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Trust-Based Observations: Maximizing Teaching and Learning Growth

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The results are observations are not improving teaching and learning. Pertinently, the Gates Foundation’s recently completed effort to improve student outcomes through enhancing the teacher evaluation process failed to achieve substantive improvement. The way observations are currently designed serve as an obstacle to teacher risk-taking. Teachers fear negative evaluations when their pedagogy is rated, and they lack faith in being supported by supervisors because a trusting relationship between them and their observer has not been built.Trust-Based Maximizing Teaching and Learning Growth is a schema changing evaluation model that understands people perform at their best when they feel safe and supported. It begins with twelve, 20 minute observations per week followed by collegial conversations driven by reflective questions, sharing observed teaching strengths, and the building of safe and trusting relationships with teachers. Add the elimination of rating pedagogical skills and replace it with rating mindset, and teachers trust. When teachers fully embrace risk-taking and innovation, it leads to remarkable teaching transformations and improved student learning.

215 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 30, 2020

28 people are currently reading
45 people want to read

About the author

Craig Randall

26 books19 followers

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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
3 reviews2 followers
September 13, 2020
This is an essential read for school administrators!

Trust-Based Observations gives new meaning to teacher-administrator relationships, and it will redefine the student learning experience.

Let’s be real: the annual teacher observation can sky-rocket levels of stress for teachers. Unforeseen problems can derail any well-mapped and well-intentioned lesson plan with a technology malfunction, a miscount of copies, or a premature check for understanding. Even effective teachers have bad days: heaven forbid it happens when you’re being observed!

The traditional style, of all-or-nothing annual observations, posits astronomical stakes for educators. But what hangs in the balance for the teacher? Loss of respect? Labels of inadequacy? Loss of contract? It’s clear - the current model of observation with its high-stakes, infrequent visits, and teacher grading policy leads to teachers being judged by near-singular performances. Craig Randall, the author of Trust-Based Observations, remarks that these circumstances lead to teachers playing it safe, in effect, being less effective with lessons more forgettable.

Randall identifies the observation dilemma and he systemizes a solution with soul. The TBO model embeds trust between administrators and teachers by diffusing the high-stakes observation. TBO preaches personalization - encouraging teachers to strengthen their brand of instruction while making post-observations about mutual understanding rather than unilateral prescriptions for pedagogical improvement. This book is essential for administrators who want to create a school environment where teachers, like students, are heard and rewarded for taking risks in efforts to improve knowledge and practice.
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60 reviews4 followers
June 23, 2024
I'm giving this a solid 4 stars as a starting point. I hope to put it up to 5 when I start putting it into practice this year. I really felt overwhelmed by the observation form the first time I saw it, but after reading the book, it makes a lot of sense, AND moves you pointedly away from "gotcha!" observations. I'm nervous about implementation, but I really want to give it a solid go. Randall explains everything you need to know to get started and offers tons of grace for where you will definitely make mistakes.
3 reviews2 followers
September 13, 2020
This is an essential read for school administrators!

Trust-Based Observations gives new meaning to teacher-administrator relationships, and it will redefine the student learning experience.

Let’s be real: the annual teacher observation can sky-rocket levels of stress for teachers. Unforeseen problems can derail any well-mapped and well-intentioned lesson plan with a technology malfunction, a miscount of copies, or a premature check for understanding. Even effective teachers have bad days: heaven forbid it happens when you’re being observed!

The traditional style, of all-or-nothing annual observations, posits astronomical stakes for educators. But what hangs in the balance for the teacher? Loss of respect? Labels of inadequacy? Loss of contract? It’s clear - the current model of observation with its high-stakes, infrequent visits, and teacher grading policy leads to teachers being judged by near-singular performances. Craig Randall, the author of Trust-Based Observations, remarks that these circumstances lead to teachers playing it safe, in effect, being less effective with lessons more forgettable.

Randall identifies the observation dilemma and he systemizes a solution with soul. The TBO model embeds trust between administrators and teachers by diffusing the high-stakes observation. TBO preaches personalization - encouraging teachers to strengthen their brand of instruction while making post-observations about mutual understanding rather than unilateral prescriptions for pedagogical improvement. This book is essential for administrators who want to create a school environment where teachers, like students, are heard and rewarded for taking risks in efforts to improve knowledge and practice.
3 reviews2 followers
September 13, 2020
This is an essential read for school administrators!

Trust-Based Observations gives new meaning to teacher-administrator relationships, and it will redefine the student learning experience.

Let’s be real: the annual teacher observation can sky-rocket levels of stress for teachers. Unforeseen problems can derail any well-mapped and well-intentioned lesson plan with a technology malfunction, a miscount of copies, or a premature check for understanding. Even effective teachers have bad days: heaven forbid it happens when you’re being observed!

The traditional style, of all-or-nothing annual observations, posits astronomical stakes for educators. But what hangs in the balance for the teacher? Loss of respect? Labels of inadequacy? Loss of contract? It’s clear - the current model of observation with its high-stakes, infrequent visits, and teacher grading policy leads to teachers being judged by near-singular performances. Craig Randall, the author of Trust-Based Observations, remarks that these circumstances lead to teachers playing it safe, in effect, being less effective with lessons more forgettable.

Randall identifies the observation dilemma and he systemizes a solution with soul. The TBO model embeds trust between administrators and teachers by diffusing the high-stakes observation. TBO preaches personalization - encouraging teachers to strengthen their brand of instruction while making post-observations about mutual understanding rather than unilateral prescriptions for pedagogical improvement. This book is essential for administrators who want to create a school environment where teachers, like students, are heard and rewarded for taking risks in efforts to improve knowledge and practice.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews

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