K-12 Curriculum Development

Each year, Major League Baseball conducts a draft where the best amateur players in the world are drafted and offered professional contracts.  This year's draft included high school graduates and college student-athletes.  The number one draft pick was a player who can pitch 98-103 mph.  During the draft, announcers shared each player's strengths and weaknesses, along with highlight videos of each player.  According to the announcers and The Sporting News, a five tool player is what scouts search for when they watch amateur athletes.  While it is rare to find a five-tool player, scouts use the five tools as a measuring stick to find the best baseball players in the world.

As an educator and baseball fan, I asked myself, "What makes a five-tool teacher?"  While there have been numerous books written on effective teaching, classroom management, and teaching for understanding, the purpose of this article is to develop a hypothetical tool which rates teachers similar to a scout rating baseball players.*

The Five Tools:

1.  The ability to develop positive relationships with diverse students

2.  The ability to develop curriculum and provide instruction which supports the
     learning style of each student

3.  The ability to create a positive and safe learning environment (a.k.a.,
     Classroom management)

4.  The ability to create differentiated instruction and assessment

5.  The ability to collaborate with other professional educators

*  The five tools are qualities of good teachers and one could argue that a
    teacher with all five tools would be an asset to students and to a school
    system.  However, the purpose of this article is to create a discussion, not to
    establish a research-based tool for recruiting and retaining highly-qualified
    teachers.

Please feel free to add a comment or leave your own list outlining the Five Tools of a Professional Teacher.