Professional Development through Clinical Supervision

1. Educational Measurement for Continuous Professional Development March 26 and 27, 2011 Broumana, Lebanon Professional Development through Clinical Supervision Dr. Samar Sinno Amal Farhat Lebanese University

2. Outline • Background • Research Question • Method of Study • Tools • Process • Skills addressed in data collection • Findings of the Study • Conclusion • Summary • Recommendations for further research • Recommendations for practitioners

3. 1. Background- Clinical Supervision Clinical supervision is a systematic cyclic form of supervision that is consistent with formative evaluation intended to improve classroom instruction. This is done by: • Relating theory and practice • Promoting collaboration in school settings • Developing autonomous reflective teachers • Creating a professional learning environment

4. Background- Clinical Supervision: Glickman et al. • Post conference • observation • Feedback from the teacher on the process • Supervisor tries to make sense of the data collected: • counting up frequencies, • Looking for recurrent patterns • Checking for performance indicators • … • Supervisor & teacher meet to discuss & interpret data • Plan for improvement is agreed upon and objectives to meet by following observation are agreed upon • Supervisor & teacher meet to discuss lesson objectives and methods • Supervisor collects objective data without interpretation • Pre observation conference • Critique • Analysis & Interpretation Objectives the teacher tries to meet for the following classroom observation

5. Outline • Background • Research Question • Method of Study • Tools • Process • Classroom Skills • Findings of the Study • Conclusion • Summary • Recommendations for further research • Recommendations for practitioners

6. 2. Research Question Does clinical supervision have an impact on teachers’ classroom performance?

7. To answer the question 3. Method of Study • Designed 4 tools to collect data • Conducted 3 supervisory cycles at intervals of 1 month in 3 different schools • Collected data pertaining to classroom performance skills • Compared data from the 3 cycles to check for the impact of clinical intervention on teachers’ performance skills.

8. Method of Study Experience in supervision Literature on supervision Research Problem Data collection tools Classroom observations + Conferencing + Teachers’ Reflective Logs + Teachers’ Final Reflection Qualitative data compilation Statistical analysis Contrast & Triangulation Analysis and Interpretation Discussion + Conclusion + Recommendations

9. Method – Process of Collecting Data Clinical Cycle 1 Clinical Cycle 2 50 REFLECTIVE LOGSprepared by teachers Clinical Cycle 3 30 REFLECTIVE LOGSprepared by teachers (n=30) method

10. Method - Collecting Data Tools • Supervisor’s Assessment of Classroom Management Skills • Performance Improvement Plan • Teacher’s Reflective Log • Teacher’s Final Reflection on Supervisory Process

11. Method - Data collected Classroom Performance Aspects • Aspect I Skills: Beginning the lesson • Aspect II Skills: Managing the lesson and activities • Aspect III Skills: Lesson planning • Aspect IV Skills: Verbal interaction • Aspect V Skills: Use of the chalkboard • Aspect VI Skills: Managing discipline • Aspect VII Skills: Communication skills

12. 6. Findings of the Study • Qualitative Data • Quantitative Data

13. Findings of the Study 1. Overall improvement in skills across the three observations • Significant Performance Improvement • Aspects II, III and V Skills • Aspects IV, and most of VI 2. Skills that did not improve • Skills Requiring Theoretical Base • Some of Aspect VI Skills • Aspect I Skills

14. Findings of the Study 3. Teachers’ Perceptions of the Supervisory Process Teachers praised the clinical supervisory process for: • engaging them • providing them with new techniques they could implement in their classrooms • allowing them to voice their opinions concerning their practices freely. The clinical cycles left the supervised teachers: • with a perception of self-growth, improvement and efficacy • satisfied

15. Findings of the Study • Quantitative Data T-test Results • mean score of observation 2 (mean = 84) and observation 3 (mean = 82) were significantly greater than the mean score of observation 1 (mean = 62). • no difference was detected between mean scores of observation 2 and observation 3 (p-value > 0.05). • results of the analyses on separate management aspects were found to follow a similar pattern to the overall analyses • Highly significant results (p < 0.01) were observed for Aspects II and I Skills

16. 7. Conclusion • The three clinical supervisory cycles had a strong impact on the teachers’ classroom performance. • teachers’ implementation of the skills addressed in the post observation conferences increased. • Implementation, improvement, and transfer were most detected in skills that could be considered technical in nature, that is, do not require a strong theoretical background or base. • use of the board • managing lessons and activities • bridging lessons to previous knowledge • circulating while students are on task • setting a time limit for activities • finishing the lesson a little before the bell • ending the class with a summary of lesson objectives.

17. Conclusion • Teachers’ attempt at experimenting and implementing those skills that require pedagogical knowledge was highly detected but did not prove to be successful at all times. • such skills require more practice, reinforcement and theoretical knowledge before competent practice and skill transfer are to be expected. “…successful change involves learning how to do something new” (Fullan & Hargreaves, 1992). • The study results strongly indicate that administrative policies could very well reinforce the work of the instructional supervisor.

18. Conclusion – Suggestions for Further Research • It is worthwhile to conduct research on clinical supervision where the researcher is a full time supervisor to: • study how applicable and practical it is for the clinical supervisory processes to be differentiated according to needs of different teachers. • allow to test whether sustained professional development • create a professional culture in which the staff of the school develops common pedagogical understandings and perceptions

19. Conclusion - Recommendations for Practitioners and Educators • Clinical cycles that follow professional workshops could be the ideal clinical practices: • clinical interventions would serve as the practical reinforcement of the theoretical workshops and courses • linking theory to practice, the new trend many educators call for today would be fulfilled

20. Thank You