The Skillful Teacher: Building Your Teaching Skills, 6th Edition

This book has become the gold standard text in many colleges and school districts across the country for studying generic pedagogy. Designed for both the novice and the experienced educator.

The Skillful Teacher is a unique synthesis of the Knowledge Base on Teaching with powerful repertoires for matching teaching strategies to student needs. Designed as a practical guide for practitioners working to broaden their teaching skills, the book combines theory with practice and focuses on 18 critical areas of classroom performance. A must for instructional coaches and mentors!

Of all the things that are essential to high performing schools, nothing is more important than the teacher and what that person knows, believes and can do. A teacher's skill makes a difference in student performance, not only in achievement scores, but also in students sense of fulfillment in school and their feelings of well-being.

Twenty chapters capture a blend of research and practitioner-developed approaches for using the research in the classroom. Each chapter lays out a known repertoire of strategies to help teachers fulfill a particular kind of mission from the spiritual imperative of communicating high expectations to the abstract challenge of planning lessons.

About the Authors:
Jon Saphier is the founder of Research for Better Teaching (RBT), a professional development organization dedicated to improving teaching and learning. In addition to The Skillful Teacher, Dr. Saphier is the author of several other books and articles on teaching, leadership and school improvement, including John Adams Promise: How to Have Good Schools for All Our Children Not Just Some (2005). Dr. Saphier devotes his time to long-term, in-depth, systemic change projects in selected districts. A masterful teacher, he conducts workshops, coaching sessions, and delivers keynotes that bring to life the principles and strategies descried in The Skillful Teacher. In addition, Dr. Saphier is passionate about and active in public policy reform to promote the professionalization of teaching and leadership. Dr. Saphier has also served as a school administrator, staff developer, and teacher (K-12).

Mary Ann Haley-Speca is a senior consultant with RBT and has worked with teachers and administrators in public, private, urban, suburban, rural and international school districts since 1990. A seasoned and engaging staff developer, Haley-Speca enable teachers and leaders to create school cultures and classroom environments that support high achievement for all students. During her tenure at RBT, she has also led the Training and Curriculum divisions, mentoring consultants and designing programs. She co-authored two popular RBT publications, Activators and Summarizers. Before joining RBT, Haley-Speca served as a district-wide staff developer, program supervisor, and classroom teacher in grades 3-12.

Robert Gower recently retired as a professor at University of Massachusetts Lowell, where he helped develop the doctoral program in Leadership in Schooling. He is still active teaching online courses for the university. Bob s distinguished career includes being an elementary teacher, a principal, a researcher, a pioneer in the study of teaching, and a standout instructor and mentor for generations of graduate students. In 2007, he received the Faculty Excellence & Service Award and was recognized as a 2007 Honors Fellow by the University of Massachusetts.