In this keynote address at the National SAM Conference last month, consultant/author Mike Rutherford proposed the following logic model: (a) skillful teaching is the most important variable in students’ school learning; (b) teaching becomes more skillful with feedback and practice; and (c) observation can be a key factor in feedback. Rutherford suggests eleven principles for getting the most out of classroom visits:
- Practice intellectual humility. There’s a lot that observers don’t know and see when they walk into a classroom: what happened just beforehand, the mood of certain students, where in a curriculum unit they are, what’s in the back of the teacher’s mind, and much more. It’s a myth, says Rutherford, that supervisors can achieve “inter-rater reliability” by watching and scoring classroom videos.
- Have a language about instruction. The more observers know about good teaching, the more conceptual hooks they have to help them notice, appreciate, and understand what’s going on. Rutherford tells the story of a high-school principal he worked with as an AP who was brilliant at spotting where trouble was about to break out in a basketball crowd. That came from years of “pattern recognition” in countless home games.
- Develop positive expectancy. Rutherford advises giving yourself a pep talk before entering a classroom so you focus on what the teacher might do that’s effective. This is to counter any less-than-positive expectations you might have based on previous visits – or perhaps your mood at that moment.
- Stay on your feet. When observers are seated, their field of vision is limited and there’s a tendency to write feverishly rather than watching and listening. Moving around a classroom, the observer can look over students’ shoulders, look at their work, ask them questions, read what’s on the walls, and get different perspectives on the teachers’ actions.
- Don’t worry about interrupting. “You’ve already done that,” says Rutherford; no matter how unobtrusive, an adult walking into a classroom will be noticed by the teacher and students, affecting them in ways large and small. (The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle describes the effect of an instrument of measurement on what’s being measured.) The only question is whether the feedback given to the teacher will be valuable enough to “pay them back” for the interruption.
- Enter as a visitor, not an owner. A classroom is a teacher’s “home,” their sacred ground; it’s where they spend more waking hours than almost anywhere else. Above all, Rutherford advises, avoid hanging out near the teacher’s desk – that’s their personal zone. And for heaven’s sake, don’t sit in their chair!
- Maintain focus and intensity. Every 20 seconds, says Rutherford, teachers check out what the visitor is doing. They want to see someone who is engrossed, attentive, upbeat. • Delay zeroing in on details. The first priority walking in is to get the big picture, take in the climate, the overall tone of the room.
- Alternate between zooming in and zooming out. Spend five minutes observing the big picture, then focus intently on a particular student, a piece of student work, an anchor chart, what’s on the board, or some other detail for five minutes, then spend the rest of the time observing more generally. That should be the shape of a 15-minute visit.
- Look ahead of and behind the action. For example, what are students doing just before the teacher arrives at their group? What do they do after the teacher has talked to them and moved on
- Practice shorter, more-frequent observations. These mini-observations don’t need to be evaluative; they’re geared to getting a sense of everyday practice and following up with focused coaching conversations. They are likely to have much more impact on teaching and learning than traditional evaluations, which, says Rutherford, have “a very low effect size.”
Please Note: This summary is reprinted with permission from issue #922 of The Marshall Memo, an excellent resource for educators.
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