Insightful Perspectives on Lesson Plans and Lesson Studies: Voices from a Focus Group

Lesson planning and lesson studies are taken seriously in Japan. Lesson studies are deemed essential for the professional development of teachers in many countries.

Lessons are planned collectively, transacted and reviewed for leanings by the participating teachers for improving them. The lesson studies are written as action research reports for wider sharing.

A focus group consisting of eight members working at different levels of school education deliberated on the process of systematization of lesson plans preparation for two hours.

The process suggested by the focus group consisted of eight steps as follows.

1. Creating lesson plans individually by the teachers

2. Writing of a concept paper on the topic or the unit by the academic support group

3. Sharing of lesson plans and concept paper on the topic by the faculty members for the review comments

4. Creating the first draft of both documents – lesson plans on the topic and the concept paper

5. Implementation of the lesson plans

6. Observation of the lesson transactions by peers and support staff to compile comments and suggestions

7. Carrying out the second review of the observed lesson plans by the faculty members and academic support group

8. Creating a second draft the lessons by the teachers for use in the ensuing year

Initially, for a few months, the whole exercise could be done under the guidance of the academic support group. It was thought desirable that after six months, a workshop be held to create five or six exemplar lesson plans and concept papers and whole process may be handed over to the faculty members and coordinators.