Last year I caught up with Barrie Bennett in Toronto and had the chance to talk through his framework for classroom improvement. It was one of those light bulb moments when it became clear for me what the missing focus was in both walkthroughs and in the schools coaching programme.
We needed to strengthen our teachers’ instructional capacity [strategies and skills]. At our leadership meetings we now talk about the skills and strategies we as “experts” are encouraged to model for our experienced and novice teachers. I am focused on my walkthroughs to spot or ask about the instructional skills or strategy the teacher is using during the lesson.
It’s the dialogue and reflection about trying match the best strategy for the purpose of the lesson that increases capacity.
