To be considered a competent educator, there are almost 2000 strategies, concepts, and terms that you must know. However, since teachers wear so many hats, who has the time to learn them all? Don’t worry; we have you covered. In this series, we will discuss all the teaching and learning strategies, concepts, and terms that you need to know to be considered an effective educator. There are over 70 articles in this series, so pace yourself. We recommend reading one piece per weekday, which will allow you to complete the series in three to four months. We hope you enjoy it.

Click here to read all the articles in this series.

Primacy Effect The tendency for the easier recollection of items at the beginning of a list than of subsequent items.

Primary Circular Reactions A stage of development characterized by a child’s attempt to repeat an action that was done reflexively or by accident. They are considered primary because they involve the child’s own body and circular due to the fact that they are repeated.

Primary Reinforcer A consequence, such as food, water, or shelter, that fulfills basic needs.

Primary Sources Firsthand accounts of information on a subject that, in some cases, allow children to ask questions of or interact directly with an information source. Examples include interviews with experts and field visits.

Principle A rationale behind the relationship between various factors, such as the effects of alternative evaluation methods on student motivation.

Principle of Equilibrium A mechanism that enables change while a child finds balance in interactions with his or her environment. This will require the organization of new experiences, as well as adaption through assimilation and accommodation.

Print Awareness When a child knows how print works and how to interact with it.

Prior knowledge Refers to what the students already know or think they know about the lesson topic.

Private College or University An institution of higher education controlled by a private individual(s) or a nongovernmental agency.

Private Speech The use of talking aloud by children to organize their thoughts and plans. As children get older, they may undertake this same process silently.

Privatization Refers to the movement away from management by local or state-level government structures, and the move towards management by private individuals or corporations.

Privilege Power and benefits over others in society. Privilege may come about as a result of race, socioeconomic status, language, gender, or membership in other groups.

Proactive Facilitation An increased ability to acquire new information due in part to the presence of previously learned knowledge.

Proactive Inhibition A weakened ability to learn new information due to interference from previously learned knowledge.

Probation A specific amount of time, during which students whose academic work has been judged to be unsuccessful according to the university, must improve their grades or face dismissal from the institution.

Problem and Solution A text pattern that shows a challenge and potential resolutions for it.

Problem Defining The ability to look at an existing problem in a new light that aids in resolution, such as by defining the problem in a broader or different way.

Problem of Will A student’s choice to disobey authority or community expectations.

Problem Sensitivity An individual’s ability to identify problems or difficulties and the missing information that would help solve them.

Problem-Based Learning Starts, as the name, suggests, with a problem. In this model, students are presented with an open-ended problem. Students must search through a variety of resources, called trigger material, to help them understand the problem from all angles.

Problem-Solving Method Is the method developed by John Dewey that deduces that people think to solve problems, and lists the steps used to search for absolute truth. The steps include: recognizing that there is a problem, clearly defining a problem, suggesting possible solutions, considering possible consequences, and observing and experimenting to either accept or reject the idea as absolute truth.

Problem-Solving Questions Questions designed to help students with dynamic thinking by, first, reassuring them that not knowing an answer is acceptable and, second, encouraging them to come up with strategies to find the answer.

Procedural Due Process Rights Includes the appropriation of specific legal procedures to ensure fair treatment of students.

Procedural Memory A component of long-term memory responsible for storing practical information and know-hows.

Procedural Safeguards Federal requirements which decree that all parents and children will receive fair and equal treatment regarding decision-making during the special education process.

Procedures Are the sequence of actions taking place during the lesson, referring to what the student does.

Process of Comprehension The collection and integration of information sources that the reader uses to derive and make meaning in the act of reading.

Prodigy A child who can perform a skill at the same level as a highly trained adult.

Product/Process-Oriented Assessment An assessment based on how a child passes and fails tasks that ultimately examines how they can learn and interact with their environment.

Productive Language A process before the reading period, in which students identify words that may appear in the text, to cultivate their ability to use expectancy cues.

Productive Questioning Carefully crafted questions based on student responses to guide conceptual thinking effectively and usefully.

Professional School An institution of higher education for students who already have a bachelor’s degree and would like to gain training in specific professions, such as law, medicine, and pharmacy.

Proficiencies Knowledge or skills attained by students to meet a set of academic standards. This may also apply to skills and dispositions acquired by the teacher.

Proficient Reader A reader who uses the strategies, and possesses the skills and reading level appropriate for his or her age and grade.

Progress Monitoring Frequent check-ins to make sure that a specific intervention is working. This progress monitoring allows for better outcomes because it provides space for occasional adjustments and revisions to the strategies used in the intervention.

Progress Reports Written communication of student performance and achievement.

Progressive Education Movement Was a reform movement in education which began in the 1880s and lasted over 60 years. The progressive movement emphasized learning by doing and the creation of curricula to suit children’s interests.

Progressivism Is based on the positive changes and problem-solving approach that individuals with various educational credentials can provide their students. Progressivist educators are outcome focused and don’t simply impart learned facts. Teachers are less concerned with passing on the existing culture and strive to allow students to develop an individual approach to tasks provided to them.

Project An activity-based approach to demonstrating student achievement.

Project-Based Learning Is often confused with problem-based learning. This may be partly because both methods are sometimes referred to by the acronym PBL. Though they are similar, there are a few key differences between problem and project-based learning.

Project-oriented Approach A teaching approach in which children ask questions, pursue the investigation of answers and prioritize their tasks.

Proprioception The awareness of the position of one’s own body through communication between receptors in the muscles, tendons and joints and the nervous system.

Prosocial Babies Babies who reach out to other babies or adults in a group through clearly demonstrated social expressions. Babies who communicate with others and behave in ways that create a positive emotional climate in a group.

Prosocial Behaviors Behaviors that show a willingness to help others including sharing, comforting individuals who are sad or distressed and taking turns.

Prosodic Intonation, emphasis, and rhythm in speech.

Prosody (also know as expression) Expressing the meaning of words by using your voice. It includes things such as using punctuation to combine words, collecting words into phrases that have meaning, and using intonation.

Provocateurs Teachers can act as provocateurs of thought by sparking their students’ interest in learning. This can be done by asking engaging questions and providing the class with thought-provoking materials.

Provost The senior academic leader of an institution usually oversees all academic policies and curricular issues.