Research School Network: Using video to support collaborative reflection in literacy professional development New literacy Clips from the Classroom videos can support collaborative reflection in professional development.

Chloe Butlin considers how new additions to the Research Schools Network suite of literacy Clips from the Classroom can be used in professional development.

Developing reading fluency relies on careful instructional choices from teachers. Strategies like choral reading, echo reading, repeated reading may appear intuitive and effortless when executed well, but beneath each strategy lies deep professional knowledge, skill and consideration of when and how to deploy it effectively. So how can we best refine and develop fluency strategies in ways that improve outcomes for pupils?

London South Research School has created a sequence of lessons that use reading fluency to explore and understand a text called ​‘Fluency Focus.’ To exemplify this work, the school has produced three new Clips from the Classroom videos that isolate specific aspects of fluency practice: echo reading, paired reading, reading for performance.

Integrating video into professional development

Once an area of fluency practice has been identified as a professional development focus, video exemplification can bring recommendations from EEF’s literacy guidance to life. It can help build knowledge, act as a springboard for discussion and encourage self-reflection.

To get beneath the surface of the routines needed to refine the strategies featured in London South’s Clips from the Classroom, the Noticing Notes document linked on the landing page is a useful starting point for facilitators planning to use classroom video within professional development:

• Gauge current understanding and current practice. Use a reflection question to challenge misconceptions and prompt discussion.
• Provide context and purpose. This understanding is vital – for example, repeated reading in Reception is likely to involve different instructional decisions from repeated reading of a non-fiction paragraph in year 6.
• Watch the video uninterrupted first. Viewing the clip in full before pausing to analyse specific moments helps colleagues understand the wider lesson context, such as how the teacher provides feedback during choral reading. This also creates shared reference points for discussion and prevents fragmented observations.
• Return to selected moments for deeper analysis. Once the full clip has been viewed, facilitators can revisit carefully chosen sections to explore instructional decisions in greater depth. For example, colleagues might unpick the routines necessary for effective echo reading.
• Plan points of focus in advance. This supports purposeful questioning and allows facilitators to guide discussion towards key ideas if they do not emerge naturally.
• Create space for reflection and discussion. Allowing colleagues time to discuss, question and reflect independently provides valuable insight into existing understanding and assumptions. Spending time examining short moments in detail often leads to richer professional conversations than attempting to cover too much material too quickly.

When teachers regularly analyse practice together, discuss evidence and reflect on instructional choices, professional development becomes less about delivering strategies and more about developing shared professional understanding.

Find out more

This guide to EEF tools and resources on reading fluency and the reading house can be used alongside these videos to further support professional learning.