The Core of Educational
Leadership
Jon Saphier
RBT
Research for Better Teaching, Inc.
Accomplished educators are
always asking:
“How can we get better?”
Four Historical Approaches to Improving
Student Achievement
2.
90s: Change
Structures and
Schedules
1. 1980s:
Curriculum
Packages and
Programs
4.
2000s: Use
Data
3. 90’s & 2000s
Standards and
Accountability
5. Focus on High-Expertise Teaching
What is the most significant variable in
increasing student achievement?
What Teachers
Know, Believe
& Can Do
Increased
Student
Achievement
FIFTH GRADE MATH SCORES ON TENNESSEE STATEWIDE TEST
BASED ON TEACHER SEQUENCE IN GRADES 3, 4, 5
(Second Grade Scores Equalized)
Research by Sanders & Rivers (1996)
96
100
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e i
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e 40
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79
44
20
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Students with 3 Least Effective
Teachers
Students with 3 Average
Effective Teachers
Students with 3 Most Effective
Teachers
M.E.T. (Gates Project) 2012
Research
The variation in teaching effectiveness
between classrooms within a school is
greater than the variation in
effectiveness between schools.
[Thus student learning hinges on the
expertise of the teacher in front of
them now!]
Outcomes of Day
1. Dive into the nature of teaching
expertise….Goal: common images,
common language and concept system for
talking about teaching togther
2. Insights into how leaders at both building
and central levels can most influence
classroom teaching expertise.
7 Propositions about Teaching
 Proposition 1:
Teachers are preeminently important.
 Proposition 2:
There is a real knowledge base about
teaching that is practical, accessible,
huge, complex, and validated…and it’s
different.
Definition
“Teaching skill” is anything a person
does that influences the probability
of intended learning.
Anything!
Personal relationships…Teamwork skills…Data
analysis skills…Error analysis skills…Family inclusion
skills…
• Proposition 3:
We need a common language and
concept system for holding this
knowledge and talking about it
together.
• Proposition 4:
The nature of professional knowledge
in any field is:
--Tasks to be accomplished
--Repertoire of ways to accomplish
them
--Skill at matching the response or
strategy one picks from one’s
repertoire to match the content, the
people, or the situation
• Proposition 5:
For all our students…we want more good
teaching in more classrooms for more
children more of the time
…not a blame statement.
• Proposition 6:
The school-as-workplace is the prime
site for teacher learning.
• Proposition 7:
Leaders make the difference on whether
the school becomes a dynamic and
powerful site for teacher learning…for
improving classroom teaching and
learning.
• “Where to Show Up and What to Do”
• So the core of educational leadership
is:
mobilizing collective action
to improve teaching expertise
in every classroom.
KEY CONCEPTS
• Tasks
• Repertoire
• Matching
Overarching
Objectives
Curriculum
Design
Planning
Assessment
CURRICULUM
Objectives
Learning
Experiences
Personal
Relationship
Building
Class Climate
MOTIVATION
Expectations/Effort Based Ability
Clarity
Space
Principles of
Learning
Time
Models of
Teaching
INSTRUCTIONAL
STRATEGIES
Routines
MANAGEMENT
Attention
Momentum
Discipline
FOUNDATION OF ESSENTIAL BELIEFS
Punish
Exclude
Threaten
Sharp Sarcasm
Judgmental Reprimand
Order
Specific Verbal Desist
General Verbal Desist
Mild Sarcasm
Private Desist
Bringing in Group Pressure
Peer Competition
Move Seat
“I” Message
Remove Distraction
Offer Choice
Urge
Remind
Flattery
Signals
Pause and Look
Name Dropping
Offer Help
Touch
Proximity
DESISTING
Startle
Using Student ’s Name in Instructional Example
Redirecting Partial Answer
Pre-Alert
Unison
Looking at One, Talking to Another
Incomplete Sentences
ALERTIING
Equal Opportunity
Random Order
Circulation
Wait-Time
Eye Contact
Freedom from Distraction (visual and auditory)
The Attention
Continuum
Voice Variety
Gesture
Piquing Student ’s Curiosity
Suspense
Challenge
ENLISTING
Making Student a Helper
Props
Personification
Connecting with Student ’s Fantasies
Acknowledging
Encouragement
Enthusiasm
Praise
Humor
Dramatizing
ACKNOWLEDGING
WINNING
5 Least Done Attn. Moves
•
•
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•
•
“I” Message
Pre-Alert
Wait-Time
Props
Dramatizing
KEY CONCEPTS
• Areas of Performance
• Repertoire
• Matching
Overarching
Objectives
Curriculum
Design
Planning
Assessment
CURRICULUM
Objectives
Learning
Experiences
Personal
Class Climate
Relationship
Building
Expectations/Effort-Based Ability
Clarity
Space
Principles of
Learning
Time
Models of
Teaching
MOTIVATION
INSTRUCTIONAL
STRATEGIES
Routines
MANAGEMENT
Attention
Momentum
Discipline
FOUNDATION OF ESSENTIAL BELIEFS
3 KEY MESSAGES
1. What we’re doing is important.
2. You can do it.
3. I won’t give up on you, even if you
give up on yourself.
1:46
TEACHER CHOICE OF LANGUAGE IN RECURRING
SPECIFIC SITUATIONS:
•
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Patterns of calling on students
Responses to student answers
Giving help
Dealing with errors
Giving tasks and assignments
Feedback on individual student
performance, including authentic praise
Being tenacious
Framing re-teaching events
THE BOTTOM LINE OF EFFORT BASED ABILITY
• Our work as educators, in fact a major part
for some kids, is :
1) Convincing them they can grow their
ability at academics.
2) Showing them how.
3) Motivating them to want to.
5 BELIEFS
THAT LIBERATE OR LIMIT LEARNING
LIFE LIBERATING BELIEFS
Mistakes help one learn
LIFE LIMITING BELIEFS
vs.
You are not supposed to
understand everything the first
vs.
time around. Care, perseverance,
and craftmanship are what count.
Good Students solicit help and
lots of feedback on their work.
Consistent effort and effective
strategies are the main
determinants of success
Every one is capable of high
achievement, not just the fastest
and most confident.
Mistakes are a sign of weakness
Speed is what counts. Faster is
smarter.
vs.
Good students can do it by
themselves.
vs.
Inborn intelligence is the main
determinant of success
vs.
Only the few bright can achieve
at a high level.
CLARITY
1. Framing the Big Picture
• Objectives
• Itinerary
• Big Idea/Essential Question
• Reason for Activity
• Reason it’s Worthwhile
• Criteria for Success
CLARITY
2. Getting Ready for Instruction
• Anticipate Confusions
• Pre-assessing
• Activating Students’ Current Knowledge
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Dividends of “Wordsplash”
•
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•
•
•
•
•
Student know things to look for
Calls for predicting
Summons prior knowledge
Make connections
Adjust …active reader
Motivating
Ownership
Interactive
Pressure off – safe
CLARITY
3. Presenting Information…..
--Twelve Explanatory Devices
4. Speech
5. Explicitness
6. Making Cognitive Connections
Explanatory Devices
…especially powerful are
•
•
•
•
Modeling Thinking Aloud
Visual Imagery
Models
Diagrams and visual presentations
CLARITY
Getting Inside Students’ Heads
7. Checking for Understanding
8. Unscrambling Confusions
9. Creating interactive dialog to
Make Students’ Thinking Visible
CLARITY
V. CONSOLIDATING AND ANCHORING THE LEARNING
10. Summarizing
Getting students cognitively active in
summarizing
30 Summarizing Structures
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•
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
10-2
Learning Buddies
3…2…1…
The Important Thing…
Luck of the Draw
Paired Verbal Fluency
“Summary Sam”
Sorting Cards
One Word Summary
Synectics Review
One Question Quiz
A• B • C Summarize
Cheat Notes
Best Test
Relay Summary
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
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•
•
•
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•
•
Write a Rap
Ticket to Leave
Carousel Brainstorming
Graphic Organizers
Medium-Size Circle
Draw Picture/Diagram
Learning Logs
Thinking Logs
Think – Pair – Share
Biopoems
Reciprocal Teaching
Last Word
Board Games
The Envelope Please
Inside-Outside Circle
KEY CONCEPTS
• Areas of Performance
• Repertoire
• Matching
Overarching
Objectives
Curriculum
Design
Planning
Assessment
CURRICULUM
Objectives
Learning
Experiences
Personal
Relationship
Building
Class Climate
MOTIVATION
Expectations/Effort Based Ability
Clarity
Space
Principles of
Learning
Time
Models of
Teaching
INSTRUCTIONAL
STRATEGIES
Routines
MANAGEMENT
Attention
Momentum
Discipline
FOUNDATION OF ESSENTIAL BELIEFS
FEEDBACK
“Academic feedback is more strongly and
consistently related to achievement than any
other teaching behavior. This relationship is
consistent regardless of grade,
socioeconomic status, race, or school
setting” (Bellon, Bellon, and Blank, 1997, p.
277).
FEEDBACK
“The most powerful single modification that
enhances achievement,” writes Hattie (in
Ainsworth and Viegut, 2006, p. 89), “is
feedback. The simplest prescription for
improving education must be ‘dollops of
feedback.’”
•0:40
What skills show up in this
clip?
KEY CONCEPTS
• Areas of Performance
• Repertoire
• Matching
Overarching
Objectives
Curriculum
Design
Planning
Assessment
CURRICULUM
Objectives
Learning
Experiences
Personal
Class Climate
Relationship
Building
Expectations/Effort-Based Ability
Clarity
Space
Principles of
Learning
Time
Models of
Teaching
MOTIVATION
INSTRUCTIONAL
STRATEGIES
Routines
MANAGEMENT
Attention
Momentum
Discipline
FOUNDATION OF ESSENTIAL BELIEFS
What skills show up in this
clip?
•
•
•
•
•
Feedback (E/S)
Differentiation
Momentum (quick start with the “do-now”)
Pre-assessment
Planning by Analysis of student work the
night before (selection of three problems
in the do-now)
• Framing re-teaching: “You can do it!”
If teaching expertise is the most significant
variable in student achievement….
Then leadership is the most significant
variable in accounting for the growth of that
teaching expertise!
Re: Proposition 7
It’s important for leaders to consider
 where to show up,
 and what to do
in their daily rounds.
“How should I use my time to best
advantage if the prime goal is the
improvement of teaching and learning in
the classroom?”
Where to Show Up and What to Do
Building
Instructional
Leadership
Team
Partnership with
Instructional Coach
High-Functioning
Content Teams (PLCs)
Student Accountability Talks
Faculty Meetings
Frequent short
(15 min.) visits with
Conversations CEIQ
Influencing
Teaching
and Learning
Planning
Building PD
Peer Observation
Planning Conferences
Formal Observation
Write-ups
Walkthroughs and
Learning Walks
Supporting
Study Groups
Mathematics, Grade 4
Use the diagram below to answer question 19.
3
19

4
5
How long is the truck?
A. 5 34 inches 27
B. 2 34 inches 39
C. 5 12 inches 27
D. 2 12 inches 6
6
7
8
Mather School student
responses to this
question.
Reporting Category for Item 19: Measurement (p.230)
Questions and Sequence of Steps For
Teams Doing Error Analysis
1. What might the student have been thinking to make
this error?
2. How can we find our which of these hypotheses is
right?
3. What different teaching strategies could we use to
“fix” or undo whatever lead to this error- and help the
student solidify his/her skills and concepts?
Questions and Sequence of Steps For
Teams Doing Error Analysis
4. How are each of us going to plan and manage tasks
and time during the instructional period so that we’ll
get 15 minutes to re-teach skills and concepts at least 3
times a week for those students who made errors?
5. How can the team help?
High Functioning
Results
Orientation
Teams
Accountability
for Norms
Legitimate
Decisions
Open, passionate
debate
Trust I can be vulnerable
Research for Better Teaching
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team,
2002
Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions
of a Team, 2005
by Patrick Lencioni
Research for Better Teaching
--There is a real Knowledge Base about T &
L
--It matters preeminently. We need
-- Shared images of it,
-- Common language for talking about it,
-- Constant inquiry into it,
-- and frequent quality conversations about it
in relation to student learning.
So to summarize…
• A big idea of this day for me is……
• One thing I think I’ll try is…..
• A question I have is…..
Knowledge Bases for a
Fully Functioning Teacher
Academic
Discipline &
Student Standards
Children & Their
Differences
Cognitive
Affective
Cultural
Personal experiences
Learning & thinking styles
Curriculum planning
Motivation
Instructional strategies
Management
Student
Learning/
Student
Achievement
Parent
Involvement
+Data Analysis
+Cultural Proficiency
+Technology
General Pedagogical
Knowledge & Skills
Behaviors of Individuals
in Effective Organizations
12 norms
Effective meetings
Collaborative decision making
Communication skills
Team building
Win-win
Content-Specific
Pedagogy
Method
Materials
Examples
Misconceptions
Analogies
Stories
Research for Better Teaching