Instructional Rigor
Phase 3 

"Look-Fors" During Observation
Remember: The most helpful part of the observation is not checking off items, but the conversations and reflections that happen after the visit.  

Beginning/ Developing

• Most or all students complete the same series of activities/instructional experiences to master an academic learning objective. I.e., students are uniformly doing the same thing OR​​
• ​Based on their needs, some students complete a differentiated series of activities/instructional experiences to master an academic learning objective. I.e., students engage in pathways that have been uniquely tailored for them.​​
• ​Pathways may be customized at the individual student level and/or group level. E.g., a group of students needing remediation on one-variable equations may have a mini-lesson with their teacher.

Practicing/ Achieving

• Based on their needs, most or all students complete a differentiated series of activities/instructional experiences to master academic and non-academic objectives.
• ​Customized pathways are equally as important for noncognitive skill development and social-emotional learning as academic content. I.e., teachers customize experiences so that students have an opportunity to master non-academic objectives in a way that works best for them.
• Students build noncognitive skills through the lens of academic content. E.g., first grade students practice empathy through interviews with one another to understand the beliefs, customs, languages and traditions of other communities.
• Pathways may be customized at the individual student level and/or group level.​
• Pathways adapt in real-time as a student progresses. I.e., a pathway can change based on how the student is doing on objectives of the pathway.​

Questions to Guide Observation 

• Are all students doing the same activities at the same time, or are students working on different activities at the same time?
  
• Are activities customized to reflect individual or group needs? Do you notice that tasks have been purposefully scaffolded, modified, extended, etc. to meet different student needs?
  
• Do students have opportunities to grow their non-cognitive and social-emotional skills? If so, are those opportunities embedded in content or taught separately?

Resources

• The Perks of Personalized Pathways and Playlists, a Getting Smart blog post that includes resources on how to build and assign playlists to students.
  
• Targeted Intervention, a BetterLesson strategy that shows how a teacher intervenes in real-time with a student upon seeing a misconception.
  
• Schoology is a Learning Management System (LMS) that teachers can use to build and assign playlists to their students; teachers can create instructor accounts for free and can access playlists that have been designed and shared by their colleagues nationwide.
  
• Google Classroom is another digital platform that teachers can use to build and assign playlists.
  
• Summit Public Schools’ Personalized Learning Platform is now available (and free!) to teachers nationwide and includes content-based playlists and aligned projects for grades 6-12.

Personalized Learning Pathways, Coaching Tool
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Personalized Learning Pathways, Coaching Tool
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