Instructional Strategies

Time to plan“All teachers need more time to plan. And proper PDs or coaching on what to plan and how to plan for whatever the situation.”

The specific selection of professional development for high-impact instructional strategies must be informed by both pressing needs and assessment data. Instructional leaders will consider student data and teacher feedback in order to identify a key set of strategies that will have the strongest impact on student learning, taking into consideration the modes of instruction currently available (Are students in the building or remote? Is instruction synchronous or asynchronous?) as well as the needs of the most vulnerable students.

Guiding Questions

An Asian man who is self-isolated and working from home because of a massive pandemic.

What small set of high-impact strategies will we promote and how will we help teachers adopt them?
How do we increase active learning and engagement? What structures and strategies work best for our students?

Use these selected strategies and resources

High-Leverage Strategies	Aligned Resources
Virtual Team Time Support teacher teams in allocating virtual common planning time to plan and develop lessons by adapting protocols for teacher collaboration online.	4 Guiding Questions for Effective Remote Collaboration provides questions to address that will help teams ensure that they’re doing their best work. (Edutopia)
Virtual Walk-Throughs Use virtual walk-throughs to identify needed supports and engage in follow-up coaching conversations.	Use this checklist of six virtual walk-through “look-fors” (adapted from the National Standards for Quality Online Teaching) to help identify strengths and needed focus areas.
Powerful Online Learning Moves Focus on improving a few powerful learning modes, including asynchronous and synchronous instruction, small group instruction, and the use of a variety of multimedia resources.	This Teacher Planning Handbook includes templates and strategies for planning for asynchronous and synchronous instruction. (New Visions for Public Schools) Edutopia offers these tips for giving direct instruction to small groups, whether students are in the classroom or learning at home. Teaching Strategies of Award-Winning Online Instructors makes the case and shares tips for supporting teachers to use a variety of formats–video, audio, reading, and interactive content—to make classes more accessible and engaging. (Edutopia)
Build the Capacity of Educational Leaders Build the capacity of educational leaders to support teachers’ instruction.	Google for Education has a free two-part webinar series for education leaders: Distance Learning Strategies for Education Leaders, Part 1 Distance Learning Strategies for Education Leaders, Part 2 The Virtual Learning Leadership Alliance compiled COVID-19 school support initiatives and resources, some of which are available to schools by state and others that are available to all, such as: Virtual Arkansas Public Teacher Gateway, which includes support for administrators District Administration maintains an updated list of free K-12 resources during the coronavirus pandemic, primarily focused on curriculum and instruction.
Use Cycles of Inquiry to Improve Instruction Schools can look at student outcomes while remote in order to modify instruction so that students are better served.	Use this toolkit on Remote Learning Instructional Improvement for protocols and resources to focus teacher teams on using data to improve remote learning. (ILF Implementation Team, NYCDOE)

High-Leverage Strategies

Aligned Resources

Virtual Team Time

Support teacher teams in allocating virtual common planning time to plan and develop lessons by adapting protocols for teacher collaboration online.

4 Guiding Questions for Effective Remote Collaboration provides questions to address that will help teams ensure that they’re doing their best work. (Edutopia)

Virtual Walk-Throughs

Use virtual walk-throughs to identify needed supports and engage in follow-up coaching conversations.

Use this checklist of six virtual walk-through “look-fors” (adapted from the National Standards for Quality Online Teaching) to help identify strengths and needed focus areas.

Powerful Online Learning Moves

Focus on improving a few powerful learning modes, including asynchronous and synchronous instruction, small group instruction, and the use of a variety of multimedia resources.

This Teacher Planning Handbook includes templates and strategies for planning for asynchronous and synchronous instruction. (New Visions for Public Schools)

Edutopia offers these tips for giving direct instruction to small groups, whether students are in the classroom or learning at home.

Teaching Strategies of Award-Winning Online Instructors makes the case and shares tips for supporting teachers to use a variety of formats–video, audio, reading, and interactive content—to make classes more accessible and engaging. (Edutopia)

Build the Capacity of Educational Leaders

Build the capacity of educational leaders to support teachers’ instruction.

Google for Education has a free two-part webinar series for education leaders:

The Virtual Learning Leadership Alliance compiled COVID-19 school support initiatives and resources, some of which are available to schools by state and others that are available to all, such as:

Virtual Arkansas Public Teacher Gateway, which includes support for administrators

District Administration maintains an updated list of free K-12 resources during the coronavirus pandemic, primarily focused on curriculum and instruction.

Use Cycles of Inquiry to Improve Instruction

Schools can look at student outcomes while remote in order to modify instruction so that students are better served.

Use this toolkit on Remote Learning Instructional Improvement for protocols and resources to focus teacher teams on using data to improve remote learning. (ILF Implementation Team, NYCDOE)

Nurturing Instructional Leadership during Remote and Hybrid Learning