Shifting Attention Back to Students Within the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol

• Published in: TESOL quarterly 2015-03, Vol.49 (1), p.169-187
• Main Authors: Daniel, Shannon M., Conlin, Luke
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Classroom communication; Classroom discussion; Classroom observation; Elementary education; Elementary Secondary Education; English (Second Language); English as a second language; English as a second language instruction; English Instruction; English Language Learners; English Teachers; Faculty Development; Instructional Effectiveness; Pedagogical Content Knowledge; Pedagogy; Reflective Teaching; Secondary education; Social support; Student Centered Curriculum; Teacher Attitudes; Teacher education; Teacher Improvement; Teaching Skills; THE FORUM; Training Methods
• ISSN: 0039-8322; 1545-7249
• DOI: 10.1002/tesq.213

The Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) is increasingly used as an instructional framework to help elementary and secondary teachers support English language learners (ELLs). This useful tool has helped teachers gain the knowledge, skills, and dispositions they need to support ELLs learn subject-area content and skills while learning English, but the SIOP can still be improved to enhance teacher learning. Specifically, the authors of this study worry that the SIOP prompts teachers to focus on themselves rather than attending and responding to students' thinking, actions, and sensemaking in the classroom. They provide three suggestions that could complement the current SIOP model: (1) additional features that help teachers attend and respond to students' contributions, (2) supplementary reflective prompts to help teachers consider how their instructional choices impact students, and (3) principles from successful professional development programs that support teachers' abilities to respond to students during moment-to-moment instructional interactions.