Instructional Rounds In Education
Chapter 1 - The Instructional Core
Summary by Eastern Metropolitan Region
In chapter one the authors discuss the instructional core. In its simplest terms
the instructional core is composed of the student and the teacher in the
presence of content. The model of the instructional core provides a basic
framework for how to intervene in the instructional process so as to improve
the quality and level of student learning. Seven principles guide our work with
the instructional core.
1. Increases in student learning occur only as a consequence of
improvements in the level of content, teachers’ knowledge and skill,
and student engagement.
2. If you change any single element of the instructional core, you have to
change the other two.
3. If you can’t see it in the core, it’s not there.
4. Task predicts performance.
5. The real accountability system is in the tasks that students are asked to
do.
6. We learn to do the work by doing the work, not by telling other people
to do the work, not by having done the work at some time in the past,
and not by hiring experts who can act as proxies for our knowledge
about how to do the work.
7. Description before analysis, analysis before prediction, prediction
before evaluation.
Cohen and Ball suggest that ‘it is the relationship between the teacher, the
student, and the content – not the qualities of any one of them by themselves
– that determines the nature of instructional practice’. The instructional task is
the actual work that students are asked to do in the process of instruction –
not what teachers think they are asking students to do, or what the official
curriculum says that students are asked to do, but what they are actually
asked to do. Doyle locates the instructional task at the centre of the
instructional core.
There are many forces in the name of ‘improvement’ that can pull the focus
away from the instructional core. If this happens, true instructional
improvement is unlikely. Points to remember about the instructional core are
these:
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Focus on the core – a focus on the instructional core grounds school
improvement in the actual interactions between teachers, students and
content in the classroom, and provides a common focus in the practice
of instructional rounds.
Task predicts performance – the practice of instructional rounds
provides a way of observing academic tasks, predicting what students
will know as a consequence of what they are being asked to do, and
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providing guidance on the next level of work that would be required for
students to perform at higher levels.
Accountability begins in the tasks that students are asked to do – if the
tasks do not reflect the expectations of the external accountability
system, or our best ideas about what students should know and be
able to do, we should not expect to see the results reflected in external
measures of performance.
Instruction Rounds In Education
Chapter 2 - Theories of Action
Summary by Southern Metropolitan Region
Chapter 2, Theories of Action, outlines the need for schools and teachers to
have a theory of action that allows the vision for teaching and learning to be
realised within the context of the individual school. The theory of action:
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is the story line that makes a vision and strategy concrete
provides the map that carries the vision through the organisation
has three main requirements:
o it is a statement of causal relationship that describes what I do
and what constitutes a good result in the classroom
o it is empirically falsifiable – it must be able to be disproved
based on evidence of what is happening in the classroom
o it is open-ended and needs to be further revised as more is
learned about the consequences of actions.
needs to be concrete and relate to the specific context in which the
participants work
provides a through line to the instructional core and provides
information about the vital activities that need to happen to improve
teaching and learning
tends to tighten up accountability requirements because it shows the
interdependence of roles
needs to be proven or falsified by repeatedly revisiting it in the
presence of colleagues and providing the opportunity to reflect candidly
on our teaching practice and about our own learning
should be revisited by people with different ideas from both within and
outside the organisation – more heads are better than fewer
even if it is a simple and incomplete theory, it is better than no theory at
all
can allow the development of a clear path through the clutter to the
instructional core
should be shared publicly.
The key implications for practice are these:
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We need to have a vision that reflects where the school or network is
going.
In Network Strategic Plans, networks need to reconsider and review
the theory of action in light of the content of instructional rounds in
education. This is likely to result in a theory of action around each of
the goals within the Strategic Plan.
A theory of action should be developed collaboratively to reflect how
the vision will be realised and how network members will act or how
teachers will operate in the classroom.
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The theory of action should be a living document and should be
reflected upon regularly.
The theory of action should be a public document available for
discussion by people within and outside the organisation.
Discussions about the validity of the theory of action should incorporate
a wide range of opinions.
Instructional Rounds In Education
Chapter 3 - Launching a Network
Summary by Grampians Region
High level improvements in teaching and learning require our system to
replace traditional isolated and autonomous practices with teachers and
administrators visiting classrooms, discussing teaching and learning,
developing improvement strategies and defining theories of action.
Instructional Rounds are a public process that models risk taking and is
dependent on building trust and collective efficacy to maximize the
improvement opportunities available through nonjudgmental peer
observations.
Launching a network with a focus on Instructional Rounds (Rounds) requires
considerable planning. Decisions related to the selection of the facilitator,
membership of the Network, and the number of school visits to be
undertaken, are all key considerations. Networks can be role alike (which
create greater comfort and safety) or cross role (which can be a powerful tool
for “district –focused improvement”). A high level of commitment to Rounds is
a critical success factor particularly in committing to professional learning and
reflection.
Another important strategy to consider in establishing rounds is the
identification of “early rounds champions”, particularly in the start-up phase as
they can play a key role in encouraging and recruiting members.
In managing resources, there are a number of things to consider. Firstly, one
of the biggest resource costs is TIME – in particular there is a need to balance
time on rounds whilst recognizing the competing pressures for members in
their day to day roles. There may be other costs which need to be taken into
consideration, including an external facilitator (if required), possible CRT
costs, materials, hospitality and meeting space. It must be noted that Rounds
require a safe space for learning so that participants can take risks and be
assured of confidentiality.
For Instructional Rounds Networks to be successful, selecting an effective,
highly skilled facilitator is critical. Once established the Network needs to set
specific expectations, for example attendance, participation, confidentiality,
communication, support, accountability and hosting. The focus of Rounds
must be on problems of practice. An important part of the process is creating
mechanisms for continuous learning. Instructional Rounds focuses on
teaching NOT the teachers and requires members to practice skills of
observation and debriefing. We need to use Rounds to go beyond the “land of
nice’ and move into a culture of challenge.
Key Insights
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Effective instructional rounds networks have enormous power to unlock
peer learning, connect theory to action and support instructional
improvement.
The goal of instructional rounds is for the participants to learn about
teaching, not to focus on teachers.
A network culture that challenges its members to focus on improving
teaching practice is essential to achieve large scale improvement.
To undertake this work successfully networks require considerable
discussion, professional learning and practice prior to participating in
instructional rounds. This needs to include the setting of expectations
and norms that will support a culture of trust, problem solving and
continuous improvement as well as practicing the skills of observation
and debriefing.
Facilitation that empowers participants and engages then in the work is
critical to the success of rounds. The facilitator or co facilitators should
have a blend of knowledge and competencies including knowledge of
teaching and learning, skill and confidence in working with adult
learners and facilitating meetings, familiarity with instructional rounds
and credibility with network members. Implications for our Practice
Current Network structures are well positioned to take forward
Instructional Rounds.
Getting buy in from early adopters as “Rounds Champions” could help
in the initial phases.
Networks need to decide on membership and seek agreed
commitment on time, norms and expectations.
Selection and training or a skilled facilitator is critical to the process
(whether they be “insider or outsider” facilitators.
The Network will need to develop strategies that build trust and
collective efficacy if Rounds are to be a powerful learning experience.
Instructional Rounds In Education
Chapter 4 - Learning to See, Unlearning to
Judge
Summary by Barwon South Western Region
When educationalists visit classrooms they have an idea of what they want to
see based on their past experiences and what they know of effective
classrooms. Instructional rounds, by way of contrast, emphasise the need to
suspend judgment and gather evidence.
This chapter focuses on the requirement to make observations and describe
WHAT is seen rather than making JUDGEMENTS about what is seen. “The
discipline of description is the core practice on which rounds are based….”
pp.84
In this chapter it is made clear that in order to make non-judgemental
observations and collect evidence for discussion it is necessary to decide:
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what is to be observed in advance
how the observation will be undertaken
how to discuss what is seen
The need for being descriptive requires:
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the ability to be articulate about the relation ship between the teaching
and learning
a common language for describing what is seen
the language to be “grounded in shared evidence and dialogue.”
As practitioners become more skilled in non-judgemental observations they
can move to developing a problem of practice as a focus for observations.
This focus though still remains on the cause and effect relationship between
teaching and learning with evidence to support the observations. This
evidence is a description of what can be seen.
Some kinds of evidence can be more helpful than others.
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“Large grained evidence” is an observation of a large scale nature such
as the main focus of the lesson, connections made on a class or group
scale, students learning modes.
“Fine grained evidence” is more focused on questioning of students,
specific challenges to understandings and individual student behaviour.
As a starting point to focus observations three key questions provide a
platform for observations:
1. What are the teachers doing and saying?
2. What are the students doing and saying?
3. What is the task?
Key insights
1. Suspension of judgment is central to the rounds process.
2. The identification of cause-and-effect relationships is embedded in the
process.
3. Use of the ladder of inference is a valuable tool to assist people to
suspend judgment.
4. We need to challenge each other to produce the evidence – moving
from the educator’s ‘’ to a culture of challenge and evidence is a major
paradigm shift.
5. We need to avoid commenting on what we don’t see in the classrooms
during the lesson.
6. We must describe what we see (the evidence) but determining what is
worth noting and what is a distraction is a key skill of those doing
educational rounds. The depth of note-taking during roundscan also be
an issue.
Implications for Practice
1. Considerable practice will be needed in order to develop the skills
required to be focused and non-judgemental observers
2. Evidence that is fine grained and usable will need to be collected to
support observations
3. A common language and shared understanding needs to be developed
4. There is a need to develop agreed and common processes, protocols
and language around observations
5. It is important to develop a proforma to make notes, collect evidence
etc. as a basis for feedback and discussions
6. Time will need to be re-allocated by principals and teachers to enable
rounds to operate effectively in schools
7. A culture of “challenge” (show me the evidence) will need to be
developed using protocols.
Instructional Rounds In Education
Chapter 5 - Doing Rounds Part 1: Problem of
Practice and Observing
Summary by Hume Region
This chapter describes how to define a helpful problem of practice and
includes the nuts and bolts about classroom observations. It elaborates on the
first two elements of the rounds process – identifying the problem of practice
and observing the practice. The rounds process is about building the skills of
network members and supporting instructional improvement. The mutual
benefit to the host school and the network is the key to its sustainability.
Identifying the problem of practice The identified problem of practice must be
based on a current dilemma facing the host school and come from data,
dialogue and current work within
the school. It is grounded in some kind of shared evidence and is something
that the host school has already been working on or think they might need to
work on. When identifying a rich problem of practice, look for a problem that:
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focuses on the instructional core
is directly observable
is actionable
connects to a broader strategy of improvement
has high leverage.
The more specific the problem of practice, the more specific and helpful the
observational data and the recommendations in the next level of work will be.
Observing the practice
Successful rounds generally focus on one rich problem based on students’
learning as opposed to the classroom teaching; that is, focus on the students
not the teacher. It is important to understand that we do rounds for ourselves
and for our students. The purpose of visiting classrooms is to gather
information directly on the work of teaching and learning.
The primary goal of observation teams is to collect meaningful data without
disrupting the learning. At
appropriate times in the lesson, observers can talk with the students as this is
often one of the best ways to understand what’s going on in the instructional
core. It is important to focus on what students are actually doing, not what the
teacher has asked them to do. You have to see how students are engaging
with the task to get a good picture of the instructional core.
Instructional rounds benefit both the host school and the network. It builds the
skills of network members as they agree about what effective practice is and
how to support it, and it supports instructional improvement and builds skills at
the host school.
Key insights
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Focus on what students are actually doing.
The more specific the problem, the more specific the recommendations
will be.
We will get better at designing problems of practice over time.
Rounds are a learning opportunity – about gathering data on the work
of teaching and learning.
There is shared agreement on the evidence.
It benefits both the host school and the network.
Implications for practice
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The identified problem is based on current work and data.
It connects to a broader strategy of improvement.
There is a process for agreeing on the evidence.
Rounds build the skills of network members through shared/common
understandings of effective practice and how to support it.
Instructional Rounds In Education
Chapter 6 - Doing Rounds Part 2: Debriefing and
the Next Level of Work
Summary by Western Metropolitan Region
I came into this group feeling like I was a pretty good judge of teaching … as
soon as people in my team started sharing their observations. I realized I was
missing a lot. It’s a humbling experience.
The final two steps of the rounds process – the observation debrief and the
recommendations for the next step or next level of work – are discussed in
this chapter. In working through these steps it is worth taking the time and
being deliberate and thorough as this is the point where we start dealing with
people’s beliefs and understandings of teaching and learning.
Observation debrief
The purpose of the debrief is to consider and discuss the collected evidence
of the group who took part in the round and come to an agreement on what
they saw and what learning arises from the observation.
There are three steps to the debrief:
1. Description – describe not judge; use descriptive voice; focus on the
data that is relevant to the problem of practice; listen and learn from
colleagues.
2. Analysis – organise the data gathered; discuss and ask questions of
the data; look for patterns to emerge; use outside frameworks to assist
the analysis. Some sample debrief structures were provided.
3. Prediction – this step links teaching and learning. It tackles the central
question: ‘If you were a student at this school and you did everything
you were expected to do, what would you know and be able to do?’
This helps identify areas of difference and potentially indicates, from
the data/evidence gathered, a focus for the next level of work.
Taken cumulatively, these debrief practices allow participants to describe the
specific behaviours and structures they see that cause, enable, or at times
diminish learning.
The next level of work
Built around the concept of reciprocity, this step focuses on the resourcing
required to move instruction to the next level. This step proposes solutions
and recommendations for action to address the stated problem of practice.
The focus is on improving teaching and learning in the classroom by
developing clarity about good instructional practice and how leaders can
support this practice. The next step is then applying what has been learned by
principals through this process to their own local context.
Key insights
Initially suspend judgments and focus on clearly describing what is happening
in the classroom, which is to build an agreed database before analysing and
making recommendations. Build in time to follow up the round at a later time
to allow further reflection on the issue raised around the problem of practice.
Develop clarity around identified good teaching practice so that principals can
inform practice in their own schools and build professional learning within their
school.
Implications for practice
Identify problems of practice around the instructional core and build finegrained strategies to resource professional learning to address the identified
need. Introduce the instructional rounds process as a part of the
network/school routine by planning, implementing capacity building and
developing a visitation schedule for each term.
Instructional Rounds In Education
Chapter 7 - Facilitating Rounds
Summary by Northern Metropolitan Region
Facilitators should play a special role in nurturing and developing the learning
of network participants – they help adults learn. Facilitators are guides, not
experts. They understand that people learn powerfully by talking to each
other.
In order to maximise network learning, it is important to reflect on the
fundamentals of the rounds process, that is:
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identifying a problem of practice
observing the practice
debriefing after the observation
identifying the next level of work.
In identifying a problem of practice, it is important to focus on the learning we
wish to see in classrooms.
For the observation phase, many people need help with note-taking. One
helpful technique is to have facilitators and network members share their
notes, for example, while watching a video of classroom practice. Participants
can share, compare and discuss their note-taking. Notes provide the raw
material for the debrief. For example, a network which is investigating
teachers’ questioning skills could record sample teacher questions and group
them according to cognitive demand.
Other ways of addressing a problem of practice include:
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reading and discussing relevant articles
building in targeted professional development
using co-facilitators so that facilitators can brainstorm together
using facilitator networks.
The management of participants’ time and energy levels is critical.
Instructional rounds can be draining work.
Grouping is also an issue. The use of a four- or five-person group works well
– they are big enough for a range of ideas and small enough for everyone to
have time to talk.
Good facilitators have good listening skills. They listen continuously to
members of the group to learn what the group wants to learn and, at the same
time, think continuously about what the group needs to learn.
Good facilitators are always collecting feedback and input from the group.
There are several ways of obtaining this information, including:
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use of a plus/delta chart
forming a think tank – a small group of volunteers that meets between
sessions for planning and reflection
use of online surveys
use of a ‘parking lot’
individual follow-up.
Documentation of the learning provides rich clues about the group’s
understanding of how to be descriptive and how people think about teaching
and learning.
Protocols and group norms provide safe mechanisms for people to learn.
Network participants take on the task of holding each other to account. After
an initial period the facilitator moves from being a teacher of the rounds
process to being a ‘critical friend’.
Key insights
1. Facilitators need to model the work and be explicit. Adult learners need
explicit instruction as well.
2. Expect individuals to have different needs and varying levels of
expertise.
3. Focus on the questions rather than the answers.
4. Maintain vigilance about sticking to the descriptive evidence.
5. Less is more! Go for depth. Learning is about quality, not quantity.
Implications for our practice
1. Our network structures are appropriate vehicles for implementing
instructional rounds.
2. Facilitators will need appropriate training. How should they be
recruited?
3. Careful planning and targeting professional development are important
aspects of the facilitator’s role.
4. Consideration needs to be given to the appropriate group size and
composition.
5. Should networks begin the instructional rounds process on a pilot
basis?
6. Identification of appropriate problems of practice needs careful
attention.
7. Principal time and energy levels need to be protected. The work
involved can be draining.
Instructional Rounds In Education
Chapter 8 - Learning from Rounds
Summary by Loddon Mallee Region
Chapter 8 focuses on the question – how and why do rounds lead to systemic
improvement? In this chapter the authors describe a set of five professional
learning principles that underpin instructional rounds. It is the combination of
these five principles that builds a rationale for rounds to form part of the
overall process of learning and improvement in school systems.
Principle 1: We learn to do the work by doing the work, reflecting on the work,
and critiquing the work.
Rounds are a practice and practices are learned by practising. People need
the opportunity to do the work, experience the process, reflect on the work,
express feelings and understandings of the work, and critique their own
practice. It is the practice of rounds that provides opportunities for questions
about practice to be articulated and helps convert these questions into
individual and collective learning. Strong norms need to be created around the
use of value-neutral descriptive language rather than normative or subjective
language.
Principle 2: Separate the person from the practice
Rounds are based on the assumption that for schools to improve they have to
develop shared practices and a shared understanding of the cause-and-effect
relationship between teaching and learning. A legacy of atomised practice is
that most educators believe that their practice is an inherent part of
themselves – their ‘style’. There is a need to delicately, but insistently,
separate people from their practices. This is done by objectifying practice and
developing a theory of action, tested against the daily realities of work.
Principle 3: Learning is an individual and a collective activity
Rounds are designed to move schools and systems from highly individualised
practices to more collective practices. It is the accumulation of learning across
classrooms and schools that improves learning and student performance.
Individual learning is good for individuals but it is not always good for
organisations.
Principle 4: Trust enhances individual and collective learning
Collective learning requires a safe place in which people can share their
questions and understandings without fear of judgement by peers or
supervisors. Relational trust is the highest form of organisational trust based
on mutually supportive relationships. This enables an environment where it
becomes possible to challenge the ‘land of nice’ – a culture in which one’s
practice is one’s private property and not a collective good.
Principle 5: Learning enhances individual and collective efficacy
Collective efficacy has a strong positive relationship to organisational
effectiveness. The theory of action of rounds is based on developing a strong
sense of the cause-and effect relationship between how teachers teach and
what students learn. Collective efficacy requires collective work and collective
norms, not just individual understanding. Ideas of efficacy have to percolate
up from the individual level to the organisational level in order to achieve a
large-scale effect on student learning.
Key insights
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Move from the individual to the collective - Instructional rounds can
help move the learning in schools and school systems from an
individual activity to a collective activity.
Separate people and practice - The use of descriptive voice to observe
and analyse classrooms and instructional rounds provides a way of
separating the person from the practice. Professional learning occurs
when individuals disconnect their practice from their individual identity,
making changes in accord with feedback on their work while leaving
their individual identity and commitment to teaching and learning intact.
Cultivate trust - Trust is central to achieving high levels of learning and
performance in school systems. A common language for describing
and analysing instructional practice and common norms for collective
learning help build trust among individuals.
Build efficacy - Repeated practice of instructional rounds creates a
collective efficacy among teachers and administrators around student
learning, and collective efficacy is strongly related to student learning in
schools.
Encourage questions - Repeated questioning of the value of rounds in
connecting organisational practice with teaching practice is something
to be embraced, not avoided.
Implications for our practice
1. The capacity of principals and leadership teams is critical to the
successful implementation of rounds as an ongoing practice.
Opportunities need to be created to enable school leadership teams to
develop their knowledge, skills and understandings of rounds as an
improvement strategy. Networks provide an ideal framework for rounds
to be introduced and practised, both within and across schools.
2. Rounds need to be linked to a problem of practice defined within each
network or school setting. This should be linked to available data and
build on an existing priority rather than something additional.
3. Embedding rounds as a practice in schools will most likely require
many schools to re-shape their professional learning strategy and use
of teacher planning time.
Instructional Rounds In Education
Chapter 9 - Moving from Rounds to Large Scale
Improvements in Practice
Summary by Gippsland Region
The rounds process is not a silver bullet that will single-handedly lead to
better outcomes at scale for students. It is, however, a powerful accelerant of
school and district improvement efforts. Its focus on what goes on in
classrooms anchors improvement efforts in the instructional core and provides
a key source of data and a powerful feedback loop to tell educators whether
their systemic improvement efforts are actually reaching students. The
process itself models a planning–doing–assessing improvement cycle that
can be applied to all levels of practice, including the leadership and
organisational changes that are needed to improve instruction systemically.
Bringing instructional improvement to scale requires progress on three
interwoven tasks:
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Develop a clearly articulated and widely understood view of highquality teaching and learning to improve the instructional core based on
the best thinking available inside and outside the network. It should be
known to everyone involved in instruction, including students and
parents.
Build a collaborative learning culture that replaces the compliance
orientation. Develop higher order skills of analysis, inquiry and creative
problem-solving at the adult and student level. The rounds process
models routines and practices to build a collaborative learning culture.
Principals can use this knowledge to develop the culture in their own
settings. The process offers norms and protocols to support change in
a ‘safe’ environment.
Develop a theory of action to improve instruction and student learning,
focus on a few key strategies and then align human and financial
resources and accountability systems to these strategies. To improve
instruction at scale, participants need to intertwine the leadership and
organisational practices at the school level emerging from the
examination of classroom practice with broader network improvement
strategies.
The rounds process provides feedback on whether district and school
strategies are reflected in the classroom and builds system-wide coherence.
Instructional rounds need to include authority figures and key stakeholders to
build leverage for district change. Increasing numbers of educators need to be
involved over time. Supporting the instructional core in the classroom is the
work of leaders and must be seen as such.
The impact of rounds is greater when participants are expected to do
something as a consequence of being part of rounds. Mutual accountability
and mutual learning grow dramatically.
The network grows and learns over time. As people do the work, they learn
the work and get better at it. They learn more about instruction and their role
in improving it. Over time, accountability also shifts from compliance and
authority to a culture of improvement. A system of mutual and reciprocal
accountability is established which is driven by outcomes and common
learning.