<p>Is is typical for teachers to have to make their lesson plans available to the administration on a regular basis? </p>
<p>If so, how often? </p>
<p>And how is this accomplished at your school?</p>
<p>We recently learned that our kids’ school does not require its teachers to even have lesson plans (much less show them to anyone). Frankly, most teachers already do make lesson plans and follow them in a reasonable fashion. We think that this “lax” policy got started when the school opened and only very veteran teachers were hired and the administration didn’t feel that such highly regarded professionals needed to have such “over-sight”. Things are different now.</p>
<p>In our public schools, teachers are required to have lesson plans in a binder, sitting on their desks, for 2 weeks ahead. The admins. do check these plans at regular meetings or sometimes spontaneously. If teachers do not have lesson plans, what happens if one of them is ill for a week, and a substitute teacher has to take over? Does the substitute teacher hand out worksheets which the kids do while the sub. reads the newspaper?</p>
<p>My D attended public school and yes the lesson plans had to be made available and teachers were evaluated on thier plans when meeting with their AP’s or department chairs. Lack of lesson plans could be cause for an unsatisfactory rating at the end of the year. For a non-tenured teacher, it could result in your not being employed the next school year. In public school the process is pretty consistent from state to state.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that your child attends a catholic school which the administration is not holding their staff to the same guidelines as the public schools.</p>
<p>I have taught in three public schools (two in Mississippi and one in Alabama). At each of these schools we were either required to submit our lesson plans a week in advance or required to have them on our desk so the principals could stop by and approve them a week in advance. At each school we were able to format them in a style with which we were comfortable. However in the school where I student taught (in MS), we had to follow the school approved format. At all three we had to indicate curriculum standards with our objectives.</p>
<p>During my years of teaching at the ps, I had my lesson plans available for 2 weeks ahead. Even after 18 years of homeschooling, my lesson plans are written out for one week in advance–otherwise if I’m sick, how will the children know what I expect them to get done???</p>
<p>At one school where I taught, I was requred to hand in my detailed lesson plans the Wed. before the following week. The principal would return them to me with her feedback/comments by that Friday - so the plans were prepared and responded to before the week in which they would be implemented. I had a lot of respect for the principal who paid so much attention to these plans, and whose comments were always valuable.</p>
<p>At another school where I worked, we had to turn in our lesson plans before the start of each week, but I never got any feedback from the principal on them – and was tempted to occasionally insert something inappropriate just to see if they were even being read! ;)</p>
<p>Many school districts are more demanding re lesson plans for new teachers, but all teachers are expected to at least have outlined lesson plans available at their desks. Flying without a flight plan is sloppy, IMO. Even the best teachers need to plan their classroom time.</p>
<p>I am CERTAIN that the diocese DOES require lesson plans to be available to the admin. Last week, I was at a function where the bishop and his school superintendent were and I mentioned the issue to the super. She tried to hide her surprise (she didn’t want to reveal that the principal was making a big mistake) but it was very obvious to my sister and me that she didn’t like what she heard. The school also just hired an academic dean for next year and when I mentioned the issue to him, his eyebrows went up to his hairline. I just think that this principal is just being naive about requiring lesson plans to be made and kept on teachers’ desks. (he’s very nice).</p>
<p>I just started this thread to find out how “common” it is for a principal not to require lesson plans. (Again, most teachers are doing them at the school).</p>
<p>I totally agree. I have taught and subbed in Catholic schools so I know that other Catholic schools require lesson plans to be on desks so that principals and/or dept heads can review. Lesson plans are also needed so that subs can “step in” and teach when teachers are sick.</p>
<p>The only reason it became known that “lesson plans” weren’t required was because one teacher who taught 4 periods of the same kind of class was “famous” for not having any system to ensure that each class received about the same info and lectures. Invariably, one or two classes would not get the hand-outs or the chapter reviews or the testing dates. </p>
<p>It was at this point that we learned that the teachers weren’t required to have lesson plans and this teacher (a man) was not doing them on his own. I am willing to bet that he is the only teacher not doing them at the school.</p>
<p>jlauer95, I have also taught and subbed in Catholic Schools, at the elementary level, and lesson plans were required. In my experience, Catholic schools are not typically any more lax than public schools regarding curriculum.</p>
<p>We are not required or expected to have lesson plans available for review by administration or by parents. We are expected to have them, obviously, but there is absolutely no review. We do have a program for new teachers, wherein they are observed by mentor teachers weekly for their first two years, and they are expected to have lesson plans, and they are reviewed. Some new teachers don’t make the cut because they can’t manage their time or their students.</p>
<p>My kids’ private school has syllabus & assigment sheets; haven’t seen but assume there is a lesson plan. At the public schools my kids attended, all teachers had to have lesson plans & if they were going to miss school for any reason, had to leave a lesson plan with the sub.</p>
<p>When I taught at a public school in Orange County, we had to have lesson plans on our desks so that a sub could "take over’ when we were absent. The dept head would also look at them.</p>
<p>I do think that lesson plans should be available for admin review. I just think that that is good policy.</p>
<p>Define “lesson plan.” Do you mean a general plan for what gets taught when? Do you mean a detailed minute-by-minute plan including all questions to be asked, lecture notes, HW to be assigned, and lab materials list? The two are very different.</p>
<p>As a sub, I know that most teachers can tell you where they’ll be–more or less–for weeks ahead, but rarely have a detailed lesson plan until a day or two before the actual class.</p>
<p>As a teacher, my detailed lesson plan often included instructions as to which students to ask which questions—but I couldn’t prepare those very far ahead.</p>
<p>I have lessons plans prepared a week in advance. Our plan books are asked for by the principal sporadically and usually with a few days notice.<br>
However, this “system” does not work, IMO. We had one teacher (elementary) go out on a leave, and the covering teacher discovered that there was no scheduled block of time in place to teach reading. Yes, Reading! Administrators are responsible for seeing that all subjects are actually being taught–by going into the classrooms at the appointed times for specific subjects. I’m at a loss to explain how an elementary teacher could get away with not teaching reading…how could you live with yourself??? How was this not questioned by parents???</p>
<p>I taught in 2 highly ranked midwest suburban schools. Lesson plans, with details of activities were available but NEVER looked at once submitted for approval during a summer of paid curriculum writing. The inflexibility of the US public school system (a 1940’s model) is one of the reasons I chose a new career (after 8 years of teaching). Accountabilty of the topic being taught is a good idea but the ultimate judge (every parent has a different opinion) has little say over reality. It’s not quite smoke and mirrors (there are plenty of good teachers) but centralized direction for anything (if strictly enforced) leaves little flexibility for those who must educate (instill curiousity, enthusiasm for a topic). If humans simply need to gain knowledge they will not need instructors (a computer program will suffice). Arguement over what is being taught is lsowly being removed from the classroom as parents chose to do (or supplement) the teaching at home.</p>
<p>dmd: I don’t know if I can “define” lesson plan because I think different schools/districts probably have different policies. What I am thinking is the typical listings of chapters, quizzes, reviews, labs, etc. Some people seem to be more “detailed” (including lists of kids to call on (that is new to me!))</p>
<p>I didn’t go to the principal about the lack of a lesson plan req’t. the subject came up a few months ago when he confided with me about how difficult the process was to fire the chemistry teacher who had refused to teach for 2 years after her divorce (no labs, no lectures – just had kids read their books in class). Without knowing that the school didn’t have a policy, I asked why he couldn’t have used her lesson plan as documentation since it wouldn’t have listed any labs (or if it did, he would have proof that she never did the labs as “planned” in her planner). That is when the principal revealed to me that he doesn’t require lesson plans (you could have knocked me over with a feather). I told him that the planner provides evidence (not that any teacher can be expected to perfectly follow her planner since things do “come up” which can cause a change. I am talking about a complete disregard for doing what is planned or not having a sufficient plan at all.) A planner can be a helpful tool if a teacher (like the chem teacher) is not teaching. a principal can review that planner on a weekly basis and see if she is meeting her goals. If it can be shown that week after week, month after month, a teacher is NOT even close to meeting the class goals, the documentation is there to fire her.</p>
<p>Wow… all lesson plans had to be done the summer before? (I know that vet teachers can often use their “plan” from previous years) If they are all done the summer before, how does one account for some flexibility? this seems toooo strict. new supplemental materials become available throughout the year and teachers should be able to incorporate them without worrying that the materials weren’t listed in the lesson plan created last summer!</p>
<p>I do like the idea of submitting for approval (by admin or dept head) but not just once for the WHOLE year! Maybe quarterly or something. (And I’m not suggesting someone go over others’ lesson plans with a “fine tooth comb” unless there has been an issue that goals have not been met in a particular classroom.)</p>