"Unmasking" the Teaching and Learning Process
In the spirit of the political season, take a moment to watch this short video on Big Bird:)
http://www.youtube.com/embed/mCpQW-k9sdw
Planning. Implementation. Formative Assessment. Results. Student Work. Self-Reflection.
Each of these is critical. How do we as educators begin to "unmask" the complex world of teaching and learning?
As you know we have spent the last week or so focusing on three of these --- planning, student work and self-reflection. We will continue to work on each of these. Quality Plans lead to better results. Results can be measured through Student Work. And each of the first five can be improved through Self-Reflection.
As you plan consider using the "Backward Planning Tool" that has been created and provided to you. By examining your students' work, you will be better able to judge the effectiveness of your teaching. And remember: through analysis and self-reflection you can improve your practice. In addition, as we did during our PLC's on Friday, when self-reflecting it will be important to analyze your plans and student results against the four componenets of our Engagement Look Fors --- On-task, Authentic, Ownership, and Rigor.
By using the Backward Planning Tool and our Look Fors, we can consistently improve our instruction and our results. This work is what we continue to do at our Monday PD and during our PLC's. Please, bring your current lesson plans to this Mondays PD as we will be providing time to engage in this process.
What part of the process have you found to be the most effective so far?
I feel that planning with the end in mind has made me a better teacher in these last few years but if you don't include student work and self reflection in with the planning it does nothing to raise student achievement. I feel like I am constantly using student work to assess not only their understanding but also my teaching.
ReplyDeleteThe piece of the process that has been most effective for me is that shared vision was used to create the Look Fors. The knowledge and reflection needed to create them came from the Wilson Staff and was amazing. Now comes the implementation piece. How do the Look Fors become part of and show up in our practice and planning? Reflecting on how the Look Fors are present in lesson plans will be an important first step in the implementation process.
ReplyDeleteIt makes complete sense to plan "backwards" in a sense. I have found this is the most useful thing for me to do even in classes I take as an adult. I NEED to know what the end is, what is looks like, and what all the components and pieces should eventually work together to create. If I don't have that clarity, my work toward the unknown becomes directionless. When I have an example of the end, all things in the process begin to make sense. We've done this is teaching for awhile, but I'm often curious if we always share the "ending idea/example" with students too. While we're viewing this as eductors and effective teaching practices, I simultaneously think it hold tremendous potential for student learning in even more direct ways. Some learn sequentially in steps. As it builds, the picture comes together and and is eventually seen holistically. However, I am the kind of student who likes to see the whole picture first. It's okay if I don't know all the pieces to get me there, but each piece of learning in the process has more impact and power, because I know the value of each thread. Not only do I think this type of planning gives educators more direction, clarity, and purpose, but I also think sharing "the end" with students could potentially influence some to have a greater personal investment in the process of getting there as well.
ReplyDeleteIn 8th grade Literacy, we show students the rubric that will be used to grade their essays before we begin to write. This way, they have a clear understanding of what we will be grading them on in the end. Sometimes, they feel like we have "cheated" by showing them the end, but actually it is a great way to help them "Plan Backwards" for the outcome of their work. When they get feedback on their completed essays, they always have the rubric to look at again to self-reflect on what they did right, and what needs to be worked on for the next essay. The self-reflection part is a very powerful tool.
ReplyDeleteI have found that the backwards planning model has helped me to reflect more about making my lessons more on-task, rigorous, authentic and to give the students more ownership of what they are doing. Planning with the end in mind is helpful because it gives me a definite place to end with the unit and a definite way to know where the students should be in their knowledge. I have used rubrics to show the students what I am looking for before they begin a project or assignment and I see that I get a better, more thoughtful piece of student work. The students WANT to take ownership when they understand how their involvement can affect the overall outcome.
ReplyDeleteShowing students what is going to be expected of them at the beginning of the lesson is powerful; because it allows students an opportunity to set a goal for themselves. I have seen students set high goals for themselves and achieve those goals, which results in higher academic achievement.
ReplyDeleteI think having that self reflection while looking at formative assessments and student work also helps me from becoming stagnate as a teacher. It would be easy enough just to recycle the same old lesson plans year after year. But, by looking at the specific strengths and needs of each kid, I can push myself as a teacher to continue to improve my implementations.
ReplyDeleteI like the template because it is a great tool for reflection as a teacher. Differentiated support requires careful observation and response and this template is good at addressing these concerns.
ReplyDeleteUsing my formative assessments gives me immediate feedback for what skills the students are excelling at, and where they may need more work. By seeing where I need to reteach I can tie that into my lessons to make sure that all students develop the skills they need to succeed. The backward planning is one more great tool that helps me plan with the end goal of skills and student success in mind.
ReplyDeleteEvaluating what learning goals are being taught is a natural way to design lesson plans. Having assessment data is helpful in deciding what lesson modifications are needed.
ReplyDeleteI really like having the template available for detailed planning. I already incorporate a lot of the items into my lessons but I don't necessarily write it all out in my lesson plans. I feel this takes a lot of time but I need to get better at making more detailed plans.
ReplyDeleteReflecting on the lesson and the student's work helps guide where to go next in my planning. It helps me to decide what students need more help on, and what I can explain better as a teacher. Instead of just moving on to the next topic, it allows me to enhance my lessons to get better results out of myself and my students.
ReplyDeleteThanks to all of you who have reflected and commented! It is refreshing to hear all of your thinking and where we have been, as well as, to think about where we are going!
ReplyDeleteIn designing the tool I tried to incorporate all things that you are familiar with, backwards planning, GRR and the relevant engagement look fors into one document so that it is easier for you to design your plans.I am glad to see that teachers see value in the backwards planning tool. The real winners will be your students. As I work with teachers in using this tool, I find that it will challenge teachers and me to keep thinking ahead.
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ReplyDeleteReflecting on student work helps me to make adjustments to instruction to enhance student success.
ReplyDeleteIt has been helpful looking at other content's student work on our Friday sessions. I have gotten to see other's ideas and have been looking for ways to incorporate what Literacy, Science, and Social Studies have done in their classes. Having ways to bring in the "language" and ideas from other classrooms helps show students how math can be cross-curricular.
ReplyDeleteThe opportunity to look at/discuss other content areas' student work and new strategies for implementing literacy into core classes is beneficial to our teaching practices for a variety of reasons. Hearing what literacy teachers are using in their classrooms as far as common language, writing prompt ideas, strategies, etc. is helpful to me when teaching reading/writing in social studies. Also having designated time to reflect on my own lessons helps me decide what's working/not working which will drive future lesson planning to improve student achievement.
ReplyDeleteI feel that looking at student work has been the most beneficial for me. I am able to reflect both what I did and how the students responded; I can then use this to plan for future lessons.
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