The Three-Minute Classroom Walk-Through

Carolyn J. Downey is professor emeritus of educational leadership in the College of Education at San Diego State University. She formerly was the superintendent for the Kyrene School District, Phoenix-Tempe, Arizona. Downey has written several books and numerous articles. She is the author of the training program "The Three-Minute Walk-Through and Reflective Feedback for Higher Student Achievement." Her most recent book with Betty E. Steffy, William K. Poston Jr., and Fenwick W. English is 50 Ways to Close the Achievement Gap. She was the major architect of the CMSI Individual School Audit using the 50 Characteristics for Higher Student Achievement. She is the author of several of the Principal-Teacher Series for Higher Student Achievement training materials. She received her MS from the University of Southern California and her PhD from Arizona State University. Betty E. Steffy is a retired professor of educational leadership and policy studies at Iowa State University. She formerly was a dean of a School of Education at a regional campus of Purdue University and served as deputy superintendent of instruction in the Kentucky Department of Education. She served as a superintendent of schools in New Jersey and as a director of curriculum for a regional educational agency in Pennsylvania. She created the professional development model entitled Life Cycle of the Career Teacher. She is the author/coauthor of ten books in education and numerous articles and symposium papers at UCEA and AERA. She earned her BA, MAT, and EdD from the University of Pittsburgh. Fenwick W. English (Ph.D.) is the R. Wendell Eaves Senior Distinguished Professor of Educational Leadership in the School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a position he has held since 2001. As a scholar/practitioner he has held positions as a school principal and superintendent of schools in California and New York and as a department chair, dean, and vice-chancellor of academic affairs at universities in Ohio and Indiana. He is the former President of the University Council of Educational Administration (UCEA) and of the National Council of Professors of Educational Administration (NCPEA). His research has been reported in national and international academic forums. He edited the 2006 SAGE Encyclopedia of Educational Leadership and Administration, the 2009 SAGE Library of Educational Thought and Practice: Educational Leadership and Administration; and the 2011 SAGE Handbook of Educational Leadership (2nd Ed.). In 2013, he received the Living Legend Award from NCPEA for his lifetime contribution to the field of educational leadership. Larry E. Frase was professor and department chair of educational leadership in the College of Education at San Diego State University. He was a former superintendent of schools of the Catalina Foothills District in Tucson, Arizona, and is the author, coauthor, or editor of 23 books and 80 professional journal articles. His books include Top Ten Myths in Education; School Management by Wandering Around; and Teacher Compensation and Motivation. He is also coauthor of Walk-Throughs and Reflective Feedback for Higher Student Achievement. He has presented papers at AERA and UCEA. He is a senior lead auditor, having led curriculum audits of 32 school systems, including Oakland, California, and Baltimore, Maryland. Frase earned his EdD at Arizona State University. Learn more about William Poston's PD offerings William K. Poston Jr. is an Emeritus Professor of educational leadership and policy studies at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, where he served for 17 years. A former math and physics teacher, he accumulated 25 years of experience in educational administration including 15 years as a superintendent in Tucson and Phoenix, Arizona, and in Billings, Montana. His experience includes serving as executive director of the Iowa School Business Management Academy-the licensure program for school business managers in Iowa-for 15 years. He is the originator of curriculum-driven budgeting, and he has led over 75 curriculum audits. Poston has written 13 books and over 40 journal articles and continues to provide extensive service to schools in the areas of evaluation, curriculum management auditing, performance-based budgeting, and organizational quality improvement.

Preface About the Authors Dedication 1. Understanding the Rationale Underlying the Walk-Through and Reflective Practice Approach What is the Downey Walk-Through? Why Walk-Throughs? The Evolution of the Downey Walk-Through Process 2. Conducting the Walk-Through Observation: A Five-Step Process The Five-Step Observation Structure Step 1: Student Orientation to Work Step 2: Curricular Decision Points Step 3: Instructional Decision Points Step 4: "Walk the Walls" - Curricular and Instructional Decisions Step 5: Safety and Health Issues 3. Moving Staff to Reflective Inquiry: Focusing on the Reflective Question and Conversation How Do We Provide Direct Feedback? The Note A Better Approach-Discussion Direct Feedback Statement and Conversation How Do We Provide Indirect Opportunities for Reflective Inquiry? How Do We Ask Reflective Questions and Carry On the Conversation? How Do We Ask Reflective Questions and Carry On the Conversation? The Reflective Conversation 4. Constructing a Taxonomy of Reflective Questions and Their Use in the Classroom Walk- Through The Novice/Apprentice The Professional Teacher The Expert Teacher Limitations of the Taxonomy 5. Establishing Logistical Procedures for Implementing the Walk-Through Process Finding the Time Preparing Staff, Students, and Parents Record Keeping Board Policy to Support Walk-Throughs 6. Cultivating the Culture: Effectuating Change that Works Lessons Learned About Change in Educational Cultures Challenges and Barriers to Change Deciding When to Intervene: The Marginal Teacher Examples of Successful Implementation: Making the Walk-Through Process Work Salinas Union High School District, California Norman Public Schools, Norman, Oklahoma Durham and Simco County School Boards, Ontario, Canada Napa Valley Schools, Napa Valley, California Shawnee Mission School District, Shawnee Mission, Kansas Columbia-Brazoria Independent School District, Texas San Leandro Unified School District, California San Benito County, California, County Office of Education Cultivating the Culture: A Final Word 7. Using the Walk-Through Process to Promote a Collaborative, Reflective Culture Early History Developmental Supervision and Mentoring The Teacher as an Adult Learner Promoting Development 8. Determining Whether Walk-Throughs Are the Right Stuff Background and History of Management by Wandering Around Why Are Both a Research and a Theory Base Needed Before Adopting An Innovation? The MBWA Research Results The Walk-Through with Reflective Question Research 9. Understanding the Walk-Through as a Discursive Practice Examining the Dimensions of the Walk-Through Changing the Discursive Practice of "Corrective" Supervision Some Issues With the Model A Pause to Consider Your Specific Situation Troubleshooting Problems with the Downey Walk-Through 10. Linking the Walk-Through Process to a Model of Teacher Growth Walk-Throughs and the Teacher Growth Model The Model Transformative Learning as it Relates to the Model Organizational Learning and Transformation Providing Feedback Conversation for Growth Index

"The book is easy to read and easy to understand. The information is practical and provides an excellent resource for administrators who are truly interested in improving instruction." -- Edward Chevallier, Executive Director, Curriculum & Staff Development