Instructional Theory Reflection Paper

The following thoughts reflect what I learned from EDL 278 with a focus on
supervising instruction in an educational setting. I came into this course with very
little knowledge on this subject matter. Due to this starting point, I took a lot of
knowledge from the course and I feel that my Implementation Strategy is still a
work in progress. However due to the expectation for an educational leader I will
slowly master these theories to be fair and valuable evaluator. I expect that this
maturation will allow me to sharpen my strategy over the next few years in
preparation for my first leadership position.
a.

Course Learning Summary

The takeaways that I had from this class can best be put into three categories;

background knowledge, informal verse formal observations, and initiating change.

Our discussions in class the first two weeks as well as they Edivate site gave me
a lot of content to digest and a start of the understanding I will need to be a Building
Leader. Looking at Blooms Taxonomy from an Administrative side pushed me to
recognize the difference of rigor instead of regurgitation. Also it was the first
introduction to creating measureable goals, which came up in many lessons
afterwards. Creating measureable goals takes away one of the most concerning
things an evaluator may have to deal with, personal bias. With measurable goals an
evaluator can truly assess a teachers skills rather than look past obvious
weaknesses or strengths based on our personal feelings for the teacher that we are
evaluating. The second major takeaway that I had from the first portion of our class
was the importance of sweat equity when it comes to observation and initiating

change. Creating time to be visible in the classroom when instruction is taking place
is vital to build understanding as well as trust with the teachers that you are
evaluating. If you are in the classroom consistently then you are going to have a
much better idea of what goes on in the classroom on a daily basis rather than
receiving a dog and pony show for a formal evaluation. These informal evaluations
can also allow for quick changes to take place, as bad habits are less likely to form.
From an initiating change perspective, a major takeaway was the Pareto Principle.
Despite disagreements with Todd Whitakers methods that were discussed the third
weekend, I think it is critical that a good portion of observation and assistance goes
to the 20% that is struggling to meet standards. This is needed because it is in
peoples nature to spend their time seeing things they want to see, because it makes
them feel better about their school. However, the most positive change can be seen
if leaders spend a good portion of their time helping those who are struggling so
they can make the changes to become better. This behavior will help the strength of
the instruction across the board. Because of this time management strategy it also
allows excellent teachers more autonomy, which can allow for their expertise and
passion to cultivate fantastic learning environments. These lessons gave me the
background knowledge that I will take from this course and have helped me form
my preliminary implementation strategy.
Observations are the vehicle for how Administrators can see what type of
learning is taking place as well as if change is needed. As touched on earlier, time is
key if observations are to be meaningful. Since so much time is needed a good leader
will view this portion of the job as a requirement rather than a box to check off at

the needed time. Visibility in making observations builds credibility amongst staff.
Informal evaluations are crucial in order for the evaluator to really get a good feel of
what goes on in a classroom. Creating this routine can allow an evaluator to make
suggestions that can be gradually worked on by a staff member. Formal evaluations
are a requirement and follow a much stricter and detailed protocol. These
evaluations take more time and require more attention to detail but allow both the
evaluator and the person being evaluated to look at all aspects of their teaching and
professional conduct. To use a sports analogy, I view the informal evaluations as
in-game coaching and the formal evaluation as practice. Just like in sports, ingame coaching can make a massive difference that can change the whole outcome. If
informal observations happen often then there should be little surprise when it
comes to the formal observation. In addition, the instructional quality will be
stronger because it is being constantly monitored. These are the lessons I took from
EDL 278 on observation.
Initiating change within a school is part of the job that falls to a Building Leader
because it is their responsibility to see that a school is in good standing. The
takeaways from this area are broken up into two parts, details and actions. From a
detail standpoint, you need to have the right amount of detail to leave no questions
but not to be too wordy. This lesson was hammered in when working with
improvement plans. Other lessons that came from working with improvement plans
included the need to have measureable goals in order to limit disagreements. These
types of goals also set clear expectations of what needs to be done by both sides of
the agreement. I learned the importance of the timeline in how changes are made. I

now think of April 30th as the day that a teacher must be made aware that they
wont be returning next year. Stemming from that, the significance of Due Process
through case study as well discussion. Lastly, the impact that documentation makes
in the process of change was a major takeaway. All of the work that you do with a
staff member should be documented to cover your bases should you be questioned
on your actions.
From the action perspective I learned techniques about how to tactfully improve
instruction and behavior in staff. Instructionally, the ORID questioning framework
has provided a solid base that has helped me ask the questions that are needed to
improve instruction. I feel that this framework leads staff members to be reflective
and they can start self-monitoring their lesson plans and improve their teaching
styles. Behaviorally, the insight in the Todd Whitaker video showed how a dynamic
leader handles situations that create of have preexisting tension. The philosophy of
confronting a staff member when you are ready and only confronting the issue at
hand not others behavior can create positive change throughout the building. This
method also does a great job of removing the emotion that can surround these
conversations. If these conversations are done correctly, other staff members find
out about how issues are handled and hopefully correct any mistakes they are
making. The background knowledge, thoughts on observations, and how to
initiating change are the three major elements that I took away from EDL 278.
b.

Implementation Strategy

The implementation strategy that I will outline is what my course of action

would be in regards to supervision of instruction. The two areas that I would focus
my efforts on are observation and assistance plans.
In the first three months of the school year I would concentrate on being visible
to students and staff to show my interest in how they are developing socially and
emotionally. From an observation standpoint, I would be trying to make as many
informal observations as possible. I would want to do this to make informal
observation the norm, so formal observation which would take place at a later date,
more accurate. In terms of coaching, I would limit it during this time period. This
would be done to not burn bridges or coming across as someone who knows
everything and devalues my staffs opinions or current practices. If I had an
Administration team I would be working with them to create a routine that allows
us to observe classrooms often. As the school year started the team or I would
create a focus for our walkthroughs based on reflecting on the things we have seen
at that point. As for assistance plans at that time, I would have two main focuses,
creating inter-rater reliability and learning the master contract inside and out. With
inter-rater reliability I would be working with either with my Administration team
or a district superior to create a schedule that could be used so I had accurate
readings on a teachers ability when observing them. As for the contract, that would
be my responsibility to learn and nail down important dates should action need to
be taken against an employee.
Once the school year is in full swing and the honeymoon period is over, the
direction with observation and assistance plans would grow on the building blocks

created by the previous months of work. With observations, I would share with the
staff the data that has been taken from informal observations at this point. I would
then go into the expectations that I have for staff members building off of the data
that has been observed to that point. That way all parties have a clear expectation of
what is being focused on and it limits the amount of surprises. From an assistance
plan standpoint, if it becomes obvious that a teacher needs to go on a plan then the
following steps will take place. I will insure that the teacher going on to a plan is
observed by more than one person. I will make sure that I am one of the people who
observed that teacher because I am the one signing my name to the improvement
plan. When a plan is drawn up I will make sure that each portion of the action plan is
manageable and achievable. It is not my goal to railroad a teacher; rather it is to
coach them up to the expectation that they need to meet. When it is possible, I will
create measureable goals, to take away any arguments of bias or subjectivity. If
there are many teachers who need to be put on a plan, I will limit the numbers who
go on a plan by order of importance. This will allow me to respect the process and
not take any shortcuts that would reflect poorly on me if they were to come to light.
Finally, there will be documentation at every instance to protect the process and to
make sure all staff members are afforded due process. This is my implementation
strategy as it currently stands for supervision of instruction.