The AUSL Teacher Residency Class of 2026 is off to a strong and purposeful start this summer. Following a successful orientation week, resident teachers began their summer coursework with DePaul University, marking the official launch of their learning journey into the teaching profession.
As resident teachers progress through the summer quarter, the AUSL Teacher Residency team designs and leads professional development sessions that center on key teaching competencies for the Chicago and Lake County cohorts.
These sessions play a key role in building community for each cohort as they learn, reflect, and apply their learnings together.
“It’s important for AUSL to have all of our resident teachers grow alongside one another,” said Carina Kearley, Director of the Chicago Teacher Residency.
“As the year progresses, they gain new perspectives and skills that advance their learning and overall teaching practice as they apply them in the classroom.”
Professional learning begins with self-reflection, as resident teachers explore their values, experiences, and perspectives in early sessions of professional development this summer to understand and define their teacher identities.
This work lays the foundation for developing self-awareness and shaping the teacher personas that will guide their interactions with future students.
Teacher personas are the professional “self” image teachers choose to present their students, colleagues, parents, and overall school community. It stems from their personality and blends with the teaching style they embody in the classroom.
From there, resident teachers explore competency-based practices. They define expectations, analyze teacher behaviors, and engage in active workshops where they rehearse and refine essential skills. Through structured feedback and peer collaboration, they build their instructional toolkit—developing scripts for giving clear directions, making fluent corrections, and applying logical consequences effectively.
During the summer, resident teachers explore their first core competency: facilitating positive and efficient routines and transitions.This includes developing teacher moves and restorative practices that support the implementation of this competency in real classroom settings.
Teacher moves are evidence-based practices educators use to facilitate student learning and are foundational to effective teacher development and continual school improvement. These include attention signals, giving clear directions, positive narration, discussion habits and more.
Restorative practices are more focused on building strong relationships with students by addressing harm and conflict through dialogue and collaboration, prioritizing the needs of those affected, and promoting healing and accountability to address conflict in the classroom. This approach contrasts with traditional punitive systems that focus on punishment.
Examples of this can be seen in trust generators, emotional self management, rituals, talking circles and many other practices.
As the summer quarter draws to a close, resident teachers are preparing for the next stage of their journey: being matched with a mentor teacher and introduced to their training site. This marks a significant milestone as they transition into immersive, hands-on practice in real classrooms.
With a strong foundation of support, resources, and shared learning, the Chicago and Lake County cohorts are well-prepared for a meaningful and impactful start to their teacher training experience.
