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We invest in strategic thinking and fresh ideas for tackling the global challenges that shape our world. We prioritize issues with transformative potential for the Sustainable Development Goals and climate action, and track emerging issues at the frontier of the UN's agenda so that the world can be better prepared for tomorrow's needs.

We connect global policymakers with evidence of what works, and we seek to stimulate new thinking about innovation and reform that can help modernize the UN's ability to deliver its core mission.

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We invest in strategic thinking and fresh ideas for tackling the global challenges that shape our world. We prioritize issues with transformative potential for the Sustainable Development Goals and climate action, and track emerging issues at the frontier of the UN's agenda so that the world can be better prepared for tomorrow's needs.

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Instead of doing math problems with no context, students at this school role-play real jobs.

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Nothing is more satisfying than collaborating with like minded people. What a great bunch of GOOD people.

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Organizational Health and Robust School Vision

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Organizational Health and Robust School Vision

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That hit me like a rolled-up newspaper.

As I absorbed this veteran educator's words, I realized that not only was I wrong in my assumption that I (or any teacher) is a meanigful audience, but also that my assumptions about how grading and assessment work were so far removed from modern research that I might as well have been a 21st-century doctor treating humours.

Over the years I've come to believe that the use of single-shot, for-point assessments is one the worst possible things we can do to students. If the students don't recognize assessments as a chance to show their learning, then these things aren't even assessments; they're something altogether alien to real learning.

Fortunately, there are many approaches we can take within our own classrooms to change this situation. With a few changes, we can make assessment a loved part of the educational process.

Here are a few ideas to get started.

Change Your Gradebook into a Logbook

Only list things in your gradebook that students and parents can Google. If the search of that assignment title doesn't bring up the beginning of the breadcrumb trail you intended, then you need to word it better.

I used to list things like "Quiz 1" or "Homework from Chapter 3" in my gradebook. No one has any idea what those are, and if those scores are low, no one has any idea how the kid can improve them.

This is opposite of how psychology shows that humans work. We want to be shown our mistakes so we can fix them. Student grades need to fluidly move up and down as kids show learning, retention or lack thereof.

So, start listing the big ideas from your course as your assignments. A parent can really help their kid when they know they've got these grades:

1. Net Force and Vectors: 5/10

2. Momentum: 9/10

3. Energy Conservation: 10/10

Finally, allow those numbers to change as you learn more about the student's abilities -- or, in keeping with the intention of school, as he or she learns more throughout the year!

My students have noted this in every end-of-course evaluation I've given them: the fact that they can change their grade by mastering the material is so much more enabling than bringing in a box of Kleenex for ten arbitrary points.

Allow for Alternative Assessment Types

This is the key to a reformed performance assessment strategy. Since the '70s, we've known that people of equal ability assess differently depending on the assessment schema. ¹

This matters. A lot.

If a student is capable but assessing poorly, that student will only persist for so long until he or she quits, and that's the stuff of tragedy.

Here are some things I've used as formative and summative assessments:

1. Paper Quizzes

I can hear you groaning, but they still have a place as long as the students see them as plastic instead of concrete -- a tool of many uses instead of a make-it-or-break-it moment. Students also need to see quizzes as an opportunity to let you, their teacher, into what they don't know. Ask questions that demand meta-cognition. Have them identify the limits of their abilities. Quizzes need to inform a larger picture painted in tandem with some other assessment options.

2. Product-Oriented Projects

Build this, fix that. I have students hanging Calder-style mobiles from my ceiling right now to assess their understanding of torque.

3. Process-Oriented Projects

Product is irrelevant; the flowers-stopped-and-smelled are all that matter. This is often how things work in math courses. We want students to learn the parlance and joy of curiosity simply by trying to answer a question. I recently had students fail at colliding two rockets, but they admitted to knowing more about calculus, rockets and trajectories than they ever would have learned by staying in the classroom.

4. Interviews

Pull students from the hallway during lunch or before school, and have a heart-to-heart about a learning target they don't get. Find out what they really don't know. Ask them to verbalize the big idea. Ask them to explain what part they always get stuck on. Ask them if they have context. Why would you want to know how to find the directrix of a parabola? Do one or two of these interviews each day, and just keep cycling through your students.

5. Writing

Ask essay questions in math. Ask for big ideas. What are the limits of calculus? What would math be like if the library at Alexandria hadn't been sacked?

6. Art

Can the students demonstrate the concept beautifully? Provocatively? Can they force a conversation about their learning just by creating something? I once had a student create a mirror etched with images of corn kernels. I've never had such conversations about corn's prevalence in the American diet. That was a biology class to remember!

7. Ditch the Numbers

You don't have to use points to grade students at all. Keep a running journal online of the work they're doing on each of your learning targets. Add your own feedback into the conversation, and upload the work that the students do to prove they're proficient. These records will be thousands of times more valuable than any GPA when they apply for jobs and college admission.

The key here is that the assessment of the student hinges on combining data from more than one of these options. Take a student's performance on a quiz about ancient Egypt. Combine that with an oral interview later in the year about Egypt's influence on Rome. Finally, combine those two data points with a mapping project showing the flow of trading through the ancient world. Now you can decide how much that student knows about Egypt. If the quiz doesn't match, perhaps it's OK to throw it out.

Announce Learning When You See It

In physics this week, a student puzzled so deftly through a laboratory setup to study collisions that I was powerless against his knowledge. He refused my instructions to set up an impossible pool shot, and formed the physics into a palpable argument, not because I was testing him, but because we were having a conversation. I immediately gave him full credit for our learning target about momentum, because there was no way that he didn't understand the big idea.

Later I'll see how he performs on a pencil-paper test, but for now, I'll record what I know about him.

This flexibility in reporting has a manic effect on the other students. They can't wait to show off how much they know. They also can't wait to talk about what learning looks like. Win.

Seek Out Authentic Audiences

All of this is moot if the students aren't blazing ahead, motivated by the ingrained social need that comes with being human.

Most teachers' first foray into this approach often involves having an expert of some sort (mine was an engineer at a local firm) come in to critique a student's project. This is cute, and often has some positive outcomes, but it's a billion times more powerful to have the student select the audience out of necessity.

Ensure that it is impossible for the teacher to be the audience. That's what it means to have found authentic audience in your classroom.

I once watched a room full of chemistry students furiously fermenting an exotic species of switchgrass. The fervor in the room was contagious, and I jumped in to help.

I asked the students why they were so excited, and one turned to me and said, "This is for a town in the Philippines. We Skyped with them last week, and we found some of the same grass they have. We want to help them make ethanol. Regular gasoline is a really high cost of farming for them, and they have a lot of switchgrass."

I almost tripped over what seemed too contrived to be true, but I realized that these kids were actually doing what people claim to want to do: they found a problem, and they were fixing it.

Finding authentic audiences can be complicated and often time-consuming. Get on Monster.com, find the companies in your area that do what you teach, and email the secretaries. Find the local college professors that teach what you teach and ask them to explain their research to your students. Start curating a list of community members that will donate time and resources to your school, and don't be afraid to email all of them whenever you need ideas or materials.

Most importantly, find someone who has a question to which no one knows the answer. Trust the content of your core curriculum to show its face while your kids investigate Chaucer, or wind energy, or programming, or whatever.

I asked the teacher of the switchgrass students how she knew if her students were learning any chemistry. She laughed at me.

Sources

¹ Marzano, Robert. http://www.marzanoresearch.com/research/about

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Deeper Learning: Performance Assessment and Authentic Audience

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That hit me like a rolled-up newspaper. As I absorbed this veteran educator's words, I realized that not only was I wrong in my assumption that I (or any teacher) is a meanigful audience, but also that my assumptions about how grading and assessment work were so far removed from modern research that I might as well have been a 21st-century doctor treating humours.

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Dancing Guy doesn't teach good leadership lessons

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Dancing Guy doesn't teach good leadership lessons

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Developing leaders for an IB World School

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Developing leaders for an IB World School

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"Dancing Guy doesn’t teach good leadership lessons" by L. Ferlazzo

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"Dancing Guy doesn’t teach good leadership lessons" by L. Ferlazzo

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http://smartblogs.com/education/2012/07/20/the-dancing-guy-talk-doesnt-teach-good-leadership-lessons/http://smartblogs.com/education/2012/07/20/the-dancing-guy-talk-doesnt-teach-good-leadership-lessons/

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GRASPS - an example of writing authentic assessments

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GRASPS - an example of writing authentic assessments

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IB Leadership intelligences - literature review

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IB Leadership intelligences - literature review

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Click link below to read

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Page not found - Top Nonprofits by Nexus Marketing

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Learning From the Best Nonprofit Orgs and Leaders

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Enhance your learning about the IB curriculum and authorization process, with our free Professional Development (PD) learning resources, across all four IB programmes.

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Please select a country in the dropdown menu below to see the values for the 6 dimensions. After a first country has been selected, a second and even a third country can be chosen to be able to see a comparison of their scores.

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It may be helpful to create assessment templates for teachers to use for summative assessments.

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Jo Boaler - Enquiry Based Learning for mathematics.

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Identifying MYP unit plan at the sharing level

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Identifying MYP unit plan at the sharing level

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The Teacher 50: Critical Questions for Inspiring Classroom ExcellenceBaruti Kafele

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The Teacher 50: Critical Questions for Inspiring Classroom ExcellenceBaruti Kafele

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Great resource to inspire and cultivate the minds of educators at your school.

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Fairfax Network - Fairfax County Public Schools

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ATL: The Big Picture - overview of designing an ATL skills programme by Lance G King

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4 Disciplines of Execution by Franklin Covey

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4 Disciplines of Execution by Franklin Covey

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Each discipline can be accessed at four levels — Learn, Apply, Facilitate, and Create — allowing for easier implementation of the 4 Disciplines solution. The 4 Disciplines of Execution is a simple, repeatable, and proven formula for executing on your most important strategic priorities in the midst of "the whirlwind."

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Approaches to Learning: enable learning improvement through the practise of ATL Skills

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Identifying MYP unit plan at the sharing level

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Identifying MYP unit plan at the sharing level

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MYP Building Quality Curriculum (MYP BQC) provides guidance and feedback on MYP unit plans, supporting continuous improvement of written, taught and assessed curriculum.

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Great tool for understanding where achievement gaps begin.

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Great tool for understanding where achievement gaps begin.

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Summer Learning Loss explained by Brian Williams of NBC Nightly News.

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Summer Learning Loss explained by Brian Williams of NBC Nightly News

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This document isn't fully complete but you may complete it with your staff! :)

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This is a protocol for Classroom Observations adapted from Ron Ritchhart(Cultures of Thinking) 

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This is a protocol for Classroom Observations adapted from Ron Ritchhart(Cultures of Thinking) 

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April 2010 - National Geographic Magazine

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National Geographic stories take you on a journey that's always enlightening, often surprising, and unfailingly fascinating. This month-Water: Our Thirsty World

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Imagine that a school is a car, and that the teachers are the engine, what would happen if each and every day, we drive and drive and drive giving little to no thought about it's upkeep or maintanance? Obviously, it will eventually breakdown requiring major repairs to get it running efficiently again, but unlike a car, finding suitable resolutions for the problems could be a long, drawn out and expensive process that could ultimately culminate in a situation that could damage a schools profesional reputation. In today's world, being a teacher is a never ending challenge. Besides the daily responsibility of planning, preparing, teaching and marking, teachers have to deal with students who have behavioral problems, family issues, learning disabilities, and more. As a school Headmaster / administrator, keeping your teachers motivated is one of your most important roles if your school is to be successful.

1. Be an active presence in the school.

An administrator who spends their days locked in their office attending solely to administrative matters is guarateed to head a school that will ultimately fail to reach it's full potential. To understand what is happening in a school merely through the updates of others such as coordinators will ultimately culminate in a mental illusion of the true reality. Apart from administrative duties, your role is to also keep your teachers' happy, to make their lives easier so that they can teach effectively and your students can reap the rewards through a higher level of education. Visit classes, talk to students, visit their presentation days, join them in art classes or play a game of football with them. Show your teachers, and students that you are human, that you are interested in them and their education and that you care about their success. Help your teachers where posible when they have a lot of work to do and ask them if they need help with anything so that they do not feel like you are out of touch with their reality. In addition, where posible, help your teachers through the use of additional materials and technology.

2. Give them freedom. Teachers are natural born leaders.

Great teachers are natural born leaders. Each and every day, they take the reins in their classroom and lead their students forwards in an effort to achieve great success. A good administrator accepts this reality, and within the structure of their school, allows their teachers to create, to experiment and to succeed. A good administrator gives their teachers freedom, accepts their mistakes without penalty and rewards their positive achievements. Only through supported freedom, and the positive and negatives that it presents, can teachers reach their ultimate level of success as an educator.

Teachers are professionals, and whilst none of them are perfect, they do deserve to be treated with the sufficient level of respect that is deserving of their position. Respect is like gasoline in a car engine, it provides the energy that is needed to move forward in an efficient manner. In my experience, administrators who give respect always receive the highest level of committment from their teachers.

Teachers are some of the most creative professionals in the world, but many work under restrictive rules and guidelines that stifle their creativity and enthusiasm. Administrators need to challenge their teachers, they need to push them, to set high expectations and to demand only the very best results. To achieve this, we need to reward them with the freedom that they need to fly free, to think outside of the box and to feel that they can achieve greatness without restrictions. Administrators need to take some risks, allow some freedom and then challenge their teachers, because only then will their teachers feel that they are able to meet the stringent standards that are set for them.

5. Positive reinforcement

When a teacher feels that they are a respected, valued member of the team, then generally speaking, they will feel positive and motivated. Positive reinforcement is one of the most powerful tools that an administrator can use when creating a motivated team. A simple hand shakeor words of encouragement such as "Well done", "Good work" or "I'm proud of you" is often all that it takes to make a teacher know how truly important that they are in the school. Making each teacher feel valued can be as simple as an announcement during assembly thanking the teacher for something that they have recently done. You can also organize a special lunch or dinner where you can personally thank teachers for their outstanding contributions to the school.

6. Start each day on a positive note.

Each morning, weather it is at the gate, or in the classrooms, take the time to greet each teacher individually with a smile, a hand shake or a hug (Depending upon the culture of where your school is located). This simple, but important gesture can break down traditional barriers that are often found between administrators and teachers. Show them that you were once a teacher too, and that you know, and respect them for who they are, and what they do.

Consider purchasing something small, like department store gift cards or tickets to the cinema that you can give to teachers who go above and beyond general expectations. This way, you will show them that you not only noticed their additional efforts, but that you appreciate and reward them for being conciencious, hard working professionals.

8. Encourage professional development.

Good teachers love to learn, they constantly challenge themselves to be the best that they can be. As part of general school policy, administrators should offer regular professional development for their teachers both within, and outside the school. This could include conferences and workshops from a variety of profesional sources such as book publishers, distributors, governmental departments or through educational associations.

9. Teachers have voices too.

Being left out of an important decision that affects their job is the easiest way for a teacher to lose their motivation. Many teachers would love the opportunity to be involved in these decisions if you gave them the opportunity. Invite a teacher from each grade to be a representative during academic meetings in order to get their opinion and to hear their proposed strategies. These teachers could also form an effective médium between the administration and the other teachers who make up their grade. Also hold regular meetings where every teacher is able to attend and have an opportunity to express themselves freely, and without fear of consequences.

10. Empower teachers' with the freedom to experiment.

Everybody has strengths and weaknesses. When teachers are able to use their strengths in the classroom, students become more engaged and inspired. It may be difficult for some teachers to understand their strengths and how they fit into the curriculum, but when the administrator encourages them to try, to experiment, and then supports their efforts, then the outcome for the students will always be more positive. Take the time and make the effort to help teachers to figure out what works well in their classroom, and then have each teacher reflect about what they tried, and the results that they achieved. Through experimenting, and reflexión, teachers will always be happier, more positive, and more successful.

When making changes, or conducting profesional development workshops, schedule them for times when the teachers workloads are at their lightest. If it is the end of the semester, and students grades / report cards are due, don't schedule workshops or other time consuming activities that could increase their stress level.

Having your teachers work together in teams can have a significant impact on their level of motivation. The most experienced teachers will always be recognized for their best teaching strategies whilst younger, less experienced teachers will receive validation from the fact that the things that they have been trying are actually working. Consider creating professional learning/ development/ academic teams within your school to create a more formal structure for team collaboration.

Keeping teachers motivated can be a constant challenge, but it is essential if your students' are to achieve the máximum level of educational success. Great teachers are those that are able to think and teach freely, who are motivated to excel and who take pride in their students' success.

To all of the Headmasters, Principles and administrators, I hope that this article gives you a few useful ideas on how to manage, and motivate your teachers so that your students, and your school achive the highest academic level posible.

David White
Headmaster "El Cultural American School" Trujillo Peru
Managing Director "English For You Language Institute" Trujillo Peru.
International educational consultant.
dwenglishforyou@outlook.com

This article was first written in 2007 and then updated in 2019

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12 TIPS FOR MOTIVATING SCHOOL TEACHERS IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE A SUCCESSFUL CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT.

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Imagine that a school is a car, and that the teachers are the engine, what would happen if each and every day, we drive and drive and drive giving little to no thought about it's upkeep or maintanance?