Number 6 of the 6 Most Impactful Instructional Strategies
This article is the six and final installment in a series of the MOST IMPACTFUL instructional strategies for educators from John Hattie’s study. To learn more about this study, read this introduction article and catch the first article here.
What is it?
This series began with a description of John Hattie’s student learning measuring tool, which he called the “effect size.” His hinge point for measuring learning effectiveness was .40. Any intervention above this effect size should be embraced, and the higher the number, the more (and more often) it should be used in schools and classrooms.
As a quick review, here are the previous high-power student learning impacts and their effect sizes.
4. Cognitive Task Analysis - 1.29
3. Teacher Estimates of Achievement - 1.29
2. Student Self-Reported Grades - 1.33
While all five of these are incredibly effective, Hattie’s highest student learning impact possesses far more educational horsepower. In fact, it is so impactful that entire books have been written about it, entire school districts have made it the focus of teacher professional development, and Hattie believes it is the best way for teachers to reduce stress and increase their instructional confidence.
Student learning impact number one is Collective Teacher Efficacy (CTE) and its effect size is a whooping 1.57!
On his Visible Learning website, Hattie describes CTE as “the collective belief of [all] teachers to positively affect students.” In the research he read and the schools he visited, he found impactful teachers and classrooms, but the most impactful ones were a result of teachers working collectively on planning, instruction, assessment, and intervention.
So what does this look like within a school? I will provide a framework below.
Where’s the Research?
Hattie’s research is based on 3 major meta-analyses, involving 85 different educational studies. His main source for the power of CTE was Rachel Jean Eells’s (2011) Dissertation at Loyola University Chicago.
What does it look like in the classroom?
“With great power comes great responsibility” (Spiderman).
Now that you know the amazing impact that collective teacher efficacy can have on student learning, you need to understand that simply meeting together will NOT produce the level of impact that your school desires.
To truly harness CTE’s power, schools must make sure that they are using a collective framework to ensure that they are doing the right kind of work.
In 2022, Dr. Toni Faddis, Dr. Douglas Fischer, and Dr. Nancy Frey collectively produced a framework that they call “The Collective Efficacy Cycle.”
Identify a Common Challenge: Teachers work in a group to identify a challenge that their students are facing. (Think skills, not content!) Each team member commits to addressing this challenge throughout the cycle.
Build Skills and Knowledge: The team discusses the challenge and reads, watches videos, etc. to discover evidence-based strategies to address the problem. This type of professional learning is OFTEN more beneficial for educators than attending a conference or one-day event. Team members mutually agree on implementing the strategy to improve student learning.
Safe Practice: Teachers take 1-2 weeks to practice the strategy in their classrooms. This allows them to implement the strategy without fear of being observed by other colleagues or administrators when trying something brand new.
Open Practice: Time is scheduled for other team members and/or administrators to come and observe the strategy being implemented. This allows for teacher observation with a specific intention.
Monitor, Measure, and Modify: Throughout the cycle and after it ends, the teams reflect on the effectiveness, based entirely on student learning. Team members discuss modifications for future implementation.
A bonus added step is to Celebrate Success! Anytime there is success with students’ learning and/or teachers improving their pedagogy, celebration is warranted. Discuss these successes at faculty meetings, during parent-teacher conferences, and in school newsletters.
Reflection Time:
How often do you work with colleagues to address student learning concerns?
Principals, what would your schedule look like if you intentionally planned 45-60 minutes each week for teachers to meet together and discuss ways to improve student learning?
If you are skeptical about the power of this learning impact, test it at your school and let me know the kind of results it produced in student learning gains.
God’s blessings on your work with students - and each other - this school year!
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