STAR | Powerful Teaching and Learning

STAR PROTOCOL

The STAR Classroom Observation Protocol® was developed by and for The BERC Group Inc. as a research instrument that measures the degree to which Powerful Teaching and Learning® is present during any given period of observation time in a classroom.

By popular demand, The BERC Group also developed modified versions of the original research instrument to be used by professional development groups. The purpose of the STAR Protocol is to bring the research into instructional practice via a tool that is easy to understand and use (Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3). The STAR Classroom Observation Protocol® helps educators reflect on their own instructional practices and develop instructional practices that align with educational reform efforts and brain-based research.

Through fifteen Indicators, the STAR protocol efficiently assesses student learning in the areas of Skills/knowledge, Thinking, Application and Relationships.

STAR Protocol

STAR Protocol (click to enlarge)

The STAR Classroom Observation Protocol™ is used by teachers as a way to reflect and improve on their own Powerful Teaching and Learning. When using the STAR Protocol, teachers progress through powerful phases of discovery.

  • Phase I: Personal Reflection
    • For use by individual teachers to begin to understand and recognize the employment of Powerful Teaching and Learning in their own classrooms.
  • Phase II: Professional Learning Community
    • For use by groups of teachers in a professional environment to foster communication and feedback between individuals for collective improvement.
  • Phase III: Calibration
    • For use by groups of teachers to continue collective improvement and to help develop a common language within a group related to Powerful Teaching and Learning concepts and practices.