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Thomas Sauer is the Director of Design and Communication for AdvanceLearning and an independent consultant. He previously held positions as world language specialist in the Fayette County Public Schools and Jefferson County Public Schools for almost ten years and taught German at the University of Kentucky, Georgetown College and Kentucky Educational Television. He has directed a variety of state and federal grants, most recently as program director and consultant for several successful STARTALK programs.

One of the major goals for an effective language teacher is moving learners from processing language input to producing output at varying degrees of proficiency. Specific strategies for facilitating that process may and should vary based on the specific needs of the learners (e.g. age, background and interests) as well as the strengths of the teacher. Undoubtedly the most important task for any language teacher then is the PLANNING of experiences that will allow learners to move through that process in a way that leaves them feeling successful and excited to learn a new language.  Planning of such learning experiences involves 1) developing standards-based learning targets to motivate students and engage with them as partners in the learning process; 2) designing authentic assessment tasks that allow students to demonstrate what they can do with what they know; and 3) outlining an intentional sequence of activities that will allow students to meet the carefully developed learning targets.

These critical characteristics and behaviors of a model world language teacher are outlined in “Planning," one of the seven domains of the Teacher Effectiveness for Language Learning (TELL) Framework published in 2011. The “Planning” domain outlines nine teacher behaviors that are critical pieces of the planning process for effective teachers. The TELL Project began as a collaborative initiative led by world language district coordinators Sharon Deering (Arlington [TX] Independent School District), Alyssa Villarreal (Shelby County [TN] Schools), and independent consultants, Greg Duncan (InterPrep) and Thomas Sauer (LearningShifts). The TELL Framework is founded on three core beliefs: (1) the criteria contained within the framework represent the model world language teacher; (2) ALL world language teachers can become the model if the model teacher is defined; and (3) the identified characteristics and behaviors are intended to guide individual teacher growth toward the model and are not necessarily tied to teacher appraisal.

While the TELL Project provides a suite of instruments designed to help teachers reflect on their own practice, get feedback on their current practice, and outline a professional learning plan, there are now several tools designed to support teachers in the PLANNING process that may be accessed by any teacher regardless of their level of familiarity with the TELL Framework. These tools include:

• A short Overview Essay providing an introduction to the topic of Learning Targets as well a connection to research.
• A Video Vignette featuring classroom scenes as well as interviews with practicing teachers and their students and world language teaching experts reflecting on the impact of learning targets.
• An At-a-glance Infographic providing a visual representation of learning targets and highlighting important features, sample strategies, helpful tips and more.
• A Feedback Form designed for teachers to use in order to determine the degree to which their work exemplifies effective characteristics when developing learning targets.
• A Teacher Presentation developed by a practicing teacher providing an explanation of learning targets as well as practical tips from the teacher’s classroom.
• A Processing Guide designed to facilitate the module, either used independently or as part of a larger self-paced module experience.

Although the realities for many teachers may provide only a minimal amount of time for planning and limited access to content-specific professional learning opportunities, tools such as the ones provided by the TELL Project will help teachers make better decisions and ease their work as they prepare for student learning.