Creative Teaching & Learning

In a Different Class

How classifying strategies can help students understand key words and concepts in RE.

inadifferentclass.pdf

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      string(307) "... process?In terms of revising or re-teaching the lesson, the literature diverges. Some sources claim that revising and re-teaching the lesson to a different class is a standard part of the process; others declare it as optional and still others declare it is not part of the process ..."
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      string(5614) "stance’: focus on the goals of the research lesson; pay attention to children’s learning and collect data in relation to the goals; consider affective as well as cognitive responses. The teachers meet immediately after the lesson, and then the focus of the post-lesson discussion is an analysis of student thinking. The teachers explore problematic areas of the lesson, and explore more general learning in relation to the research theme.The role of the ‘outsideexpert’ (kochi) is also noted in this discussion (Stigler and Hiebert, 1999). In Japan, the kochi observes the lesson, pulls together ideas, and ties the discussion to larger subject-matter and pedagogical issues (eg Murata, 2011). Despite extensive literature on the importance of the kochi, this feature is absent from many studies.Product or process?In terms of revising or re-teaching the lesson, the literature diverges. Some sources claim that revising and re-teaching the lesson to a different class is a standard part of the process; others declare it as optional and still others declare it is not part of the process. This links to a focus in the literature on lesson study as process, not product. Chokshi and Fernandez (2004) state that lesson study is about ‘intellectual process’ rather than ‘isolated products’ which might lead us to conclude that perfecting one lesson should not be the focus of a lesson study process.Stigler and Hiebert (1999) describe how lesson study groups write a report to describe the lesson study process and the learning outcomes for teachers, and often publish these reports. Some schools also invite teachers from other schools to observe research lessons developed in their school, generally after the school has explored a research theme for some time (Fernandez and Yoshida, 2012). This is called ‘open house’ lesson study.Essential features of lesson studyBased on our analysis of the literature, and drawing largely on a model developed by Lewis (2000) we have attempted to identify the critical components of lesson study:Critical features of a school-based lesson study project:1. Identify focusCompare long-term goals for student learning and development to current characteristics in order to identify a school-wide research theme2. Planning Teachers work in collaborative groups to carry out kyozai kenkyu (study of material relevant to the research theme). This study leads to the production of a collaboratively written plan for a research lesson. This detailed plan attempts to anticipate pupil responses.3. Research lessonThe research lesson is taught by one teacher, who is a member of the collaborative planning group. Other members of the group act as silent observers, collecting evidence of pupil learning.4. Post-lesson discussionThe collaborative group meet to discuss the evidence they have gathered. Their learning in relation to the research theme is identified and recorded. It is intended that this learning feeds into subsequent cycles of research.5. Repeated cycles of researchSubsequent research lessons will be planned and taught that draw on the findings from the post-lesson discussions.6. Mobilising knowledge Opportunities should be created for teachers working in one lesson study group to access and use the knowledge from other groups, either through observing other groups’ research lessons or through the publication of group findings.7. Outside expertiseWhere possible, there should be input from a kochi or ‘outside expert’ involved in the planning process and/or the research lesson.Translating from Japan to EnglandWhat do schools need to know about the Japanese education system in order to understand the need for ‘creative transformation’ of the approach in England? We believe there are five important aspects of difference between the two systems and cultures that need to be considered by schools wanting to implement lesson study.1. Teacher learning and developmentProgressive levels of developmentAs a profession, teaching has a higher status than in England and is a job for life. Takahashi (2016) describes three levels of teacher (this one is a mathematics model): Level 1: The teacher can tell students the important basic ideas of mathematics such as facts, concepts and procedures; Level 2: The teacher can explain the meanings and reasons behind the important basic ideas of mathematics in order for students to understand them; Level 3: The teacher can provide students with opportunities to understand these basic ideas, and support their learning so that the students become independent learners.A Level 1 teacher could feasibly be replaced by a computer programme and the main intention is to enable all teachers to work at Level 3. However, this is seen as a ten year journey, and lesson study is seen as a key tool to enable this progression. As Figure 1 demonstrates, no practical experience of classroom learning is required to become a Level 1 teacher. However, to become a Level 2 teacher, engagement in lesson study is important, and once working at Level 3, lesson study is the main vehicle for professional learning.In England, in contrast, a teacher who has successfully passed their NQT year is expected to teach with the same skill and confidence as a teacher who has spent 20 years in the classroom. Indeed, that teacher with 20 years experience, is often considered to be ‘over the hill’ or at the very least ‘stuck in their ways’.The pressure to show impactIn England, there is overwhelming pressure"
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Creative Teaching & Learning

Improvement through Lesson Study

25 Jan 2017

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      string(332) "... lesson.’In terms of revising or re-teaching the research lesson, the literature diverges. Somesources claim that revising and re-teaching the lesson to a different class is a standardpart of the process, others declare it as optional, and still others declare it is not part ofthe process. Professor Fuji ..."
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      string(5633) "theirmain approach toprofessional learning. Inorder to facilitate this,they redeployed themajority of their after-school staff meeting timeto enable teachers towrite their LCLL impactframeworks, agree theirresearch questions, carryout kyozai kenkyu, planresearch lessons and havepost-lesson discussions.This meant that the onlyrelease time the school had to provide during the day was for teachers to observe research lessons, and this wascovered by using teaching assistants within the school. Lesson study has been a cost-effective and high impactprofessional learning approach for all staff.When is lesson study not lesson study?Chokshi and Fernandez state that ‘Lesson study is easy to learn, but difficult to master.’6They identify the fact that schools do not have a deep knowledge of lesson study,potentially leading them to ‘focus on structural aspects of the process…or…mimicits superficial features, while ignoring the underlying rationale for them.’ So howcan schools ensure that their models of lesson study remain true to the spirit of theapproach and do not lose their power in the process of ‘creative transformation’?7When carrying out an extensive literature review to explore the impact of lessonstudy on teacher and pupil learning, we came across many studies that seemed to have54Vol 7.5School Leadership Todaywww.teachingtimes.comProfessionalDevelopmentLessonstudy made so many adaptations to the approach that they lost its essence. In our view, thebelow adaptations of lesson study move so far away from the Japanese model thatthey risk not being lesson study at all.‘It’s enough for teachers to simply talk about teaching.’Several lesson study models focus on teacher talk in the lesson study process as thekey vehicle for learning. In our view, it is the engagement with research knowledge incombination with teacher collaboration that makes lesson study so powerful. Withoutreference to what is known about the research theme beyond the school, teachersmay be simply ‘reinventing the wheel’, possibly to a lower design specification. Kyozaikenkyu is highlighted in much of the Japanese literature on lesson study as a vital partof the process. Kyozai kenkyu prevents ‘groupthink’8, whereby the research group failsto consider viable and more effective alternative teaching and learning strategies,preferring to operate within its own (possibly ineffective) comfort zone.‘We can use video instead of live observation.’Despite the fact that there is no evidence of video being used in Japanese lesson study,several research studies have replaced the live lesson observation with video recordingfor reasons of expedience and cost. This is obviously a tempting option for schools whoare struggling to cover the costs for release time for teachers to participate in lessonstudy.In our opinion, however, video is a poor substitute for live lesson observation.If there is only one camera, it is very likely to be focused on the teacher, shiftingthe observers’ focus to the teaching and not the learning. Even the most recentdevelopments in video technology cannot capture the full 3D effect of sitting ina lesson—there are only so many angles from which the camera can film. A liveobservation, where you sit near the focus pupil, enables you to gain a sense of thepupils’ emotional reactions to the lesson, as well as their verbal responses and physicalactions. You are often able to capture the quieter communication between pupils,which can be much more informative than the louder communication in whole-classdiscussion.Having said this, there are occasions where the judicious use of video canexpand access to lesson study, without compromising on the benefits of a live lessonobservation.Case study: Russet House Special SchoolThis special school in Enfield caters fornursery and primary-aged pupils with autism.Classes are very small, often with only sixto eight pupils, and up to four adults in theroom. It would therefore be difficult to haveseveral additional observers in the room for aresearch lesson. However, the school wantedto involve as many teachers as possiblein the lesson study process. They decidedthat in each research lesson, two observerswould be present and that the lesson wouldbe videoed. After school, a larger group ofobservers watch the video recording andthen the post-lesson discussion continuesas normal, led by the observers who werepresent in the research lesson. This hasenabled dissemination of learning from thelesson study process to a broader group ofstaff without disrupting learning for pupils.55Vol 7.5School Leadership Todaywww.teachingtimes.comProfessionalDevelopmentLessonstudy‘We are developing the perfect lesson.’In terms of revising or re-teaching the research lesson, the literature diverges. Somesources claim that revising and re-teaching the lesson to a different class is a standardpart of the process, others declare it as optional, and still others declare it is not part ofthe process. Professor Fuji from Tokyo Gakugei University sees the re-teaching of thelesson as unethical. In his opinion, a research lesson is designed with a particular classat a particular moment in the learning process in mind. To teach the same lesson toanother class with a different set of pre-learning experiences would work against thelearning needs of these pupils.This links to a focus in lesson study literature on process, not product. Chokshi andFernandez state that lesson study is about ‘intellectual process’ rather than ‘isolatedproducts’9. In our opinion, perfecting one lesson"
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Leadership

Lesson study: Lost in translation?

4 Oct 2016

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      string(5108) "2014).For the Japanese, ‘lesson study is like air’ (eg Fuji, 2014):it is so much a part of the fabric of their educationalsystem that there has never been a need to articulatewhat it is.How can schools ensure that their models of lessonstudy remain true to the spirit of the approach anddo not lose their  power in the process of  ‘creativetransformation’?■■■ What is Japanese lesson study?At its simplest, we can describe lesson study as a jointpractice development approach where teacherscollaboratively plan a lesson, observe it being taughtand then discuss what they have learnt about teachingand learning. The details of its process however areless simple to identify and frequently contested in theliterature.Taking a research stanceThe literature on lesson study helps to illuminate whatthese elements of the approach entails. Fernandez (2002,2005) describes how schools begin by identifying aresearch theme. The research theme emerges from acomparison of the ‘ideal’ and ‘actual’ qualities of theirstudents and will often last for a year or more.Teachers then work in collaborative groups to plana lesson to address the research theme (usually onlyone lesson per group, per year). Fujii (2014) describeshow teachers initially carry out a close examination ofmaterial relevant to the research theme (called kyozaikenkyu): curricular material, manipulatives, relevantresearch material. This kyozai kenkyu stage is curiouslyabsent from much lesson study literature in the US andEngland. Several authors stress the importance in thelesson plan of teachers attempting to anticipate studentresponses so that difficulties or misconceptions can betackled with confidence by the teacher.One teacher teaches the lesson and all teachers in theschool observe the students’ reactions to the lesson andparticipate in a post-lesson discussion. Saito (2012) hasstressed the need for observers to take a ‘research stance’:focus on the goals of the research lesson; pay attentionto children’s learning and collect data in relation to thegoals; consider affective as well as cognitive responses.The teachers meet immediately after the lesson, and thenthe focus of the post-lesson discussion is an analysis ofstudent thinking. The teachers explore problematicareas of the lesson, and explore more general learningin relation to the research theme.The role of the ‘outside expert’ (kochi) is also noted inthis discussion (Stigler and Hiebert, 1999). In Japan, thekochi observes the lesson, pulls together ideas, and tiesthe discussion to larger subject-matter and pedagogicalissues (eg Murata, 2011). Despite extensive literatureon the importance of the kochi, this feature is absentfrom many studies.Product or process?In terms of revising or re-teaching the lesson, theliterature diverges. Some sources claim that revising andre-teaching the lesson to a different class is a standardpart of the process; others declare it as optional and stillothers declare it is not part of the process. This linksto a focus in the literature on lesson study as process,not product. Chokshi and Fernandez (2004) state thatlesson study is about ‘intellectual process’ rather than‘isolated products’ which might lead us to conclude thatperfecting one lesson should not be the focus of a lessonstudy process.Stigler and Hiebert (1999) describe how lesson studygroups write a report to describe the lesson study processPolicy andpractice9……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………and the learning outcomes for teachers, and often publish these reports. Some schools also invite teachers fromother schools to observe research lessons developed in their school, generally after the school has explored a researchtheme for some time (Fernandez and Yoshida, 2012). This is called ‘open house’ lesson study.Essential features of lesson studyBased on our analysis of the literature, and drawing largely on a model developed by Lewis (2000) we have attemptedto identify the critical components of lesson study (see Figure 1):Critical features of a school-based lesson study project:1. Identify focusCompare long-term goals for student learning and development to current characteristics in order toidentify a school-wide research theme2. PlanningTeachers work in collaborative groups to carry out kyozai kenkyu (study of material relevant to theresearch theme). This study leads to the production of a collaboratively written plan for a researchlesson. This detailed plan attempts to anticipate pupil responses.3. Research lessonThe research lesson is taught by one teacher, who is a member of the collaborative planning group.Other members of the group act as silent observers, collecting evidence of pupil learning.4. Post-lesson discussionThe"
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Professional Development

Improvement through Lesson Study

12 Sep 2016

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      string(4927) "n CONTENTSEvery Child UPDATE nwww.teachingtimes.comFeatures‹‹ PREVIOUS PAGE n  NEXT PAGE ››However, it has been found that teacher judgements are affectedby the gender, ethnicity or social class of the pupils and even bytheir names.1 If, as teachers, we hold preconceptions withoutreflecting on them, it can result in treating particular individualsor groups of pupils in particular ways which may not be fair orjust. When the pupils then respond, original preconceptions mayExamining ourperceptions of pupilsStereotyping othersbased on gender, classor ethnic background isan unfortunate humantendency – and teachersaren’t immune. AndrewPollard considers afew ways the reflectivepractitioner can evaluatetheir views of their ownpupils and ensure all aretreated fairly.All of us are likely to have views about what we wouldlike children and young people to be like as pupils – polite,attentive, cooperative, hardworking, bright? And we alsohave ideas about the characteristics which may be lessfavoured. These conceptions tend to relate to the practicalchallenges of doing the job in the classroom. http://www.teachingtimes.comn CONTENTSEvery Child UPDATE nwww.teachingtimes.comFeatures‹‹ PREVIOUS PAGE n  NEXT PAGE ››be reinforced. Labelling, or stereotyping, can thus become aself-fulfilling prophecy and result in further social injustices. Thisis particularly the case if patterns emerge in official assessmentoutcomes.What can teachers do?As reflective teachers, we must focus on supporting andenhancing the achievement of all pupils in our care. We thereforeneed to occasionally step back from our initial or routinereactions to pupils, and interrogate our conscious or unconsciousprocesses of categorisation.For instance, we could ask ourselves:1. How does the school or classroom organisation differentiate http://www.teachingtimes.comn CONTENTSEvery Child UPDATE nwww.teachingtimes.comFeatures‹‹ PREVIOUS PAGE n  NEXT PAGE ››between pupils, and what are the implications of this forteachers and pupils?2. How do we personally acknowledge, categorise and label thepupils we work with?3. How can we think about and work with pupils, movingbeyond the labels?Of course, teachers do have to develop ways of understanding,organising and grouping pupils in order to respond effectivelyto their educational needs. Within the classroom however, thisshould be done with regard for the purposes of each particularsituation or learning activity. An inflexible form of classroomorganisation is almost bound to disadvantage some studentsunnecessarily.What perceptions do you have of your pupils?Here is an activity to try in your own classroom in order tounderstand the perceptions of your own pupils.First, without referring to the register or any lists, write downthe names of the pupils in your class or tutor group. Note whichorder you have listed them in and which names you found hardto remember. What does the order tell you about which studentsare more memorable than others, and for what reasons?Second, use your complete class list to generate the ‘personalconstructs’ which you employ. To do this, look at each adjacentpair of names and write down the word that you think indicatesReferences1. Meighan, R. and Siraj-Blatchford, I.  (2003)  A Sociology of Educating. Fourth edition. London: Continuum.how those two pupils are most alike. Then write down anotherword which shows how they are most different. When you havedone this with each pair, review the characteristics that you haveidentified. What does this suggest to you about the conceptsthrough which you distinguish children? What additionalqualities do the children have which these constructs do not seemto reflect and which perhaps you do not use?As an extension, consider, perhaps with a colleague, theresults of this activity and note any patterns that might exist.For example, do some of your ideas relate more to boys thangirls, or to children from different class, ethnicity or religiousbackgrounds? There may be some constructs that relate tosuch things as academic ability, physical attributes or behaviourtowards teachers or other children. How might this beproblematic for the identities of those pupils within your class, orfor your expectations of them as learners?Reflecting on our own thinking and practices helps usto understand the complexity of the classroom choices anddecisions that are faced routinely every day. It helps us to ensurethat future actions can be justified; that we continue to beprofessionally accountable. › Andrew Pollard is Professor of Education at theInstitute of Education, University College London. Theabove activity is drawn from Chapter 1 of Andrew’s book,Reflective Teaching in Schools, published by Bloomsbury. http://www.teachingtimes.comhttp://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/reflective-teaching-in-schools-9781441140609/"
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Special Needs

Examining our perceptions of pupils

10 Nov 2015