Teacher Leaders Providing Classroom Support to Teachers through Demonstration Lessons/Modeling
Practice-Based Insights on Teacher Leaders Providing Classroom Support to Teachers through Demonsration Lessons/Modeling
Teacher leaders - current or former classroom teachers working with other classroom teachers and other educators in the school or district - are present in many reform efforts in mathematics and science education. Demonstration lessons are one of a variety of strategies teacher leaders can use to provide instructional support to classroom teachers. They can provide an existence proof that "your kids can...". Or, they can scaffold teachers learning a particular pedagogical strategy by offering a shared image of a particular practice for the purpose of discussion and analysis. Advice from experienced practitioners offers guidance to those involved in teacher leaders' efforts to provide classroom support to teachers through demonstration lessons/modeling. Insights provided by a group of expert practitioners with diverse backgrounds and experiences in working with teachers included the following ideas:
- Knowledge matters - Make sure teacher leaders understand the content and concepts to be developed in demonstration lesson.
- It could happen here! - Advocate that teacher leaders provide demonstration lessons in a classroom setting that is realistic and similar to the teacher's classroom.
- Keep it real - Make sure that a teacher leader's demonstration lesson is purposeful and relevant to the teacher's current work.
- Identify a focus - Emphasize with teacher leaders that a teacher's observation of a demonstration lesson needs to be framed by a specific question or issue.
- It's what you do and what you say - Make sure there is time for the teacher and teacher leader to debrief and discuss what the teacher understood from the observation.
- Get on the same page - Advocate that a teacher leader and a teacher share expectations about what constitutes good instruction.
- Timing is everything - Work with teacher leaders to be purposeful about when and with whom demonstration lessons are used.
- Reaching more teachers - Recommend that teacher leaders use demonstration lessons with groups of teachers.
Teacher Leadership Matters
Empirical evidence shows that teacher leaders' practice impacts teachers' instructional practice and, in some studies, provides evidence of positive impact on student outcomes. Findings across studies include:
- Teacher leaders' practice, particularly in providing instructional support to teachers, impacts teachers' classroom practice.
- Teacher leaders' practice occurs in a larger context of conditions that impact teachers' practice.
- Teacher leaders' practice is related to positive student outcomes.
Learn more about research on why teacher leadership matters
Research on Teacher Leaders Engaging in Demonstration Lessons/Modeling
In a review of the published literature, fourteen research studies were identified of teacher leader programs in which teacher leaders engage in demonstration lesson or modeling as an instructional support strategy. These studies were distributed across the grade range and across subject areas, suggesting that demonstration lesson or modeling was considered appropriate in various classroom settings. Among these studies, demonstration lesson or modeling appeared in various ways: one set investigated the impact of an intervention (such as teacher leader training) or teacher leader content knowledge on teacher leader practices including demonstration lesson or modeling; another set of studies examined the relationship between teacher leader practices, such as demonstration lesson or modeling, and changes in teachers' classroom practice and student learning outcomes. In each of the fourteen studies, demonstration lesson or modeling was investigated as part of a set of teacher leader instructional support strategies and not focused on the unique contribution of demonstration lesson or modeling as a specific strategy. The findings suggest that certain factors, such as teacher leader content knowledge, may impact the likelihood of teacher leaders engaging in demonstration lesson or modeling as an instructional support strategy, and that teacher leader use of instructional support strategies, including demonstration lesson or modeling, yields positive results on the practices of those teachers with whom they work.
