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The power of "by"
7th February 2022
Last week I had the opportunity of working with some colleagues at George Abbot, sharing with them the model of Instructional Coaching that is being developed and used as a structure for lesson observation feedback discussions.
One key stage of this feedback model explores the importance of precise actions which the teacher will explore and practice further. This is where the future improvements will emerge. During this session Dr Mark Taylor, Head of Chemistry at George Abbot school, shared an article he had read called The power of ‘by’, which not only linked directly to our session and reinforced the learning we were exploring, but also unknowingly provided me with inspiration for my bulletin entry; thank you, Mark.
This short article makes a very helpful distinction between ‘Do now’ action steps and ‘Do now by’ action steps. This distinction helps to ensure that we move away from a list of things to be undertaken to actions rooted in some form of wider rationale and meaning.
During any feedback process, it is very easy to become overwhelmed with a range of important priorities but without any direct or articulated steps by which these priorities can be achieved. We all benefit from concrete direction and specific actions. Whilst there may be a range of actions we could possibly undertake, in the power of "by" we have a structure that provides us with a starting point.
Your next step: When writing action steps, marry the purpose of the step with the actions required by always employing the power of 'by'.
The Power of 'by' from A Chemical Orthodoxy
Andrew Roach, Director of Education, Learning Partners
Last week I had the opportunity of working with some colleagues at George Abbot, sharing with them the model of Instructional Coaching that is being developed and used as a structure for lesson observation feedback discussions.
One key stage of this feedback model explores the importance of precise actions which the teacher will explore and practice further. This is where the future improvements will emerge. During this session Dr Mark Taylor, Head of Chemistry at George Abbot school, shared an article he had read called The power of ‘by’, which not only linked directly to our session and reinforced the learning we were exploring, but also unknowingly provided me with inspiration for my bulletin entry; thank you, Mark.
This short article makes a very helpful distinction between ‘Do now’ action steps and ‘Do now by’ action steps. This distinction helps to ensure that we move away from a list of things to be undertaken to actions rooted in some form of wider rationale and meaning.
During any feedback process, it is very easy to become overwhelmed with a range of important priorities but without any direct or articulated steps by which these priorities can be achieved. We all benefit from concrete direction and specific actions. Whilst there may be a range of actions we could possibly undertake, in the power of "by" we have a structure that provides us with a starting point.
Your next step: When writing action steps, marry the purpose of the step with the actions required by always employing the power of 'by'.
The Power of 'by' from A Chemical Orthodoxy
Andrew Roach, Director of Education, Learning Partners
