Purposeful Reflection: An Essential Tool for Teachers (To Improve Practice & Pedagogy)

Last week was a very busy week in room 8-204, my classroom. For two days I was observed by three different groups of secondary administrators who were practicing inter-rater reliability using the Marzano Teacher Evaluation Model.  

Many of the administrators who visited my classroom were former or current evaluators with whom I have a professional relationship.  Naturally, I wanted to do well and show my growth as an educator.  The first and third observation were spot-on.  My students were engaged, asking questions, finding textual evidence and sharing their learning (Thank you, Kylene Beers & Robert Probst for your book Notice & Note).  However, the second observation fell a bit short.  What I've left out here is that two of these observations were on Valentine's Day.  I teach high school.  Valentine's Day is HUGE!  The high school juniors in my classroom were hopped up on sugar, Teddy bears, balloons and hormones! Instead of reflecting on the lesson, I honestly could have just blamed St. Valentine and gone on with it.  But, as a reflective educator, I knew there was more to the reaction of the lesson than just hearts and flowers and pheromones.  The lesson simply wasn't working for my students - I had to find a way to connect and engage.

How Reflection Changed My Lesson
In the middle of the observation and lesson, I realized that the strategy I was sharing with my students was not working, I began internalizing what wasn't working and how I could change what I was doing so the strategy would work.  I tried a few things mid-lesson but even that didn't work.  I tried the lesson again on a different class later that day and it still didn't work.  Turns out Valentine's Day was not to be blamed.  As I sat reflecting during my planning period, I knew what I had to do.  I walked down to the Media Center and checked out the book my students were reading excerpts from in order to understand the strategy "Tough Questions".  I had a feeling they weren't able to visualize the situation Salva was facing from reading the excerpts from A Long Walk to Water.

On Friday, I re-taught "Tough Questions" by reading the section from A Long Walk to Water leading up to the tough questions Salva asks when he has left his village, family and life.  It worked!  First, as I was reading aloud my students noticed strategies I had taught them earlier in the week.  They reacted to moments in the novel that helped to lead them to think about the tough questions Salva was asking.  And, they were engaged sharing that they, too, wanted to read the novel, on their own.  Had I not reflected, mid-lesson, I would not have reached my students.  It was a most powerful moment! 

Why Reflection is Important
It's no secret that the education profession is under increased scrutiny. Common Core, new teacher evaluation models, new standardized testing requirements (PARCC, Smarter Balanced).   All of these changes can be stressful and create anxiety for educators.

Reflection is a two-headed beast.  One head of the beast holds educators' anxieties and stresses of the coming educational changes and challenges.  The other head of the beast holds how an educator will face the changes and challenges.  Purposeful reflection will provide educators with a way, a pursuit, a challenge for meeting what's coming in educational change.  Embrace the challenge.  Pursue it head on.  Challenge your own thinking.  Meet the change.

As Reflection becomes a more visible beast, here are some ways educators can show they are changing, growing and meeting the challenge:

• Create a blog to share your growth, your thoughts, your challenges and how you are facing them in the classroom
• Build an electronic portfolio of ways you are challenging students to meet new standards
• Indian River Teachers - share your reflections and thoughts using Marzano's Self-Reflection worksheet before your post-evaluation conference

I challenge educators to become Purposefully Reflective!  While it is easy to remain constant with the routine, it is equally as disruptive to question the routine and find change within yourself, your students and your routine.  Pursue and face the challenge. Digest.  Reflect.  Change.  Challenge.  Pursue.

Teacher Reflection Good Reads:

Danielsen, L.M. (2009).  Fostering Reflection.  Retrieved 24 Feb. 2013 from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb09/vol66/num05/Fostering-Reflection.aspx.

Pappas, P. (2010).  A Taxonomy of Reflection: Critical Thinking for Students, Teachers, and Principals.  Retrieved 24 Feb 2013 from http://www.peterpappas.com/2010/01/taxonomy-reflection-critical-thinking-students-teachers-principals-.html

Sesay-St.Paul., M. (2013).  Teacher Reflection Questions (Teacher Tip).  Retrieved 24 Feb 2013 from http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/teacher-reflection-questions