Brandon's Brainwork - Instructional Coaching

Instructional Coaching
Instructional coaching has been a hot topic lately in Minnesota, due in part to the legislation on teacher evaluation.  If we are to truly make our peer review or instructional coaching models effective, we need to think deeply about the process we have in place.  Here are a couple questions to help guide the discussion in your district.

• Who should the instructional coaches or peer reviewers be?
• Should there be more than one coach?  Should everyone have to observe and provide feedback?
• Who will see the observation notes and feedback?
• Is everyone getting constructive criticism, or is it merely "pats on the back"?
• Do all the teachers have a clear understanding of the framework being used?
• Do all instructional coaches and peer reviewers have a clear understanding of the framework?
• Is there ample time given for reflection and feedback?

As your district embarks on looking at peer review as part of the evaluation process, take a moment and reflect on the process you have put in place.  Will it really make a difference in the classroom?

A good activity to do as a whole staff, grade level or content team is to find a video of a teacher teaching a lesson.  It can be a video of someone you know or a complete stranger.  Watch the video together and take observation notes.  See where you have agreement and/or disagreement.  This activity really gives a good test to your rubrics and/or model.  It also gives you a great opportunity to talk about what good teaching looks like.

The Kansas Coaching Project with Jim Knight is an excellent spot to go when looking for instructional coaching resources.  He has also authored a number of books on instructional coaching that I highly recommend.

• Unmistakable Impact
• High Impact Instruction
• Focus on Teaching: Using Video for High Impact Instruction

Reflection Questions

1. Am I capable of providing constructive criticism to my peers?

2. Do I know what good teaching looks like?

3. Do I have a "toolbox" full of ideas to help a colleague?

4. Am I in the right mindset to be able to accept constructive criticism and then make a change based upon that feedback?

Brandon's Brainwork- Lifelong Learning

Lifelong Learning
I heard this quote recently, "Human beings are not static people, we are constantly moving.  Either you are moving forward or you are moving backward".  I'm not sure where this quote came from, but it really made me think and eventually put something into writing!  Teaching is a craft.  Like any craft, there is always something more to be learned.  Even the best teacher can learn something new and/or get better at their job.

Sometimes this learning is self-directed, driven by choice.  Whereas, other times learning is forced upon us, either by state mandates, school administration, or a number of outside forces.  Either way, with the right mindset (see Brandon's Brainwork - Mindset) something new will be learned.  Even going into a training on something you already know, with the right mindset, will lead to learning something new, even one thing.

We want our students to become life-long learners, and we should do our best to model what it is we expect of our students.  Continue to get better.  Don't be afraid to make mistakes.  Mistakes are a part of the learning process.  You don't expect your students to be perfect 100% of the time when learning new things, why should you expect any more/less from yourself.

A quick search on Google for "Becoming a lifelong learner" yields 217,000 results.  I know it's not fully researched based, but WikiHow has a great quick read on becoming a lifelong learner and offers some very good advice.  Becoming a Lifelong Learner from WikiHow.

You can always start your new lifelong learning journey by attending one of your teachers associations conferences.  A list can be found in the update this week.

Questions to Consider
1. Have you embraced the role of lifelong learner in your craft?
2. Do you reinforce lifelong learning in your classroom?
3. Do you go into all new learning experiences with the right mindset?

Brandon's Brainwork- High Expectations

High Expectations
Having high expectations for all students is critical in receiving quality work from your students.  I was reminded of this recently when my daughter (who is in Kindergarten), was sitting watching a movie and out of the blue decided to tell me "dad, do you know your prefrontal cortex is the front of your brain and the hippocampus is behind your ears?"  This statement totally blew me away, but it got me thinking about having high expectations for all students.

Most teachers would say they have high expectations for their students, but closer examination may reveal that this is not true.  A simple, yet effective, task could be going through your class list and identifying those students that you may or may not have high expectations for.  After identifying students, then being cognizant of how you interact with each of the students.

A great resource on creating and communicating high expectations for all students comes from The Department of Safe Schools, Single School Culture for Academics, from The School District of Palm Beach County, FL.  It is based on the Marzano framework, is short and to the point, and has lots of great information about high expectations.

Communicating High Expectations for All Students from The School District of Palm Beach County, FL

I also like to refer to Austin's Butterfly when talking about high expectations.  This teacher has high expectations for his/her students and it shows!

Questions to Consider
1. Do I really have high expectations for all students?
2. Do I accept mediocre work, just because it's easier?
3. Do my actions or words show my expectations of my students?

Brandon's Brainwork-Classroom Management

Classroom Management

Classroom management is one of those things that every teacher can improve on.  One of the best books on classroom management is Harry Wong's The First Days of School.  If this book is not in your professional library, it should be!  Harry Wong defines classroom management as "all the things that a teacher does to organize students, space, time, and materials so learning can take place".  Each person handles classroom management in their own unique way, but there are a couple characteristics that define a well managed classroom.  According to Wong, they are:

• Students are deeply involved in their work.
• Students know what is expected of them.
• There is relatively little wasted time.
• The climate of the classroom is work-oriented but also relaxed.

A couple strategies Wong gives for classroom management are:

• Start the class with an assignment, not roll.
• Post your assignments in the same place and manner every day.
• Permanently display your classroom rules and expectation.
• Have procedures for everything!  Teach and practice the procedures.
• Dismissal at the end of class
• When students are absent
• For quieting the class
• Handing in papers
• Starting the class
• Be over-prepared! 

Reflection Questions

1. Are you over-prepared every day?

2. Do you have consistent procedures for everything in your classroom?

3. Did you, or have you, practiced the procedures?

4. What part of classroom management am I strong in?  What can I share with a colleague that would help them with classroom management?

5. What area of classroom management am I weak in?

Resources

Harry Wong- The First Days of School & Professional Reference

Pinterest Classroom Management Ideas

Brandon's Brainwork - Motivation

Motivation
Motivation has been a topic of discussion lately.  How do we motivate kids to learn?  How do we motivate kids to do their work?  If there were a definite answer to these questions, we wouldn't have to ask these questions.

Dan Pink offers an interesting look into what motivates people with this TED Talk.  Intrinsic motivation versus extrinsic motivation...what's more powerful?

Students learn and are motivated in a variety of ways.  Differentiation and individualization are two ways in which a teacher can not only reach more students, but also motivate them.  Differentiation and individualization is easier said than done, but with practice becomes much easier.

Scholastic has a quick read on differentiation, I suggest you take a moment to glance over it.  When you have finished the article, take a moment and think about the reflection questions below.

Reflection Questions
Have you ever asked your students what motivates them?  Intrinsically?  Extrinsically?
Have you had your students complete a learning style inventory?
Have you tried a variety of differentiation strategies?
Have you thought about what motivates you as a learner?

Brandon's Brainwork: Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking
It can be a challenge to get students to think critically about a certain topic, especially if they are not particularly interested in that topic.  How do we get students to think deeper?  Here are some quick question prompts that can get students to that level of deep thinking you are looking for.

• How do you know?
• Prove it.
• Explain/show your thinking.
• Why?
• Solve the problem a different way.
• Show me.
• Provide an example.
• Retell what your classmate just said, but in your own words.
• Put yourself in the author's/characters shoes.

Getting students to think critically is a challenge for all educators.  Simple word phrases or sentence starters can be a great tool to use in your classroom to get students to think critically.  Mariko Nobori wrote a great article on critical thinking for Edutopia.  She provides teachers with Ten Takeaway Tips for Teaching Critical Thinking.

Brandon's Brainwork Questions to Consider

1. Do you provide time for your students to think critically?

2. Do you ask open-ended questions and give everyone the opportunity to answer?

3. Do you have students write their answers?

4. Do you allow debate in your classroom?

5. Can students question you?

Brandon's Brainwork

New Series

During the Fall we spent 12 weeks looking at the 12 Touchstones of Good Teaching by Bryan Goodwin and Elizabeth Ross Hubbell.  For the rest of the Winter we will have a series called Brandon's Brainwork.

The goal of this series is to get you to reflect and think about your teaching practice.  Each week will end with a variety of questions for you to consider and think about.  Feel free to interact in the comments section.

Week 1

Mindset, Mindset, Mindset

If I only could give one book recommendation for educators, Mindset would be the book I would choose!  Why Mindset?  Because, in my opinion, the difference between a good and great teacher is their mindset.  What is a mindset?  Watch the short video below to explain the difference between a growth and fixed mindset.

Brandon's Brainwork Questions
1. Which mindset do you have?
2. If you answered a growth mindset, do you really have a growth mindset?
3. Watch the video again, which areas can you get better at?  How will you get better at these areas?
4. How does having a growth mindset make you a better educator?
5. How do you instill the growth mindset into your students?

Ending Quote

"It's for you to decide whether change is right for you now.  Maybe it is, maybe it isn't.  But either way, keep the growth mindset in our thoughts.  Then, when you bump up against obstacles, you can turn to it.  It will always be there for you, showing you a path into the future." (Dweck, p. 246, Mindset)