Ed 237

(Seminar in the Dev’t. of Moral Values including School & Community Relations)

Submitted to:
Mrs. Adela Dela Cruz

Submitted by:
Divina C. Guio Guio
 Distinguished Teacher Stage

Teachers at this stage are some of the district’s top performers, with a record of exemplary

student achievement. These teachers have consistently demonstrated a deep understanding of

instructional best practices and may serve as models to colleagues who are still developing their skills.

Objective: Recognize faculty members whose skill and career achievements focus on teaching. skills

as recognized by the academic community by their enhancing the student outcomes. • Driven by the

attainment of attributes that define “Distinguished Teacher

Distinguished Teacher Traits

 Unique style

 Engaging – Not a single student was ever bored

 Allowed our voices to be heard

 Embraced and cultivated our individuality

 Empathetic to our world

 She recognized potential and pushes each one to reach and even exceed

 Persistent care for us – endless memory remembering every detail about us

 Content was merely a vehicle to us and our minds not the end all be all

 Modeled a life worth living

 Taught us to trust ourselves and become our own person

Webster’s dictionary defines distinguished as notable, as renowned, famous, celebrated,

prominent, or eminent. Under Dallas ISD’s ground-breaking Teacher Excellence Initiative(TEI), being

distinguished requires exceptional teaching skill and expertise that makes a powerful impact on student

learning.
 According to Lindsay Coshatt, who spearheads TEI, the Distinguished Teacher Review

(DTR) is the district’s process of identifying the top 20 percent of highly effective teachers who excel

not just in the classroom but as campus leaders; they are teachers who demonstrate a commitment to

lifelong learning, pursue and share information with colleagues and contribute to the profession.

Specifically, TEI defines a distinguished teacher as one whose effectiveness level is Proficient II or

higher on the TEI evaluation. Distinguished teachers achieve high scores in teacher performance,

student achievement and, if applicable, on student perception surveys. On a practical level, to be named

distinguished, a teacher must be good at his or her craft, capable of moving students academically,

active as a campus leader and role model, and able to articulate these characteristics throughout the

process as outlined in the DTR Rubric.

Nearly 1400 teachers participated in the inaugural year of the DTR process. The first cohort of

distinguished teachers will be identified when scorecards are released Sept. 18. DTR candidate Rachel

Harrah, drama teacher at Thomas Jefferson, describes the DTR process as a step toward “giving

students the very best quality of education.” Read what other DTR candidates have said about the

process.

Below are the steps these teachers accomplished to complete this first cycle of TEI:

 Eligibility: Teachers identified as eligible and received an invitation to apply.

 Application: Teachers submitted applications with detailed examples of leadership, lifelong

learning and contributions to the professions

 Observation: In addition to the TEI required observations, DTR candidates further

demonstrated their quality of instruction through an additional classroom observation by a two-

to-three-person review team from outside their campus.

practices.

They must be competitive enough to be at par with the teaching standards in other

developed countries.

 They exhibit exceptional capacity to improve their own teaching practice and that of

others.

A distinguished teacher must be keen to evaluate his or her teaching ways and styles.

He or she must apply masterful teaching practices that must be highly beneficial for the

learners.

 They are recognized as leaders in education, contributors to the profession and initiators

of collaborations and partnerships.

A distinguished teacher must be a role model in the field of education, able to contribute

his skill, talent and ability for the betterment of the field of education. They must have a

good working relationship with co-teachers that would foster teaching collaborations to

improve standard of education.

 They create lifelong impact in the lives of colleagues, students and others.

A distinguished teacher is a teacher who excel not just in the classroom but as campus

leaders; they are teachers who demonstrate a commitment to lifelong learning, pursue

and share information with colleagues and contribute to the profession. They also have

high moral standards that made them a role model to their colleagues and especially to

their students.
 They consistently seek professional advancement and relevance in pursuit of teaching

quality and excellence.

A distinguished teacher never stops learning. A teacher must also go back to school for

masters and attend seminar or trainings for advancement. By this, he or she be excellent

in her craft, capable of moving students academically giving students the very best

quality of education. When evaluation happens she must have a high score in teacher

performance and student achievement.

 They exhibit commitment to inspire the education community and stakeholders for the

improvement of education provision in the Philippines.

A distinguished teacher is a loyal teacher at heart. Whether he or she is with co-teachers

or with the learner’s parents, she must show optimism. That is to foster goodwill to the

community and to our country in general.

Submitted to:
Mrs. Adela Dela Cruz

Submitted by:
Divina C. Guio Guio