Developing Lesson Conferencing Skills is a pack of materials,
containing a CD and workshop guide, that aims to promote
school-based teacher development in Hong Kong primary schools.
The materials were produced as part of the Progressive
and Innovative Primary Schools (PIPS) Project, conducted
by the Hong Kong Institute of Education from 2001-2004
and sponsored by the Hong Kong Quality Education Fund.
Mentoring novice teachers, peer review and conducting
learning studies in schools are key strategies for initiating
and enhancing school-based teacher development. Each involves
lesson observation and conferencing and, though the contexts
are different, the skills required are often much the same.
The ability of teachers to make perceptive observations
and provide helpful feedback to their colleagues is a key
attribute of professional competence.
Pre and post-lesson conferences should aim at providing
insightful, critical but also supportive comment. The materials
help to foster that aim through reflection on video sequences
that provide miniature case vignettes of practice. The
main aim, when viewing these sequences, is to encourage
teachers to review their own thinking and practice in the
light of their observations and reflections on the filmed
examples. The two main objectives of the
pack are to:
- Offer guidance for teachers in developing their skills
of lesson observation and pre and post-lesson conferencing;
- Encourage teachers to engage in co-operative and professionally
challenging development activities with other colleagues
in their school, through reflection on short case examples
of lesson observation and conferencing.
The approach adopted in these materials respects the
professionalism of teachers. It rejects the view that teachers
have to be constantly told what to think and do. Those
who work in classrooms on a day to day basis are best placed
to comment on classroom practice. What they need is time
and encouragement to stand back from the day to day pressures,
so that they can reflect on their practice in conversation
with their colleagues. The exercises in this kit of materials
are designed to encourage such reflection, helped by questions
that hint at where issues for further debate may possibly
arise. Having tried these materials with many hundreds
of teachers on mentoring courses, when the materials were
being produced, we have no doubt about the ability of Hong
Kong teachers to produce well considered, insightful responses
to the questions and issues raised.
