Isolation versus Isolation versus CollaborationCollaboration

Vicky Kukuruda, AdministratorVicky Kukuruda, AdministratorGwen Hancock, Project SpecialistGwen Hancock, Project Specialist

Riverside County Office of EducationRiverside County Office of Education

“As the teacher we do not always get to

see what our students are thinking and so we make a lot of predictions and assumptions regarding what they have learned. “

Project DELTA Participant

What is Lesson Study?

Jugyou kenkyuu = Lesson/ Instruction Creating a system in which teachers actively learn from one another, from the curriculum, and from student thinking

“We had been looking at student work, but didn’t realize how important it was to look at students while they were doing work.”

Lesson Study Step by Step, C. Lewis and J. Hurd

Why Lesson Study?Lesson study provides a means for teachers to

continue to refine lessons so they can respond effectively to the students in their class.

Lesson study reminds us that, over the long term, the quality of students’ learning depends upon the quality of collaboration among a school full of teachers – not just the excellence of a few.

Steps in Lesson Study?1. Formulate long-term goals2. Study the content and curriculum3. Choose a topic central to the curriculum

Find a compelling problem that encourages all students to participate in problem solving

4. Study student responses to an actual lesson5. Learn from colleagues’ observations and

interpretations6. Revise the approach to improve instruction

How Does Lesson Study Improve Instruction

Presentation by Catherine C. Lewis Project DELTA Summer Institute July 2011 Video Clip

Teacher-driven, not administration-driven

The overarching learning goal is decided on by the members and is the reason for forming

the study group

Study cycle: collaboratively plan, research, teach, observe, collect data, reflect and debrief

The primary focus is always to define and refine the strategies in lessons that will produce

best first teaching

Provides a platform for professional learning communities to work at profoundly deep

levels because participants are personally invested

How DELTA Teachers Define

Traditional Lesson Study-Begins with answer -Begins with question-Driven by outside “expert” -Driven by participants-Communication Flow: -Communication Flow:

Trainer – Teachers Teacher – Teacher-Hierarchical relations -Reciprocal relations

between trainer and among learners learners

-Research informs practice -Practice is research

Lesson Study: A Handbook, by Catherine C. Lewis

Contrasting Views of PD

Five separate districtsFeeder schools to the same high school

districtDisconnected Lesson Study groups

consisting of teachers in multiple grades

Isolation

Lesson Study is now pulling together all districtsGroups focus on the study of students rather than teachersCohesive groups support each other despite district boundaries

Collaboration

Isolation

Lesson Study groups worked in isolation to one another

Shared out during Summer Institute by grade level and realized this was more effective grouping

Collaboration

Grouped by grade levels for year 2Teachers asking to stay in same groups next

yearCatherine Lewis provided a short template

for PowerPoint slides to help groups reflect and share in a meaningful way at the end of year 2

Teachers participate as equals – every teacher,

whatever the level of experience, has something valuable to contribute to the study of student learning and development.

Shared ownership and responsibility• Our lesson not my lesson• Choose member to teach lesson after planning

is completed

Collaboration

Alt Ed/SPED Teachers

No experience in Regular Ed classroom Their kids come with difficulties that

impact learning Lower expectations for their own

teaching

Isolation

Collaboration

Incorporate Alt ED/SPED Into Regular Ed Lesson Study Groups• Dispelled many myths • Saw that Regular Ed students come with difficulties

Alt Ed/SPED teacher test scores rose CAHSEE pass rates improved Administrators came on board and provided

manipulatives, doc cameras, and other resources to support the new methods of teaching as seen in DELTA participants

IHE

• Limited experience in K-12 classrooms• Limited prior knowledge for facilitating

Lesson Study groups

Isolation

Changed model

• IHE took on role as research expert• Shadowed content specialists with more

experience

Collaboration

Lesson Study Group Leads

• No support or prior training• Group members not assuming roles• Assumed “coach/leader” role

Isolation

Facilitator PD and meetings

• Defined facilitators role • Possibly changing name to

“Knowledgeable Other”• New roles support the move toward

sustainability

Collaboration

On my ownPLC

Isolation

Collaboration

I look at students differently, I am now more aware of students who are quiet and "slip through the cracks." Through observing each other’s lessons - I am alert to the students who nod approval when they actually do not comprehend. Together, we have created lessons which are more interactive and cause me to "catch" these kids. Working with 7 or 8 professionals makes it easier than doing it alone. Lesson Study has been very helpful in my development as a teacher.

Do the best you can to learn the content Often uncomfortable teaching certain math

conceptsAnswer is to focus on ELA and limit math time

Isolation

Working along side my DELTA colleagues, I

have witnessed more ah-has than I did in my college years. It is truly a unique experience for a group of professionals to be so comfortable with one another that one, or all members, ask for help navigating tasks that people who are not privy to the inside perspective may perceive as rudimentary.

Collaboration

Isolation

One teacher behind closed doors Limited feedback

I think student learning is greatly impacted

when there are many teachers involved in the lesson. I felt as though I could really get to know what all of my kids were doing by having time to walk around the classroom and help students.

Collaboration

Teacher’s rely heavily on the text book

Pacing guide focus leaves little time for depth

Isolation

I approach my lesson with new insight instead of

the same old book lessons. I try to involve the students in activities that are interactive and make them think.

I've learned that students need many different strategies all the time, not just every once in a while. Lesson study really helps analyze lesson shortfalls and emphasizes great teaching strategies.

Collaboration

Isolation

Focus on delivery of information

Success determined by test taking abilities and scores

We go beyond the superficial and seek to

understand the "why" behind shortcuts that others are too willing to pass off to their students.

Collaboration

Through Project DELTA, I am learning how

to truly focus on the student success through the professional collaboration. I am only as good as my team is strong.

Collaboration

Secondary teachers felt that use of manipulatives

should be confined to elementary students. The group learned that when using licorice as a

manipulative, students’ understanding of fractions as equal parts on a number line increased significantly.

Teachers in this group are now using manipulatives.

Big Ah-has

One group saw the importance of building lessons

that met multiple standards at one time. Other teachers learned that the T-tables can be part

of their everyday lessons as they are graphic organizers that support many other areas of content.

Another group discovered there is a need for more frequent informal methods of assessing student knowledge.

Additional Ah-ha’s

Our group met today and talked about how we

have all shifted away from how the text teaches math, to teaching it in a way that kids will understand. We laughed about how during last year's lesson studies, we were focused on what was in our curriculum. We spent our research day looking through our TE for lesson study ideas. This year we looked at research to guide our lesson plan designs.

More Ah-ha’s

Long Term Ah-ha’s

One group will likely spend the next year teaching place value, working throughout the year towards full conceptual understanding. This will lead to greater understanding in all four operations.

A Process not Perfection

Lesson study is not a quick fix but a slow, steady means for teachers to improve instruction and to build a school and district culture focused on inquiry and improvement.

The goal is teacher learning, not a typed lesson Develop skills that use knowledge for teaching in the

classroom Emphasis on student learning not perfect delivery by the

teacher Study the materials available for teaching

• Make resources and materials available for access during the planning portion

Keep the group lesson in tact – no changes without group consensus

Lessons Learned

Project DELTA Lesson Study

Project DELTA Lesson Study Group – February 2012

Video Clip

Collaboration and planning can make any lesson a

great one. Curriculum is not necessarily perfect to use every day exactly as written.

I learned that when you plan a solid lesson, it still has to be implemented well. Students need to be able to work it out and organize their thoughts and manipulatives. Students must be able to discuss their thoughts and process with a group. I also learned the importance of the vocabulary and understanding ratios and how to apply them.

Reflections After the Lesson

Letting students express their thinking is a

powerful tool to help them own their learning. Students learn a lot more when they are given

autonomy on how they learn a concept. I learned that collaboration makes for a

powerful lesson. I wasn’t sure when we planned the lesson if we would achieve our objectives but the students’ understanding happened faster than I thought it would.

Reflections After the Lesson

I see the learning of math in a completely

different way. Doing the Lesson Study activities has changed my way of thinking, when it comes to learning math. I have a new approach to teaching math, it is no longer just procedural, but a deeper understanding of the why and how it relates to the real world.

Final Thoughts

Project DELTA

Resources:• Lesson Study: A Handbook of Teacher-Led Instructional Change.

Catherine C. Lewis. RBS, 2002.

• A Mathematics Leader’s Guide to Lesson Study in Practice. Jane Gorman, June Mark, Johannah Nikula. Heinnemann,2010.

• Building our Understanding of Lesson Study. Edited by Patsy Wang-Iverson, Makoto Yoshida, Research for Better Schools, 2005.

• Lesson Study Step by Step: How Teacher Learning Communities Improve Instruction. Catherine Lewis and Jacqueline Hurd, Heinemann, 2011.

Contact Us:• Riverside County Office of Education - 951.600.5600

Vicky Kukuruda vlkukuruda@rcoe.us

Gwen Hancock ghancock@rcoe.us