Lesson Study
Are you ready to choose the topics of your professional learning?
Would you like to be given the time to collaboratively plan lessons with colleagues based on topics that you have seen your students struggling with and even be compensated for it?
Have you been thirsting for the opportunity to observe classroom lessons together with other teachers?
Many teachers across our region are doing just that through their participation in our lesson study groups, and all teachers are welcome to join!
What is Lesson Study?
Widely viewed as the foremost professional development program, lesson study is credited with dramatic success in improving classroom practices for the Japanese elementary school system. A particularly noticeable accomplishment in the past 20 years of lesson study has been the transformation from teacher-directed instruction to student-centered instruction in mathematics and science, which makes this form of professional learning especially powerful in the era of our Idaho Content Standards.
During lesson study, teachers engage in each of the following phases in small teams of 3-6 teachers with the full support of the Regional Mathematics Specialist:
- Identify a challenge/topic.
- EX: How can we better support students in making sense of problems and persevering to solve them?
- Co-plan lessons together based on current research.
- Carefully observe the students engaged in a co-planned lesson.
- Discuss what was observed in the lesson and generalize effective practices that were evident in the lesson.
This intense process revolutionizes the way we view professional development, allowing teachers to be the decision-makers and providing the support and facilitation needed to be certain the learning is powerful and relevant. We invite all of our Region II teachers to join a lesson study group, and engage in what will likely be the most powerful professional development you have yet to experience.
Lesson Study Shared Understandings
Review lesson study shared understandings from groups of teachers in Idaho's Region 2:
Make it Happen!
For more information regarding lesson study, email the Regional Math Center [email protected].
What Teachers Say about Lesson Study
"I can tell if I take the time to do this at least once in a while I will grow so much in my capacity to think on the fly and select representations more strategically during one class period. Moments like these make me realize how all the extra learning and thinking in our lesson study helps me and my students grow. It is time well invested!"
"The kids were literally jumping out of their seats to come to the board and share the realization they were having and show us the connections they made between models. They were super excited about math and invested in seeing all six models and their connections. It was super fun! After the lesson, several kids were saying, 'Whoa, that was the best math I've ever done' and 'That was so fun, can we do that every day?'"