"The best educators are the best learners. It's all about teaching, learning, and feedback, and this book brings common sense to common practice." --Raymond J. McNulty, Senior Vice President International Center for Leadership in Education "At last, a diagnostic classroom observation tool that moves beyond generic criteria for examining teaching and learning. This is a must-have resource for teachers, administrators, and professional developers who want to look beyond the veneer of 'best practice' and use evidence-based, content-focused criteria to get to the heart of deep, conceptual teaching and learning." --Page Keeley, Senior Program Director Maine Mathematics and Science Alliance A complete instructional leadership system for improving classroom practice! Providing effective classroom evaluation is a critical function of authentic instructional leadership. Diagnostic classroom observation (DCO) is a research-based system that helps principals and other supervisors carry out classroom observations and evaluations to support effective teaching practices. Developed in collaboration with NWREL and the Vermont Institutes, the DCO model covers the entire supervision process, from preconference analysis to postconference follow-up, and includes protocols for observing math, science, and literacy instruction. Program users can determine classroom quality and student engagement by evaluating four critical aspects of instructional practice: lesson planning, lesson implementation, lesson content, and classroom culture. Additionally, the author supplies readers with: - Classroom observation forms to help identify instructor strengths and weaknesses - Scoring forms to assist with the final evaluation and review process - Real-world vignettes that clearly illustrate key indicators of quality teaching - Methods for matching student learning assessments with appropriate instructional strategies - Guidance for introducing DCO into any school or school district Diagnostic Classroom Observation offers principals and teacher leaders a thoroughly tested and validated classroom observation system that improves instructional performance and enhances student learning.

Highly regarded as one of the most widely used and authoritative texts on this topic, An Introduction to Classroom Observation is an essential text for anyone serious about becoming a good teacher or researcher in education.

The first edition of this book was a bestseller, and is generally regarded as the most widely used and authoritative text on this topic. This completely revised and updated second edition takes into account the latest changes in educational practice, and includes coverage of recent developments in teacher appraisal and school inspection procedures. Ted Wragg is an international expert on research into teaching and learning, but has always been someone who writes with the teacher in mind. Using a combination of case studies, photographs and illustrations, Wragg shows how various people study lessons for different purposes and in different contexts. He explains a number of approaches in clear language and gives examples of successful methods that have been employed by teachers, student teachers, researchers and pupils. This is an essential text for anyone serious about becoming a good teacher or researcher in education.

This book offers a coherent research-based overview and analysis of theories and practices in using data to improve student learning. It clarifies what 'use of data' means and differentiates the different levels of decision-making in education (relating to the system, district, school, classroom, or individual student). The relationship between data and decision-making is considered and various movements in the use of data to improve student learning are analysed, especially from the perspective of their assumptions and effects. This leads to a focus on effective educational decision-making as a social process requiring collaboration among all relevant participants. It also requires a clear understanding of educational aims, and these are seen to transcend what can be assessed by standardised tests. The consequences of this analysis for decision processes are explored and conclusions are drawn about what principles might best guide educational practice as well as what ambiguities remain. Throughout, the focus is on what existing research says about each of the issues explored.

This book adopts a multi-method and multi-phase approach to investigate the washback effects of Test for English Majors (TEM) on program administrators, teachers and students, shedding new light on TEM reform and the reform of English teaching and learning in China. TEM, a nationwide test used to measure the language proficiency of undergraduate English majors in China, is a major standardized test taken by nearly 400,000 students every year. The book’s key features include: an in-depth discussion of the nature of washback and a framework for investigating it; a multi-method and multi-phase approach, employing both the quantitative method of questionnaire surveys and the qualitative methods of interviews and classroom observations; large-scale questionnaire surveys conducted among experts, program administrators, teachers and students, and involving over 30,000 participants; detailed assessments of TEM’s washback effects on stakeholders’ perceptions, classroom teaching practice, students learning activities, etc.; and essential insights into testing and teaching reforms.

A proven, practical approach to teacher supervision, coaching, and evaluation that emphasize fairness, equity, and achievement In the third edition of this longtime bestseller, nationally recognized education leader Kim Marshall offers a framework for supervisors who want to motivate and inspire their colleagues and bring more good teaching to more classrooms more of the time. Rethinking Teacher Supervision and Evaluation shows you how to break away from outdated evaluation approaches, describing an innovative approach that enlists teachers and teacher teams in improving the performance of all students. This thoroughly revised and updated third edition brings Marshall's widely used framework up to date, with even more practical guidelines for implementing effective classroom visits, teacher teamwork around data and curriculum unit planning, professional development, and more. You'll also discover high-tech and low-tech tools that can boost a supervisor's impact and efficiency. Discover the bestselling approach to teacher supervision, coaching, and evaluation Implement techniques to learn what's really going on inside classrooms Implement short, frequent, unannounced classroom visits followed by face-to-face conversations about teaching and learning Use rubrics to continuously improve teaching and learning Foster professional development with supervision and evaluation techniques that focus on improvement and motivation Improve time management, and the effective use of student-learning data Since the publication of the first and second editions, Rethinking Teacher Supervision and Evaluation has been an invaluable resource for K-12 supervisors, instructional coaches, and teacher leaders, as well as trainers and policymakers. The third edition builds on a decade of additional research and work in schools around the world, bringing the ideas into alignment with the rapidly changing world of education, for a timely and beneficial approach to leading today's teachers.