About the Book
Unlock the secrets to student achievement with purposeful learning and clear expectations
On a clear day, you can learn forever— that’s the adapted lyric you’ll be happily humming once you’ve covered this playbook, because you will have mastered using learning intentions and success criteria, the twin engines of Teacher Clarity. This template-filled guide shows you how to own it, do it, and live it—and your students will be more successful as a result.
In this fully revised edition, this succinct, smart, and swift book’s nine learning modules take you systematically through a process that begins and ends with standards. With abundant and all new examples that span grade levels, planning templates for every step, key professional learning questions, new videos, revised success criteria and relevance sections, and the latest research, you have the most practical and up-to-date planner for designing and delivering highly effective instruction:
- Identifying Concepts and Skills
- Sequencing Learning Progressions
- Elaborating Learning Intentions
- Crafting Success Criteria
- Modifying Learning Intentions to Include Language Expectations
- Determining the Relevance of the Learning
- Designing Assessment Opportunities
- Creating Meaningful Learning Experiences
- Establishing Mastery of Standards
Designed for PLCs or independent teacher use, The Teacher Clarity Playbook helps practitioners align lessons, objectives, and outcomes of learning seamlessly, so that the classroom hours flow productively for everyone. For any teacher striving to be more organized and have stronger relationships with students, this is the book that shows you how.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Module 1: Identifying Concepts and Skills
Module 2: Sequencing Learning Progressions
Module 3: Elaborating Learning Intentions
Module 4: Crafting Success Criteria
Module 5: Modifying Learning Intentions to Include Language Expectations
Module 6: Determining the Relevance of the Learning
Module 7: Designing Assessment Opportunities
Module 8: Creating Meaningful Learning Experiences
Module 9: Establishing Mastery of Standards
Moving Forward
About the Author :
Douglas Fisher is a professor and chair of educational leadership at San Diego State University and a teacher leader at Health Sciences High and Middle College. Previously, Fisher was an early intervention teacher and elementary school educator. In 2022, he was inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame by the Literacy Research Association. He has published numerous articles on reading and literacy, leadership, and curriculum design, as well as books such as Your Introduction to PLC+, Welcome to Teaching, How Feedback Works, Teaching Reading, and RIGOR Unveiled. Fisher loves being an educator and hopes to share that passion with others.
Nancy Frey is a professor of educational leadership at San Diego State University and a teacher leader at Health Sciences High and Middle College. Her published titles include The Courage to Learn, The Art and Science of Coaching, How Scaffolding Works, and The Illustrated Guide to Visible Learning. Frey is a credentialed special educator, reading specialist, and administrator in California and learns from teachers and students every day.
John Almarode is a professor of education at James Madison University. He was awarded the inaugural Sarah Miller Luck Endowed Professorship in 2015 and received an Outstanding Faculty Award from the State Council for Higher Education in Virginia in 2021. John started as a mathematics and science teacher in Augusta County, Virginia. John has written multiple books, book chapters, papers, and reports. His collaborative work with colleagues on what works best in teaching and learning includes How Tutoring Works, Visible Learning in Early Childhood, and How Learning Works, all with Corwin Press.
Kierstan Barbee holds a doctoral degree in educational leadership and literacy from the University of Houston. She brings 20 years of education-related experience in PreK-12 settings. She has served as a secondary English Language Arts teacher, academic coach, and professional development supervisor in urban districts as well as a project manager of assessment for learning, which involved creating system-wide professional learning programming for central staff and campuses that promoted the spread of research- and evidence informed practices to maximize teaching and learning. Through an emphasis on relationship-building and human-centered design principles, Kierstan has coached PreK-12 principals, teachers, and district leaders on pedagogical practices that promote equity and student agency in learning.
Olivia Amador Valerio, EdD, was a bilingual teacher in an elementary school, as well as a principal, in San Diego. She holds teaching and administrative services credentials in California and earned her doctoral degree in educational leadership from San Diego State University. One of her most notable accomplishments while she served as a principal with the Chula Vista Elementary School District was receiving the National Center for Urban School Transformation (NCUST) Gold award for impact on student learning. Olivia focuses her efforts on improving teacher clarity and ensuring that all students have access to high-quality instructional experiences. Olivia is a co-author of The Teacher Clarity Playbook. She is currently a full-time professional learning consultant for Corwin. Joseph Michael Assof is a high school and community college mathematics teacher and the math department chair at Health Sciences High and Middle College in San Diego, CA. He is also an educational consultant and presents internationally on a wide array of topics including teacher clarity, mathematics teaching and learning, visible learning, and more. Joseph coauthored Teaching Mathematics in the Visible Learning Classroom, High School, Teaching Mathematics in the Visible Learning Classroom, Grades 6–8, and The Teacher Clarity Playbook, and his classroom is featured in a number of Visible Learning for Mathematics, Grades K–12 videos. Joseph holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mathematics and a doctorate in Educational Leadership with an emphasis in Mathematics Teacher Leadership. Mathematics and mathematics education are Joseph’s second passion—his first being his two beautiful boys, Joseph Fred and Jamie Beau.
Review :
"The new videos for each module on the Think Alouds give teachers an explanation of how practitioners are using a specific component of teacher clarity in a comprehensible way. It is a game changer when teachers discover the best hidden secret to learning (success criteria). By adding the seven different ways of sharing what success looks like with learners, Module 4 becomes even more powerful as teachers realize the different opportunities they have to reach and empower students."
"Just like Teacher Clarity demystifies how to be successful teachers and learners, the authors of this practical playbook demystify Teacher Clarity for their readers. It’s a must-read, must-practice book used by all educators across our school district. It’s not another thing; it’s ‘the thing’ for targeted, successful teaching and learning!"
"This playbook equips educators with a wealth of strategies, examples, and practical tools to amplify their impact on student learning. These resources empower educators to cultivate a learning environment where students are actively engaged, while also helping teachers develop a profound understanding of their expectations, thereby enhancing the overall learning experience."
"With a through line of alignment and intentionality, this second edition of The Teacher Clarity Playbook emphasizes the cognitive complexities to consider in purposeful planning. This book truly highlights and reminds us of both the art and science of teaching and deepens our appreciation for teachers and leaders."
"In this second edition of the playbook, teacher clarity is explicitly linked to alignment and the intentional moves teachers make when planning for and facilitating instruction. The authors provide a metacognitive roadmap for developing instruction that meets the cognitive complexity of content standards and supports students in knowing where they are now and where to next."
