Do I create an environment where my teachers are collaborating and reflecting on their teaching pedagogy?
An instructional leader values the time teachers spend collaborating and reflecting on their teaching pedagogy. This is addressed in Domain Three and Four in the Marzano Evaluation Model. Teachers reflect on their strengths and weaknesses in Domain Three – Reflecting on Teaching. In Domain Four – Collegiality and Professionalism, teachers share effective practices with other teachers and mentoring other teachers (Marzano, 2011).
A great example of teachers reflecting on teaching is lesson study groups. In a lesson study groups, teachers work collaboratively to create a lesson that is researched based. They observe each other teach the lesson and critique the effectiveness of the lesson. There are times when the group of teacher decides to revise the lesson based on what they observed when it is taught. According to Marzano (2011), opportunities to observe and discuss effective teaching are an important aspect of teachers becoming instructional experts.
Within Domain Four – Collegiality and Professionalism, an effective educator interacts with other colleagues, students, and parents in a positive manner. When teachers interact with their peers, they have a free and open exchange of ideas and strategies. However, this collegial experience must have school and district initiatives as the central focus (Marzano, 2011).
The best example of teacher collaboration is Professional Learning Communities (PLC). According to Fogarty and Pete (2007), professional learning communities may be called “centers of pedagogy”, which are comprised of a team of teachers in a building a sense of community, a sense of spirit, and a sense of collaboration. In a PLC, there are five to eight teachers from the same school. There are various types of PLCs including grade level teams of teachers, teachers who share a group of students in a team, and interdisciplinary teams of teachers. Regardless of the type of PLC, the professional development is sustained throughout the year.
