TL;DR:
- A learning walk can be a fly-by, informal observation, look for and ask about, peer observation, or video observation. You can even do learning walks in other schools.
- Problems with learning walks can include the purpose, timing, data collection, feedback, and closure.
- Steven shares 5 planning questions and next steps for learning walks.
Lessons Learned from Learning Walks
Yogi Berra said, “You can observe a lot by just watching” (Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, 2022). Learning walks provide teachers and administrators with the opportunity to observe and learn. Early in my career, it was not common practice for teachers to observe other teachers. This made it difficult to learn from other professionals in the school. The main feedback a teacher received was during the formal evaluation and feedback provided by the building principal.
Some principals have used peer-to-peer observation as a form of punishment. If a teacher was struggling with classroom management, instructional strategies, or student engagement, the principal may require one teacher to observe another teacher in the school. This type of learning walk rarely improves instruction and only serves as a way to frustrate or embarrass the teacher who is required to observe in a colleague’s classroom.
When principals and district administrators embrace the power of learning walks, it can change the purpose from evaluation to continuous improvement. Typically, learning walks are conducted by a school or district administrator. When the principal is the only person scheduling learning walks, then this is the main person learning.
Sociologist Dan Lortie wrote a book titled, Schoolteacher (1975). Lortie described the school as an “egg-crate,” where teachers and staff work with students in their separate classrooms. The feeling of isolation comes from working with students all day and wondering if your best efforts are similar to what teachers are doing in other classrooms. It has been nearly 50 years since Lortie described teaching as an egg-crate. Learning walks can help staff learn from the strengths of teachers in their school, as well as teachers in other schools.
Learning Walks
There are multiple types of learning walks. Some learning walks are informal and unannounced and others are structured. A learning walk may include one administrator, school team, district team, or educators from another school. The following descriptions of learning walks are based on my experiences. These are not formal definitions, but the reader may relate with one or more of the descriptions. Learning walks should have a clear purpose and should be coordinated in a manner that does not surprise or scare teachers. The best learning walks have a clear purpose and involve multiple perspectives.
When principals and district administrators embrace the power of learning walks, it can change the purpose from evaluation to continuous improvement. Click To TweetTypes of Learning Walks
Fly-By
A fly-by takes place when a principal, assistant principal, or a district staff member visits a classroom, but the teacher does not know the purpose of the observation. The observation may last between 3-10 minutes and feedback is rarely provided to the classroom teacher. Think “Buzz the Tower” learning walk.
Informal Observation
Principals and assistant principals often announce to staff that they will have informal observations. The purpose of an informal observation is to observe teaching and learning, student engagement, and to interact with teachers and students during classroom instruction. This is not a formal learning walk and may or may not include feedback to the classroom teacher. This type of learning walk is beneficial in building a positive work relationship between the teachers, students, and administrators.
Look Fors and Ask Abouts
In school districts that have clearly defined instructional goals, learning space, student engagement, and instructional strategies, you may see a document titled, “Look Fors and Ask Abouts.” In several school districts, the “look fors” are created by the teachers. For example, the high school English department and the high school social studies department may create a list of “look fors.” This creates trust between the teachers and administrators. James (2022) highlighted Ten Examples of “Look Fors.”
When a learning walk is announced to staff, it can be communicated which specific “look fors” will be observed during the learning walk. The learning walk could include teachers observing a colleague, one administrator, or a district team observing in another school. This type of observation is much different than a fly-by or informal observation, where the teacher does not know what the visitors are observing.
Peer Observation
A peer observation could include one colleague or multiple teachers observing. It is beneficial to all parties involved when the purpose of the observation is shared. The host teacher will also feel more confident and comfortable knowing if notes or videos will be taken and whether or not feedback will be provided. It can make a teacher uncomfortable to receive feedback from a group of colleagues. If there is a walk-thru or observation tool that will be used, that can make the peer observation go better for the person who will be receiving feedback from the group.
Video Observation
Video observation is one of the most powerful tools for teaching and learning. The video doesn’t lie. Throughout my career, I have observed teachers making videos for the National Board Certification process. Many teachers admit that this was a powerful process for reflecting on teaching and learning. When teachers meet with their grade level team, an assistant principal, and an instructional coach, the conversations can be more powerful than a learning walk.
On most learning walks, a group of observers visit a classroom and then go into the hallway to discuss what was observed. The teacher who was providing instruction is left out of the conversation and reflection. Video observation is an overlooked and underutilized tool in K-12 education. One of the benefits of video observation is that the students may act more natural during the observation. It can be disruptive when five strangers walk into a first-grade classroom for a learning walk. Video observation provides a more trusting environment and it does not feel like the person being observed is being judged in a private conversation. It also allows the teachers to expand on strategies that were used during the observation.
Learning Walk-In Other Schools
Throughout my career, some of the most educational and beneficial learning walks have been when a school team visits schools within the district or in another school district. Visiting another school district allows your team to observe academic discourse, systems, instructional strategies, school culture, and more. Learning walks can also help your school team identify blind spots. It is enlightening to see how other educators approach teaching and learning. Observing in another school can be a valuable experience that helps school staff reflect on additional ways to meet the needs of learners.
Focused Learning Walks
Trend data is important for school staff and it provides an academic GPS: Where are we now? Where are we going? How will we get there? Do we need to take a detour?
It is important for principals and assistant principals to collect data about teaching and learning. It is more valuable if teachers are included in focused learning walks. Multiple perspectives provide a different lens than a single administrator observing. If the school team includes teachers, counselors, and administrators, they can collect the same data, but there will be more than one perspective. Teachers may feel more comfortable if a learning walk includes multiple staff members. It can feel more like data collection towards a common goal and less like an evaluation or judgment.
If a school is focused on accountable talk or writing across the curriculum, then a focused learning walk could provide feedback from across the school. Teachers and administrators can make timely decisions about instruction based on the trend data. This seems more beneficial than one principal observing a single teacher.
5 Common Problems With Learning Walk
While most administrators enjoy learning walks, teachers are not as fond of the process. What could possibly be wrong with observing teaching and learning in a school? Here are five common problems with traditional learning walks.
Purpose
Purpose matters. What is the purpose of the learning walk? Visitors often enter a classroom and the teacher is caught by surprise. It would be more beneficial if the teacher knew the purpose of the visit. I have also been on learning walks with observers who are uncertain about the purpose of the visit. This can lead to the observers each having a different purpose for observing the classroom. One observer may be looking at the learning walls, while one is observing student engagement, and another is observing the teacher’s feedback to students.
When the purpose of the visit is not addressed, the teacher being observed can feel nervous, anxious, frustrated, and confused. The learning walk feels like an interruption of classroom instruction, rather than an opportunity to grow.
Timing
Timing is everything. Is the observation five minutes before recess? Did the principal announce that a team of visitors are coming to your classroom or does it feel like an ambush? A quality learning walk can have unintended consequences for teaching and learning if the timing is not appropriate. Every lesson has an arc (a beginning, middle, and end).
Day one of a unit may involve more introduction and less hands-on learning. If the observer(s) communicate with the teacher being observed, the best time for an observation could be discussed and agreed upon. This allows for the teacher to plan and the learning walk can take place when the teacher and students are demonstrating what the observers are seeking to observe. The timing can also be coupled with “look fors” which highlight what a team of observers will see during the visit.
Data Collection
There are several quality learning walk tools, including checklists, forms, and researched-based tools. Have you ever had a principal or district administrator sit in your classroom and start typing on a laptop or cell phone? How did that make you feel? Prior to the observation, the teacher should know what data will be collected and how the data will be used.
“For teachers who will be observed, it means ensuring that they are partners in the observation process with full autonomy on when, how, and where observations occur and defining the benefits they hope to accrue” (Burns, 2022).
This communication supports transparency, trust, and risk-taking. If a teacher understands the purpose of the learning walk and how data will be collected, he or she may take more risks when teaching the lesson. Great teachers take risks and experiment with multiple instructional strategies. If a teacher does not know what the observer(s) are typing, he or she may stick to one instructional method or play it safe. Ask yourself, “Is my goal to surprise teachers and catch them doing something good, or is my goal to observe the art and craft of teaching and share a teacher’s strengths with other observers?”
Feedback
Feedback is critically important when a learning walk is conducted. Typically, the team conducting the learning walk meets in the hallway and talks about what is observed. The teacher may or may not receive feedback. Do your learning walks provide fly-by observations, where the teacher is observed but the observers do not share what they saw or learned with the teacher? In the absence of feedback, teachers may not be open to future learning walks and may feel judged.
Closure
If you are planning a learning walk in your school, ask, “Are we focused on compliance or continuous improvement?” A school administrator focused on compliance may have a goal of completing two learning walks per month. When a school administrator prioritizes continuous improvement, there will be a clear purpose for the learning walk and the data collected. If the data collected is used to support instructional strategies for English Language Learners, then there is a clear purpose. If the learning walk collects data and the data is used to show evidence of personalized learning in each department, then there is closure.
Closure is collecting data and taking action or communicating how the data can support school improvement goals and student growth. When teams go on learning walks and there is no closure, then they are just taking a long walk. Counting your steps on your Smartwatch is not the same as taking a learning walk. Walk with a purpose.
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Planning Questions For Learning Walks:
- Have we identified and communicated the purpose of the learning walk?
- What data will we collect?
- Which tool will observers use?
- Are we collecting trend data, coaching, or simply observing?
- What information will we share with the teacher?
Next Steps
Learning walks are beneficial for school staff. Senge wrote, “A group of talented individual learners will not necessarily produce a learning team, any more than a group of talented athletes will produce a great sports team. Learning teams learn how to learn together” (Senge, 2006, p. 240). Purposeful learning walks can become much more than an observation or a fly-by. Help your school staff learn from the strengths of other educators. Learning walks are essential in a learning organization. When school staff are included in learning walks, it becomes evident what we should do next as a professional learning community.
References
Berra, Y. (unknown). Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center. Retrieved from https://yogiberramuseum.org/about-yogi/yogisms/
Burns, M. (2022). Improving classroom observations to better support teachers. Retrieved from https://www.globalpartnership.org/blog/improving-classroom-observations-better-support-teachers
James, S. (2022). What to “Look For” during classroom walkthroughs and Teacher Observations. Retrieved from https://educationwalkthrough.com/what-to-look-for-during-classroom-walkthroughs-and-teacher-observations/
Lortie. D. (1975). Schoolteacher: A sociological study. University of Chicago Press.
Senge, P. M. (2006). The fifth discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization. Currency Publishing Group.
About Steven Weber
Dr. Steven Weber is a curriculum leader. He has served on multiple state and national boards. His areas of research include curriculum design, multiplying leaders, professional learning, and school leadership.
