Please enable JavaScript to access this page. Medicine And Fitness: Classroom Walkthroughs And Its Role In Management Of Schools

Classroom Walkthroughs And Its Role In Management Of Schools

By Mattie Knight


Clinical supervision, or in other terms, classroom observation practice and feedback is a tool that is often used in evaluating the performance of teachers. However, its extent in which teachers are assisted to improve on instruction delivery is questionable. Owing to this, the classroom walkthroughs, which are not meant for evaluation but rather for the purpose of developing professionalism are rapidly increasing in popularity.

Instructional leadership forms an essential part of improving learning and teaching, this in itself helps improve achievements of students. Schools are therefore required to adapt, create a suitable environment that allows one to practice what is taught and learnt in the classroom. Learning is said to take place only when students identify a problem on their own, check the available alternatives and create a solution to that problem.

The walkthrough model is an efficient method that gives an opportunity to collect data, involving institutional practice and provides feedback. For this method to be effective, the team of leaders is required to at least spend a third of their time in the classroom, when school heads spend their time in classes, teachers too will give a positive perception to the principal.

In order for the teachers to improve on their quality, leadership becomes very basic. The improvement of schools relies much on working relationship between teachers and instructional leaders. It becomes possible to sustain the success of an organization when leaders become teachers for others.

This model encompasses collection of data and evidence by use of random and constant visits to the classroom. The observation should take place between 2 minutes up to 40 minutes. This gives the basis of curriculum and instructional development in schools. Various schools have however invented their own models to be used in this task.

The walkthroughs aims at providence of specific response to tutors on the basis of the evidence collected and snapshot image observed. The feedback, when given to any person, or any observer, one can deduce patterns noted during the whole process. This model provides one with an opportunity to; learn from the other participants, gather data on student mode of learning and the instructional practice. This helps in stimulation of better conversational exchange between the tutor and the student. This conversation should only be aimed at learning and teaching activities.

At its worst, a walkthrough can be seen as a compliance check with administrator strutting around classrooms and schools to enforce some top-down initiatives. Progress is very limited when teachers usually wonder on ways to avoid falling in trouble rather than on how they can collaborate with admin to improve things for learners. At their best, these walkthroughs are seen as part of the ongoing formative process of assessment that finds administrators and teachers engaged in system of reciprocal accountability.

Using an inadequate model is of no benefit to the school. Better systems should be used alongside this method. Various administrators should therefore set aside enough time to make visits to various classrooms. This helps creates an instructional leadership alongside other benefits.




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