A practical, research-based guide for ensuring trustworthy classroom observations that provide teachers with meaningful feedbackBetter Feedback for Better Teaching is an essential resource for school, district, and state, leaders committed to high-quality classroom observations. This practical guide outlines the knowledge and skills classroom observers need to identify and help develop effective teaching, and explains how leaders can best facilitate the development of classroom observers.The best way to ensure high quality instruction in every classroom is to provide teachers with accurate, constructive feedback on practices proven to enhance student learning. Skilled classroom observers help teachers do their best work, so that they can guide students to their greatest potential. Better Feedback for Better Teaching provides helpful, reliable strategies from leading experts and practitioners involved in the Measures of Effective Teaching (MET) project, which carried out one of the largest, most influential studies of classroom observations to date.Among the many topics covered, Better Feedback for Better Teaching describes how to:* Build a shared vision of effective teacher feedback among observers* Ensure a common understanding of a classroom observation tool* Train observers to collect objective evidence from a lesson, efficiently and free of bias* Leverage data to improve how observers are trained and supportedThis comprehensive resource includes helpful starting points, as well as tips to refine techniques and address new challenges. Each section combines clear explanations of key ideas with concrete, adaptable examples and strategies.Self-assessments are included to help you quickly rank current needs and find the most relevant solutions. Filled with valuable, practical tools, Better Feedback for Better Teaching helps educators cultivate high-quality classroom observations that improve teaching and learning.

Acknowledgments viiAbout the Authors ixIntroduction: Getting from Here to There 1I Making the Big Decisions 151 Building Support for Better Observer Training 172 Finding Enough Observers 253 Deciding on Training Delivery Methods 354 Setting Priorities for Observer Training 45II Pre-scoring Video 515 Understanding Pre-Scoring Video 536 Planning a Pre-Scoring Process 597 Getting the Right Video to Pre-Score 758 Recruiting and Training Master Coders 859 Ensuring the Quality of Pre-Scoring 101III Building the Knowledge and Skills for Observation 11310 Knowing the Rubric 11511 Collecting Evidence 12712 Understanding Bias 13913 Recognizing Evidence 14914 Using Criteria for Rating 16715 Coaching Teachers 18716 Organizing a Training Program 211IV Using Data to Improve Training and Support of Observers 22117 Collecting and Using Data from Training 22318 Assessing Observers to Ensure and Improve Quality 23319 Monitoring Your Observation System 267Concluding Thoughts: Getting It Right 285Appendix 287Observer Training Checklist 287Planning Worksheet 291Tools Referenced in This Book 304Tool 7-1: DCPS Video Quality Checklist 305Tool 8-1: RIFT Master Coding Worksheet 307Tool 8-2: DCPS Advice for Facilitating Reconciliation 308Tool 8-3: DCPS Guidelines for Score Rationales 311Tool 13-1: DCPS Evidence Collection Template 314Tool 14-1: Partnerships to Uplift Communities (PUC) Evidence Record Rubric 318Tool 14-2: Literacy Design Collaborative (LDC)/(TCRP) Top Ten Principles of True Scoring 320Tool 14-3: RIDE Calibration Session Protocol 322Tool 15-1: RIDE Feedback Quality Review Tool 327Tool 15-2: Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) Post-Observation Assessment Checklist 328Tool 17-1: DCPS Feedback Rubric with Annotated Example 331Tool 18-1: Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) Rubric for Rating Use of Evidence 337Tool 19-1: RIDE Teacher Survey Items on Observation 338Notes 341References 343Index 345