Improving Teacher Practice Through Coaching Conversations

1. Observation & Feedback Overview – Taking off Your Evaluator Hat to Improve Instruction SCS Leader Institute June 2017

2. Objectives You may be thinking that you already know how to do observation and feedback, but it is important to recognize that most of us focus on EVALUATING our teachers through observation rather than having a systematic approach to actually improving their practice. Evaluation does not improve practice –It just evaluates it! It’s time for SCS to adopt a system for improving teacher practice through instructional coaching that all school leaders engage in on a regular basis between the evaluation work we do. That is this session. Now is the time. OBJECTIVES FOR TODAY’S SESSION ARE:

3. Let’s Play Ball What not to do when giving feedback: • Do all the talking • Let teacher do all the talking on the wrong topic • Fail to write anything down (teacher or principal) about what teacher should be doing • Provide vague follow up timeline or steps. Share with a Partner: What went wrong with my coaching?

4. Six Steps for an Effective Coaching Conversation To improve instruction in order to improve student outcomes. Why do we have coaching conversations with teachers?

5. Effective Feedback to Change Instruction We will now watch a video of a feedback conversation to reflect on the coach’s practice. • Take notes on your Checklist for Effective Feedback form (page 1). • As you watch, consider these focus questions: • What steps does Julie take to lead her meeting with Carly? • What language does Julie use to execute each step? 1 2

6. Observation Feedback Cycle Plan for an Effective Coaching Conversation  Monitor and Follow Up Practice: Lead and invest the teacher in practicing steps to change their instruction and committing to next steps. Be a Sponge: Collect low-inference data that captures teacher practice and evidence of student outcomes. Hone In: Analyze data to Hone In on a high leverage development area, select a bite-sized action step and prepare to engage the teacher in a reflective dialogue. Be a Sponge: Before observing, read the lesson plan, and check against CCSS or other standards. Ask yourself, is this rigorous?

7. Step 3: Breaking Down “Action Steps” There are two key steps in making sure you are able to share an effective “Action Step” during your coaching conversation. Steps to Honing In & Selecting a Bite-sized Action Step: • Observe (Be a Sponge): Collect low inference data on teacher and student actions • Select a Development Area (Hone In): • Complete a brain dump to get all of your thoughts down on paper • Narrow and prioritize to ensure you select a high leverage development area using key criteria (Evidence-based, Root Cause, Foundational, Impact on Student Outcomes, and Transferrable) • Select a specific, bite-sized action step or strategy the teacher can implement immediately (within one week) to change their practice in this development area Step 1: Hone In on a High Leverage Development Area Step 2: Select a Bite-sized Action Step or “Strategy”

8. Step 3: Action Step, Part 1: Hone In on a High Leverage Development Area Let’s Start Practicing: • We’ll watch a short video clip and take low inference notes. • We will then narrow our focus or Hone In on three potential areas of improvement. • As we are narrowing our focus, consider the key criteria for Honing In on a high leverage development area (Evidence-based, Root Cause, Foundational, Impact on Student Outcomes, and Transferrable)

9. Step 3: Action Step, Part 2: Select a Bite-sized Action Step or Strategy Now you have Honed In on a development area that needs to be turned in a bite-sized action step or strategy. Let’s review the criteria we look for in strong, bite-sized action steps. • High Leverage • Concrete & Measureable • Time Bound (can be done in 1 week or less)

10. Practice Developing a Bite-sized Action Step Three criteria for strong, bite-sized action steps: • High Leverage • Concrete & Measureable • Time Bound (can be done in 1 week or less)

11. Delivery: Communicating the Action Step Clearly • Communicating a clear action step requires confidence – in your decision about the action step and in your position as the evaluator and coach. Here are some example prompts you can use to support clear communication of bite-sized action steps during your conversation, to ensure the teacher has a clear understanding that this conversation has key next steps: • Your action step is…. • By next Friday, I should see… • The one thing that I need you to do now is… • Based on the time I was in your classroom, you need to… • Let’s Practice: Take a few minutes with a partner to try delivering the video action step using different sentence stems. Consider which one feels the most comfortable for you. • Your feedback is only as good as your teachers’ willingness and ability to implement it. Stay present within the conversation with your teachers, reordering and adjusting the six steps as needed to fit the context.