Changing Instructional Practice and Building a Culture of Collaboration

1. Changing Instructional Practice and Building a Culture of Collaboration MASSP EdCon 2014

2. Ben Mainka, Principal Hartland High School benmainka@hartlandschools.us Contact Information

3. Question 1: If you could create the perfect school, what are a few of the key elements that would exist?

4. Question 2: If you could change just one thing in your building what would it be?

5. Therefore, the instructional decisions made by teachers every lesson matter…BIG TIME. Marzano and Hattie say the TEACHER is the most important variable in whether or not a student learns.

6. Question 3: What does collaboration currently look like in your school?

7. See how you can to help ALL teachers in your building increase instructional skill/proficiency right away - The most important function of a teacher! Develop ways to help teachers to work as a team and collaborate consistently in secondary classrooms. Learn how to monitor, provide feedback, and implement the Gradual Release of Responsibility Instructional Model (Fisher & Frey). Key Learning Goals

8. At HHS we knew we needed a consistent instructional model that was easy to grasp and made sense for ALL teachers.” • This is critical for the formulation of a common language as well as an anchor for feedback.” The Instructional Model

9. TEACHER RESPONSIBILITY Direct Instruction “I do it” Direct Instruction “I do it” Guided Instruction “We do it” The HHS Instructional Model SHIFTING THE COGNITIVE LOAD Collaborative Learning “You do it together” Independent Learning “You do it alone” STUDENT RESPONSIBILITY *Taken from Better Learning Through Structured Teaching, Fisher and Frey (2008)

10. Once we knew that we had a sound instructional model, we decided that we would have barriers to implementation.” • We decided to utilize Instructional Rounds as a collaborative and learning format for teachers.” Taking the First Steps

11. Instructional Rounds (IR) is a teacher learning model adapted from medical rounds in hospitals by Richard Elmore. • It involves teams of teachers and administrators visiting teachers during instructional periods and then reflecting on the instruction that was observed. Instructional Rounds

12. Barriers are Present Collaboration Barriers

13. Model teachers are selected by the admin or recommended by staff. • Teachers use a Google Doc to sign up for one of three sessions to participate in. • Teachers observe and reflect/debrief in 2-hour chunks of time. How Do We Do It?

14. Try it out! IR Practice

15. Some PD and modeling work needs to be done to prep this phase. • Teachers utilize a protocol for sharing about the lesson. • The protocol keeps people on track and focused on instruction. • Careful selection of model teachers is critical to avoid hurt feelings. The Debrief

16. Year 1 – Readiness and comfort in classroom observation. • Year 2 – Focused instructional feedback with purpose • Year 3 – Targeted rounds for parts of lessons or specific strategies/subjects. Implementation Plan

17. Staff Meetings, PD, reading, watching others perform in the instructional model TEACHER RESPONSIBILITY Direct Instruction “I do it” Direct Instruction “I do it” Staff work with colleagues on how they could implement this, reflect on practice, and have expert teacher and/or administrator support Guided Instruction “We do it” The HHS Instructional Model SHIFTING THE COGNITIVE LOAD Collaborative Learning “You do it together” Staff implements instructional components into their own classroom and then teach for their colleagues to get feedback. Independent Learning “You do it alone” STUDENT RESPONSIBILITY *Taken from Better Learning Through Structured Teaching, Fisher and Frey (2008)

18. 6 subs are hired each day we do IR ($600) • 18 teachers get two hours of PD when we do IR • Administrators are present during IR, but are simply members of the learning team. • All teachers are required to participate. Nuts and Bolts

19. Could Instructional Rounds or a model like it benefit your school, the collaboration in your building, and teacher expertise? Revisiting the Questions

20. Teachers are talking more about instruction in our building than EVER before. • Common language is being solidified and carried over in the evaluation process. • Collaboration has led to many instructional improvements for ALL teachers. The Results

21. What Questions Do You Have? Thank you for attending!