MRL Spotlight
MRL highlights the work of our associates and their work in the field. This Spotlight will focus on Mark and Maria Foseid and their journey working with two schools in Oklahoma.
Mark and Maria Foseid’s partnership with Dr. Marzano, and eventually with MRL, began in the early 1990s when the Foseids were working for the Cherry Creek School District in Colorado. Mark was a teacher and elementary and middle school administrator, and Maria was a teacher and district staff development coordinator. After working with Dr. Marzano on the development of the books, Dimensions of Learning and Classroom Management That Works, they became associates in 2003 and have since stayed busy leading workshops and professional development around the country.
Mark and Maria’s current focus involves the instructional model outlined in Dr. Marzano’s 2007 book, The Art and Science of Teaching. Two schools in Oklahoma, F. D. Moon Academy (grades Pre-K–6) and Douglass Mid-High School (grades 7–12), have partnered with them to adopt the Art and Science’s model as their instructional framework and language of instruction. These two urban schools face significant challenges as they commit to increasing student achievement and student performance on district and state tests. Both have received School Improvement Grants from the state of Oklahoma that focus on intensive professional training using research based strategies in the classroom. Dr. G. B. Staples, principal of Douglass Middle and High School, describes a key condition for increased student success at Douglass by saying, “We absolutely intend to have a highly effective teacher in every single classroom.’’
Thinking in terms of the ten design questions outlined in The Art and Science of Teaching is the first step towards fulfilling that commitment. For many teachers and administrators, this is a “solid paradigm shift,” as Mark puts it. He explains that it’s not enough to simply present the design questions and the strategies and then tell teachers to implement them. What is needed is an individualized coaching approach that is specific to each teacher’s expertise. Maria explains that the first step is to help teachers understand the research and strategies outlined in Dr. Marzano’s book. Then, she and Mark assist teachers as they incorporate the strategies into their lesson designs. Finally, they coach teachers as they implement the strategies in their classrooms, providing feedback and advice based on their observations. They are both passionate about the importance of teacher effectiveness. “Regardless of the environment outside the classroom door, an effective teacher can make any classroom a highly effective place to learn,” says Maria. “Our job is to help make that happen.”
Maria explains that one of the most important aspects of their work with teachers is the one-on-one coaching that they provide to help teachers infuse the strategies from The Art and Science of Teaching into their curriculum and lessons. “Our job is to get personal with the teachers and their students,” Mark says. “Without a relationship, we can’t move forward.” And Mark and Maria have worked very hard to build those relationships. Although time constraints can make coaching difficult, Maria works with teachers at Douglass High School during their planning periods. “Sometimes they’re able to get 90 minutes of release time, but usually it’s just 45 minutes,” she says. To make the most out of her limited time, Maria focuses her coaching on the teacher’s individual needs and level of understanding regarding the instructional strategies from The Art and Science of Teaching. Mark calls this concept “tiered professional development,” and explains that the goal is continuous growth for teachers, whether they are just learning about the strategies for the first time, or working on writing learning objectives from their standards, or incorporating the strategies into their daily lesson plans.
They credit teachers at F. D. Moon Academy and Douglass High School with putting in the time and effort that it takes to improve, despite the fact that their jobs can be a daily struggle. “As difficult as their lives are, they’re still game to improve,” Mark says of the teachers at both schools. He has conducted over 80 observations, and he comments that those experiences have allowed him to see “some of the best teaching and classroom management I’ve ever seen…..and some of the neediest.” He tells the story of a kindergartener whose behavioral problems at the beginning of the year were severely interfering with his academic achievement. So Mark was amazed when this five-year-old approached him recently and offered to read him a book! “It’s a testimony to the difference an individual teacher can make and our job is to help make that happen.”
Although F. D. Moon and Douglas High School both await test score results for the year, Mark and Maria believe that success will be so much more than test scores. Mark tells the story of overhearing a teacher in a faculty meeting observe that “these faculty meetings are so much better than they used to be. We aren’t screaming or shouting at each other, and nobody’s leaving in a huff.” Although the growth process isn’t easy, indicators like these help Mark and Maria stay focused on their long term goals in Oklahoma: To help build communities of highly effective teachers who continually grow by employing research-based best practices and reflecting on those practices with a common language of instruction.
This interview was written by Lindsay Carleton and Julia Simms, Marzano Research Laboratory.