community. Students are much more likely to do well if the community values education and provides good policies, appropriate levels of funding, and appropriate training for teachers. We will consider the difference between a regular school and a community school that involves its local community and considers it be a part of the school. We will look at some of the things that a community needs in order to support student learning and explore some ways in which schools can establish partnerships with their community. We will also consider 40 developmental assets that are related to student learning and success, as identified by the Search Institute in the United States. We also reflect on the importance of dialogue as a means of helping each other learn. This is one reason why we have been encouraging you to work in partnership with a colleague – either in your own setting or online – as you work through the ideas in this course. We hope you will either use professional conversations in your school setting or work with others online to enable dialogue that will help you learn.

This week you are going to have the opportunity to think about the issue of diversity in the classroom. Some of you might think that your classroom is not really a diverse place because all of the students come from your home country. However, diversity goes way beyond issues of nationality and culture. Diversity can include gender, socio-economic background, motivation to learn, and many other factors. We need to consider diversity very carefully if we are to have a classroom that is responsive to the various needs of our students.