Education departments around Australia and many countries are increasing their focus on pedagogical models, or how students are taught and supported to learn. The trend is towards using evidence across the board, from design to application. The approach supports improved student outcomes by defining what high-quality teaching looks like.
This article discusses this growing focus on educator development and how video supports the approach through self-reflection, coaching, and collaboration.
The Victorian Governments' Education and Training document ' The Pedagogical Model' outlines the Victorian approach to the High Impact Teaching Strategies (HITS) process. An excerpt from the section 'Why the pedagogical model?' says,
"The Pedagogical Model will stimulate discussions about current teaching practices in schools, help schools to build a high-performance learning culture, and ultimately improve student achievement and engagement. By providing a common language and guidance on improving the quality and consistency of teaching practice, the Pedagogical Model enables school leaders, teachers and students to foster shared leadership so that everybody contributes to co-designed and connected learning.”
The Victorian model covers the critical areas of:
- Engage
- Explore
- Explain
- Elaborate
- Evaluate
In NSW, the department's Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation published the 'What Works Best' report. The report outlines eight quality teaching practices that are known to support school improvement and enhance the learning outcomes of our students. The eight themes identified as likely to make the most significant difference to students are:
- High expectations
- Explicit teaching
- Effective feedback
- Use of data to inform practice
- Assessment
- Classroom management
- Wellbeing
- Professional Collaboration
The central theme that emerges from these two documents is the educator development skills that combine to help students learn most effectively and, in turn, the transformative effect these approaches have on student outcomes at all levels of development.
In 2024, video learning will be a valuable technology in schools to aid educator development. Let's explore the reasons why.
Self-reflection
It has been said that there is no better way to develop as a teacher than to watch yourself teach. Video allows teachers to observe their classes and develop insights according to what they are trying to achieve, whether engagement, classroom management, explanation, or exploration. The list of possible observations is fertile ground for private self-reflection. Self-reflection is directly comparable to the practice standards the school is aiming to attain. Coaching Videos can dramatically accelerate the practical assessment and coaching a school undertakes. Compared to in-class observation, video can be used to skip to the relevant sections of the lesson. It can be reviewed at a time that best suits the coach's schedule and is far less intrusive than in-class in-person observation. Using a platform like Swivl's Reflectivity, comments can be made at specific points in the lesson using time stamps. The result is evidence-based feedback that can be viewed in precisely the correct context.
Collaboration
As the complexities of contemporary teaching and the diverse needs of students continue to change, development models encourage educators to collaborate professionally. Video allows teachers to ask for specific feedback based on in-the-moment examples of class or student interactions. The ability for educators to be in control of the feedback they ask for in context is powerful and motivating. It encourages, rather than discourages, effective professional peer collaboration.
Building a common language and approach
When seeking to develop changes within a group of people, the fundamental requirement is for common understanding. Video actively supports evidence-based development of shared understanding amongst teachers within the school. It is far more direct than verbal examples, accurate than memory, and less subject to cognitive bias.
Video is becoming an essential tool in programs that aid educator development and deliver better student outcomes. It can help to build a positive and motivating agenda by providing best practice evidence of all aspects of teaching.
and then Add to Home Screen.
