Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Chapter 11: Build on Best Practice and Research

Wow! This chapter was packed with good information.
It's hard to pick one single important thing from this chapter. However, one point that sticks out was under the category of Develop a Schoolwide Vision: lasting change takes a minimum of 3 years and a full 5 years of ongoing commitment to impact achievement permanently. As teachers, we rarely give ourselves this much time for the process of change.

This is another point that I will walk away with from this chapter: "While there is no one best program or model of how to teach writing, knowledgeable teachers make decisions based on research, teaching and learning experiences, their observation of their students and ongoing professional conversations."

It takes courage and commitment to be willing to reflect on and question your beliefs about teaching and learning and for this I applaud my 6th grade team!

1 comment:

PHuston said...

I felt the chapter had much to offer, also. I agree that in our world of teaching we must focus on research to direct our teaching decisions.