Revolutionize the walkthrough to focus on the endgame of teaching: student learning. Authors Connie M. Moss and Susan M. Brookhart present the proven practice of formative walkthroughs that ask and answer questions that are specific to what the student is learning and doing. Learn the value of having the observer examine the lesson from the student's point of view and seek evidence of seven key learning components: * A worthwhile lesson * A learning target * A performance of understanding * Look-fors, or success criteria * Formative feedback * Student self-assessment * Effective questioning Drawing upon their research and extensive work with K-12 teachers and administrators, Moss and Brookhart delve into the learning target theory of action that debuted in Learning Targets: Helping Students Aim for Understanding in Today's Lesson and show you how to develop a schoolwide collaborative culture that enhances the learning of teachers, administrators, coaches, and students. They present detailed examples of how formative walkthroughs work across grade levels and subject areas, and provide useful templates that administrators and coaches can use to get started now. Grounded in the beliefs that schools improve when educators improve and that the best evidence of improvement comes from what we see students doing to learn in every lesson, every day, Formative Classroom Walkthroughs offers a path to improvement that makes sense and makes a difference.

Engaging Teachers in Classroom Walkthroughs is a practical guide to planning and implementing brief but focused classroom observations that involves teachers in every step of the process. Drawing from their study of 40 schools in the United States and Canada, the authors show how administrators and teacher leaders moved teachers from resisting to embracing the practice. Readers will learn how to Foster a school culture that supports walkthroughs. Implement the components of successful walkthroughs, such as focus and "look-fors," data collection methods, and meaningful follow-up strategies. Get all teachers involved and actively participating. * Evaluate the walkthrough process and measure its effectiveness. Use walkthroughs to support professional development related to the Common Core State Standards. This book demonstrates that when teachers learn from one another in a cycle of continuous professional growth--through observation, shared inquiry, dialogue, and follow-up--they develop a sense of collegiality and a common mission. By opening their doors to their peers, they also contribute to broader school improvement efforts that positively affect teaching and learning throughout the school.

"[Authors provide teachers with numerous examples and guides to improve teaching and student learning.]"--

Change the entire school culture with this collaborative method of supervision! For years, the classic supervision model has frustrated both principals and teachers by fostering superior-subordinate relationships, focusing on teacher conformity rather than growth, or producing checklist data that are irrelevant to the curriculum. The Three-Minute Classroom Walk-Through offers a practical, time-saving alternative that impacts student achievement by cultivating self-reliant teachers who are continuously improving their practice. This method answers principals' key questions: Is the work of my teachers aligned with district curriculum? Are my teachers using research-based "best practices"? Are they choosing the instructional strategies that will promote student achievement?

Tom Sherrington and Oliver Caviglioli present 50 essential teaching techniques, each with five clear and concise illustrations and explanations.

Formative assessment is one of the best ways to increase student learning and enhance teacher quality. But effective formative assessment is not part of most classrooms, largely because teachers misunderstand what it is and don't have the necessary skills to implement it. In the updated 2nd edition of this practical guide for school leaders, authors Connie M. Moss and Susan M. Brookhart define formative assessment as an active, continual process in which teachers and students work together—every day, every minute—to gather evidence of learning, always keeping in mind three guiding questions: Where am I going? Where am I now? What strategy or strategies can help me get to where I need to go? Chapters focus on the six interrelated elements of formative assessment: (1) shared learning targets and criteria for success, (2) feedback that feeds learning forward, (3) student self-assessment and peer assessment, (4) student goal setting, (5) strategic teacher questioning, and (6) student engagement in asking effective questions. Using specific examples based on their extensive work with teachers, the authors provide - Strategic talking points and conversation starters to address common misconceptions about formative assessment; - Practical classroom strategies to share with teachers that cultivate students as self-regulated, assessment-capable learners; - Ways to model the elements of formative assessment in conversations with teachers about their professional learning; - "What if" scenarios and advice for how to deal with them; and - Questions for reflection to gauge understanding and progress. As Moss and Brookhart emphasize, the goal is not to "do" formative assessment, but to embrace a major cultural change that moves away from teacher-led instruction to a partnership of intentional inquiry between student and teacher, with better teaching and learning as the outcome.

In How to Make Decisions with Different Kinds of Student Assessment Data, best-selling author Susan M. Brookhart helps teachers and administrators understand the critical elements and nuances of assessment data and how that information can best be used to inform improvement efforts in the school or district. Readers will learn-- * What different kinds of data can--and cannot--tell us about student learning; * What different analyses reveal about changes in student achievement; * How to interpret, use, and share relevant data; and * How to create a model to go from problem to solution in a data-based decision-making process. With easy-to-understand explanations, supplemented by examples and scenarios from actual schools, this book offers a path to better understanding, more accurate interpretation of assessment results, and--most important--more effective use of data to improve teaching and learning.