Transforming Schools Informing Classroom Practice

Welcome Back! School Specialists September 17, 2004

“ Your organization functions and grows through conversations. The quality of those conversations determines how smart your organization is.” David Perkins

Reflection: Pick 3 for 10 1.Reflect on the degree to which your school reviews student work together. 2.Reflect on the last time I assisted a teacher in reviewing her/his student data and helped change daily practice in the classroom as a result. 3.How does a teacher demonstrate to me that instruction is differentiated for students with disabilities? 4.Think about the most recent professional development session I planned and conducted. How could I have improved it? What can I observe to confirm that the information is being applied in the classroom?

REFLECTION 1 for 5 6. When thinking of a teacher that I coached last year who was not successful, what could I have done that would resulted in the teacher being successful?

Group Activity As a small group, discuss with your colleagues what importance these questions have for you as coaches? What is their connection to your work and your school goals?

This isn’t about who each of us is as a professional; it is about who we are as a system. ( Zmuda, Kuklis and Kline, 2004)

Specialists’ Focus Looking at student work to inform instruction Applying formative and summative student assessments to guide teacher practice; Differentiating instruction for students with disabilities -reaching all NCLB subpopulations; Nonfiction writing/editing in Math, Science and Social Studies Providing professional development including coaching to improve teacher practice.

Teachers and school leaders have little time for sustained, in depth conversation. Neither teachers nor administrators have time for reflecting on their practice. It's ironic that educators are charged with creating conditions that promote deep understanding and powerful learning for others, yet enjoy none of the conditions that would promote their own understanding of teaching and learning.

We have found that it is much easier to complain about state regulations, to endure the budget process, and to obsess over bus schedules than to have conversations about teaching and learning. These managerial issues will not go away; we accept them as part of our existence in schools. But by participating in structured conversations about the real work of schools—teaching and learning—we encourage fundamental discourse that directly affects student performance.

Teachers’ Responses to Today’s Students ( McLaughlin and Talbert) “Kids aren’t like they used to be…” Patterns of AdaptationDomains of Adaptation Teacher Outcomes Authority Relations PedagogyContent Enforce Traditional Standards Teacher dominates: more rules; more sanctions Transmission teaching; more worksheets and tests Emphasis on traditional, fact- based curriculum Burnout; Cynicism Lower Expectations Various; relax rulesVariousWatered-down curriculum Disengagement Change Practice Teacher facilitates; construct group norms Active student role; cooperative learning Emphasis on conceptual understanding and rigorous content Efficacy