Best Foot Forward Project
Best Foot Forward
Did video technology improve the classroom observation process?
The Best Foot Forward Project investigated whether video technology can make the classroom observation process easier to implement, less costly, and more valid and reliable.
Background
In a randomized controlled trial, the study team put cameras in the hands of teachers and allowed them to select their best lessons for evaluation. Researchers aimed to learn whether digital video made the observation process more acceptable to teachers and administrators.
In 2013, the project was piloted in 100 classrooms in New York City, Georgia, and North Carolina. More than 400 teachers and their administrators from districts in Delaware, California, Colorado, and Georgia joined the impact evaluation from 2013–15.
- Read the first year implementation report to learn whether digital video transformed the way classroom observations were experienced by the participants in the study.
- Download the Video Observation Toolkit to access research on the value of video observations and resources for evaluating readiness, gaining trust, and implementation.
- Read the results from an experimental study evaluating whether substituting teacher-collected videos for in-person observations could improve the value of teacher observations for teachers, administrators, or students.
The study was led by Principal Investigator Thomas Kane and Project Director Miriam Greenberg.
Partners
People
Miriam Greenberg
Thomas J. Kane
