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- Ideas Are Not Enough
Hey 👋
Hope your June is running smooth. Today, we’re kicking off a new snack series on teacher learning, with the big idea that… well, big ideas are not enough…
Big idea 🍉
When it comes to teacher development, one thing we can sometimes forget is that (to a large extent) teacher learning is just learning.
The processes that our students must go through to learn (eg. paying attention, making connections, retrieving ideas) are largely the same as those we teachers must go through to improve.
However, there is one big difference. While the main aim of student learning is to catalyse a change in knowledge, the main aim of teacher improvement is to catalyse a change in practice.
And the main implication of this difference is that: when it comes to teacher improvement... IDEAS ARE NOT ENOUGH.
If we are serious about improving teaching, then it’s not enough to merely expose teachers to new ideas. It’s not enough to just present to teachers. It’s not enough to give teachers something to read or watch. It’s not enough to just get teachers discussing and reflecting.
(this is painful to write as an author and speaker, but nonetheless: it’s an important truth)
As well as introducing teachers to powerful ideas, we must also show them what they look like in practice, help them to figure out what they look like in their context, and help them to integrate these practices into their habit stack.
This is why rehearsal (aka ‘deliberate practice’) is such a vital ingredient of teacher development. Without it, we end up with a ‘knowing-doing gap’, limited change, and over time: disillusionment.
In the next snack, we’ll look at some of the components of effective teacher rehearsal, but first we need to acknowledge that, in the beginning, schools often face resistance to introducing rehearsal. Here are some strategies for overcoming this:
Just do it: Everything new is uncomfortable the first time, but once we’ve done it, it becomes less so.
Make it real: Make sure to rehearse part of an upcoming lesson, so it’s real practice, not pretend role play.
Lead the way: Before we ask any teacher to try out rehearsal, we must demonstrate it for them ourselves.
🎓 For more, check out this working paper on the power of rehearsal.
🍿 BONUS: Helping schools to more reliably improve teaching is precisely why we built Steplab… but what exactly is Steplab? I made a short Peps-style video to show you → watch it now.
Summary
Teacher learning is similar to student learning—except the end goal is a change in practice, not just knowledge.
Because of this, when it comes to developing teachers: ideas are not enough.
If we really want to turn the dial on teaching quality, then we’ve got to overcome the resistance to teacher rehearsal.
Little updates 🥕
Review on movement in learning → finds that gestures, pointing, and physical activity can boost learning (but only when not misaligned or redundant).
Study examining how the internet affects creativity → suggests it boosts individual output but undermines group originality by encouraging convergence.
Systematic review of PD on expectations and behaviour → finds that interventions tend to improve equity-related outcomes, especially when they raise teacher awareness.
Study tracking picky eaters from preschool to age 13 → suggest they still avoid veg, especially in packed lunches, but can be shaped by family habits. (HT Sean Harris)
Become even smarter → Show me Snacks PRO
Cheers.
Peps 👊