The purpose of the PPR 160 test is to ensure that educators understand the fundamental concepts and practices related to teaching and can demonstrate their ability to create a positive learning environment, engage students, manage classrooms effectively, and uphold ethical standards in their profession.
Evaluating the Exam's Type of Questions
The exam evaluates teachers' knowledge in areas such as:
instructional planning and delivery (effective teaching techniques & inclusion)
assessment and evaluation (best type of assessment or way to check for learning)
classroom management (keeping students safe and classroom friendly for students)
professionalism (being a teacher means being a leader)
student-centered learning (refrain from exclusion and keep your classroom growing in knowledge through social practice, activities, and other differentiated approaches)
Many questions from the PPR will test you about the topics above in a scenario based setting. Take the following practice question for instance:
1. A teacher suspects that a student is experiencing difficulties at home. What should the teacher do? a) Ignore the situation and focus on academic performance b) Discuss the situation with other teachers but not take any action c) Report concerns to the appropriate authorities or school personnel d) Confront the student and demand an explanation
Knowing the best course of action as a teacher seems like a no brainer type of question but these questions are plentiful in the PPR and help gauge a teacher's readiness to take on the responsibility of fulfilling the future generations of leaders. The correct answer is c) Report concerns to the appropriate authorities or school personnel since any issues that arise that are not caused by the school are also not a teacher's legal responsiblity either. That's why its best to find someone who is in the field to help with that specific area. B and A are terrible answers because they revolve around the dated "ignore and it'll go away" mentality. Students of any age are not only likely to cause further concerns but those concerns can also reach the parents of other students which could make you liable. D is incorrect due to the nature of what "demanding" implies and can be interpreted as threatening which teachers should never do.
Classroom Environment
A large portion of the test focuses on professional responsibilities as the title of the test "pedagogy and professional responsibilities" clearly states. As such its important to be mindful of what being professionally responsible truly implies. Situations can occur for teachers at any moment and just like driving, you have to have a plan of action otherwise one wrong turn can cause total chaos. Your decision making skills need to be fast and prompt to ensure a safe and effective learning environment for students of all levels of learning.
As a teacher, we are constantly regarded by students as the "know it alls" but in reality, we are limited only by what we ourselves chose to learn. That's why when planning effective lessons it is also important to consider the impact your methods as a teacher have on everyone else. When we are not busy lesson planning we are engaging students in activities throughout the classroom. Activities are only as effective as the environment they take place in. That's why the TEA (Texas Education Agency) wants teachers to be aware of how a environment can positive and negatively impact a classroom.
Take the following practice question for instance:
2. Which of the following is an example of a teacher's responsibility in promoting a safe and inclusive classroom environment?
a) Encouraging open dialogue and respecting diverse perspectives
b) Discouraging student participation in extracurricular activities
c) Allowing bullying and harassment to go unaddressed
d) Excluding students with different backgrounds from classroom discussions
The key word's to look for here is safe and inclusive and when considering the correct answer, your answer should be able to answer the question "is this both safe and inclusive?" With that in mind examine the answer choices:
a) Encouraging open dialogue and respecting diverse perspectives
respect = safe and diverse/open = inclusive
b) Discouraging student participation in extracurricular activities
discouraging participation = not inclusive and not safe for extracurricular activities
c) Allowing bullying and harassment to go unaddressed
bullying/harassment = not safe
d) Excluding students with different backgrounds from classroom discussions
excluding students from classroom discussion = not inclusive
A is not only safe and inclusive but it is also meeting the responsibilities as a teacher. B, C, & D either negatively disrupt the classroom or cause a negative response from the students which can further discourage adequate growth and development both cognitively and socially for students.
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