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The Three-Minute Classroom Walk-Through
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The Three-Minute Classroom Walk-Through
Changing School Supervisory Practice One Teacher at a Time

First Edition


May 2004 | 224 pages | Corwin

Change the entire school culture with this collaborative method of supervision!

For years, the classic supervision model has frustrated both principals and teachers by fostering superior-subordinate relationships, focusing on teacher conformity rather than growth, or producing checklist data that is irrelevant to the curriculum. The Three-Minute Classroom Walk-Through offers a practical, time-saving alternative that impacts student achievement by cultivating self-reliant teachers who are continuously improving their practice.

Easy to understand and adopt, this method will answer the questions most important to principals:

  • Is the work of my teachers aligned with the district curriculum?
  • Are my teachers using research-based "best practices"?
  • Are they choosing the instructional strategies that will promote student achievement?

Also known as the Downey Walk-through, the method presented in The Three-Minute Classroom Walk-Through has been developed over a 40-year period, tested and refined in actual teaching environments, and taught internationally.

Also see:
The Three-Minute Classroom Walk-Through (Multimedia Kit)


 
Preface
 
About the Authors
 
Dedication
 
1. Understanding the Rationale Underlying the Walk-Through and Reflective Practice Approach
What is the Downey Walk-Through?

 
Why Walk-Throughs?

 
The Evolution of the Downey Walk-Through Process

 
 
2. Conducting the Walk-Through Observation: A Five-Step Process
The Five-Step Observation Structure

 
Step 1: Student Orientation to Work

 
Step 2: Curricular Decision Points

 
Step 3: Instructional Decision Points

 
Step 4: "Walk the Walls" - Curricular and Instructional Decisions

 
Step 5: Safety and Health Issues

 
 
3. Moving Staff to Reflective Inquiry: Focusing on the Reflective Question and Conversation
How Do We Provide Direct Feedback?

 
The Note

 
A Better Approach-Discussion

 
Direct Feedback Statement and Conversation

 
How Do We Provide Indirect Opportunities for Reflective Inquiry?

 
How Do We Ask Reflective Questions and Carry On the Conversation?

 
How Do We Ask Reflective Questions and Carry On the Conversation?

 
The Reflective Conversation

 
 
4. Constructing a Taxonomy of Reflective Questions and Their Use in the Classroom Walk-
Through

 
The Novice/Apprentice

 
The Professional Teacher

 
The Expert Teacher

 
Limitations of the Taxonomy

 
 
5. Establishing Logistical Procedures for Implementing the Walk-Through Process
Finding the Time

 
Preparing Staff, Students, and Parents

 
Record Keeping

 
Board Policy to Support Walk-Throughs

 
 
6. Cultivating the Culture: Effectuating Change that Works
Lessons Learned About Change in Educational Cultures

 
Challenges and Barriers to Change

 
Deciding When to Intervene: The Marginal Teacher

 
Examples of Successful Implementation: Making the Walk-Through Process Work

 
Salinas Union High School District, California

 
Norman Public Schools, Norman, Oklahoma

 
Durham and Simco County School Boards, Ontario, Canada

 
Napa Valley Schools, Napa Valley, California

 
Shawnee Mission School District, Shawnee Mission, Kansas

 
Columbia-Brazoria Independent School District, Texas

 
San Leandro Unified School District, California

 
San Benito County, California, County Office of Education

 
Cultivating the Culture: A Final Word

 
 
7. Using the Walk-Through Process to Promote a Collaborative, Reflective Culture
Early History

 
Developmental Supervision and Mentoring

 
The Teacher as an Adult Learner

 
Promoting Development

 
 
8. Determining Whether Walk-Throughs Are the Right Stuff
Background and History of Management by Wandering Around

 
Why Are Both a Research and a Theory Base Needed Before Adopting An Innovation?

 
The MBWA Research Results

 
The Walk-Through with Reflective Question Research

 
 
9. Understanding the Walk-Through as a Discursive Practice
Examining the Dimensions of the Walk-Through

 
Changing the Discursive Practice of "Corrective" Supervision

 
Some Issues With the Model

 
A Pause to Consider Your Specific Situation

 
Troubleshooting Problems with the Downey Walk-Through

 
 
10. Linking the Walk-Through Process to a Model of Teacher Growth
Walk-Throughs and the Teacher Growth Model

 
The Model

 
Transformative Learning as it Relates to the Model

 
Organizational Learning and Transformation

 
Providing Feedback Conversation for Growth

 
 
Index

"The book is easy to read and easy to understand. The information is practical and provides an excellent resource for administrators who are truly interested in improving instruction."

Edward Chevallier, Executive Director, Curriculum & Staff Development
Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD, Carrollton, TX
Key features
  • Very strong authorship team
  • Emphasize time management, increased feedback for teachers, and a truly collaborative process
  • The book is a very practical approach to the process, proscriptive and applied to make the process easy to understand and adopt.
  • Workshops for the Downey model are currently being offered through Phi Delta Kappa, ACSA, and the Texas Association of School Administrators. The model has also been presented at NSDC.

For instructors

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