4th Grade Student Standards vs. 4th Year Teacher Standards

One would think (and hope) there's been a bit of thought put into creating a framework for expectations of students at different grade levels (the Common Core Standards being the most recent incarnation). We don't just say "Here's all the stuff kids should learn. Make sure they are done by the time they finish high school."

Does this same differentiated framework happen with teacher development? In my experience, the answer is definitively no. I've never been given a choice during school/district run PD based on my experience/expertise. I rarely see PD that focuses on a teacher at a particular place in their career (some conferences have sessions specifically geared towards new teachers, but the idea of a session specifically geared towards a fourth year teacher just seems funny).

...which begs the question: Why is it normal to talk about something being fourth grade content, but ludicrous to talk about something being fourth year teaching content?

T Minus 1 day 22 hours

Having absolutely nothing to do with the specific content I am teaching my fifth and sixth graders right now and everything to do with the long term goals of what I am teaching my fifth and sixth graders every day, a reminder that The Mars Science Lab is set to launch Saturday morning at 7am PST.

Good luck Ben, the rest of the team, and most importantly, MSL!