1. Lesson Study What is it? What are the challenges? What should we see if it’s working? San Francisco, February 15, 2008 Catherine Lewis & Rebecca Perry Mills College, Oakland, CA www.lessonresearch.net clewis@mills.edu

2. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0207259. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

3. What are the Important Features of Lesson Study? Please jot down a list…..

4. Lesson Study Cycle 1. STUDY Study curriculum and standards Consider long-term goals for student learning and development 2. PLAN Select research lesson Anticipate student thinking Plan data collection and lesson 3. DO RESEARCH LESSON One team member teaches, others collect data 4. REFLECT Share data What was learned about student learning? What are implications for this unit and more broadly? What learnings and new questions do we want to carry forward in our work?

5. ? Instructional Improvement Visible Features of Lesson Study Planning Curriculum Study Research Lesson Data Collection Discussion Revision Etc. How does lesson study improve instruction?

6. Visible Features of Lesson Study Planning Curriculum Study Research Lesson Data Collection Discussion Revision Etc. Key Pathway  Lesson Plans Improve Instructional Improvement A Common (Mis) Conception of Lesson Study

7. Students Teachers Curriculum Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000 Learning From and In Practice

8. Lesson Study Cycle 1. STUDY Study curriculum and standards Consider long-term goals for student learning and development 2. PLAN Select research lesson Anticipate student thinking Plan data collection and lesson 3. DO RESEARCH LESSON One team member teaches, others collect data 4. REFLECT Share data What was learned about student learning? What are implications for this unit and more broadly? What learnings and new questions do we want to carry forward in our work?

9. 1. Study (Ex. from “Seats”) What can we do in elementary school to help students succeed in algebra? Looked at lessons from several curricula, studied recursive/functional patterns Studied standards, curricula

10. Lesson Study Cycle 1. STUDY Study curriculum and standards Consider long-term goals for student learning and development 2. PLAN Select research lesson Anticipate student thinking Plan data collection and lesson 3. DO RESEARCH LESSON One team member teaches, others collect data 4. REFLECT Share data What was learned about student learning? What are implications for this unit and more broadly? What learnings and new questions do we want to carry forward in our work? 2. PLAN Select research lesson Anticipate student thinking Plan data collection and lesson

11. Can patterns help us find an easy way to answer the question: How many seats fit around any number of triangles, arranged in a row as shown?

14. INPUT Number of Triangle Tables OUTPUT Number of Seats 13 24 3 4 5 6

15. Plus Two

16. 2. Plan. Example: “Seats” Surfaced misunderstandings and different solution methods when they did the task Surfaced different understandings of “equation,” and different goals when they prepared instructional plan

17. Lesson Study Cycle 1. STUDY Study curriculum and standards Consider long-term goals for student learning and development 2. PLAN Select research lesson Anticipate student thinking Plan data collection and lesson 3. DO RESEARCH LESSON One team member teaches, others collect data 4. REFLECT Share data What was learned about student learning? What are implications for this unit and more broadly? What learnings and new questions do we want to carry forward in our work? 3. DO RESEARCH LESSON One team member teaches, others collect data

18. Research Lesson 1 All students filled out chart correctly but few could verbalize meaning of +2 pattern Research Lesson 2 Chart eliminated, students solved individual problems, shared findings Students showed their counting methods Most students could verbalize meaning of +2 pattern

20. 3. Research Lesson Students’ counting methods revealed their thinking “They could fill out the worksheet, but that didn’t really tell us what they knew about the pattern.” “Just because it’s in the textbook doesn’t mean it’s the best way”

21. Lesson Study Cycle 1. STUDY Study curriculum and standards Consider long-term goals for student learning and development 2. PLAN Select research lesson Anticipate student thinking Plan data collection and lesson 3. DO RESEARCH LESSON One team member teaches, others collect data 4. REFLECT Share data What was learned about student learning? What are implications for this unit and more broadly? What learnings and new questions do we want to carry forward in our work? 4. REFLECT Share data What was learned about student learning? What are implications for this unit and more broadly? What learnings and new questions do we want to carry forward in our work?

22. Final Reflection on Lesson Study Cycle

23. 4. Reflect. Ex: “Seats” “Students need to do the work, not the teacher” “In all this math…we’re only as good as our own level of understanding, so we have to keep pushing ourselves..” Teachers continued to study the impact of worksheets

24. Students Teachers Curriculum Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000 Learning From and In Practice

25. How Teachers Get Better At Learning From Students Observe and take notes during research lessons--lots of practice over time Teachers try student task themselves before lesson--get insights from colleagues’ solutions Multiple observers on same students--hear what your colleagues, outside specialists see Over LS cycles, choose more “thought-revealing” tasks

26. Students Teachers Curriculum Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000 Learning From and In Practice

27. Lesson Study Develops Capacity to Learn From Colleagues Build collaborative norms that enable effective work, e.g. “sticking to the process” Make beliefs “visible” and thereby amenable to change Create a culture where it’s safe to ask for help Agree on important goals, concepts, definitions and what they actually mean in instruction, so students experience coherence over years

28. Learning From Colleagues, cont’d Build the belief that changes in instruction can improve student learning Increase aspirations- “I want my students to be as eager as the students in that lesson” Increase connection and sense of accountability to colleagues - Everyone cares about everyone’s teaching

29. Students Teachers Curriculum Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000 Learning From and In Practice

30. Lesson Study Develops Capacity to Learn From Curriculum (Including Research and Outside Specialists) Seeing strengths and weaknesses in textbook Seeing how any mathematics unit connects to standards, prior and subsequent learning See need for own learning Building learning communities that include specialists and researchers

31. Highlands School (K-5) - 2000-01 1 volunteer LS group - 2001-02 Most faculty join LS groups - 2002-03 School-wide LS; continues through present Kappan, Dec. 2006 “Lesson Study Comes of Age in North America”

32. School-wide Lesson Study School

33. 3-year net math increase for students in lesson-study school more than triple that for district (F=.309, 845 df p<.001)

34. Common U.S. Challenges 1. Poor curriculum that doesn’t make learning visible

35. Asian Curriculum Ratio of rectangle width to length using 1-, 5- or 10- cm square units 2:3, 4:6, 20:30 (Lo, Watanabe, & Cai, 2004)

36. US Curriculum These methods differ from the standard cross-multiply and divide algorithm (McDougall Littell, 2004)

37. Common U.S. Challenges 1. Poor curriculum that doesn’t make learning visible 2. Difficulties in collaboration

39. Common U.S. Challenges 1. Poor curriculum that doesn’t make learning visible 2. Difficulties in collaboration 3. Poor data collection 4. Mindset: It’s just about the lesson 5. Reluctance to access expertise

41. Common U.S. Challenges 1. Poor curriculum that doesn’t make learning visible 2. Difficulties in collaboration 3. Poor data collection 4. Mindset: It’s just about the lesson 5. Reluctance to access expertise 6. Experts who tell rather than ask

42. Begins with answer Driven by expert Communication trainer -> teachers Relationships hierarchical Research informs practice Begins with question Driven by participants Communication among teachers Relationship reciprocal Practice is research TRADITIONALRESEARCH LESSONS By Lynn Liptak, Paterson School #2, New Jersey. Professional Development

43. Instructional Improvement Visible Features of Lesson Study Planning Curriculum Study Research Lesson Data Collection Discussion Revision Etc. How does lesson study improve instruction? Increased Capacity to Learn from Colleagues, Students, Curriculum

44. Instructional Improvement How Does Lesson Study Improve Instruction? Pathways Increased knowledge of subject matter and instruction Increased ability to observe students Stronger collegial networks Stronger connection of daily practice to long- term goals Stronger motivation to learn and belief that changes make a difference Improved materials Visible Features of Lesson Study Planning Curriculum Study Research Lesson Data Collection Discussion Revision Etc.

45. Revisit Your List of Lesson Study Features What Features are Missing? What’s Evidence Will Show Whether Teachers are Increasing Their Capacity to Learn From Students, Colleagues & Curriculum? Write Reflections on Handout

46. Resources: Live Lesson Study Opportunities Wayne, New Jersey (William Paterson University) March 5-7, 2008. www.wpunj.edu/cpe/ Chicago (DePaul University) May 8-10,2008 & August 4-8, 2008. www.lessonstudygroup.net/ Sacramento, CA (Sac State) May 16, 2008. www.csus.edu/mase/

47. Lesson Study: A Handbook...(Lewis) www.rbs.org Building Our Understanding of Lesson Study (Wang- Iverson & Yoshida; www.rbs.org) Mills College Lesson Study Group www.lessonresearch.net Lesson Study Communities Project in Secondary Mathematics www2.edc.org/lessonstudy/ Global Education Resources www.globaledresources.com Univ. of Wisconsin www.uwlax.edu/sotl/lsp/ Further Information

48. If we had to use one word to describe our work for the past two years, it would be COURAGE.... to maintain this philosophy and pedagogical thinking as we struggled with our deficient MCAS scores … overcrowded classrooms… Lesson Study Communities Team Reflection, Massachusetts

49. I feel the biggest mistake we can make when pitching lesson study to US teachers is to tell them it is easy and painless. It is hard and possibly painful and they should prepare for it. The rewards, however, are fantastic. Real, concrete, observable improvement occurs in teaching. Middle School Math Teacher, Paterson School #2, New Jersey

50. clewis@mills.edu rperry@mills.edu lessonresearch. net Email address: Website address:

51. The instructional practices and assessments discussed or shown in these presentations are not intended as an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education.