The Benefits of Specific Feedback

Speci c [spi-sif-ik]– adjective: having a special application, bearing, or reference; explicit or de nite. (Dictionary.com)When speaking with teachers about observed episodes of instruction, it is good to remember the bene ts of making that feedback speci c,...

What Type of Talent?

All human beings have talents… and weaknesses. In their best-selling book, Now Discover Your Strengths, Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton define talent as “a recurring pattern of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied”....

The Case for Coaching

Skillful instruction drives student achievement. Simply stated, a teacher’s pedagogy (skill in the art and science of teaching) clearly and directly affects the rate and degree of student learning. Since pedagogy is a skill-set, not merely a knowledge base, it is best...

A Primer on Talent

It is an oversimplification of course, but when one considers all the possible approaches to developing teachers and teaching, they generally fall into one of two categories. The first category is called needs assessment. In this approach, we appraise the teacher’s...