assessing a lesson's efffectiveness
Reflection on a lesson's effectiveness is a common practice amongst teachers and evaluators; however, more often than not, such reflection centers on the teacher's practice rather than the student learning. Observation protocols of the past focused solely on what the teacher did and whether those behaviors matched known best practices. John Hattie (2012) cautions against this approach as it masks the most important aspect of teaching -- did the students learn. In Visible Learning for Teachers, Hattie challenges teachers to look at a lesson through the eyes of the student and really focus in "the effect of his or her teaching . . . [moving] the discussion away from the teaching towards the effect of the teaching" (p. 155).
In this section of the website, Hattie's work and suggestions for assessing a lesson's efficacy will be detailed in order to for teachers to truly determine what is and is not working in their classroom. A lesson can be assessed from multiple perspectives: the student, the teacher, the curriculum, formative, and summative.
In this section of the website, Hattie's work and suggestions for assessing a lesson's efficacy will be detailed in order to for teachers to truly determine what is and is not working in their classroom. A lesson can be assessed from multiple perspectives: the student, the teacher, the curriculum, formative, and summative.
The Student perspectiveIn the end, the student experience of the lesson is really all that matters. Engaged students are far more likely to learn and retain the material, and thus it is in the best interest of the teacher to design lessons which invite the learner into the lesson. Hattie encourages educators to utilize invitational learning, which "requires a transparent commitment to promote learning for all, and consideration of a student's prior learning and of what each student brings to the lesson" (p. 157). At the heart of invitational learning is the learning environment; it is one that requires fairness and openness, embraces errors, and collaboration (p. 157). Hattie summarizes the invitational classroom as having the following essential components:
OTHER RESOURCES ON INVITATIONAL LEARNING: What is Invitational Education and How Does it Work? ~ William Watson Purkey (1991) The International Alliance for Invitational Education An Introduction to Invitational Theory The teacher perspectiveAny student can attest that a teacher who is passionate about a subject can ignite that same passion in a student. While this is a simple fact to infer, what is astonishing is that beyond the qualitative nature of passion, Hattie identifies this particular trait as on of the precursors to a successful lesson from the student perspective. However, more than passion for ones subject is required to inspire passion in a student; the teacher must be just as passionately committed to the students' success and must believe that all students can become capable (p. 158-159).
One way Hattie suggests to gauge this trait is through student evaluations of teachers. In the Denver Public Schools, students are given the chance to evaluate their teachers through the Student Perceptions Survey (SPS), administered in the fall and spring. The SPS accounts for 10% of a teachers total evaluation score. In summary, Hattie describes six teacher traits students desired to see (p. 159), and those traits strongly align to the questions on the SPS.
The curricular perspectiveTDid the lesson accomplish what the teacher intended it to accomplish? This is the major question which must be answered in order to gauge a lesson's effectiveness. Beyond this seemingly basic question lies the inherent reflection by both the practitioner and the student of the learning goals and attainment of said goals. Teachers must provide opportunities for themselves and students to reflect on the success of a lesson or unit of study. Hattie suggests a diary for students where they detail "what they think they are learning, indicators of their progress, how confident they are that they will achieve these learning intentions in the time available, and their perception of their degree of success" (p. 161).
In addition to students, colleagues can provide additional feedback on a lesson's effectiveness through a critique of the learning intentions and success criteria. Collaborative teams provide the perfect time for teachers to get feedback on their lessons and units in terms of intentions and success. Further advice on this subject can be found on the Teacher Collaboration section of this website. the formative and summative perspectiveBoth formative and summative assessments can be used to assess a lesson’s effectiveness; however, many people equate these two assessments to tests when in reality they relate to the time at which the test is administered. What educators need to understand is what Hattie notes as the major distinction between the two: “the nature of the interpretations made from the tests,” such that “if the interpretations from the test are used to modify the instruction while it is ongoing, it is formative; if the interpretations from the test are used to sum up the learning at the end of the teaching, it is summative” (p. 162).
It is the results of these types of assessments that guide educators in adjusting their instruction to ensure student attainment. The results from these tests can give teachers and administrators clear data around the effectiveness of a lesson, or series of lessons. Taking this data evidence into account, along with multiple perspectives, as described above, teachers can take an important journey to “review learning through the eyes of their students” (Hattie, 2012, p. 163). Taking this measures into account, the effectiveness of an educator is not a function of the teaching, rather, it is a function of the learning that occurred, which determines the effectiveness and efficiency of the teacher, the lesson, and the school as a whole. ASSESSMENT RESOURCES: Formative Assessment Resources: Try Them Today, Tomorrow, or Soon 56 Examples of Formative Assessment Every Teachers' Guide to Assessment |