1. www.le.ac.uk
Lesson Study - a collaborative approach to
developing and researching pedagogy
Lesson Study Research Group
School of Education
University of Leicester
3. Aims of the Research
1. evaluate the quality of students’ learning
opportunities in ‘research lesson seminars’
2. explore student perspectives on their learning
experiences
3. develop a greater understanding of cross-
departmental working (with ELTU)
4. ‘We close the classroom door and experience pedagogical
solitude… I now believe that the reason teaching is not more
valued in the Academy is because the way we treat teaching
removes it from the community of scholars.’
Shulman (2004, 140-141)
5. Context of study
• MA International Education
• 26/24 students in the group
• with only one student being a native English speaker, with
other students from South East Asia, the Middle East, Africa
and Europe
• Three academic members of staff who teach on the course
decided to use lesson study as a tool for understanding and
extending student learning
6. Working with international students
• culture shock - the emotional response which is a result of feeling a lack
of understanding and confidence in an unfamiliar environment,
• homesickness - unhappiness in an environment which is obviously unlike
that of home, and which may lead to falling quality of work and a lower
level of concentration in studies,
• language difficulties - within a UK context students may be enrolling on a
course where English is almost certainly their second, and possibly the
third or fourth language. Language difficulties can vary enormously and
may include spoken communication as well as written work,
• academic problems - some international students will have studied in
teaching and learning cultures which may be very different to those of
the host country leading to a potential dissonance between experience
and expectations within the new context.
7. Background to Lesson Study
•Japanese Lesson Study (‘jugyou kenkyuu’ )
•collaborative research-oriented learning activity (plan-teach-
observe-evaluate)
•deeper understanding of students’ learning leads to
continuously refined pedagogy
8. • collaborative,
• case-student specific,
• classroom-based,
• lesson specific,
• qualitative,
• Learning and pedagogy-focused.
• FLEXIBLE - Variation in application might occur due to
purposes and contexts
Some core characteristics of Lesson Study
9. Lesson Study Cycle
1. Lecturers
meet to decide
on learning
challenge
2. Lecturer
planning
meetings
3. First research
seminar is
taught –
observation of
2-3 students
4. Individual
student
stimulated recall
interviews
5. Evaluation
meeting leading
to consideration
of new foci for
learning
challenge
10. Activity
Planning Activity Research lessons
Studentstimulated-recall
interviews
Evaluation
Meeting
IndividualInterviews
FocusGroups
Methods
Audio record
Save outputs
Plans
Resources
Video
Observation
notes
Student work
PowerPoints
Audio record
Amendments
New plan (if
applicable)
Data collection techniques
11. Two main projects to date:
1. Developing understanding of international student
learning
2. Understanding the role of study skills in the MA
International Education
13. the quality of students’ learning opportunities in
‘research lesson seminars’
• J: Was the group discussion useful?
• C: Using the fact file was good to look and spot the differences which
was good when we were in groups.
• R: It was a problem for me and I didn’t finish all the papers and I only
read the first and half of the second page. A little difficult for me
(discussion between lecturer J and students C and R in focus group
reflection meeting after research session 4)
14. Exploration of student perspectives on their learning
experiences
J: What do you, as he’s talking, what, what are you actually thinking
about? How do you think you’re learning while he sort of explains
things?
M: Oh, for the knowledge, may be, mmm, some knowledge I have
already read it before from the books-all the articles and, and I note,
‘oh, that’s right. This is, I have the knowledge’ but sometimes, the
knowledge I haven’t heard before. So, I may need to look the notes,
look at…’ (Lecturer J and student M, individual interview after
research session 1)
15. J: And were you using that [iphone] during the session?
E: I do use it. Yeah. Like often I have the slides on my iPhone.
J: And is that to view or can you actually make notes on your iPhone?
E: No. Just to view it. Like just before class, like going back, but before
the class of open most of the things. But now I’m using to like now Q
comes and he gives us the papers, but before class I didn’t have it and I
didn’t print it. So I just had on my iPhone, but I read it and like this stuff
we just read, I just read as well in the unit and I’ve read Shepard. Then I
just sort of moved on. (Lecturer J and student E, individual interview
after research session 2)
16. Some initial conclusions
• LS only partially breaks down ‘pedagogic solitude’
• Particular utility with international students
• Issues of literacy and technology
• Role of learning ecologies
• How can we see learning?
17. • MAIE Study Skills (November) – session supporting first assignment
writing, focused on analysing papers (empirical and position papers)–
Wasyl
• ELTU (December) - In-sessional support class for MAIE students –
academic Poster presentations - Sue
• MAIE Study Skills (March) - Dissertation Development- creating a
coherent plan –Phil
Research with ELTU - Outline of the sessions we
focused on
18. Study skills project - Initial Implications
• Importance of working with ELTU in designing student support
• Integration of study skills into research methods
• ‘Study skills’ – composed of critical reading, writing, speaking, listening
and the development of an academic/research community
• Developing the language of research methods, so should it be ‘research
literacy’ rather than ‘study skills’?
• Need for a greater level of team working. Need to tackle pedagogic
solitude – need for a cultural change
• Utility of lesson study as a way of gaining new perspectives and insights
19. Affective foundations
• Values
• Attitudes
• Philosophies
Personal growth
• Professional skills
• Understanding through pedagogic content
knowledge
• Experience & reflection
Collaborative growth
• Professional development
• Collaborative development & learning
Organisational contexts
• University & disciplinary cultures
• Understanding/undertaking
research
Societal contexts
• Policy
• Socio-economic and cultural change
20. What is research?
Introduction to critical reading
What is research?
Epistemologies & worldviews
Methodologies & ethics
Introduction to critical writing
Research design and tools
Analysis tools
Networked thinking &
reporting research
Dissertation
1 day
1 day
1 day
2 days
1 day
3 days
2 days
1 day
1 day
Critical reading and
epistemology
Theory and
research
Introduction to
research design
Methodologies &
ethics
Analysis
Face to face
Online
8th Oct
15th Oct
5th Nov
18th/19th Nov
3rd Dec
13th-15th Jan
19th/20th Feb
13th March
8th Dec – Presentations (paired posters)
20th March
Baseline
• Student
questionnaire on
prior learning
• Student interviews
• student questionnaire
• Stimulated recall int4erviews
• Documents
• Participatory dev. Focus grp
• student questionnaire
• Stimulated recall int4erviews
• Documents
• Participatory dev. Focus grp
• student questionnaire
• Stimulated recall int4erviews
• Documents
• Participatory dev. Focus grp
LS 1
LS 3
LS 2
LS 4
Summative
• Student
questionnaire on
course
• Student interviews
