Lessons learnt from Lesson Study, Social Capital and School Improvement.

This  publication is based on a doctoral study, carried out by   Jeremy Hannay  at Exeter University exploring the value of Lesson Study, Social  Capital and  School Improvement.  First though some brief underpinnings.

Lesson Study was introduced in the UK setting by Pete Dudley in 2001 and has  solid body of theorising by a number of workers including  Stenhouse (1975),  Dudley, (2001)  (2015), Elliot(2007), (2012),  Stigher and Hiebert (2009), Takahashi and McDougall (2016).  Andy Hargreaves the Thomas More Brennan Chair in the Lynch School of Education at Boston College and  Michael Fullan, former Dean of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) of the University of Toronto,   promoted the concept of Professional Capital  in their book which deals with 3 key elements ( Human Capital,Social Capital and Decisional Capital) which  Jeremy regards as a must read for all educators. School Improvement has been and continues to be seen  as an imperative by Goverments, Policy makers, Governors, Head Teachers, Teachers and Parents alike, for decades.

The aims of this study were:

 1) To positively change school culture/climate through the introduction of Lesson Study as professional learning and development;

 2) To improve teacher self-efficacy in teaching mixed-ability classes in mathematics, ultimately phasing out “ability grouping”; and,

3) To interrogate current teaching strategies being used with struggling and advanced learners in primary mathematics with regard to pupil progress.

Using  a case study design (n=1) and data gathering  techniques of both qualitative and  quantitative data, the study empirically tested 5 research questions as follows, were  formulated to explore the aims:

 1) Will initiating a programme of Lesson Study be associated with a positive impact on the climate of a primary school?

2) Will initiating a programme of Lesson Study be associated with a positive impact on teacher self-efficacy in implementing inclusive practice?

 3) What conclusions did the teachers draw about improving the teaching following the Lesson Study cycle?

4) What changes to practice will teachers sustain after engaging in a wave of Lesson Study?

5) What changes in pupil maths attainment will follow a programme of Lesson Study?

Jeremy is an insightful and inspirational teacher who  began his teaching career in Canada and who has further  honed his teaching skills and leadership  development across  London, most notably, at Three Bridges Primary School in Southall,  in England.  He has an enquiring mind, strongly values the importance of setting personal development goals that resonate with their everyday work, interests and passion.  Above all, Jeremy loves teaching, adore his pupils and is a great role model for his team of teachers, in whom he invests and supports  their  development  journeys. Jeremy first  introduced Lesson Study at Three Bridges School to increase professional capital and empower teachers to take responsibility for their own development.  His doctoral study has supported the notion that  the introduction of LS as professional learning and development positively  changed the school culture/climate; improved teacher effectiveness in teaching mixed ability classes, which led to the phasing out of “ability grouping”, and informed teaching strategies used with struggling and advanced learners in primary maths, regarding pupil progress.

This ethos of openness and sharing was developed alongside the original LS project.  Three Bridges Primary School has become a well-known learning centre, supporting the growth and development of its own teachers, leaders and learners alongside many other schools, locally, nationally and internationally (Hannay, 2016b, 2018a; Ofsted, 2019b).

From 2016, the school opened its doors to support other schools in developing the Singapore approach to mathematics.  This was borne out of the extensive study, improvement, confidence and self-efficacy grown through LS.  Teachers developed a deeper understanding of effective lesson structure  for learning and became inspired to support other schools in moving away from “ability” grouping. This occurred because the school’s maths results have remained a strength since the introduction of LS and the Singapore approach to teaching mathematics (DfE, 2021; Ofsted, 2019b).  The school was the first school awarded “accredited school” status and instrumental in the creation of this type of open-sharing approach of Maths No Problem! in 2015 (MathsNoProblem, 2021).

It was also at this time that the school began publishing more on its unconventional approaches through media like Twitter, TeachWire and various other UK education publications. At this stage, schools from further afield began to contact the school and headteacher for visits and keynote addresses at education conferences.  The school has worked in partnership with schools from a variety of countries, including: Canada, Singapore, Malta, Sweden, New Zealand, Germany, the Netherlands, Cyprus, Australia, Wales, the United States, and Belgium (Ofsted, 2019b).  The headteacher has spoken at many conferences across the country and been the keynote speaker for larger organisations such as the National Association of Headteachers and Australian Council for Educational Research (Hannay, 2020).  The school has been rated  “Outstanding ”  consecutively. It has feature in Teach Primary twice since 2016, once highlighting the use of Singapore mathematics and once for their different approach to school leadership and pedagogy (Smail, 2019).  Thousands of teachers and school leaders have been to the  school to learn and grow, with specific focus on instructional programs, school climate and culture, Lesson Study, teacher research groups, and/or leadership (Hattie & Clarke, 2018; Howard, 2020; Waters, 2021).

The school is successful, but not static.  Over the last five years, priorities have changed, aims have become bolder and deepened, and the school has transformed how it embodies professional capital with increasing levels and sophisticated forms of professional agency, collaboration, and enquiry..