I am somewhat surprised that feedback has such a high effect on learning.  I know quality feedback is important in student learning.  I need to research quality feedback to see what I can improve upon.  I know we learned about different levels of feedback in cognitive coaching.  Something interesting that I learned is how valuable feedback from the students to the teacher can be.  I do include the opportunity for students to give feedback to me after each project.  I have made many changes to class organization, instruction, and documents we use in class after listening to what my students have to say.  Sometimes it is the questions they ask that let me know that I needed to provide examples, models, or instruction to make improvements in my effectiveness.  I was surprised that I had a conversation with a parent the last day of school who felt that my class required too much deep thinking.  This parent was also surprised that I included student feedback as one part of the student evaluation in reflection.

Quality instruction certainly makes sense as score high in the zone of desired effects.  The instruction we have had in the Teacher Leadership Academy and Cognitive Coaching is exceptional and we, the students, notice and appreciate the craft of quality instruction.

I was surprised that computer assisted instruction scored low where there seems to be a push for more computer assisted instruction.  I do realize there was a note that the research was from several years ago.  I think some students probably do well with this type of instruction, however, I have watched students push buttons impulsively with little thought to their learning.

I can use this learning as a teacher leader by sharing quality practices with my colleagues and students.  If my students are accustomed to giving me feedback, maybe they will make it a practice in other classes.

The last few weeks of school can be a struggle for me to keep focused on the current school year.  I am most excited to begin refining processes and identify changes to make for the upcoming school year.  One day I sat in the middle of the classroom as students were working on very active hands on projects and I just observed what was going on within the classroom.  I wrote pages of ideas, changes I could make to improve the layout of my room in terms of functionality.  In reading about Hattie’s research and about Visible Learning, I feel that my day of just observing and note taking allowed me to reflect on my students’ interaction with the physical environment.  Additionally, I conferenced with students about my ideas looking for their feedback to make changes that would be most beneficial to them.

I generated a list of skills shared in the Doing What Works site under developing spacial skills in girls and helpful feedback techniques.