As school administrators develop their plans for 2012-2013 to create student-centered learning environments, the element of their plans that’ll ensure implementation of best instructional practices is learning walks.

Learning walks (or walkthroughs) are focused visits to any area where teaching or learning occurs to observe instructor or student behaviors. Learning walks derive from a supervisory practice made famous by Hewlett-Packard, called Management By Wandering Around. Visiting the front line to see for yourself what’s going on actually is an age-old method of leadership. Shakespeare even shows a medieval English hero, King Henry V, surrounded and greatly outnumbered by the French, walking among his troops the night before the Battle of Agincourt to give his men “A little touch of Harry in the night.”

Today’s walkthroughs aren’t quite so dramatic, but they’re an effective and efficient system for collecting data and providing feedback on instructional practices. Principals or instructional leaders really get to know their teachers’ strengths and can provide better feedback and promote deeper reflection on instruction, curriculum, achievement and student behavior.

In K-12 environments, learning walks focus on “the level of rigor, the relevance of the content or skill being taught, and the quality of the relationship the teacher has with the students and the students have with each other.”¹ Learning walks are frequently enhanced by an observation/data capturing tool, such as eCOVE Classroom Observation Software. eCOVE allows instructional leaders to capture data to further teachers’ self-directed professional growth while also ensuring higher levels of effective performance are achieved.

For some districts, learning walks are nothing new. Like many others, Mamaroneck School District in New York posts learning walk topics and question guidelines dating back to 2007. For a wonderful overview of a learning walk in process, read the blog posts on TeacherCast of Dr. Shira Leibowitz, Principal of the Lower School at Solomon Schechter School of Westchester (White Plains, NY).²

Effective and consistent use of learning walks shows that teachers do implement best practices, based on research, to engage students at higher cognitive levels. Learning walks reveal how invested school leaders are in their students achieving in environments best suited to 21st century learning.

¹ Guild, Judy. (2012, Winter). Learning walks: ’Instructional rounds’ for your school. Independent School 71(2). Retrieved from http://www.nais.org/publications/ismagazinearticle.cfm?Itemnumber=155975&sn.ItemNumber=145956&

² Leibowitz, Shira. (2012, Feb. 6). Walking the learning walk. TeacherCast. Retrieved from http://blog.teachercast.net/walking-learning-walk-shiraleibowitz/

According to Carole Everhart, Manager of Professional Development for ENI, each Virtual Interaction session is “customized to the current needs of the school and follows the stages of their school transformation process. These Virtual Interactions are designed to move the school forward in its academic growth and provide feedback to the leadership staff on their own leadership growth.” Ms. Everhart and colleagues work side-by-side with school leaders to use collaborative learning opportunities to build capacity in their school and classrooms. Every Virtual interaction:

• Begins by connecting prior knowledge and on-site work to the current virtual meeting
• Provides activities that engage the participants to reinforce and strengthen work toward goals
• Ends by connecting what was done in the meeting to a virtual post-assignment
• Includes a post-assignment that allows for collaboration and reflection and connects this virtual meeting’s work to goals and to the upcoming on-site work

In addition to the Virtual Interactions, participants in this process have access to a wealth of tools and resources on ENI’s proprietary online Community of Professional Practice, TargetPLC^®. Research, resources, websites, blogs, archived webinars and videos are all part of the assets available to school leaders and their staff.

Prescriptive Coaching engages leaders, instructional leadership teams and teachers in collaborative efforts to improve classroom instructional delivery. It provides leadership teams, teacher collaborative teams and teachers with targeted guidance and purposeful feedback on the use of best practices in classroom transformation. An effective Prescriptive Coaching model embeds the learning of best practices into the work of teachers and administrators at the classroom and school level, transferring ownership of the process, knowledge, and skills for sustaining continuous improvement. The intended outcome of Prescriptive Coaching is that the process be internalized and integrated into the culture of the school and district. The ultimate goal of Prescriptive Coaching is to build the capacity of the district staff to help district schools sustain improvements and establish new milestones.

Through empirical research and extensive anecdotal evidence, educators have come to realize that coaching for teachers and administrators is a key element of successful school improvement. However, despite a near-consensus on its importance, the potential of coaching is realized by too few. Well-intentioned efforts can fall short without a clear, proven system for preparing coaches, a solid methodology for delivery of coaching services, and the necessary resources to support coaches, as well as those being coached. Many innovations in education never make it to the implementation level and therefore never have an opportunity to benefit students. Implementing a Prescriptive Coaching program with fidelity is the key to its success for all stakeholders involved.

Designed from research-based best practices in implementation and effective staff development, Evans Newton Incorporated (ENI) believes that, in order to create and sustain change at a student level, the professional development that supports Prescriptive Coaching needs to be embedded in the day to day work at the school, specifically at the classroom level. Research conducted by Bruce Joyce and Beverly Showers (1995) concluded that when presentation of theory, demonstration, and opportunities to practice were combined with coaching and other forms of follow-up support, such as study groups, teachers’ use of the new instructional strategies increased dramatically. If new curricula, instructional strategies, or other improvement efforts were to produce a student benefit, they had first to be implemented in classrooms.

ENI has successfully worked with districts nationwide to implement Prescriptive Coaching with fidelity and assist schools in building their own internal coaching capacity. Prescriptive Coaching is an integral component of ENI’s flagship product, TargetTeach^®. The TargetTeach^® process is a proven, adaptive system designed to improve school climate and instructional capacity. ENI’s Prescriptive Coaching Model embeds the learning of best practices of the TargetTeach^® process into the work of teachers and administrators at the classroom and school level, transferring ownership of the process, knowledge, and skills for sustaining continuous improvement. The combination of the program components and ENI’s expertise in implementation, professional development and coaching leads to measureable gains in student achievement. Researchers at Arizona State University (ASU) College of Education have completed independent studies of districts that have adopted the TargetTeach^® process. Their analysis indicates that TargetTeach^® provides statistically significant increases in student achievement. In a recent study, following the implementation of TargetTeach^®, the percentage of students passing mathematics in one school increased from 22% to 62%.

Resources:

Joyce, B. and Showers, B. (2002). Student achievement through staff Development. 3rd ed. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Knight, J. ed. (2009). Coaching approaches and perspectives. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Blended learning course helps leaders use learning walks and other sources of data to improve student achievement, increase teacher effectiveness

Scottsdale, AZ — June 21, 2012 — Leading a school transformation requires a laser-sharp focus on student learning and achievement. Whether schools implement existing state standards or the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), the ability to use data to drive decisions is critical to ensure students are meeting increasingly rigorous learning outcomes. To help principals and their instructional teams drive continuous improvement, Evans Newton Inc. (ENI), a leading provider in professional development, coaching, and school transformation for K-12 districts, today announces a new course called the “Instructional Leadership Academy & Institute.”

Delivered in a blended model of on-site and virtual professional learning, the Instructional Leadership Academy & Institute helps educational leaders and their leadership teams gain the knowledge and skills to lead an effective conversion to data-driven, 21^st century instruction. It incorporates ENI’s proven “learn and apply” methodology, which enables participants to seamlessly extend their knowledge and skills from the training room to the classroom.

Through this three-module course, participants will learn how to conduct collaborative observations of classroom instruction, called learning walks, to improve teacher effectiveness and satisfaction, and reduce turnover. Participants will explore how to use data from the learning walks and other tools and resources to monitor student progress and drive continuous improvement, addressing 21^st century skills and the CCSS. Participants will also form local Communities of Professional Practice to reinforce best practices for transforming teacher-led classrooms into dynamic, student-centered learning environments.

The Instructional Leadership Academy & Institute is the latest in a series of new offerings from ENI, a company of education professionals who are experts in school transformation. Through its comprehensive, customizable programs and leadership courses, ENI helps school and district leaders achieve dramatic improvements in teacher and student performance.

About Evans Newton, Inc.

Since 1973, ENI has been a trusted partner for K-12 schools and districts, collaborating with education’s leaders to measurably enhance student achievement. Through a highly collaborative process of goal setting, standards alignment, curriculum and assessment development professional development and coaching, ENI empowers teachers and school leaders to transform their schools and get results.  More information can be found at www.evansnewton.com.

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One of Arizona’s largest female-owned companies is awarded the WBENC’s world-class standard certification.

Scottsdale, AZ — June 6, 2012 –Evans Newton Inc. (ENI) has been awarded certification by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), the largest third-party certifier of businesses that are owned, controlled, and operated by women in theU.S.

Headed by CEO Jamie Piotti, ENI is a company of education professionals who are experts in school transformation.  Since 1973, ENI has worked one-on-one with thousands of schools and districts to help them achieve dramatic improvements in teacher and student performance. The company’s mission is deeply rooted in the transformation of American education and children’s lives, particularly in underserved schools.

“We are extremely pleased with ENI’s certification by WBENC, a group with an outstanding reputation, and one that goes the extra mile to advance the position and status of the female entrepreneur in today’s competitive business environment,” said Piotti. “With the WBENC certification, ENI can now serve even more school districts, especially those districts that have M/WBE requirements for projects awarded through the bid process.  We look forward to continuing the good work that warranted the WBENC certification, and to serving its constituents for many years to come.”

Under Piotti’s leadership, ENI has grown into one of the nation’s leading providers of curriculum, consulting, and coaching aimed at bringing schools across the country up to national standards. ENI currently employs employees nationwide and ranks as one of the nation’s leading school-improvement K-12 education companies.

In addition to ENI’s work, Piotti has personally gone beyond the school setting to help disadvantaged students pursue their dreams of higher education by founding The Foundation for Educational Opportunity, which awards annual scholarships to under-privileged students and ensures equal education opportunities for a wide range of pupils across the nation. Since 2000, the foundation has awarded more than $52,000 in scholarships to deserving students nationwide.

About WBENC

Founded in 1997, the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council is the largest third-party certifier of businesses owned, controlled, and operated by women in the United States.  A national 501(c)(3) non-profit, the WBENC partners with 14 Regional Partner Organizations to provide its world-class standard of certification to women-owned businesses throughout the country. WBENC is also the nation’s leading advocate of women-owned businesses as suppliers to America’s corporations. Learn more about the WBENC at www.wbenc.org.

About Evans Newton, Inc.

Since 1973, ENI has been a trusted partner for K-12 schools and districts, collaborating with education’s leaders to measurably enhance student achievement.  Through a highly collaborative process of goal setting, standards alignment, curriculum and assessment development professional development and coaching, ENI empowers teachers and school leaders to transform their schools and get results. The company is headquartered in Scottsdale, Ariz.  More information can be found at www.evansnewton.com.

For nearly 40 years, ENI has partnered with thousands of K-12 schools, districts, and state departments of education to create dramatic improvements in student performance. Currently, we are leaders in transitioning schools and districts to the Common Core State Standards in time for the 2014 deadline.

To prepare your students for CCSS-aligned instruction and assessments, ENI will help you start where you are today and create a road map that will take you into the future. This map will guide you, maintain high accountability for existing requirements, and prepare you for the performance-based, learner-centered instruction and assessments mandated by CCSS. We’ll help you ensure that your teachers are ready to incorporate instructional activities and resources that reach into the real world and prepare students for college and career! Learn more about ENI at: evansnewton.com.

Join us, for a live introduction to Evans Newton Incorporated (ENI) presented by Melissa Myers. You will learn how working side-by-side with education leaders and teachers, ENI helps schools create dramatic improvements in student performance.

Introducing the TargetTeach® Process

May 8, 2012, 10:30 AM CDT
Register here
May 8, 2012, 1:30 PM CDT
Register here

On April 3rd, the South Carolina Department of Education recognized 18 schools in Dorchester School District Two with Palmetto Gold and Silver Awards for the 2011–12 school year.

A special thank you to those who joined us today at Dorchester School District Two for the Symposium and Site Visit to hear South Carolina Association of School Administrators’ (SCASA) 2012 Superintendent of the Year, Mr. Joseph Pye, and his staff describe how the district accomplished this and more.