EDUC-TED Talks-Bill Gates: Teachers need real feedback

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Transcript:



Everyone needs a coach.It doesn't matter whether you're a basketball player,a tennis player, a gymnastor a bridge player.(Laughter)

My bridge coach, Sharon Osberg,says there are more pictures of the back of her headthan anyone else's in the world. (Laughter)Sorry, Sharon. Here you go.

We all need people who will give us feedback.That's how we improve.Unfortunately, there's one group of peoplewho get almost no systematic feedbackto help them do their jobs better,and these peoplehave one of the most important jobs in the world.I'm talking about teachers.When Melinda and I learnedhow little useful feedback most teachers get,we were blown away.Until recently, over 98 percent of teachersjust got one word of feedback:Satisfactory.If all my bridge coach ever told mewas that I was "satisfactory,"I would have no hope of ever getting better.How would I know who was the best?How would I know what I was doing differently?Today, districts are revampingthe way they evaluate teachers,but we still give them almost no feedbackthat actually helps them improve their practice.Our teachers deserve better.The system we have today isn't fair to them.It's not fair to students,and it's putting America's global leadership at risk.So today I want to talk about how we can help all teachersget the tools for improvement they want and deserve.

Let's start by asking who's doing well.Well, unfortunately there's no international ranking tablesfor teacher feedback systems.So I looked at the countrieswhose students perform well academically,and looked at what they're doingto help their teachers improve.Consider the rankings for reading proficiency.The U.S. isn't number one.We're not even in the top 10.We're tied for 15th with Iceland and Poland.Now, out of all the placesthat do better than the U.S. in reading,how many of them have a formal systemfor helping teachers improve?Eleven out of 14.The U.S. is tied for 15th in reading,but we're 23rd in science and 31st in math.So there's really only one area where we're near the top,and that's in failing to give our teachersthe help they need to develop their skills.

Let's look at the best academic performer:the province of Shanghai, China.Now, they rank number one across the board,in reading, math and science,and one of the keys to Shanghai's incredible successis the way they help teachers keep improving.They made sure that younger teachersget a chance to watch master teachers at work.They have weekly study groups,where teachers get together and talk about what's working.They even require each teacher to observeand give feedback to their colleagues.

You might ask, why is a system like this so important?It's because there's so much variationin the teaching profession.Some teachers are far more effective than others.In fact, there are teachers throughout the countrywho are helping their students make extraordinary gains.If today's average teachercould become as good as those teachers,our students would be blowing away the rest of the world.So we need a system that helps all our teachersbe as good as the best.

What would that system look like?Well, to find out, our foundationhas been working with 3,000 teachersin districts across the countryon a project called Measures of Effective Teaching.We had observers watch videosof teachers in the classroomand rate how they did on a range of practices.For example, did they ask their studentschallenging questions?Did they find multiple ways to explain an idea?We also had students fill out surveys with questions like,"Does your teacher knowwhen the class understands a lesson?""Do you learn to correct your mistakes?"

And what we found is very exciting.First, the teachers who did well on these observationshad far better student outcomes.So it tells us we're asking the right questions.And second, teachers in the program told usthat these videos and these surveys from the studentswere very helpful diagnostic tools,because they pointed to specific placeswhere they can improve.I want to show you what this video component of METlooks like in action.

(Music)

(Video) Sarah Brown Wessling: Good morning everybody.Let's talk about what's going on today.To get started, we're doing a peer review day, okay?A peer review day, and our goal by the end of classis for you to be able to determinewhether or not you have moves to prove in your essays.

My name is Sarah Brown Wessling.I am a high school English teacherat Johnston High School in Johnston, Iowa.

Turn to somebody next to you.Tell them what you think I mean when I talk about moves to prove. I've talk about --

I think that there is a difference for teachersbetween the abstract of how we see our practiceand then the concrete reality of it.

Okay, so I would like you to please bring up your papers.

I think what video offers for usis a certain degree of reality.You can't really dispute what you see on the video,and there is a lot to be learned from that,and there are a lot of ways that we can growas a profession when we actually get to see this.I just have a flip camera and a little tripodand invested in this tiny little wide-angle lens.At the beginning of class, I just perch itin the back of the classroom. It's not a perfect shot.It doesn't catch every little thing that's going on.But I can hear the sound. I can see a lot.And I'm able to learn a lot from it.So it really has been a simplebut powerful tool in my own reflection.

All right, let's take a look at the long one first, okay?

Once I'm finished taping, then I put it in my computer,and then I'll scan it and take a peek at it.If I don't write things down, I don't remember them.

So having the notes is a part of my thinking process,and I discover what I'm seeing as I'm writing.I really have used it for my own personal growthand my own personal reflection on teaching strategyand methodology and classroom management,and just all of those different facets of the classroom.

I'm glad that we've actually done the process beforeso we can kind of compare what works, what doesn't.

I think that video exposesso much of what's intrinsic to us as teachersin ways that help us learn and help us understand,and then help our broader communities understandwhat this complex work is really all about.I think it is a way to exemplify and illustratethings that we cannot convey in a lesson plan,things you cannot convey in a standard,things that you cannot even sometimes conveyin a book of pedagogy.

Alrighty, everybody, have a great weekend.I'll see you later.

[Every classroom could look like that]

(Applause)

Bill Gates: One day, we'd like every classroom in Americato look something like that.But we still have more work to do.Diagnosing areas where a teacher needs to improveis only half the battle.We also have to give them the tools they needto act on the diagnosis.If you learn that you need to improvethe way you teach fractions,you should be able to watch a videoof the best person in the world teaching fractions.

So building this complete teacher feedbackand improvement system won't be easy.For example, I know some teachersaren't immediately comfortable with the ideaof a camera in the classroom.That's understandable, but our experience with METsuggests that if teachers manage the process,if they collect video in their own classrooms,and they pick the lessons they want to submit,a lot of them will be eager to participate.

Building this system will also requirea considerable investment.Our foundation estimates that it could costup to five billion dollars.Now that's a big number, but to put it in perspective,it's less than two percentof what we spend every year on teacher salaries.

The impact for teachers would be phenomenal.We would finally have a way to give them feedback,as well as the means to act on it.

But this system would havean even more important benefit for our country.It would put us on a path to making sureall our students get a great education,find a career that's fulfilling and rewarding,and have a chance to live out their dreams.This wouldn't just make us a more successful country.It would also make us a more fair and just one, too.

I'm excited about the opportunityto give all our teachers the support they want and deserve.I hope you are too.

Thank you.

(Applause)