Good to Outstanding

In the last post, we learned to "Watch the Game Film," in other words, learning what great teaching looks like by viewing videos of it. Today's post is a follow-up to that idea.

"Good to Outstanding" is a video series that does just what the name implies. They take good teachers and attempt to make their lessons truly outstanding. They accomplish this aim by bring in an expert to observe lessons and then meet with the teacher. During this meeting, the observer is very specific about what was good, what could have been better, and exactly how to make it so. We then see the same teacher in action again, still with the same observer in the room. We also here the feedback given to the teacher after that second lesson. Was the lesson outstanding?

Could your own teaching improve by watching? I really think so. I have been impressed with the quality and specificity of the feedback. To watch these videos, go to From Good to Outstanding.

What has helped you the most in perfecting your craft as a teacher?

Watch the Game Film

When I see educational topics discussed in a major business-related magazine, it tends to get my attention. If an editor felt a topic related to education was important enough for business executives to be familiar with, then I certainly need to be familiar with it. Such is the case with an article entitled "Watch the Game Film," which appeared in the June 2010 issue of Fast Company.

To illustrate the point they are trying to make to business executives, they examine the book Teach Like a Champion: 49 Techniques That Put Students on a Path to College. The title caught my eye because I had recently purchased and read the book. As its title suggests, the author identified strategies that great teachers use. Furthermore, the book contains a DVD of actual clips from classrooms where we see these strategies put into action. The book makes specific references to these clips at the appropriate points in the text, allowing the book and the DVD to work in tandem. It is a book that I enjoyed and heartily recommend to others.