Can research make you a better teacher? twitter.com/ProfCoe Can research make you a better teacher? Robert Coe ResearchEd, London, 6 Sept 2014

Before we start … I’m not saying I am saying What has worked will always work All research should be RCTs Teaching is like following a recipe Teachers must become researchers I am saying Good teachers need high-level skills and the practical wisdom to make good decisions Professional development that promotes research knowledge and mindset may help develop such skills and wisdom We should evaluate this robustly

I am assuming What you think is ‘good teaching’ may not be If you are not trained and accredited in a validated lesson observation protocol Don’t grade lessons Be very cautious about giving feedback What you think is ‘good teaching’ may not be http://www.cem.org/blog/414/

What does ‘better’ look like?

Teachers’ Standards (England) https://www. gov GTC Scotland Professional Standards http://www.gtcs.org.uk/standards/standards.aspx Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership: Australian Professional Standards for Teachers: http://www.aitsl.edu.au/teachers Danielson Framework: http://danielsongroup.org/framework/ US National Board for Professional Teaching Standards: National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) http://www.boardcertifiedteachers.org/

Teacher Professional Standards should Be based on best evidence about pedagogy, teacher effectiveness, learning theory Reflect diversity of teacher needs/contexts/stages (one size doesn’t fit all) Include protocols for demonstrating when they are met that are Clear and operationalisable Consistent across different raters, schools, etc Demonstrably predictive of valued pupil outcomes

Evidence-based standards for effective teaching? Evidence about relationships between teacher skills, knowledge & behaviours and ‘effectiveness’ Evidence about what can be changed (and how) Based on ‘best’ theories of Pupil learning Pedagogy & teaching effectiveness Behaviour change (individual, institutional, systemic) Most important: does focusing on these things lead to improvement?

What kinds of skills, knowledge, behaviours, qualities and competences are required to be an excellent teacher? Sources of evidence Evidence and theory from cognitive science about learning: how our brains acquire, make sense of and use information (eg Willingham: Why don’t students like school; Bransford et al., 2000 ) Evidence from educational effectiveness research about teacher behaviours associated with learning gains (eg Muijs et al 2014: State of the art – teacher effectiveness and professional learning ) Evidence from intervention studies about what can be changed, and its effect on outcomes (eg Sutton Trust-EEF Toolkit)

How might we move forward? Review the best existing evidence about what excellent teaching looks like Review existing frameworks / protocols / evaluation instruments for identifying excellent teaching Develop/collect some self-assessment + feedback + discussion tools to allow teachers to assess and develop their skills/knowledge/practice in a range of dimensions Evaluate the impact (on a range of valued outcomes) of using them

Dimensions of great teaching (Pedagogical) content knowledge Behaviour / control / classroom management Classroom climate / relationships / expectations Quality of instruction Wider professional elements: collegiality, development, relationships Research knowledge

1. (Pedagogical) content knowledge

California, 1875 Divide 88 into two such parts that shall be to each other as 2/3 is to 4/5 (from Shulman, 1986) England, 2012 What is 643 divided by 0.1? Shulman, L S (1986) Those who understand: Knowledge growth in teaching, Educational Researcher, 15 (2), 4–14. http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/n/numeracy%20practice%20paper%202.pdf

307 - 168 261 A pupil writes How would you respond? Another says, ‘Take 8 away from both’ 307 - 168 299 - 160 Ball, D. L., Thames, M. H., & Phelps, G. (2008). Content knowledge for teaching what makes it special?. Journal of teacher education, 59(5), 389-407. http://conferences.illinoisstate.edu/nsa/papers/thamesphelps.pdf Hill, H. C., Rowan, B., & Ball, D. L. (2005). Effects of teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching on student achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 42(2), 371-406. How would you respond? (from Ball et al, 2008)

2. Behaviour / control / classroom management

Pupil survey (from Tripod) Student behavior in this class is under control. I hate the way that students behave in this class. Student behavior in this class makes the teacher angry. Student behavior in this class is a problem. My classmates behave the way my teacher wants them to. Students in this class treat the teacher with respect. Our class stays busy and doesn't waste time. See http://www.metproject.org/resources.php

Time on task observation tool Next observation 1.2s Jimmy Bone-Idle On task Off task Not clear ‘On task’ = thinking hard about what they are supposed to be learning

Dealing with disruption the teacher is not using any strategy at all to deal with a classroom disorder problem, the teacher is using a strategy but the problem is only temporarily solved (the disorder reoccurs), the teacher is using a strategy that has a long-lasting effect (From Kyriakides et al 2009) Use video excerpts in an online training programme, with a test to identify accredited observers L. Kyriakides, B.P.M. Creemers, P. Antoniou (2009) Teacher behaviour and student outcomes: Suggestions for research on teacher training and professional development. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25, 12-23.

3. Classroom climate / relationships / expectations

Test your mindset http://mindsetonline.com/testyourmindset/step1.php You have a certain amount of intelligence, and you can’t really do much to change it. No matter who you are, you can significantly change your intelligence level. You can learn new things, but you can’t really change your basic intelligence You can change even your basic intelligence level considerably

Other aspects of climate Attributions to effort or ability Students’ motivational goals (mastery vs performance) Teacher expectations Quality of relationships (teacher-students) Response to failure (grit) Dweck, C.S. (1999) ‘Caution – Praise Can Be Dangerous’ American Educator, Spring 1999, p4-9. https://www.aft.org/pdfs/americaneducator/spring1999/PraiseSpring99.pdf Deborah Stipek on praise: How Do Teachers' Expectations Affect Student Learning http://www.education.com/reference/article/teachers-expectations-affect-learning/

4. Quality of instruction

The Dynamic Model (Creemers & Kyriakides, 2006) Orientation Providing the objectives for which a specific task/lesson/series of lessons take(s) place Challenging students to identify the reason why an activity is taking place in the lesson. Structuring Beginning with overviews and/or review of objectives Outlining the content to be covered and signalling transitions between lesson parts Drawing attention to and reviewing main ideas Questioning Raising different types of questions (i.e., process and product) at appropriate difficulty level Giving time for students to respond Dealing with student responses Teaching modelling Encouraging students to use problem-solving strategies presented by the teacher or other classmates Inviting students to develop strategies Promoting the idea of modelling Creemers, B. P. M., & Kyriakides, L. (2006). Critical analysis of the current approaches to modelling educational effectiveness: The importance of establishing a dynamic model. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 17, 347–366. Creemers, B., & Kyriakides, L. (2007). The dynamics of educational effectiveness: A contribution to policy, practice and theory in contemporary schools. Routledge. Creemers, B. P., & Kyriakides, L. (2011). Improving Quality in Education: Dynamic Approaches to School Improvement. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

The Dynamic Model (Creemers & Kyriakides, 2006) Application Using seatwork or small-group tasks in order to provide needed practice and application opportunities Using application tasks as starting points for the next step of teaching and learning The classroom as a learning environment Establishing on-task behaviour through the interactions they promote (i.e., teacher–student and student–student interactions) Dealing with classroom disorder and student competition through establishing rules, persuading students to respect them and using the rules Management of time Organizing the classroom environment Maximizing engagement rates Assessment Using appropriate techniques to collect data on student knowledge and skills Analysing data in order to identify student needs and report the results to students and parents. Teachers evaluating their own practices Creemers, B. P. M., & Kyriakides, L. (2006). Critical analysis of the current approaches to modelling educational effectiveness: The importance of establishing a dynamic model. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 17, 347–366. Creemers, B., & Kyriakides, L. (2007). The dynamics of educational effectiveness: A contribution to policy, practice and theory in contemporary schools. Routledge. Creemers, B. P., & Kyriakides, L. (2011). Improving Quality in Education: Dynamic Approaches to School Improvement. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

Principles of Instruction (Rosenshine, 2010) Begin a lesson with a short review of previous learning Present new material in small steps, with student practice after each step Ask a large number of questions and check the responses of all students Provide models for problem solving and worked examples Guide student practice and rehearsal Check for student understanding Obtain a high success rate (80%) Provide scaffolds for difficult tasks Require and monitor independent practice Engage students in weekly and monthly review Rosenshine, B. (2012) Principles of Instruction: Research based principles that all teachers should know. American Educator, Spring 2012. http://www.aft.org/pdfs/americaneducator/spring2012/Rosenshine.pdf Rosenshine, B. (2010) Principles of Instruction. International Academy of Education, UNESCO. Geneva: International Bureau of Education. http://www.ibe.unesco.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Publications/Educational_Practices/EdPractices_21.pdf  

Measuring quality of instruction Requires ‘high inference’ judgements May be no alternative to extensive training (eg CLASS, Danielson FFT) Worth trying: Specify skills and context (eg Y9 algebra, questioning to check understanding) Peer review of video excerpts Rating using ACJ (Adaptive Comparative Judgement)

6. Research knowledge

How research might help Research knowledge Informs pedagogical practice Informs decisions about strategy and policies Informs attempts to implement and embed more effective practices Research mindset Robustly evaluates ongoing performance on a range of outcomes Evaluates the impact of any changes made Adopts a critical perspective: ‘show me the evidence’

Most promising for raising attainment Small effects / high cost www.educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/toolkit Impact vs cost Most promising for raising attainment 8 May be worth it Feedback Meta-cognitive Peer tutoring Early Years Homework (Secondary) 1-1 tuition Effect Size (months gain) Collaborative Behaviour Small gp tuition Phonics Parental involvement Smaller classes Social ICT Summer schools Individualised learning After school Small effects / high cost Mentoring Teaching assistants Homework (Primary) Performance pay Aspirations £0 Setting £1000 Cost per pupil

True or false? Reducing class size is one of the most effective ways to increase learning [evidence] Differentiation and ‘personalised learning’ resources maximise learning [evidence] Praise encourages learners and helps them persist with hard tasks [evidence] Technology supports learning by engaging and motivating learners [evidence] The best way to raise attainment is to enhance motivation and interest [evidence] Rob Coe EMC blog on class size: http://educationmediacentre.org/researchnews/whats-the-evidence-on-class-size/ John Hattie on individualisation (eg https://cdn.auckland.ac.nz/assets/education/about/research/documents/influences-on-student-learning.pdf). See also Harry Webb’s blog: ‘The Evidence on Differentiation’ http://websofsubstance.wordpress.com/2014/07/ Deborah Stipek on praise: How Do Teachers' Expectations Affect Student Learning http://www.education.com/reference/article/teachers-expectations-affect-learning/ Steve Higgins et al’s summary for EEF: The Impact of Digital Technology on Learning http://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/uploads/pdf/The_Impact_of_Digital_Technologies_on_Learning_FULL_REPORT_(2012).pdf Stephen Gorard et al for JRF on aspirations: The impact of attitudes and aspirations on educational attainment and participation http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/education-young-people-parents-full.pdf

Key elements of good evaluation EEF DIY Evaluation Guide Clear, well defined, replicable intervention Good assessment of appropriate outcomes Well-matched comparison group Coe, R., Kime, S., Nevill, C. and Coleman, R. (2013) ‘The DIY Evaluation Guide’. London: Education Endowment Foundation. [Available at http://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/library/diy-evaluation-guide] http://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/uploads/pdf/EEF_DIY_Evaluation_Guide_(2013).pdf What could you evaluate?

Summary

Tools to help evaluate teaching quality could be made widely available We need a wider understanding of ‘great teaching’ that is based on research evidence Tools to help evaluate teaching quality could be made widely available Clarify and make explicit what teachers need to learn Monitor progress against these learning aims Focus attention and effort on approaches that are likely to make a difference We still need to evaluate whether using these tools leads to any improvement Ultimately, ‘great teaching’ is evidenced by better learning, so high-quality assessment is key