Rethinking Teacher Evaluations: Consistency Over Performance

Chad OstrowskiBlog, Innovate Better, Lead Better, Lesson Plan Better, Manage Better, Reflect Better, The Grid Method

The topic of teacher evaluations often stirs a mix of anxiety and debate among educators. I feel the stress and anxiety in classrooms all around the country. While these assessments aim to measure teaching effectiveness, they tend to (more often than we’d all like to admit) promote a culture of “performance” lessons—special classes designed to impress school leaders. This raises … Read More

Using Videos To Communicate with Stakeholders

Chad OstrowskiBlog, Connect Better, Tech Better

TL;DR: Using videos to communicate with stakeholders is an underused tool that provides many benefits! You can record and edit videos easily on your smartphone, and share with stakeholders by posting on your LMS, social media, or even sending a letter with a QR code link to the file. Don’t spend too much time making your videos perfect; just be … Read More

Instruction in the New Normal

Chad OstrowskiBlog, Differentiate Better, Lesson Plan Better, Mastery Done Better

TL;DR: To prepare for any scenario, materials, lessons, and activities should be accessible to students anywhere and anytime. Teachers should create non-time dependent instructional plans that flow from one learning environment to another. Utilizing mastery and standards based grading to focus on targeted objectives provide a pathway to success. Things Are Different Now. No matter how you look at education … Read More

Inquiry Focused Classrooms

Chad OstrowskiBlog, Engage Better, Innovate Better, Lesson Plan Better

TL;DR: An introduction to inquiry-focused classrooms. 3 simple questions educators can ask to determine the inquiry level in their classroom. Quick suggestions to increase inquiry in the classroom. What’s an Inquiry-Focused Classroom? While the term “inquiry” is pretty popular in education, I think sometimes it gets a bit overcomplicated. Inquiry learning can be a powerful tool that supports many other … Read More