Lesson Observation and Mutual Support

Lesson Observation

The new School Head had planned to give my colleague and myself an hour and thirty minutes to present our offer to the staff. We had planned to present our credentials as teachers and professional coaches, and the program of support and training that was on offer. However, there had been some heated discussions about renewal of employment contracts that had to be resolved first.

An hour late, the Head opened the door and invited us into the stuffy conference room. “You have twenty minutes,” she said.

She told the staff who we were and why she had invited us. “They have an offer that I recommend you take up.”

We were met by compact silence and folded arms.

We stood side by side in front of the gathered staff, and feeling nervous, I blurted out, “We offer to observe your lessons and give you feedback.” There were no takers. They had no idea who we were, nor how good we were at observations and feedback. To them, we were two more education consultants.

My colleague pulled out a piece of paper, she said, “This is what other teachers have said we achieved in the three months we worked together." She read out our previous clients’ hand-written notes, and spoke of the results: greater clarity, more energy, re-connection with students, hope for the future and joy in their work.

The staff gazed at us, wondering how we had achieved such excellent results.

I felt the need to explain, hastily I said, “Before we observe you, we have a short meeting to hear what you want us to observe.”

My colleague added, “When we give feedback, we guide you in reflecting on your lesson so that you can come up with improvements yourself. We don’t give advice.”

One teacher called out, “What’s the use if you don’t give advice?”

“Would you want it if we gave it?” I asked.

?The laugh rippled around the room.?

“Who decides what you will observe?” the teacher asked.

“I said that first. Who can tell him?” I asked the other staff.

“OK, where do I sign up?” he said and reached out for the sign-up sheet we had prepared.

Conclusions

Unless you are part of the staff, you are an outsider. Teachers need to know who you are and what goals you have achieved before they will listen to you. They want to know how you plan to achieve the goals with them. They want to be an equal part in the process. They want to have a choice about what they share with outsiders. They want to have a choice about whether or not they take on the recommendations that are arrived at.

By the way: the same applies to students when they first meet their teachers!

Mutual support, based on “Two Novice Teachers”, from “Short Stories”, by Martin Richards

The first teacher came into the staffroom and slammed her books on the nearest table. ”Ghhhhhaaah”, she vented and then froze.

The second leapt from her seat and rushed to put an arm around her friend’s shoulder. “I know, I know”, she lamented and consoled.

“They just don’t listen. They don’t listen. How am I supposed to teach them anything?” howled the first.

“They were worse yesterday,” returned the second, “they wouldn’t stay in the room. I had to go out and bring them back in, again and again!”

“I have got them again tomorrow, and I don’t know what I am going to do with them,” wailed the first, and blew her nose on a tissue.

“At least you don’t have them every day like I do,” followed the second, wiping her wet face with the back of her hand.

“I’m ready to quit this job. I never thought it would be as bad as this,” stamped the first and rolled up the tissue.

“Ungrateful little …” growled the second as she looked around for somewhere to dry her hands.

They were standing arm’s length apart, letting off steam about the class they had in common. They had studied at the Teacher Training College together and this was their practice term at a local school, my school, where I had been all my life. Watching them was painful. It did not have to be this way.

I stood up and took a few steps towards them. That caught their attention. They stood like wet scarecrows looking at me, their eyes hooded, their faces wet with tears.

I gave them a four-shot opening volley, “It doesn’t have to be like that. You don’t have to quit. They aren’t ungrateful. They need something from you.” I stated.

They looked at each other, a little ashamed of their outbursts.

“Would it be OK if I shared something that will help?” I tested.

“What?” the first asked.

“What did you need when you first came into the room just now?”

“I just wanted to, blaaaah. You know, get it off my chest.”

“How long did you need for that? How many minutes?”

“I dunno. Five minutes.”

“And would you do it alone or would you need someone to support you?”

“I needed someone to listen.”

“Anything else? Just listen?”

“Nothing else. Maybe some advice.”

“So, you needed five minutes to get it off your chest, speaking to someone who would listen and maybe give some advice. Is that right?”

I turned to the second teacher. “Could you do that? Just that? Listen, then maybe give some advice?”

“Actually”, corrected the first, ”I don’t need advice. Just someone to listen.”?

”I can do that,” agreed the second.

“Then you have all you need to learn how to work with that class,” I announced.

“What do you mean?” they demanded.

I told them what they needed to know, “You aren’t the only ones who need to be heard.”

Short Stories - from the world of teaching and coaching.

The Educators’ Agreement

- a novel about training teachers to observe lessons and coach each other

The Educator’s Apprentice - a novel about an experienced teacher supporting a novice teacher