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Selected Development Project
 
Project Title

Teaching Analysis and Lesson Observation Network (TALON)
 
Principal Investigator

Dr. Ko Po Yuk
 
Area of Research Project Teacher and Teaching Development
 
Project Period
From 3/2010 To 9/2012
Ojectives
The Teaching Analysis and Lesson Observation Network (TALON) Project aims at supporting primary school teachers in Hong Kong to develop lesson observation skills in order to enhance their professional knowledge. Its specific objectives are as follows:

  • Design public lessons on topics that teachers find difficult in the primary curriculum and demonstrate how to deal with the particular learning difficulties so to help teachers gain insights into these teaching topics and improve students’ learning outcome;
  • Establish a framework for lesson observation and analysis in order to promote a culture of effective lesson observation and lesson conferencing;
  • Develop and disseminate knowledge for lesson observation and evaluation, and promote a culture of quality lesson evaluation in the education profession through the platform of public lessons; and
  • In the long run, develop learning communities in schools by engaging teachers in collaborative lesson planning, observation, and evaluation.
Methods Used

The research team in HKIEd worked together with teachers from 10 primary schools to conduct school-based Learning Study and collaboratively plan and design a series of public lessons by working on topics that students showed learning difficulties. The lessons were then taught by the participating teachers publicly and teachers from other primary schools were invited to attend the public lessons. At the end, a territory-wide seminar was held to summarize the experience.
Summary of Findings

The cumulative number of participants of this project has nearly reached 1,300 teachers in different subjects from a variety of primary schools in Hong Kong. After attending the public lessons, participants and teachers of the partnership schools all have a better understanding on the perspective of analyzing a lesson.

In the evaluation, the average marks given by participants on different aspects of the project were all over 3, with 4 being the highest possible mark. Based on participants’ open-ended comments, TALON helped them in the following ways:

  • Learn more ways to deal with difficult topics;
  • Experience the power of using variation theory to assist in students’ understanding;
  • Develop a platform to share their views on dealing with a topic with other teachers; and
  • Enhance their professional development and reflect on their own teaching.
  • Establish a framework that emphasizes the object of learning for lesson observation so to help teachers develop a viewpoint on teaching and learning;
  • Build an interactive learning platform for teachers to share their views, which helps them improve their competency in lesson observation and analysis;
  • Spread quality lesson observation culture and cultivate a learning community in all Hong Kong schools.
Selected Publications Related to the Study
  • 高寶玉 盧敏玲 陳敏斯(編著)（2013）.優質觀課的理論與實踐 II，香港：香港教育學 院課堂學習研究中心。
  • Ko Po Yuk et al. (2012). ‘Teaching analysis and Lesson Observation Network (TALON)’, Report and Resource Pack, Hong Kong: QEF
  • 高寶玉 賴明珠 (2012). 中文科課堂學習研究實踐及案例，‘優化課堂學習研究計畫’系 列叢書之四，安徽教育出版社。
  • Ko, Po Yuk (2010). Primary school English teaching and teacher professional in Hong Kong, Collected Essays of Foreign Languages and Literatures, Volume 3, Zhang Cha (Ed.), Chengdu: Sichuan University Press, pp.115-123.
  • Ko, Po Yuk (2010). A new model for teacher professional development in Hong Kong- the Learning Study approach, Collected Essays of 2010 Asian Pacific International Conference on Teacher Continuous Professional Development and Life-long Learning, Taiwan: National Pingtung University of Education Press, pp.55-60
  • 高寶玉、高偉（2009）：優質觀課的理論與實踐，香港，香港教育學院 院校協作與學 校體驗事務處。
Biography of Principal Investigator

Dr. Ko Po Yuk is the Associate Professor of Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Director of Centre for Learning Study and Director of Centre for Small Class Teaching in the HKIEd. Her research interests include curriculum and instruction, Learning Study and classroom research, mentoring, teacher professional development, and Chinese language education.
Funding Source

Quality Education Fund