Greg Sloan

EDAD 614
6/20/17

Instructional Observation and Conference

I observed a new teacher to be called Mr. C. I have worked with him throughout the

school year as a BTSA support provider. The class was 11th grade US History on a 90 minute

block schedule during the 3rd period of the day. I am a social science teacher, so I was very

familiar with both the content and the teacher being observed. The lesson topic was civil rights

using video, lecture, discussion, and student writing.

Preconference:

Before meeting, I organized Mr. Cs self-evaluations on all of the CSTPs from the school

year and shared it with him. We discussed his ratings of himself in each area and where he has

seen growth. My preconference was the morning of the lesson because we were running out of

days of school to teach. He was able to provide a lesson plan for the day, but he doesnt write

one for every class. We discussed the lesson, so I knew what to look for, but I made no

comments and gave no feedback because I wanted to let him do it his way and there really

wasnt time to make changes.

He has experienced some challenges this year teaching in three different classrooms. He

is at the mercy of the layout of desks, tables, and projector equipment of other teachers. While

this is understandable he is reluctant to advocate for himself and has worked to fit in which

makes sense as a probationary teacher. He also teaches a different subject every block, including

classes he is not credentialed to teach, but has signed a waiver for. I observed him in the subject

he is credentialed in.
 His goals for the lesson are based on understanding content standards. Its clear he

knows what topics he wants to cover and how it fits in with the unit he is teaching. He is

.relatively confident in his abilities and his relationships with students. He taught US history in

the fall, so he has had an opportunity to redo lessons and improve. We discussed the format in

which I will be recording notes and writing up my observations.

Lesson Summary:

Class began within the first two minutes with an anticipatory set related to learning from

the prior day. The question was stated verbally and not written down. Students were not asked

to write an answer only think of one. The method of teacher questioning and student answering

relied on volunteers to raise their hands to be called on. As a result, the class was only partially

engaged during a conversation that lasted seven minutes.

The next step was to ask students to define equality in their own words. They were

asked to do it in two sentences on what amounted to scratch paper. This time cards were used to

call on students by name. Some students remarked that this was the first time they had been

called on this year. The teacher engaged students with mostly rhetorical questions that were

more statements than questions. The questions and topics changed without any visual cues or

way for students to stay organized on what the conversation was about.

Four separate videos were shown in the class including short documentary footage of

civil rights events and an animated crash course video. Students were asked to take notes on

each of these, but the format and expectations were not explicitly stated. Each clip required the

teacher to go from the front of the classroom to behind a computer desk to play. A student a few

feet away from me had his head down for most of the class, except for the 20 minute plus

restroom break with his phone.

 At each transition and during the discussions that took place between the video clips

students became chatty as the teacher put it and he requested they stop talking. The teacher

centered nature of the lesson didnt give students an opportunity to move around or speak to one

another with one exception. Students were asked to discuss a topic at their tables of four or five.

While many students complied, there were no specific directives to guide the table

conversations.

The final assignment asked students to write a paragraph based on what stood out to them

the most from the days video clips and topics. They were told to write a proper thesis statement

and could just add the paragraph to their notes. This was a Tuesday and the paper wouldnt be

collected until Friday. With more than 10 minutes to go at this point and nothing left to do,

students became talkative and started to move around the room packed up.

Conference Summary:

I thought the lesson was pretty bad, but I wanted to give the teacher an opportunity to

point out their flaws before I said anything. The teacher acknowledged the lesson was rough and

learning goals were not clearly stated and therefore difficult to measure. Transitions took the

class attention away and there were multiple attempts to refocus them. The culminating

assignment was an attempt to wrap up the learning, but the planning and timing of the lesson left

most students with too much time and nothing to do before the bell rang.

I saw a lot more that needed work, but I wanted to focus on the positive as well. I typed

strengths for the year for each CSTPS and an area for growth. I went through this first and made

references to the lesson when they were applicable. Then I went through my notes to recap my

understanding of the lesson and ask clarifying questions for things I might not have understood

at the time. After clarifying parts of the lesson, I inquired about other ideas and what solutions
there might have been to problems were both recognized. One big problem throughout this year

has been writing clear objectives. Ive modeled how an objective can be written and given

examples after lessons of what his objective actually was. Students arent aware of expectations

during class and are left confused. I provided suggestions in strategy, content, delivery, and

classroom management. This took more than the 90 minute prep period and went over into

lunch.

Self-Reflection

Ive been observing this teacher and other teachers through the county induction program

all year long, so I wanted to do something different. Most walkthroughs dont involve pre-

conferences and post-conferences, but Ive done this on some of my official observations of

teachers. The induction program has teachers self-assess on the CSTPs and our districts teacher

evaluations do the same thing. I used this opportunity to model how the evaluation process

would look. Mr. C was evaluated twice this year, so this also give him the opportunity to see

where he was at the end of the year with no real pressure.

Wanting to get this observation done before finals and reviews resulted in one day notice

for Mr. C. So the lesson was the one that would have been prepared for an administrator. I think

thats a good thing because its a snap shot of what the average day is. I was able to give

feedback on that less prepared lesson that makes up 95% of teaching days. I had four pages of

scripting done on the lesson and Ive been trained on using objective language on observed

behaviors, but I keep a separate paper where I write down ideas on what to do instead and more

critical thoughts and I dont show that to the teacher. It helps me to guide my conversation and

try to hit certain points.

 A difficulty with a newer teacher is that there are going to be so many areas that need

work. It can be overwhelming to tell them everything and Ive been guilty of this with student

teachers in the past. I also know that I cant compare them to experienced teachers or myself. I

try to remember where I was at that stage in my career and how other new teachers are

performing. With the role of administrators to make decisions on permanent status for teachers

in the first two years, it seems there must be some criteria to look at that can help predict growth

and improvement.

One area that has been a challenge in my role would be the hard conversation. In my

coaching training, we work on cognitive coaching and working towards teacher self-reflection.

The goal is to guide and only use suggestions to steer teachers. My work is confidential and

based on building relationships. So when there are real issues with a lesson, Im reluctant to say

what Im really thinking depending on that relationship and the comfort level established, With

Mr. C Ive established enough trust that I can be critical. But I find myself feeling bad

afterwards and almost wanted to apologize. Ill chalk that up to building emotional stamina as

Jennifer Abrams has stated.

Since Im working with Mr. C and other teachers next year, I want to formalize my

observation process and use video. I want to give them a chance to watch themselves in the

lesson before we speak and see what difference that makes. My plan is to meet with my teachers

on Thursdays during their prep and drop in to watch them teach a class during that week. They

wont know what day or what class because I have to do it around the rest of my schedule, but if

it is done that frequently I believe they would get used to it. This would only be a piece of our

meetings, but I believe it will help the teachers I work with and also help create experience for

me for future administrative roles.