Collaborative Learning Visits

If you were in the building on Tuesday March 19th or Wednesday March 20th you may have noticed some teachers out of place.  You might have seen the PE teacher in a preschool classroom or a 4th grade teacher in the music room.  All the teachers at Freedom Hill ES participate in Collaborative Learning Visits (CLVs), part of the FCPS Best Practices for Teaching and Learning.  CLVs are an opportunity for teachers to learn and collaborate within our building.  Each quarter, every teacher and specialist completes a CLV walk.  Walkers are out of their classrooms for 1 hour and have the opportunity to visit 3 different learning environments.  Typically, we strive for all teachers to view one primary room, one upper elementary room, and a specialist or special education setting.  The teachers have checklists of best practices for student engagement.  They look for evidence of active engagement and high quality work in each room they visit.  After the visits, they have a chance to debrief and talk about their observations.  Teachers frequently gain new ideas from one another by visiting their rooms. Too, they play a key role in collecting data on our school’s professional development needs.   The data is compiled and shared with the staff.  Confidentiality is essential; teachers discuss observations in a non-evaluative way, without mentioning specific teachers or students.  The focus is on student engagement rather than the specific teacher.

Post by Amy Morton, Instructional Coach