Lesson Study
What is it? What are the challenges?
What should we see if it’s working?
San Francisco, February 15, 2008
Catherine Lewis & Rebecca Perry
Mills College, Oakland, CA
www.lessonresearch.net
[email protected]
This material is based upon work supported by the
National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0207259.
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or
recommendations expressed in this material are those of
the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of
the National Science Foundation.
What are the Important
Features of Lesson Study?
Please jot down a list…..
Lesson Study Cycle
1. STUDY
Study curriculum and standards
Consider long-term goals for student
learning and development
4. REFLECT
Share data
2. PLAN
What was learned about student
learning?
Select research lesson
Anticipate student thinking
What are implications for this unit
and more broadly?
What learnings and new questions
do we want to carry forward in our
work?
Plan data collection and lesson
3. DO RESEARCH
LESSON
One team member
teaches, others collect
data
How does lesson study improve instruction?
Visible Features of
Lesson Study
•Planning
•Curriculum Study
•Research Lesson
•Data Collection
•Discussion
•Revision
•Etc.
?
Instructional
Improvement
A Common (Mis) Conception of Lesson Study
Visible Features
of Lesson Study
•Planning
•Curriculum
Study
•Research Lesson
•Data Collection
•Discussion
•Revision
•Etc.
Key Pathway
Lesson Plans
Improve
Instructional
Improvement
Learning From and In Practice
Students
Teachers
Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000
Curriculum
Lesson Study Cycle
1. STUDY
Study curriculum and standards
Consider long-term goals for student
learning and development
4. REFLECT
Share data
2. PLAN
What was learned about student
learning?
Select research lesson
Anticipate student thinking
What are implications for this unit
and more broadly?
What learnings and new questions
do we want to carry forward in our
work?
Plan data collection and lesson
3. DO RESEARCH
LESSON
One team member
teaches, others collect
data
1. Study (Ex. from “Seats”)
• What can we do in elementary school
to help students succeed in algebra?
• Looked at lessons from several
curricula, studied recursive/functional
patterns
• Studied standards, curricula
Lesson Study Cycle
1. STUDY
Study curriculum and standards
Consider long-term goals for student
learning and development
2. PLAN
4. REFLECT
Select research lesson
Share data
Anticipate student thinking
2. PLAN
What was learned about student
learning?
Plan data collection and lesson
Select research lesson
Anticipate student thinking
What are implications for this unit
and more broadly?
What learnings and new questions
do we want to carry forward in our
work?
Plan data collection and lesson
3. DO RESEARCH
LESSON
One team member
teaches, others collect
data
Can patterns help us find an easy way to answer
the question:
How many seats fit around any number
of triangles, arranged in a row as shown?
INPUT
OUTPUT
Number of
Triangle
Tables
Number of
Seats
1
3
2
4
3
4
5
6
Plus Two
QuickTime™ and a
Cinepak decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
2. Plan. Example: “Seats”
• Surfaced misunderstandings and
different solution methods when they
did the task
• Surfaced different understandings of
“equation,” and different goals when
they prepared instructional plan
Lesson Study Cycle
1. STUDY
Study curriculum and standards
Consider long-term goals for student
learning and development
4. REFLECT
Share data
What was learned about student
learning?
3. DO RESEARCH
LESSON
One team member
teaches, others collect
data
What are implications for this unit
and more broadly?
What learnings and new questions
do we want to carry forward in our
work?
2. PLAN
Select research lesson
Anticipate student thinking
Plan data collection and lesson
3. DO RESEARCH
LESSON
One team member
teaches, others collect
data
Research Lesson 1
• All students filled out chart correctly but few could
verbalize meaning of +2 pattern
Research Lesson 2
• Chart eliminated, students solved individual problems,
shared findings
• Students showed their counting methods
• Most students could verbalize meaning of +2 pattern
QuickTime™ and a
Cinepak decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
3. Research Lesson
• Students’ counting methods revealed their
thinking
• “They could fill out the worksheet, but that
didn’t really tell us what they knew about
the pattern.”
• “Just because it’s in the textbook doesn’t
mean it’s the best way”
Lesson Study Cycle
1. STUDY
Study curriculum and standards
Consider long-term goals for student
learning and development
4. REFLECT
4. REFLECT
Share data
Share data
What was learned about student
learning?
What was learned about student
learning?
What are implications for this unit
and more broadly?
What learnings and new questions
do we want to carry forward in our
work?
What are implications for this unit
and more broadly?
What learnings and new questions
do we want to carry forward in our
work?
3. DO RESEARCH
LESSON
One team member
teaches, others collect
data
2. PLAN
Select research lesson
Anticipate student thinking
Plan data collection and lesson
Final Reflection on Lesson
Study Cycle
4. Reflect. Ex: “Seats”
• “Students need to do the work, not the
teacher”
• “In all this math…we’re only as good as our
own level of understanding, so we have to
keep pushing ourselves..”
• Teachers continued to study the impact of
worksheets
Learning From and In Practice
Students
Teachers
Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000
Curriculum
How Teachers Get Better At Learning
From Students
•
Observe and take notes during research lessons--lots
of practice over time
•
Teachers try student task themselves before lesson--get
insights from colleagues’ solutions
•
Multiple observers on same students--hear what your
colleagues, outside specialists see
•
Over LS cycles, choose more “thought-revealing”
tasks
Learning From and In Practice
Students
Teachers
Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000
Curriculum
Lesson Study Develops Capacity
to Learn From Colleagues
•
Build collaborative norms that enable
effective work, e.g. “sticking to the process”
•
Make beliefs “visible” and thereby amenable
to change
•
Create a culture where it’s safe to ask for help
•
Agree on important goals, concepts,
definitions and what they actually mean in
instruction, so students experience coherence
over years
Learning From Colleagues, cont’d
•
•
•
Build the belief that changes in instruction can
improve student learning
Increase aspirations- “I want my students to be
as eager as the students in that lesson”
Increase connection and sense of
accountability to colleagues - Everyone cares
about everyone’s teaching
Learning From and In Practice
Students
Teachers
Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000
Curriculum
Lesson Study Develops Capacity to
Learn From Curriculum (Including
Research and Outside Specialists)
•
Seeing strengths and weaknesses in textbook
•
Seeing how any mathematics unit connects to
standards, prior and subsequent learning
•
See need for own learning
•
Building learning communities that include
specialists and researchers
Highlands School
(K-5)
-
2000-01 1 volunteer LS group
-
2001-02 Most faculty join LS groups
-
2002-03 School-wide LS; continues
through present
Kappan, Dec. 2006 “Lesson Study Comes of Age in North
America”
Percent Statements Focused on Student
Thinking
60
50
40
Planning
Debrief
30
20
10
0
1
Year 1
2
Year 3
School-wide Lesson Study School
Net change in achievement, 2002-2005
100
Scaled score points
90
80
70
60
School
50
District
40
30
20
10
0
Mathematics
Subject Area Score
3-year net math increase for students in lesson-study
school more than triple that for district (F=.309,
845 df p<.001)
Common U.S. Challenges
1.
Poor curriculum that doesn’t make
learning visible
Asian Curriculum
(Lo, Watanabe, & Cai, 2004)
•
Ratio of rectangle
width to length using
1-, 5- or 10- cm
square units
•
2:3, 4:6, 20:30
US Curriculum
•
(McDougall
Littell, 2004)
These methods differ from the standard cross-multiply
and divide algorithm
Common U.S. Challenges
1.
Poor curriculum that doesn’t make
learning visible
2.
Difficulties in collaboration
Common U.S. Challenges
1.
Poor curriculum that doesn’t make
learning visible
2.
Difficulties in collaboration
3.
Poor data collection
4.
Mindset: It’s just about the lesson
5.
Reluctance to access expertise
Percent Statements Referring to Established
Sources (Standards, research, curricular, named
programs or expert)
18%
16%
14%
12%
10%
Series1
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%
year 1
year 3
Common U.S. Challenges
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Poor curriculum that doesn’t make
learning visible
Difficulties in collaboration
Poor data collection
Mindset: It’s just about the lesson
Reluctance to access expertise
Experts who tell rather than ask
Professional Development
TRADITIONAL
RESEARCH LESSONS
Begins with answer
Begins with question
Driven by expert
Driven by participants
Communication
trainer -> teachers
Communication among teachers
Relationship reciprocal
Relationships hierarchical
Practice is research
Research informs practice
By Lynn Liptak, Paterson School #2, New Jersey.
How does lesson study improve instruction?
Visible Features of
Lesson Study
•Planning
•Curriculum Study
•Research Lesson
•Data Collection
•Discussion
•Revision
•Etc.
Increased
Capacity to
Learn from
Colleagues,
Students,
Curriculum
Instructional
Improvement
How Does Lesson Study Improve Instruction?
Pathways
Visible Features of
Lesson Study
•Planning
•Curriculum Study
•Research Lesson
•Data Collection
•Discussion
•Revision
•Etc.
Increased knowledge
of subject matter and
instruction
Increased ability to
observe students
Stronger collegial
networks
Stronger connection of
daily practice to longterm goals
Stronger motivation to
learn and belief that
changes make a
difference
Improved materials
Instructional
Improvement
Revisit Your List of Lesson Study
Features
What Features are Missing?
What’s Evidence Will Show Whether Teachers
are Increasing Their Capacity to Learn From
Students, Colleagues & Curriculum?
Write Reflections on Handout
Resources: Live Lesson Study
Opportunities
Wayne, New Jersey (William Paterson University)
March 5-7, 2008. www.wpunj.edu/cpe/
Chicago (DePaul University) May 8-10,2008 &
August 4-8, 2008. www.lessonstudygroup.net/
Sacramento, CA (Sac State) May 16, 2008.
www.csus.edu/mase/
Further Information
Lesson Study: A Handbook...(Lewis) www.rbs.org
Building Our Understanding of Lesson Study (WangIverson & Yoshida; www.rbs.org)
Mills College Lesson Study Group
www.lessonresearch.net
Lesson Study Communities Project in Secondary
Mathematics www2.edc.org/lessonstudy/
Global Education Resources www.globaledresources.com
Univ. of Wisconsin www.uwlax.edu/sotl/lsp/
If we had to use one word to describe our work for
the past two years, it would be COURAGE
.... to maintain this philosophy and pedagogical
thinking as we struggled with our deficient
MCAS scores … overcrowded classrooms…
Lesson Study Communities Team Reflection,
Massachusetts
I feel the biggest mistake we can make when pitching
lesson study to US teachers is to tell them it is easy and
painless. It is hard and possibly painful and they should
prepare for it. The rewards, however, are fantastic. Real,
concrete, observable improvement occurs in teaching.
Middle School Math Teacher, Paterson School #2,
New Jersey
Email address:
[email protected]
[email protected]
Website address:
lessonresearch.net
The instructional practices and
assessments discussed or shown in
these presentations are not intended as
an endorsement by the
U.S. Department of Education.