Transcript Effective Classrooms: Teacher Behaviors that Produce High

Effective Classrooms: Teacher
Behaviors that Produce High
Student Achievement
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The Informed Educator Series
May 2000
Gary S. Mathews, Ph.D.
Superintendent
Carroll I.S.D., Southlake, TX
Cabinet Meeting, November 6, 2002
Parents have always known that it
matters a lot which teachers their
children get.
That is why those with the time and skills
to do so work very hard to assure that, by
hook or by crook, their children are
assigned to the “best” teachers….
Research proves that parents have been
right all along.
--Katy Haycock, 1998
“Good Teaching Matters A Lot,”
Thinking K-16.
Researchers analyzed data for thirdgrade, fourth-grade, and fifth-grade
students in 54 Tennessee school districts.
RESULTS:
….the most important factor affecting
student learning is the teacher. In
addition, the results show wide variation
in the effectiveness among teachers.
--Wright, Horn, & Sanders, ’97 “Teacher and Classroom Context Effects on
Student Achievement: Implications for Teacher Evaluation.” Journal of
Personnel Evaluation in Education.
Results cont’d:
The immediate and clear
implication of this finding is
that seemingly more can be
done to improve education by
improving the effectiveness of
teachers than by any other
single factor such as socioeconomic status or prior
achievement levels.
--Wright, Horn, & Sanders, ‘97
Researchers have found that highly
effective teachers were generally effective
with all students, although lower-achieving
students were the “first to benefit” from
assignment to an effective teacher.
Results: Using data from two large
Tennessee districts, these researchers
also studied “residual” effects of teacher
effectiveness on later student
achievement.
Students who were assigned to
the classrooms of relatively
ineffective teachers, and the
next year were in classrooms of
very effective teachers made
excellent academic gains, but
not enough to offset previous
less-than-expected gains.
The researchers found that: “….the
effects of teachers appeared to be
cumulative, with the difference of
almost 50 percentile points between
a student who had effective teachers
for all three grades (3, 4, and 5) and a
similar student who had a loweffectiveness teacher for all three
grades.”
--Sanders & Rivers, ’96
“Cumulative and Residual Effects of Teachers on Future Student
Achievement.” University of Tennessee
CHARACTERISTICS OF
EFFECTIVE TEACHERS
These teachers have: “….high energy
and the ability to help all students learn—
the low achievers, the average achievers,
and the high achievers.”
“They keep themselves and
their students on task.”
“They tend to be among
those who arrive early and
stay late. Interestingly,
they frequently are
described as having a good
sense of humor.”
--Bratton, ’98
“How We’re Using Value-Added Assessment.” The School
Administrator
WHAT HELPS STUDENTS LEARN?
Of 28 categories of variables related
to student learning, classroom
management ranked first!
The researchers definition of
classroom management included
effective questioning/recitation
strategies, learner accountability,
smooth transitions, and teacher
“with-it-ness”.
The Effective Teachers
 “….were extremely aware of
what was happening in their
rooms. They were virtually
always in a position where
they could see everyone in
the room….(they) seemed
extremely attuned to
intervening before a
problem escalated in the
classroom. Like good
parents, these teachers
seemed to possess a sixth
sense for when things
became too noisy, or even
too quiet, in an area of the
classroom….”
WHAT HELPS STUDENTS
LEARN
 “Teachers were consistent in their management
techniques, so children knew what was expected of
them and consequently carried out work that needed to
be done.
 The day flowed smoothly from one activity to another,
and routines were regular. The activities were varied to
keep children engaged.
 Furthermore, the affective quality in the rooms was
exemplary; teachers were warm and caring….In such
an atmosphere, children learned to respect the teacher
and one another.”
--Morrow, et al., ’99
“Characteristics of Exemplary First-Grade Literacy Instruction.” The Reading Teacher
THE “MOST ACCOMPLISHED
TEACHERS”
 Managed, on average, to
engage virtually all
(96%) of their students in
the work of the
classroom….
 In contrast, the on task
rate for “moderately
accomplished” teachers
was 84%
 While the on task rate for
the “least accomplished”
teachers was only 61%.
Numerous studies have also identified aspects
of good classroom management as being
strongly linked to higher levels of student
learning:
 The classroom management
system emphasizes
curriculum-related activities.
The teacher does not see
discipline as a separate issue
or “set of controls.” Faced
with a problem, such teachers
“find something the student is
interested in, find something
else the student can do, find
something else the student
can share.” -- In other words,
these teachers view discipline
primarily as a natural
consequence of their ability to
interest and involve learners.”
– Haberman, ‘95
Other Findings related to Effective
Teaching/Classroom Management:
> The teacher is consistently well
prepared and follows predictable,
although not rigid, patterns of
behavior and activities. Students
know what is expected of them.
> The teacher minimizes disruptive
behavior by redirecting students in
a positive way before the problem
becomes overt.
--Wharton-McDonald, Pressley & Hampton, ‘98
SOME IMPLICATONS FOR
CISD
 Recognize teacher behaviors
that produce high student
achievement. (“High
expectations” are more than
just raising the bar for
students. They are what
good teachers do to get
students ‘over the bar.’”)
 Recruit these teachers.
 Retain these teachers.
 Reward these teachers.
 Train future teachers to be the
kind of teacher that produces
high student achievement
regardless of student
background. [Staff
Development]