Teacher Effectiveness
Chapter 11
Are Teachers Born or Made?
The best of the best

Sketch the best teacher you ever had? Write
a sentence or two describing what made this
teacher effective.
Are teachers born?


Talent: A special ability or aptitude.
Naturally reoccurring patterns of thought,
feeling or behavior.
Three clues to talent: Yearnings, rapid
learning, and satisfaction.
Examples of talent
Ben Affleck
Oprah
Matt Damon
Tiger Woods
Are teachers made?


Knowledge: Declarative (concept based)
and Procedural (procedure oriented)
Skills: Formulization of accumulated
knowledge into a sequence of steps, that if
followed, will lead to performance.
Talent or skill?





Ability to demonstrate subject matter
knowledge
Ability to acquire and demonstrate effective
pedagogy
Ability to demonstrate professionalism
Ability to address the psychological, social
and cultural needs of learners
Ability to address the needs of a diverse
population
What skill is it?
A.
“Mrs. Seijas helped me through Algebra
problems by going step by step. She
helped me understand and I never got lost
like I did in high school.”
Skill:
What skill is it?
B.
“We were working on “their, there and
they’re so that we could pass our GED
essay. Most people find learning these
boring, but Mrs. Seijas taught them in a way
that was fun and in a way I could
remember!”
Skill:
What skill is it?
C.
Mrs. Seijas does not cut us any slack. If we
don’t keep up, she has a private conference
with us. She finds out what the problem is
and then puts the responsibility back on us.”
Skill:
What skill is it?
D.
Lectures are used but questions are what
really helps us to think and come to a
deeper understanding of concepts.”
Skill:
Skills




Effective questioning
Motivation
Structure/clarity
High expectations
Mrs. Seijas



Does she have any talents?
Does she have any skills?
What is most teaching?
Most teaching is based on tried and true
best practices. Most teaching takes a
combination of:




Talent
Knowledge
Skills
Dispositions
Most teachers use their knowledge, skill and
disposition strengths and manage around
weaknesses.
Are Teachers Born or Made

What talents, knowledge, skills and
dispositions do you think you could bring to
the classroom?
Academic Learning Time

What influence do teachers have over
learning time?
Academic Learning Time
Hours in a year: 8,640
Hours in a school year: 1,080
Percent of time in school 12.5%
Hours in a week: 168
Hours in a school week: 30
Percent of time in school: 17.85
1978 San Francisco Study
Reading:


Teacher A: 68 minutes in reading
Teacher B: 137 minutes in reading
1978 San Francisco Study
Math:


Teacher A: 16 minutes in reading
Teacher B: 48 minutes in math
John Goodlad: A Place Called
School


School A: 65% of learning time devoted to
instruction
School B: 90% of learning time devoted to
instruction




Scheduled time: Is the time formally or
officially designated for students to work on a
topic.
Allocated time: Time teacher schedules for a
subject.
Engaged time: Time in which students are
actively involved in the lesson.
Academic learning time: Engaged time with a
high rate of success.
Figure 2.3. Academic Learning Time as a subset of Engaged Time
Table 2.1. Components of Academic Learning Time
Component
Who Mainly Determines
It in School
Who Mainly Determines
It for Independent Work
Scheduled time
School Administration
Student
Allocated time
Teacher
Student
Engaged time
Student
Student
Academic learning Student
time
Student
Academic Learning Time A Non-Example:
Farris Bueller’s Day Off



How much scheduled time?
How much engaged time?
How much academic learning time?
Academic Learning Time:

Check for Understanding
Classroom Management:

Giving Life to Learning
Back in the day!
Management Techniques





Group alerting: Questioning Techniques to
keep students involved.
Withitness: Eyes in the back of your head
Overlapping: Multitask: Doing several
things at once.
Least intervention: Efficiency in addressing
discipline.
Fragmentation: Bumpy transitions
What classroom management
strategies did you see?

Activity for pages 431 and 432
Transition Busters






Flip-flop: Ends an activity, begins a new activity
and then goes back to original activity.
Over-dwelling: Preaching, nagging, wasting time.
Fragmentation: Choppy transition
Thrusts: Random thoughts. “Where’s Roberto?”
Dangles: Not completing an action. “Did I tell you
about the speaker we are having?”
How can you avoid transition busters?
Classroom Management:

Check for Understanding (File: Chapter 11:
Classroom Management Checkup)
Best Management Practices:


Begins at the front door!
Effective classroom managers are good
planners!
What best practices are related to:



Rules
Room set up
Managing misbehavior
What are best management
practices?

Rules
– Rules should be few in number
– Fair and reasonable
– Appropriate for student maturation

Room to set up (Page 436)
– Eye to eye
– Hands on supplies
– Avoid Congestion Digestion
– Best seat in the house
– Teach to reach: Good classroom
management must be taught!

Managing misbehaviors
– Choice: Options (Between stimulus and
response, giving students the power to
choose)
– Responsibility: Making learning meaningful
– Voice: Listening: There was a reason we
have one mouth and two ears
“While maintaining a pleasant classroom
atmosphere, these teachers keep planning
on how to organize, manage, and control
activities to facilitate instruction.”
GATES PLAN
Mrs. Toliver:

What makes this an effective lesson?
The Pedagogical Cycle: 85%

Structure: Provides information, directions
and introduces topics.

Question: The teacher asks a question.

Respond: The student answers a question
or tries to.

React: The teacher reacts to the student’s
answer and provides feedback.
Clarity and Structure
Start of the Lesson
 Objectives: Letting students know what the
purpose of the lesson is.
 Review: Helping students recall background
information
 Motivation: Anticipatory set
 Transition: Connecting old and new
information
Clarity and Structure
During the Lesson
 Clarification/chunking: Breaking down
information
 Scaffolding: Practice and skills that support
learning.
 Examples: Explain points and ideas
Clarity and Structure
End of the Lesson
 Directions: Check for understanding.
 Closure: Close with a review or activity
 Enthusiasm: Show interest (Always)
Using the Clarity and Academic Structure
cards, place the cards where you think they
would naturally fall in a lesson:
Beginning During
End
Questioning
“A good question will get you half way to the
answer.” John Dewey
Questioning: What Research Says
Thumbs Up and Thumbs Down


Research says that the number of questions
asked of boys as well as girls is roughly
equivalent.
Because female students to be dominated by
male aggressive answering techniques,
equity is achieved by teachers asking female
students more questions than male students.



Boys answer more questions than girls
because they are more noncompliant.
Boys answer more questions than girls
because they are assertive in grabbing the
teacher’s attention.
Boys are often reprimanded for their
assertive and aggressive questioning
techniques.




Girls are more likely to be reprimanded than
boys for answering questions without raising
their hands.
Non-white students are asked more questions
than white students.
The goal of the teacher should be to have all
students answer questions.
A protocol is the best way to ensure that all
students have an opportunity to respond to
questions.
Why Don’t We Ask Better
Questions? (Systems Thinker)



Western culture is focused more on the right
answer than the right question.
Our educational system focuses on
memorization and static answers rather than
on the art of seeking new possibilities
through dynamic questioning.
Quizzes, examinations and aptitude tests all
reinforce the value of correct answers.
Why Ask Questions? (Hannel)




Helps us to assess on a moment to moment
basis.
Can help us find what is missing and then help
us reconnect so students can scaffold their
learning.
Improves teachers’ understanding of a lesson
by considering how the student perceives the
information at hand. (See example on page 22
of Hannel)
Engagement of reluctant learners
Questioning Strategies




Pose question select reciter with wait time.
Pose question select reciter without wait
time.
Within and after student response pause
time
Unison/choral response
Pose question select reciter with
wait time.
Example:
 Why do you think it would be important for a
teacher to provide wait time?
Pose question select-reciter
without wait time

Example: Tell me one questioning strategy.
Another one. Another one. Another one.
Within and after student response
pause time

Example: ____________, why is it important
to provide students with time after they are
initially called upon?
Unison/Choral Response
Example: Let’s say the continents together
from smallest to largest.
Pair Share




Pose question select reciter with wait time.
Pose question select reciter without wait
time.
Within and after student response pause
time
Unison/choral response
How does wait time (pose
question select reciter) impact
students?







More students participate in discussion.
Fewer discipline problems disrupt the class.
The length of student response increases
dramatically.
Students are more likely to support their statements
with evidence.
Speculative thinking increases.
There are more student questions and fewer failures
to respond.
Student achievement increases on written tests that
measure more complex levels of thinking.
How does wait time impact teacher
behavior?



Teacher comments are less disjointed and
more fluent.
Teachers ask more sophisticated, higher
order questions.
Teachers begin to hold higher expectations
for all students.
Blooms Taxonomy
Reaction or Productive Feedback




Praise: Positive comments about student work.
Acceptance: Teacher comments that acknowledge
that student answers are acceptable. These are not
as strong as praise.
Remediation: Comments that encourage a more
accurate response.
Criticism: Clear statement that an answer or
behavior is inappropriate.
Reaction or Productive Feedback
Feedback
Acceptance
Remediation
Praise
Criticism
Percent used
50%
33%
11%
5%
PowerPoint 11.11

(Effective Use of Praise)
Praise and Feedback Matching
Game
Effective Use of Praise
Praise should be:
• Contingent upon student performance
• Specific
• Sincere
• Informative
• Praise ability and effort
• Makes use of past performance as a context
for describing present performance
Variety in Process and Content


What activities can teachers use to promote
and maintain student interest? (Popcorn)
See page 448
Models of Effective Instruction
For each model describe the model and
how it
would benefit students.
Direct teaching: 449-450
Cooperative Learning: 450-451
Mastery Learning: 451-452
Problem Based Learning: 452-454
Technology: 454-459
Direct Instruction






Daily review
Introduce new material
Provide guided practice
Specific feedback is provided
Independent practice
Week and monthly review
Cooperative Learning
Cooperative Learning






Is a successful teaching strategy in which
small teams (3 to 4 members) each
with students of different levels of ability
(heterogeneous),
use a variety of learning activities to improve their
understanding of a subject,
each member of a team is responsible (individual
accountability) not only for learning what is taught
but also for helping teammates learn,
thus creating an atmosphere of achievement within a
specified time.
Why use Cooperative Learning?
Research has shown that cooperative learning
techniques:
 Promote student learning and academic achievement.
 Increase student retention.
 Enhance student satisfaction with their learning
experience.
 Help students develop skills in oral communication.
 Develop students’ social skills.
 Promote student self-esteem.
 Help to promote positive race relations.
5 Elements of Cooperative
Learning

It is only under certain conditions that
cooperative efforts may be expected to be
more productive than competitive and
individualistic efforts.
Those conditions are:
Positive Interdependence
(sink or swim together)


Each group member’s efforts are required
and indispensable for group success.
Each group member has a unique
contribution to make to the joint effort
because of his or her resources and/or role
and task responsibilities.
Face-to-Face Interaction
(promote each other’s success)





Orally explaining how to solve problems.
Teaching one’s knowledge to others.
Checking for understanding.
Discussing concepts being learned.
Connecting present with past learning.



Observing each group and recording the
frequency with which each membercontributes to the group’s work.
Assigning one student in each group the role
of checker. The checker asks other group
members to explain the reasoning and
rationale underlying group answers.
Having students teach what they learned to
someone else.
Interpersonal & Small-Group Skills

Social skills must be taught:
– Leadership
– Decision-making
– Trust-building
– Communication
– Conflict-management skills
Group Processing



Group members discuss how well they are
achieving their goals and maintaining
effective working relationships.
Describe what member actions are helpful
and not helpful.
Make decisions about what behaviors to
continue or change.
Class Activities that use
Cooperative Learning
Most of these structures are developed by
Dr. Spencer Kagan and his associates at
Kagan Publishing and Professional
Development. For resources and
professional development information on
Kagan Structures, please visit:
www.KaganOnline.com
Jigsaw – Groups with five students are set up.
Each group member is assigned some unique
material to learn and then to teach to his group
members. To help in the learning students
across the class working on the same subsection get together to decide what is
important and how to teach it. After practice in
these “expert” groups the original groups
reform and students teach each other. (Wood,
pg. 17) Tests or assessment follows.
Think-Pair-Share
Involves a three step cooperative structure.
During the first step individuals think silently
about a question posed by the instructor.
Individuals pair up during the second step
and exchange thoughts. In the third step, the
pairs share their responses with other pairs,
other teams, or the entire group.
RoundRobin Brainstorming
(Kagan)- Class is divided into small groups (4
to 6) with one person appointed as the
recorder. A question is posed with many
answers and students are given time to think
about answers. After the “think time,”
members of the team share responses with
one another round robin style. The recorder
writes down the answers of the group
members. The person next to the recorder
starts and each person in the group in order
gives an answer until time is called.
Three-minute review
Teachers stop any time during a lecture or
discussion and give teams three minutes to
review what has been said, ask clarifying
questions or answer questions.
Team Pair Solo
(Kagan)- Students do problems first as a team,
then with a partner, and finally on their own. It is
designed to motivate students to tackle and
succeed at problems which initially are beyond
their ability. It is based on a simple notion of
mediated learning. Students can do more things
with help (mediation) than they can do alone. By
allowing them to work on problems they could not
do alone, first as a team and then with a partner,
they progress to a point they can do alone that
which at first they could do only with help.
Circle the Sage
(Kagan)- First the teacher polls the class to see
which students have a special knowledge to
share. For example the teacher may ask who
in the class was able to solve a difficult math
homework question, who had visited Mexico,
who knows the chemical reactions involved in
how salting the streets help dissipate snow.
Those students (the sages) stand and spread
out in the room.
The teacher then has the rest of the classmates
each surround a sage, with no two members of
the same team going to the same sage. The
sage explains what they know while the
classmates listen, ask questions, and take
notes. All students then return to their teams.
Each in turn, explains what they learned.
Because each one has gone to a different
sage, they compare notes. If there is a
disagreement, they stand up as a team.
Finally, the disagreements are aired and
resolved.
Partners
(Kagan)- The class is divided into teams of
four. Partners move to one side of the room.
Half of each team is given an assignment to
master to be able to teach the other half.
Partners work to learn and can consult with
other partners working on the same material.
Teams go back together with each set of
partners teaching the other set. Partners quiz
and tutor teammates. Team reviews how well
they learned and taught and how they might
improve and process.
Mastery Learning: Benjamin Bloom






First step is specific learning behavioral objectives.
“Students will be able to….”
Students work at their own pace.
Alignment between what is taught and what is
tested.
Mastery is a student responsibility. All students can
learn.
The role of teacher is to be a facilitator
Teachers and students have positive attitudes
towards this approach.
Problem-Based Learning


-
-
Known as experience based, project based
and real world learning (See examples on
page 452)
Problem based learning fosters:
Leaner cooperation
Higher-order thinking
Cross-disciplinary work
Artifacts and exhibits
Problem-Based Learning: Examples




How could we decrease the number of
discipline referrals in our school?
How can we increase the writing achievement
of our fourth grade students?
Given a budget of $500, develop a plan to
improve the front of our school building?
Develop incentives that would ensure that
students would stay in school.
Technology as a Tool for Effective
Teaching




Problem-based learning
Cooperative learning and scaffolding
Mastery learning
Direct teaching
Effective and Reflective Teaching



Reflection is the key to effective teaching
Good teaching narrows what is taught but
develops it sufficiently so students can gain
in-depth knowledge
Differentiated instruction is organized around
needs of students, not around content
standards. This is accomplished through a
variety of teaching and learning modes.
Effective and Reflective Teaching



Learning communities are utilized
Looping promotes teachers with students
Block scheduling increases student content
time
Effective and Reflective Teaching
Reflective teaching
 What did I do today? Was it effective? Can I
do better?
 Were my students engaged and motivated?
 How do I assess student learning today?
 How can I build on today for later classes?