This paper offers a model of supervisory collaboration that brings teacher and administrator programs together through a lens of formative evaluation. The roles of teacher and principal must be collaborative to sustain student success, yet the preparation models for those respective positions are often isolated from each other, as varying university departments and focus areas exist in silos. Preparation programs must maximize the clinical experiences of teacher education and administrator preparation programs, with a focus on practical teaching strategies and authentic feedback to pre-service educators and their instructors for reflection and change. This paper overviews a collaborative supervision model and incorporates case study vignettes focused on reflective supervisory practices in a STEM instructional environment.
School principals are responsible for supervising STEM teachers, yet many principals did not teach in the STEM fields and have limited training in STEM content, process and practice. This presents a challenge for principals when they observe STEM classrooms and provide feedback to teachers. In this paper the authors describe a study about principals’ views of STEM classrooms and the observational feedback principals provide to those teachers. The results of the study suggest principals need a deeper understanding of reform minded STEM process and practice, and alternative approaches to providing teachers with observational feedback. Building on the results of the study, the authors present a collaborative model (Innovating Teaching and Learning Leadership (iTALL)) for preparing pre-service principals and pre-service STEM teachers and describes training in the STEM process and practice. Observational exercises are discussed and changes in observational protocols when conducting classroom walk-throughs are described.
Purpose
This study examines reframing an organization that permitted three typically siloed university programs to collaborate around a shared experience focused on teaching, leadership, evaluation, and applied learning.
Design
Participants were seven faculty members who designed and implemented the shared experience. Data sources included participants’ responses to a feedback survey, meeting notes, and project documents. The data were coded and grouped based on themes.
Findings
Themes revealed challenges and advantages faculty experienced during the project. Challenges included creating shared expectations, technology, and continuity with student evaluators. Advantages included reflecting on teaching practices, frameworks, instructional strategies, and professional goals.
Originality
Despite the difficulty and rarity of cross-program collaborations, this study demonstrates how such efforts may incorporate best practices in preparing educators.
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