Teaching Better

Igniting and Sustaining Instructional Improvement
Bradley A. Ermeling - Research Scientist and Educational Consultant
Genevieve J. Graff-Ermeling - Concordia International School Shanghai
Teaching Better
March 2016 | 200 pages | Corwin
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eBook
ISBN: 9781506334899
Available from January 0001
Paperback
ISBN: 9781506333465
Available from January 0001

Description

Discover the power of collaborative inquiry!

This unique, visually stunning resource is packed with details to ignite and sustain the collaborative improvement of teaching and learning. Includes U.S. and international case studies, powerful metaphors, application exercises, a Leader’s Guide, a companion website, digital templates, and more. Learn what lesson study and collaborative inquiry can and should look like. Find the guidance you need to lead and support school-wide, inquiry-based improvement!

“If you think improving teaching is hard, hard work, this book will confirm that belief. But it also shows, through careful observation and research, how much can be achieved when the work of getting better is done right. A true inspiration for educators who want to improve both their own craft and the methods of the profession.”
Jim Stigler & James Hiebert
Authors of The Teaching Gap


“Teaching Better is a rich, knowledgeable, authoritative tour de force. It combines beautifully selected imagery, solidly crafted guiding principles with compelling evidence and personal accounts of practice. But while imagining and thinking big, the book attends to the detail, offering school and system leaders many practical strategies for steering enquiry, quality, and cultural change in schools. This book should ignite the imaginations of policy makers, professionals and leaders worldwide.”
Peter Dudley 
Visiting Professor of Education at Leicester University, Secretary of the World Association of Lesson Studies, Education Adviser under three prime ministers, & Founder of Lesson Study UK


Contents

List of Improvement Portraits

List of Improvement Portraits

List of Companion Website Content

List of Companion Website Content

Foreword by Ronald Gallimore

Foreword by Ronald Gallimore

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

About the Authors

About the Artists

  • Introduction
  • 1. One Plank at a Time: The Steady Discipline of Instructional Improvement
  • 2. Learning to Learn From Teaching: A Firsthand Account of Lesson Study in Japan
  • 3. Expanding Horizons: A Case Study of US Teachers Collaborating to Change Practice
  • 4. Deepening Knowledge: Why Expansive Change Is Difficult and What We Might Do About It
  • 5. Matching Vision With Resources: A Reconceived Model for Leadership and Assistance
  • 6. Multiplying Power: How Joint Productive Activity Revived Two Problematic Teams
  • 7. Remaining Stubborn for a Long Time: Six Practitioner Stories of Courage and Persistence

Appendix: Leader’s Guide to Improvement Portraits

Appendix: Leader’s Guide to Improvement Portraits

Glossary: Japanese Words and Phrases

Glossary: Japanese Words and Phrases

Index

Index

Additional materials

Description

Discover the power of collaborative inquiry!

This unique, visually stunning resource is packed with details to ignite and sustain the collaborative improvement of teaching and learning. Includes U.S. and international case studies, powerful metaphors, application exercises, a Leader’s Guide, a companion website, digital templates, and more. Learn what lesson study and collaborative inquiry can and should look like. Find the guidance you need to lead and support school-wide, inquiry-based improvement!

“If you think improving teaching is hard, hard work, this book will confirm that belief. But it also shows, through careful observation and research, how much can be achieved when the work of getting better is done right. A true inspiration for educators who want to improve both their own craft and the methods of the profession.”
Jim Stigler & James Hiebert
Authors of The Teaching Gap


“Teaching Better is a rich, knowledgeable, authoritative tour de force. It combines beautifully selected imagery, solidly crafted guiding principles with compelling evidence and personal accounts of practice. But while imagining and thinking big, the book attends to the detail, offering school and system leaders many practical strategies for steering enquiry, quality, and cultural change in schools. This book should ignite the imaginations of policy makers, professionals and leaders worldwide.”
Peter Dudley 
Visiting Professor of Education at Leicester University, Secretary of the World Association of Lesson Studies, Education Adviser under three prime ministers, & Founder of Lesson Study UK


Contents

List of Improvement Portraits

List of Improvement Portraits

List of Companion Website Content

List of Companion Website Content

Foreword by Ronald Gallimore

Foreword by Ronald Gallimore

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

About the Authors

About the Artists

  • Introduction
  • 1. One Plank at a Time: The Steady Discipline of Instructional Improvement
  • 2. Learning to Learn From Teaching: A Firsthand Account of Lesson Study in Japan
  • 3. Expanding Horizons: A Case Study of US Teachers Collaborating to Change Practice
  • 4. Deepening Knowledge: Why Expansive Change Is Difficult and What We Might Do About It
  • 5. Matching Vision With Resources: A Reconceived Model for Leadership and Assistance
  • 6. Multiplying Power: How Joint Productive Activity Revived Two Problematic Teams
  • 7. Remaining Stubborn for a Long Time: Six Practitioner Stories of Courage and Persistence

Appendix: Leader’s Guide to Improvement Portraits

Appendix: Leader’s Guide to Improvement Portraits

Glossary: Japanese Words and Phrases

Glossary: Japanese Words and Phrases

Index

Index

Additional materials

SAGE Publishing Logo

Teaching Better

Igniting and Sustaining Instructional Improvement


March 2016 | 200 pages | Corwin

Format Published Date ISBN Price
Paperback 28/04/2023 9781506333465 $39.95
Lifetime 28/04/2023 9781506334899 $36.00

Discover the power of collaborative inquiry!

This unique, visually stunning resource is packed with details to ignite and sustain the collaborative improvement of teaching and learning. Includes U.S. and international case studies, powerful metaphors, application exercises, a Leader’s Guide, a companion website, digital templates, and more. Learn what lesson study and collaborative inquiry can and should look like. Find the guidance you need to lead and support school-wide, inquiry-based improvement!

“If you think improving teaching is hard, hard work, this book will confirm that belief. But it also shows, through careful observation and research, how much can be achieved when the work of getting better is done right. A true inspiration for educators who want to improve both their own craft and the methods of the profession.”
Jim Stigler & James Hiebert
Authors of The Teaching Gap


“Teaching Better is a rich, knowledgeable, authoritative tour de force. It combines beautifully selected imagery, solidly crafted guiding principles with compelling evidence and personal accounts of practice. But while imagining and thinking big, the book attends to the detail, offering school and system leaders many practical strategies for steering enquiry, quality, and cultural change in schools. This book should ignite the imaginations of policy makers, professionals and leaders worldwide.”
Peter Dudley 
Visiting Professor of Education at Leicester University, Secretary of the World Association of Lesson Studies, Education Adviser under three prime ministers, & Founder of Lesson Study UK



Table Of Contents:

  • List of Improvement Portraits
  • List of Companion Website Content
  • Foreword by Ronald Gallimore
  • Acknowledgments
  • About the Authors
  • About the Artists
  • Introduction
  • 1. One Plank at a Time: The Steady Discipline of Instructional Improvement
  • 2. Learning to Learn From Teaching: A Firsthand Account of Lesson Study in Japan
  • 3. Expanding Horizons: A Case Study of US Teachers Collaborating to Change Practice
  • 4. Deepening Knowledge: Why Expansive Change Is Difficult and What We Might Do About It
  • 5. Matching Vision With Resources: A Reconceived Model for Leadership and Assistance
  • 6. Multiplying Power: How Joint Productive Activity Revived Two Problematic Teams
  • 7. Remaining Stubborn for a Long Time: Six Practitioner Stories of Courage and Persistence
  • Appendix: Leader’s Guide to Improvement Portraits
  • Glossary: Japanese Words and Phrases
  • Index

Recent Product Reviews:

"If you think improving teaching is hard, hard work, this book will confirm that belief. But it also shows, through careful observation and research, how much can be achieved when the work of getting better is done right. A true inspiration for educators who want to improve both their own craft and the methods of the profession."
Jim Stigler and James Hiebert, Authors of The Teaching Gap
"Written by two teachers who experienced lesson study while they taught in Japan, this well-written book makes an important contribution to our understanding of lesson study and instructional improvement more broadly. Compelling case studies bring to life the process of collaborative inquiry. Teachers, coaches, school and district administrators will find useful tools to grow and support school-wide inquiry-based improvement."
Catherine Lewis, Distinguished Research Scholar, Mills College Oakland
"Teaching Better is a rich, knowledgable, authoritative tour de force. It combines beautifully selected imagery, solidly crafted guiding principles with compelling evidence and personal accounts of practice and improvement. But while imagining and thinking big, the book attends to the detail (as its principles dictate), offering school and system leaders many practical strategies for steering enquiry, quality, cultural change and impact in schools. The passion, authenticity and authority of the authors ring out on every page. This book should ignite the imaginations of policy makers as well as professionals and leaders worldwide."
Peter Dudley, Visiting Professor of Education at Leicester University, Secretary of the World Association of Lesson Studies, Education adviser under three prime ministers, & founder of Lesson Study UK
"Through compelling images, metaphors and insights from their research in Japan and the United States, Brad Ermeling and Genevieve Graff-Ermeling vividly remind us that learning to teach well is an ongoing journey for the long haul. This powerful book is a must read for teachers and leaders who embrace the idea of deep and continuous instructional improvement and want to know how to realize it in their schools."
Margaret Heritage, Senior Scientist, WestEd
"Teaching Better is a compelling and detailed account of the "talk," interactions, and work products that characterize substantive improvement activities. A significant contribution to the work of improvement science."
Ronald Gallimore, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, UCLA

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