Reflection, The Key to Perfect Lesson Design

Dr. Wendy Ghiora – Posting #130 – March 1, 2015

Most teachers are well prepared with the basic elements of lesson design.

However, from personal observation as a school principal, I noticed the last element, “Summary/Reflection,” was often missing from the lesson.

This routinely neglected element could be considered the most critical to making the lesson a real success for both students and teachers alike.

Here is a brief review of basic lesson design taken from Madeline Hunter (Using What We Know About Teaching).

1.   Objective
 (Learning
 Target,
 Goals and
 Purpose)

What, specifically, should 
the 
student 
be
able
 to
 do,
 understand,
 and
 care

about as
 a
 result 
of 
learning?

Not 
only
 do
 students 
learn more 
effectively
 when 
they
 know
 what
 they’re

supposed
 to 
be 
learning,
 how 
their 
learning
 will
 be
 measured, 
and 
why
 that learning
 is
 important 
to 
them, 
but
 teachers 
teach more
 effectively 
when
 they 
have
 that
 same 
information.

2.   Anticipatory
 Set 
or
 Orientation

The
 Anticipatory Set
 or
 Orientation serves to
 put 
students
 into
 a
 receptive

frame
 of
 mind.

An
 introduction, model, example,
question, 
key
 vocabulary 
term
 or 
activity engages
 students 
and 
their focus 
on 
the
 objective/learning
 target.  The
“set” 
may 
be
 motivational
 or
 pique 
curiosity 
about 
what 
is
 coming
 next
 in the
 learning.

3.   Input 
or 
Presentation

Students must 
acquire 
new
 information
 about 
the
 knowledge, process, or
 skill
 they 
are 
to
 achieve.

New learning
 must
 be
 chunked
 into
“digestible 
bits” or
 small
 portions 
tailored 
to
 students’ level
 of
 understanding.

4.Modeling

During 
modeling, the
 skill, strategy,
or
 task
 is
 named
 and
 given 
a
 purpose as 
students
 see and hear when 
and
 how
 it 
is 
used 
or 
applied.

This is followed by:

5.Guided Practice and 6.Independent Practice

7. Reflection/Summary/Closure

The 
teacher 
takes
 action 
to
 bring
 the 
lesson 
presentation 
to 
an
 appropriate


conclusion.


*Review
 and
 clarify 
key 
points

*Involve
 students 
in
 securing
 key 
ideas 
in 
their 
own
 minds

Closure 
is
 used 
to 
cue
 students
 to 
the 
fact
 that 
they
 have 
arrived 
at 
an


important
 point 
in 
the
 lesson
 or 
the 
end 
of 
a 
lesson.



Closure 
is 
the 
act 
of
 reviewing
 and 
clarifying
 key 
points 
of
 a 
lesson, tying


them 
together 
into 
a
 coherent
 whole 
and
 securing
 them 
to 
the
 student’s

conceptual
 network.


Students
 may
 be
 prompted 
to
 bring
 things 
together
 in
 their 
own
 minds,
 to


make 
sense 
out 
of 
what 
has 
just 
been 
taught.



“Any 
questions?
 No.
 OK,
 let’s move 
on,” is 
not
 closure.


Closure
 can 
help
 students 
organize 
and 
take 
stock
 of
 their 
own
 progress 
and


learning.
 Exit
 slips, sharing
 a
 summary
 with
 a 
peer
 or 
writing 
one 
are
 examples 
of
 closure
 strategies.


More on Reflection – Dr. Wendy Ghiora

After observing several classrooms where this part of lesson design was being neglected, I brought it up when conferencing with the teachers after my observation.  All of them had the same two responses for not including reflection:

1.   I forgot about it.

2.   I ran out of time.

This is why it is imperative to actually write this down as part of the lesson plan, so it will be included.  It is an excellent idea to have an outline that includes a timeline of sorts.  All one has to do is leave about 2-4 minutes for this at the end of each lesson.  Believe me, it is well worth it.

When students become reflective about the teaching and learning process, they are strengthening their own capacity to learn. Central to this is the principal of reflection as meta-cognition, where students are aware of, and can describe their thinking in a way that allows them to ‘close the gap’ between what they know and what they need to learn.

Reflection compels the student to think about and then put into words what new skill, knowledge or ability they have gained from the lesson. In this way, they are self-affirming an accomplishment. 

At the end of each lesson, for example, students can pair up and describe to each other, what they can specifically do now as a result of the lesson they have just completed.  Then the teacher asks for volunteers to share with the group what they told their partner or what their partner told them. 

As the teacher listens, it is the perfect assessment, for she now knows exactly what the students really understood and how they can use their new knowledge.

As a bonus, this is excellent PR for both the teacher and the school.  When the student goes home and the mother asks,

“So what did you learn in school today?”

Instead of the usual answer: “Nothing…”

The student will recall what he learned in your class. 

Why?  Because he was forced to:

1.Think about it.

2.Say it out loud to a classmate.

3.Listen to others (or maybe even himself or his partner) state what they learned.

4. Recognize his accomplishment and feel good about it.

The mother will then think,

“Wow, at least he is learning something in that class. What a great teacher that must be!”

This small, but important part of the lesson allows students to practice and develop explaining, rephrasing and clarifying skills. By listening to all of the student responses, the teacher can summarize by repeating the common elements or ideas presented and thank the students for their individual and team contributions toward understanding the topic more deeply.  This practice also engages students in learning to focus on the “big ideas,” and how to summarize those ideas.

The most significant outcome of this simple step is the knowledge the teacher obtains of what the students actually “got” from the lesson, and the certainty the students either have or don’t have when they leave the classroom. Now, the teacher can accurately plan the next day’s lesson.

Wouldn’t you agree, this is the key to perfect lesson design?