Transcript Hiring and Supporting Development of Great Teachers

Hiring and Supporting the
Development of Great Teachers
R O G E R T R A I N O R , D I R EC TO R
E A S T VA L L E Y ( S P O K A N E ) S C H O O L D I S T R I C T
J . F. R O S A P E P E , D I R EC TO R
SOUTH KITSAP SCHOOL DISTRICT
R O B E R T C O F F E Y, D I R EC TO R
MOUNT VERNON SCHOOL DISTRICT
The Impact of Great Teachers
 The single most important factor
affecting student learning is the
effectiveness of the teacher.
 High quality teachers have more
effect on student achievement than
does a 10 student decrease in
average class size.
The Impact of Great Teachers
 Teacher effectiveness is a 15 times stronger
predictor of achievement scores than is
class size or poverty.
 The impact of a good teacher on achievement can
still be measured for at least four years after a
child leaves the classroom – regardless of the
effectiveness of subsequent teachers.
Question:
So if teacher quality makes so
much difference in student
achievement, what strategies
can your district use to attract
and hire teachers with great
potential and then support
them on the job to become
excellent in their field?
No. of Responses
Hiring Survey
# of
Students
Hiring Survey Questions
 What recruitment activities do you use in
recruiting teachers?
 What is the process you use to hire new teachers?
 What professional qualities and traits do you
look for when hiring?
 How do you validate your hiring process?
Recruitment Activities
% Using Activity
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Y
Process to Hire New Teachers
% Using Process
S
U
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V
E
Y
S
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V
E
Y
Qualities & Traits
 Passion
 Communication
 Teamwork
S
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Hiring Process Validation
 Principals
 Mentors
 Parents, students,
and staff members
References
 The more the better
 Dig deep –
due diligence
 Social networking
 RCW 4.24.730
Liability immunity
Hiring Roadblocks
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Contract calendar
Notification
Budget
Enrollment
Primary hiring
qualities are subjective
Good News
 Human Resources
 Quality more
important than
quantity
 Economy
 Getting it right
How Do We Improve Teaching?
Our contentions:
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Our districts have done well recruiting bright,
hard working professionals.
We shouldn’t use a lot of our resources trying
to remove those few teachers who lack the
aptitude or work ethic to become skilled
teachers.
We should primarily use our resources to
support programs and leadership that optimize
the skills and effectiveness of current staff.
Teacher Undergraduate Education
 There is a continual debate about the role and
effectiveness of undergraduate programs
designed to prepare classroom teachers.
 1986 The Holmes Group report, “Tomorrow’s
Teachers” made recommendations to improve the
rigor of undergraduate teacher education and the
professionalism of graduates.
 Many curriculum changes have been made in
response to these recommendations.
Teacher Undergraduate Education
(continued)
Deborah Ball, Dean, School of Education, U. of Michigan
“We lack a reliable system to prepare
professionals for practice. (We currently have)
 field experience often focused more on reflection
than on development of actual skill and judgment,
 curriculum emphasizing knowledge and beliefs
rather than practice,
 inappropriate subject matter preparation,
 inadequate preparation for diversity of U.S.
classrooms.”
Schools Need to be Teacher Learning Labs
 Many Education graduates
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say they learned education
theory in college, but didn’t
get enough practical training
to be prepared to teach.
Consequently our school
districts need to ensure
resources for teachers to
learn on the job while they
teach.
2009 National Staff Development Council Report
Research on the effectiveness of teacher
professional development
 Nine studies showed that intensive, sustained
professional development efforts that offered an
average of 49 hours per year boosted student
achievement by 21 percentile points, Yoon et al.
 Other studies evaluating programs with fewer
hours of engagement (5-14 hours total) showed
no significant effect on student learning.
2009 NSDC Comparison of the U.S.
with Other OECD Countries
 Nations that outperform the U.S. on student tests
invest more heavily in professional learning and
productive teacher collaboration.
 Teachers in the U.S. are not getting adequate
training in teaching special education or for teaching
students with limited English proficiency.
 U.S. teachers have limited influence in crucial
decision-making on curriculum, assessment, and
professional development.
Study: How Districts May Best
Improve the Quality of Teaching
 Interviewed 46 experienced,
high caliber K-12 teachers.
 Teachers, chosen by their
principals, had an average of
17 years experience.
 Posed eight questions to
elicit opinions and
recommendations.
Survey Questions
 What experiences, education, or interactions
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have helped in learning your teaching craft?
What education or processes have been
of little value?
What would you recommend to a new teacher?
Are there any specific classes or coursework you
would recommend?
Survey Questions (continued)
 What specific resources would you recommend?
 Rate the value of various learning activities.
 Provide your recommendations for districts
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wishing to encourage and support teaching
improvement.
Provide your recommendations to districts for
promoting high expectations of teacher
performance.
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What Experiences, Education, or Interactions
Have Helped in Learning Your Teaching Craft?
 Peer collaboration
 Classroom observation of
good teachers in action
 Having a good mentor
 Multiday workshop/seminars
with direct classroom
application and follow-up
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What Education or Processes
Have Been of Little Value?
 Many workshops chosen by the districts
 One-day or after-school workshops
 Workshops emphasizing educational theory
rather than practical application
 Too many required workshops covering too many
areas with too little focus or continuity
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What Would You Recommend
to a New Teacher?
 Participate in formal
mentoring programs with
experienced teacher mentors.
 Observe other teachers and
discuss teaching techniques
with them.
 Work within a team of gradelevel or subject-grouped
teachers.
 Participate in substantive
workshops on behavior
management, subject content,
or ELL strategies.
2009 National Staff Development Council Report
 School based mentoring and collaboration
programs for new teachers reduced attrition
by half.
 While many educators believe that mentoring
programs greatly improve teacher effectiveness,
research is not yet available that shows a
significant impact of those programs on student
achievement.
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What Specific Classes or Coursework
Would You Recommend?
 AVID trainings (Advancement Via
Individual Determination)
 Math and science teaching
workshops
 Teaching English language learners
 Classroom behavioral management
 Economic and cultural background
of students
 Use of technology
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What Specific Resources
Would You Recommend?
 AVID program materials
 Harry Wong’s
First Days of School
 Robert Marzano’s books on his
“high yield strategies”
 Doug Lemov’s
Teach Like a Champion
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Teacher Ratings of Professional Development
Learning Activity
Value
(0 to 5)
Informal colleague discussions
4.4
Observing other teachers
4.4
Personally chosen mentor
4.1
Multi-day institutes/seminars
3.8
College graduate courses
3.7
Professional learning communities
3.6
Std.
Dev.
± 1.0
± 1.1
± 1.2
± 1.1
± 1.1
± 1.3
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Teacher Ratings of Professional Development
(continued)
Learning Activity
Books of videos
District chosen mentor
Being observed
District arranged 1 day seminars
Application for ProCert or
National Board
Value
(0 to 5)
3.5
3.0
3.0
2.9
2.8
Std.
Dev.
± 1.0
± 1.6
± 1.6
± 1.3
± 2.0
2009 National Staff Development Council Report
Professional development should:
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Be intensive, ongoing, and
connected to practice
Focus on student learning and
address the teaching of specific
curriculum content
Align with school improvement
priorities and goals
Build strong working
relationships between teachers
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Recommendations for Districts to Encourage and
Support Continuous Teaching Improvement
 They strongly endorsed teachers
choosing their own professional
development workshops.
 Request frequent classroom
visits from principals and other
district leaders for
communication and coaching.
 District leadership should show
they value teacher collaboration
and peer classroom observation
by funding those practices.
How Does/Should Your District Support Time for
Teacher Collaboration?
 Please take three minutes and exchange ideas
with someone near you about how your districts
schedule time for teacher collaboration or
classroom observation. Should support for these
activities be increased to benefit student
achievement?
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Recommendations for Districts to Promote High
Expectations of Teacher Performance
 Enunciate expectations clearly and frequently.
 Assess progress with data and frequent observations
to provide consistent, constructive feedback.
 Treat teachers with respect and trust them to use
their time to best advantage for student learning.
 Expect excellence and continuous improvement in
teaching and hold teachers accountable for this.
 Strongly support teacher peer collaboration.
Conclusions
 Effective teachers are the best known effectors of
improved student achievement.
 High quality professional development may be the
best place to put resources to improve teacher
effectiveness.
 Providing time for, and expecting, high quality peer
collaboration is a valuable use of those resources.
 Strong mentoring programs for new teachers reduce
teacher drop-out rate and may significantly improve
teacher effectiveness.
Conclusions (continued)
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Expectations for continual improvement
should be enunciated, coached, and
assessed by principals.
Teachers benefit from well conceived
intensive professional development
workshops that feature hands-on
learning and follow-up.
Teachers learn more if they are able to
choose professional development from
a district-vetted set of strong offerings
in a range of subjects.
Suggested Further Readings
Can Good Teaching Be Learned – Building a Better Teacher,
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/magazine/07Teachers-t.html
R. C. Wei, L. Darling-Hammond, A. Andree, N. Richardson,
S. Orphanos, Professional Learning in the Learning
Profession: A Status Report on Teacher Development in the
U.S. and Abroad, National Staff Development Council,
February 2009
Questions?
Roger Trainor, Director
East Valley School District
[email protected]
J. F. Rosapepe, Director
South Kitsap School District
[email protected]
Robert Coffey, Director,
Mount Vernon School District
[email protected]