Catherine C Lewis Lesson Learning Studies

1. Introduction to Lesson Study
Jönköping, Sweden
March 7, 2012
Catherine Lewis
Mills College, Oakland, CA
www.lessonresearch.net
Clewis@mills.edu
1

2. Lesson Study
1. STUDY
Consider long term goals for
student learning and
development
Study curriculum and
standards 2. PLAN
4. REFLECT
Select or revise research
Share data lesson
What was learned about Do task
students learning, lesson
design, this content? Anticipate student responses
What are implications for this Plan data collection and lesson
lesson and instruction more
broadly? 3. DO RESEARCH
LESSON
Conduct research lesson
Collect data
2

3. What is a Research Lesson?
1. Actual classroom lesson with students,
watched by other teachers
2. Planned for a long time, collaboratively
3. Brings to life a goal or vision of education
4. Recorded: video, audio, student work
5. Discussed by faculty and sometimes outside
commentators
3

4. Example 1: School-wide Lesson Study
Choosing a Lesson Study Theme
Think about the students you serve.
Your Ideals:
What qualities would you like these
students to have 5-10 years from now?
4

5. Choosing a Lesson Study Theme
Think about the students you serve.
The Actual:
List their qualities now.
5

6. Choosing a Lesson Study Theme
What is a gap between the ideal and the
actual that you would really like to work
on as an educator?
6

7. Choosing a Lesson Study Theme
Your Ideals:
The Actual:
The Gap:
The Research Theme: (long-term goal)
State positively the ideal student qualities you
choose to work on. For example:
“For students to:
-value friendship
-develop their own perspectives and ways of
thinking
- and enjoy science.”
7

8. MAP OF RESEARCH CONCEPTION
School’s Educational Ideal Profile of Students Actual Situation of Students
Goals * Learn with friends * Most are cheerful, kind and gentle
Children who are: * Experience natural world richly * Friendships are shallow, and capacity to think
* Considerate * Have own perspectives and ways about things from another person’s idea and
perspective is inadequately developed
* Think well and try hard
of thinking * Have considerable difficulty holding their own
* Healthy
perspectives and ideas
* Can lead ordered lives RESEARCH FOCUS * Some students lack interest in the natural world
For students to value friendship at
the same time that they develop around them
their own perspectives and ways of
thinking
- Toward enjoyable science and
life environment studies -
Ideal Profile of Students of Research Groups
Middle Grades Upper Grades
Lower Children who:
Children who:
Grades * Get pleasure from solving problems
Children who: * Eagerly use their 5 senses
* Can find problems and make predictions
* Participate happily in * Make predictions and test them
* Can have their own ideas in observations and
learning Learn through comparing their own
experiments
* Develop their own strategies ideas with friends’ ideas
Value learning with friends in which they
* Learn with friends * Cooperate with friends while carrying
recognize each others perspectives
out activities
Research Hypotheses
* If students are eager to learn and take initiative in their learning, they will be able to deepen their own perspectives and ways of thinking
* Students will develop considerate hearts if they work together in ways that enable them to recognize one another’s ideals as they engage in
observations, experiments, and activities
Methods and Measures
(1) Strategies for Curriculum (2) Strategies for Learning Materials (3) Strategies for Teaching and Evaluation (4) Strategies for Learning Activities

9. Student plans (from lesson 1) for lifting the weight. These plans were included in the packet for the research lesson. Student writing is in regular
typeface; teacher’s comments are in capitals.
We will lift the 100kg sandbag with
the pole and get half of the bag on
the cart. Then we will get the
s)
Necessary things: other half on the cart by using the er e
a pole ( about 2 meters) pole again, push it on, and carry it et ) ro
p
m k
a handcart out. 10 thic
u t
bo cm
op low mb
(a (3
er
e r nd cli
t h r, a er,
de ov
e
ad it
a l row
Th
We will add
it ! rt
ts
ca the weight
hi after we lower
It the rope
F T? Kick it while hanging
IT LI on
WILL the weight
CAN YOU REALLY GET A 70KG WEIGHT ON
THERE?
I WONDER IF IT WILL
A sturdy pole (1.5 meters long) REALLY GET ONTO THE
A balance beam 5cm in diameter CART?
roll
roll!
rol
l ro
ll!
ugh push !
t hro ph
ole um
th ep Putting the cart diagonally, one person
put e pushes hard and
her gets the 100kg
sandbag onto the
cart
CART Pull out just one section of the
I WONDER IF IT WILL gymnastics horse
WORK WELL?
9

10. So, How Can We Lift it (Step 1) First, Let’s Try Out Our Ideas
Try drawing the way to lift it that your Group Could you lift the 30kg Sandbag?
talked about.
Check Check
Name Name
Necessary Tools:
(Step 2) Well, Now it’s Time to Really Try it!
Could you lift the 100kg Sandbag?
Check Check
Name Name
• If you were able to lift it, put a check in the box next to your
name.
• If you were not able to lift it, think of a different way to lift it
and put a red mark in the box.
Things you noticed or thought about today’s experiment:
10

11. Planning Segment:
What are the similarities and
differences between this
planning and planning familiar to
you?

12. Lesson Segment:
What was the role of the non-
teaching teachers during the research
lesson?
What do you think they learned?

13. Colloquium Segment:
What was the structure and culture
of this meeting?
What do you think teachers learned?

14. How does lesson study improve instruction?
Visible
Features of
Lesson Study
•Planning
•Curriculum Study
? Instructional
Improvement
•Research Lesson
•Data Collection
•Discussion
•Revision
•Etc.
14

15. Figure 1
A Common (Mis)Conception of Lesson Study
Visible
Features of Key Pathway
Lesson Study
•Lesson Plans Instructional
• Plan Improve
• Teach Improvement
• Observe
• Discuss
• Etc.
15

16. How Does Lesson Study Improve Instruction?
Pathways
Visible
Features of Teachers’
Knowledge
Lesson Study
Instructional
•Planning Teachers’ Beliefs
Improvement
•Curriculum Study Teachers’
•Research Lesson Community for
•Data Collection Instructional
•Discussion Improvement
•Revision
•Etc. Teaching-
Learning
Resources
16

17. Data Collected During Lesson Study
Academic Learning
• How did images of heated air change?
• Did students shift from counting all to making tens?
• Did dramatic role-play spark higher quality and quantity of writing?
• In their journals, what did students write as their learnings?
Motivation
• Percent of children who raised hands
• Body language, “aha” comments, shining eyes
Social Behavior
• How many times do students refer to and build on classmates’
comments?
• How often do the five quietist students speak up?
• Are students friendly and respectful?
Student Attitudes Toward Lesson
• How did today’s lesson compare with usual science lessons?
17

18. I learned that the only way to get better
at observation and data collection is to
practice, practice, practice. Darn!
A California teacher
18

19. P ercent S tatements Focused on S tudent
Thinking
60
50
40
Planning
30
Debrief
20
10
0
1 2
Year 1 Year 3
Schoolwide Lesson Study School
19

20. P ercent S tatements
on Evaluation/ Ability
9
8
7
6
5 Planning
4 Debrief
3
2
1
0
1 2
Year 1 Year 3
20

21. California Standards Test in Mathematics: Mean Scale Scores, Grades
2-5
3-year net increase for school more than triple that for district (F=.309, 845df 21
p<.001)

22. Example 2: Regional Mathematics
Lesson Study Network
Silicon Valley Mathematics Initiative
www.svmi.org
In this mathematics network, all teachers
participate in a range of activities to learn
mathematics, but not all teachers
participate in lesson study

23. We feel there is a great value in a
public lesson. It is an opportunity
to put our work out for public
scrutiny.
Lesson Study Communities, Massachusetts
23

24. www.svmimac.org
Lesson Study has
grown and
prospered since
2000

25. Example from SVMI
Spread of Knowledge for Teaching
“Re-engagement” as a way to make student
thinking visible, available to revisit and refine
Teachers spread the idea of “re-engagement” across
•At least 7 districts
•Elementary and secondary classrooms
•Subject areas
•Foundation and school personnel

26. Which is a 4 X 5 rectangle? What
was each student thinking? (During
lesson by Akihiko Takahashi, 2002)

27. Board from Research Lesson,
Middle School, Jan. 2007

29. Example 3: Nationwide Synergy
(in Japan only)

32. University
Lab School
University University
Lab School Lab School
University
Lab School

33. Nation-wide Synergy in Japan
• School-wide lesson study focuses
on the needs of local students,
bringing in reluctant teachers.
• At least one teacher from every
school takes part in district-based
mathematics lesson study.

34. Nation-wide Synergy in Japan
“Boundary-crossing” individuals carry knowledge
back and forth from individual schools and
regions to national venues–they share what is
working and not working. Often these individuals
are:
• University-based mathematicians or
mathematics educators who serve as advisors to
lesson study groups
• Regional teacher-leaders
• K-12 teachers with a particular interest in math

35. Nation-wide Synergy in Japan
• Universities (with lab schools) hold large
public research lessons that show innovations
(U.S.-developed innovations spread more in
Japan!)
• Interested teachers attend the public research
lessons and bring back ideas, materials,
perspectives that inform their local lesson
study work

36. Randomized Trial of Lesson Study in
U.S. with Japanese Mathematical
Resources
Length helps students attend to
magnitude of fractions (how much)
rather than just count pieces (how
many)
1 meter

37. Significant Results of Randomized Trial
Teachers’ Knowledge of Fractions
33-item teacher assessment, from Univ. of Michigan
LMT (21 items); Univ. of Louisville; New Zealand,
etc.
Students’ Knowledge of Fractions
17-41 item (grade 2-5)student assessment (NAEP,
California standards, curriculum materials, research
studies)
Teachers’ Beliefs and Dispositions
• effectiveness of collegial learning
• expectations for student achievement

38. Change in Students’ Fractions
Knowledge (Absolute Score, N=1059, Effect Size: .50)

39. Learning From and In Practice
Students
Teachers Curriculum
Based on NRC, 2001 & Cohen & Ball, 2000
39

40. Teachers’ Activities to Improve
Instruction
Choose curriculum,
write curriculum,
align curriculum,
write local standards
Plan lessons
individually
Plan lessons collaboratively
Watch and discuss each other’s
classroom lessons
U.S. JAPAN
copyright Catherine C. Lewis 2005 40

41. Professional Development
TRADITIONAL RESEARCH LESSONS
• Begins with answer • Begins with question
• Driven by expert • Driven by participants
• Communication • Communication among
trainer -> teachers teachers
• Relationships hierarchical • Relationship reciprocal
• Research informs practice • Practice is research
By Lynn Liptak, Paterson School #2, New Jersey.
41

42. Progress in Lesson Study: US
• Embraced and sustained by many teachers
• Adaptation to U.S. culture: e.g., norm-
setting, strong content resources
• Strong proof of impact on students’ and
teachers’ learning, teachers’ beliefs, and
teachers’ professional community

43. Challenges to Lesson Study: US
• Think Surface Features = Lesson Study (Missing
Features in Blue Box)
• Addiction to New Ideas, Little Value on
Refinement
• Conception of Knowledge as Research Findings,
Rather than Changes in People, Structures
• Power Structure: Centrally Held Knowledge,
Causal Warrant
• Resistance to Learning Across Cultures

44. Much Research is Needed!
•How to teach specific topics (e.g., fractions)
•How to build disciplinary skills and habits (e.g,
using primary sources in history, posing
questions like “will it always be true?” in
mathematics)
•How to build school-wide lesson study
•How to build and sustain lesson study
networks
•What is the best way to spread the knowledge
gained by teachers during lesson study?
44

45. Quotes from Participants
The lesson study has taught me: We must
never assume that all students understand. It
was observed several times that even our
"good" students did not have full
understanding….Lesson study is staff
development in its purest form. Rich
discussion occurs. Team members are
allowed to be creative, curious, self-
motivated participants. The team building
was incredible.”
Elementary Teacher[Teacher #562]

46. Email address:
clewis@mills.edu
Website address:
lessonresearch.net
46