Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and Learning

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning
Establishing look-fors connected to best
practice.
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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Creating an intense and specific focus for
  Teaching and Learning is a key element of the
  Walkthrough.
• The question to be answered by the principal
  faculty is What strategy or strategies, if
  implemented consistently, will make the strongest
  impact on student learning and achievement?

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• The answer to the question is rooted in data
  collected through standardized assessments of
  student achievement, data collected by teachers
  through classroom practices and data collected by
  administrators during classroom observations.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Exploring current research on best practices
  is also a vital tool. Using multiple sources of
  data helps to identify key areas of teaching and
  learning for intense focus.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Creating an intense focus means identifying
  specific descriptors or look-fors that clearly
  describe what teaching behaviors and learning
  behaviors will be consistently utilized by all
  teachers and students.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Engaging the faculty in the process of
  identifying specific strategies or specific areas
  for focus is highly recommended.
• Faculty input into identifying the intense
  focus and look-fors - establishes ownership of
  the focus and accountability for implementation
  of identified look-fors.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Provide multiple sources of data for the faculty
  to review analyze.
• Select specific teaching and learning strategies
  to target.
• Engage the faculty in a professional learning
  community to examine best practices.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• A jigsaw routine is a simple and straight
  forward procedure to help identify an intense
  focus for teaching and learning.
• Begin by designing open-ended questions that
  will direct faculty to discuss specific areas of
  teaching and learning.

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IN YOUR CLASSROOM, HOW DO STUDENTS KNOW WHAT THEY
ARE EXPECTED TO KNOW AND DO TO BE SUCCESSFUL???
HOW DO THEY KNOW THEIR WORK IS GOOD??
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WHAT DOES A CLASSROOM THAT DIFFERENTIATES
INSTRUCTION LOOK LIKE???
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WHAT TEACHING STRATEGIES BUILD IN ACADEMIC RIGOR
PROMOTE HIGHER-ORDER THINKING SKILLS??
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WHAT INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES MAKE THE GREATEST
IMPACT ON STUDENT LEARNING???
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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Distribute question sheets packet the
  questions together and have the faculty, staff
  and administrative team brainstorm examples and
  specific strategies that highlight the targeted
  area. Each person should first complete the
  question sheets individually.
• Divide the faculty into small groups - the
  size of each group should equal the number of
  questions.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Next, group members should debrief by sharing
  their ideas generated for each question.
• Each participant must record the groups
  collective ideas for the color coded question in
  his/her packet.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Then, form groups of participants with the
  same color question.
• This second group should summarize and
  prioritize what the individual groups identified
  as important strategies or processes for the
  question.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Have each group post the summary sheet for
  question.
• All participants should now review each
  separate summary sheet and as a faculty identify
  the specific descriptors that will become the
  intense focus on teaching and learning.

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Creating an Intense Focus for Teaching and
Learning

• Post the summary sheets in an accessible
  location for further review. Encourage the
  faculty to discuss the ideas generated and to add
  comments or additional ideas.
• After a pre-determined period of time,
  reconvene the faculty to discuss the information
  on the summary sheet and as a faculty identify
  the specific descriptors that will become the
  intense focus on teaching and learning.

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Visible Signs of Clear Expectations

• Look-fors- related to clear expectations
• Are standards/rubrics posted in the classroom and
  discussed with students?
• Are models of high quality students work on
  display?
• Are the elements that make student work good
  quality labeled articulated?
• Can students show examples of their work and
  describe the criteria they are trying to meet?

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Students Awareness of Their Learning

• Are students aware of what they are learning?
• Do students know why they need to learn the
  information?
• Do students know what they have learned in the
  past that will help them learn this lesson?
• Are students aware of how this lesson will help
  them with future lessons?

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Students Knowledge About the Quality of Their
Work

• How do you know if your work is good enough?
• If you want to do good work in this class, how
  do you know what has to be included to make the
  work good?
• How do you know what needs to be improved to make
  your work better?
• Can you explain the grade you earned on your
  work?