OUR SCHOOL PARTNERS

Many conventional teacher training programs occur separate from the school where teachers ultimately work, often leaving teachers feeling a disconnect. This is especially true for public Montessori teachers who are often left to integrate Montessori pedagogy with public school demands on their own. In contrast, Arete Memphis Residents will not only develop the skill-sets and dispositions for effective teaching as a public Montessori educator, but also receive the support of a  residency model that intentionally aligns with the day to day experience at their school-site. This partnership is crucial for the Resident to have the kind of preparation and efficacy needed to practice child-centered pedagogy within their school community. The partnership must address the Resident’s:
 
CONTEXT 
 
High-fidelity to Montessori’s comprehensive pedagogy of human development rooted in evidence-based best practices in education with relevance to their school and community context;

INDIVIDUALIZED SUPPORT

Unique learning progression across the continuum of their development from formative to increasing complexity and sophistication of teaching practice; 

FOCUS ON APPLICATION

Access to essential curricular and pedagogical content and resources in multi-modal formats for differentiated professional  learning and ongoing job-embedded opportunities for continuous growth; 

Intentional and strategic collaborative use of standards-based Teacher Learning Progressions to focus on the practice of teaching, student outcomes, and how to improve practice;

CONTINUOUS LEARNING
 
Development of their efficacy through the impact of an intentional alignment in their coaching and mentoring relationships; and 
 
Ongoing facilitated reflective practice with their Coaching Collaborative Partnership and Residency and school-based Communities of Practice.

While holding fidelity to Montessori’s comprehensive model of human development, Arete Memphis aligns the educator preparation curriculum to the Teacher Learning Progressions articulated by the Interstate Teacher Assessment Support Consortium (InTASC) Model Core Teaching Standards and additional alignment with the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), and the Montessori Accreditation Council of Teacher Education (MACTE). These standards-based Teacher Learning Progressions inform:

SCAFFOLDED & PERSONALIZED EDUCATOR GROWTH PLAN
 
Arete Memphis’s teacher preparation curriculum and what is required for licensure, including the content focus and coursework sequence, how experiences during clinical practice should be scaffolded, and what should be included in a plan for continued growth as Residents move deeper into their practice;
 
COACHING
 
Coaches, mentors, and school leaders in providing collaborative evaluative feedback and focused professional development and action planning;
 
REFLECTIVE PRACTICE
 
Supported ongoing self-assessment to reflect on their individual practice against a framework of development for continuous improvement.