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Nikki Lane, principal of ButteValley Elementary School in Dorris California, is committed to spending quality time observing in classrooms daily. To make this process meaningful and more of a dialogue, Lane created observation journals. There is a journal with each teacher's name on it and each time Lane goes into the classroom, she brings that teacher's journal and writes down her observations. Lane writes about what was working in the lesson, what needed improvement, whether the lesson addressed the appropriate standards, whether students are on task and suggestions. She might also make observations about particular students.
As Lane leaves the classroom, she leaves the journal for the teacher -- providing immediate feedback. At the front of each journal, Lane wrote a note encouraging her teachers to use the journals to respond to her or to address other issues or concerns. The teachers have enthusiastically taken advantage of this opportunity. Sometimes a teacher might write about a dilemma of how to approach a particular standard or a concern about a student.
These journals then become a running history of the year. The next time Lane enters a particular teacher's classroom, she can look back at the journal to see if the teacher followed up on her suggestions. Similarly, teachers can track their progress. Having all of the communication in one book has been a very positive experience for both the teachers in the principal at Butte Valley.
Lane does not feel this has been extra work for her since she would have written something each time she went into the classroom anyway, the journals just allow for more continuity. In addition to the journals, Lane uses the district evaluation form for formal evaluations. In districts where a particular form is required even for informal observations, Lane suggested that a principal might bind the forms together with some blank pages for teachers to respond.
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This approach is very creative. I like the idea of journaling during observation. I would want to know more about the process.
- Aug 03, 2008 4:19 PM
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