Discussion: (Do not attempt to solve if you can notanswer all)

When educators attendconferences or workshops they are often inspired by the many newand exciting ideas they learn about and are prepared to put some ofthe newfound strategies into practice in the near future. Uponreturning to the workplace, however, the computer or print filefilled with handouts/notes is placed nearby on a shelf or in thecorner of a desk. Then… reality sets in. The teacher reads thesummary of the day(s) left by the substitute and determines whatfollow-up(s) must take place; she checks emails to see whatimmediate action must take place or which phone calls must bereturned. The folder with all those exciting ideas sits lonely andneglected.When educators attend conferences or workshops they areoften inspired by the many new and exciting ideas they learn aboutand are prepared to put some of the newfound strategies intopractice in the near future. Upon returning to the workplace,however, the computer or print file filled with handouts/notes isplaced nearby on a shelf or in the corner of a desk. Then… realitysets in. The teacher reads the summary of the day(s) left by thesubstitute and determines what follow-up(s) must take place; shechecks emails to see what immediate action must take place or whichphone calls must be returned. The folder with all those excitingideas sits lonely and neglected.

We cannot becriticized for not implementing new ideas in a timely manner sinceour professional lives are filled with unexpected events andfrequent interruptions. And let’s not forget… change is noteasy.

On the other hand, itis important to remember that teaching is a profession, and in allprofessions, it is unrealistic to remain static and cling to ideasthat may not be as effective in promoting student learning. We mustbe introducing new concepts/ideas into our repertoires. The filefolder from the conference that holds new ways of thinking,deserves attention; thus, it is critical that we open that folderwhile the ideas are fresh in our minds. Remember, the ideas thatwere introduced in the workshop, regardless of how good they are,will have no impact on learning until we act on them. As a wise manonce said, “It is not good enough to think outside the box, youmust act outside the box as well.”

TheGap
The inability to put new ideas into practice is called theknowing-doing gap. It is a widely used moniker that is not uniqueto education; it is taught in college courses, a vital part ofleadership training, and is a mainstay in the world of business. Inthe words of Dale Carnegie, “Knowledge isn’t power until it isapplied.”

TheWisdom
In a recent webinar, British researcher Dylan Wiliam provides agreat deal of insight about how teachers can reduce or eveneliminate the gap. The title of a recent blog by Dr. Wiliam says itall: “Changing What Teachers Do is More Important Than ChangingWhat They Know.” The article focuses on the importance of teachersreducing the achievement gap by embedding formative assessmentpractices into their range of options. He states, “It’s not about amagical intervention to help the kids this year; it’s about helpingteachers make decisions based on the level of understanding of allstudents. That’s how you close the achievement gap.”

TheStrategies
Basing his conclusions on 35 years of experience in the field ofeducation, Wiliam recently shared five strategies he believes areessential for the successful application of formative assessmentsinto a teacher’s instructional delivery. He proposes the followingpractices:

Each and every student must understand what their learningexperiences will entail and how success will be determined.Teachers must be specific and present practical examples thatstudents will understand as they are explaining the lessonoutcomes. When teachers clarify what success will look and soundlike, students are much more likely to achieve it.

It is not good enough that students hear about the successcriteria shared by their teacher; they must have the opportunity toparticipate in discussions with peers and share possible examplesof success with one another. Thus, as a bi-product of thediscussions, students will have a clear picture of successindicators.

Learning is being formed as students areengaged in specific activities to master the content.Simultaneously, the teacher can be observing and interacting withstudents to provide on-the-spot feedback in order to keep progressmoving in the right direction. Remember… student engagement +feedback = success.

Students are often an excellent resource for one another as eachindividual works toward his “aha moment.” Discussions, criticalthinking, and problem solving are all excellent sources offormative assessment data and they keep students actively involvedin their learning process.

Teachers must repeatedly promote the understanding that allstudents are accountable for their individual learning. Whenstudents know, from the get-go, that they must take responsibilityfor their own learning, Wiliam has concluded that learning willdramatically increase.

The more optionsteachers have at their disposal, the deeper their discussions willbe with their fellow teachers, and the stronger their use offormative assessment will become. Following Wiliam’s five stepswill help to transfer educators more quickly and permanently fromknowers to doers.

TheActions
In his writing, Dr. Wiliam offers further suggestions that willhelp teachers move into the action phase and move closer to reduceor even eliminate the gap. He believes that teachers must get intothe “habit changing business.” He suggests the followingpractices:

Choice – Instead of having top-downrequirements for all teachers, giving individuals a choice about apractice they wish to implement will increase the likelihood thatthe implementation will become a permanent fixture. Wiliam writes,“When teachers themselves make the decision about what it is theywish to prioritize for their own professional development, they aremore likely to make it work.” When teachers have the power tochoose, they increase their level of expertise and take moreresponsibility to apply a strategy again and again.

Flexibility – Teaching styles differ and thestudents who make up individual classes can vary greatly. For thisreason, when teachers learn a new strategy, they do not have toimplement it in a lock-step manner. Wiliam believes that what isimportant is that the instructor is moving to action. He cautions,however, that a teacher should not change the essence of the ideato the point where it becomes ineffective.

Small Steps – Research evidence shows thatteachers in general are slow to change their practice primarilybecause change is “genuinely difficult” and “immenselychallenging.” Most educators become accustomed to doing things acertain way and it supports their comfort level. In order for thechange to occur, Wiliam recommends moving slowly. He writes, “Smallsteps grow new expertise which makes the new behaviors “hardwired,” and thus more lasting. He further advocates for having achecklist of specific actions with “Plan B options” so the idea isnot seen as a failure. It can be an emotional letdown for apractitioner to have a new idea go poorly; thus, small, manageablesteps may be the ticket.

Accountability – “All teachers need to improvetheir practice – not because they are not good enough, but becausethey can get better,” is a strong-held belief from Wiliam. Hebelieves that it is appropriate for teachers to be accountable fortheir personal improvement. He endorses the idea of a teacherhaving an action plan with indicators showing how the new ideabenefits students. The plans do not have to be long and complicatedbut should be in writing, contain a small number of changes thatwill take place, and include what the teacher will reduce or giveup in order to make room for the new ideas.

Support – In his work, Wiliam has concludedthat a support system along with a model for providing the supportis essential. In Embedding Formative Assessment: A TwoYear Professional Development Pack, he prescribesmonthly meetings with peers in order to make the move from knowingto doing more permanent. He calls the gatherings Teacher LearningCommunities (TLC); He has determined that when teachers have aconsistent protocol, when they make a commitment to peers, whenthey receive support and feedback from other practitioners, whenthere is time set aside to introduce new ideas, and when eachindividual specifically states what she will do before the nextmeeting, it becomes a powerful mechanism for change. As Wiliamstates, the model is “currently being used successfully bythousands of teachers in hundreds of schools all over theworld.”

TheInsights
Other writers have weighed in on the knowing-doing gap and offeradvice that supports Wiliam’s thinking as well as providingadditional helpful observations. In their book, TheKnowing-Doing Gap: How Smart Companies Turn Knowledge IntoAction, authors Jeffrey Pfeffer and Robert Suttonexplain that some people are “drowning in a sea of good intentions”because they spend an inordinate amount of time talking about anidea (“word spinning”) instead of making any progress. They statethat “the gap between knowing and doing is more important thanbetween ignorance and knowing.” According to the authors, somepeople delude themselves into thinking they are making progresssimply because they keep talking about the idea. In order to move aplan into the action stage, they caution that a plan may getderailed early on if there are too many details in the beginning.They further endorse the practice of celebrating “moments ofexcitement” as a plan unfolds. It is likewise important to notspend time focusing on snags that may occur and to focus on whatworked instead.

Binghamton University(SUNY) Professor Surinder Kahai has added additional insights inhis book, Closing the Knowing-Doing Gap inLeadership.” He writes about if and when the initialenthusiasm about a new idea wanes, we resort to old behaviors. Hewrites, “This relapse is often caused by time pressure, peerpressure, anxiety over one’s capabilities, and sometimes by joyfulcircumstances (e.g., feelings that things are going well alreadywhen, in reality, they are not as good as one might think. Kahaisupports the idea of goal setting with specific steps:

Creating a list of desirable behaviors

Setting targets for achieving the behaviors

Monitoring progress as the behavior change

Making sure the behaviors are specific enough and not overlygeneral

He also shares arather unique idea when he suggests setting up an email alertsystem as reminders of when important goals should be achieved. Herecommends the use of Google calendar for weekly or twice weeklyreminders.

The literature on theknowing-doing gap reveals further food for thought including thefollowing options:

When teachers’ work becomes more difficult, they often resort to“primal scripts” based on the way they were taught as students.These were not necessarily the best teaching and learningpractices.

Making a commitment to action planning focuses the teacher ondevising concrete steps and keeping a written record about how thesteps worked.

Studies found that feedback from peer to peer is most effectivewhen the feedback did not stop at telling the fellow teacher whatto do but more specifically how to go about it.

As teachers roll out new learning approaches, an important pointis that to maximize student learning the focus needs to be onindividual growth rather than on a comparison with fellowstudents.

When a teacher realizes that a successful new idea or approachis counter to existing school policy, the teacher should shareformative achievement data with school leaders so that the existingstructure can change.

We all know thatchange is difficult. But we cannot remain stagnant in ourinstructional practices. The above information contains numerousways that teachers can make specific moves to ensure that theknowing-doing gap ceases to exist. The ball is in your court.

Answer the following DISCUSSION questions:

1) Why do organizations have this problem?

2) Do individuals share the same problem?

3) What have you learned from Covey's book or other materials thusfar in the course that can help BOTH individuals AND organizationsovercome this problem effectively?