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Practice perfect 42 rules for getting better at getting better - Doug…
Practice perfect 42 rules for getting better at getting better - Doug Lemov
Part 1. Rethinking practice
Rule 1. Encode success
Engineer practice activities so that the success rate is reliably high: If the activities are especially challenging, ensure that they end with a period of reliable success so your participants practice getting it right
Check for mastery constantly. If activities don't result in reliable success, simplify temporarily so that participants start successful; then add complexity
Focus participants on the "Fastest possible correct version" or the "Most complex right version possible" for any activity
Rule 2. Practice the 20
Identify the 20 percent of things you could practice that will deliver 80 percent of the value
Practice the highest-priority things more than everything else combined
Keep practicing them: the value of practice begins at mastery!
Save time by planning better in advance
Engage participants by repeating productive drills with minor variations instead of constantly introducing new ones
Rule 3. Let the mind follow the body
Stress learning skills all the way to automaticity so that participants can use them automatically - and before they consciously decide to
Build up layers of related automated skills so that participants can do complex tasks without actively thinking about them
Automatic fundamentals, but also look for more complex and subtle skills that may also respond to automation. It's a false assumption that only simple things can become habits
Rule 4. Unlock creativity.... with repetition
Automate skills to free participants' cognition to be more creative
Look to automate skills at exactly the moments you need creativity most, to free up processing capacity
Push participants to reflect later, after they've practiced enough to better understand what they are doing
Rule 5. Replace your purpose (with an objective)
Replace the vague idea of a "Purpose" with a manageable and measurable objective that is made ahead of practice and gives mastery guidance
Teach skills in a sequence of objectives of increasing complexity
Include objectives that focus on integrating previously mastered skills
Adapt objectives to the rate of participants' mastery
Rule 6. Practice "Bright spots"
Identify and practice areas of talent as well as areas of weakness
Seek ways to apply established skills in new settings to leverage strengths
Use one participant's strengths to model for other team members and speed replication across the group
Rule 7. Differentiate drill from Scrimmage
Use drills to distort the game and focus intensively on development of one or several skills
Use scrimmages to evaluate your readiness for performance
Recognize that scrimmaging is generally less efficient as a teaching tool
Recognize that success in scrimmage is the best indicator of true mastery - participants can perform a skill when the time and place of its application is unpredictable
Consider using a sequence of drills that integrate new skills with previously mastered skills before - or in lieu of - scrimmage
Rule 8. Correct instead of critique
Strive to ask participants to redo an action differently or better rather than just telling them whether or how it could have been different
Try to shorten the feedback loop and achieve correction as quickly as possible after an action that requires intervention
Always maintain a teaching mentality and focus on the solution ("Cut more sharply on the basket") rather than the problem ("your cut wasn't sharp")
Part 2. How to practice
Rule 9. Analyze the game
Use data to pick out the top performers
Observe and analyze performance data to discern what skills top performers have in common
Analyze and describe those skills in terms that provide a clear map to others who want to replicate them
Rule 10. Isolate the skill
When teaching a technique or skill, practice the skill in isolation until the learner has mastered it
Uncover and retrain when compensatory skills are masking the need for isolated skill development
Rule 11. Name it
Name each skill or technique you have identified as an important building block for outstanding performance
Monitor the use of this shared vocabulary: use the names, ask staff to use them, and then ensure that the names are being used correctly
Rule 12. Integrate the skill
After teaching discrete skills, create practice that places the skills in situations participants could face in the game
Create practice that helps people learn to match the right skills to the right situations
Consider simulating the performance environment to ensure that successful practice translates to successful perfomance
Rule 13. Make a plan
Plan with data-driven objectives in mind, and plan to adapt
Plan down to the last minute
Rehearse and revise the plan
Videotape and reflect on practice sessions
Rule 14. Make each minute matter
Get a whistle - real or metaphorical - to conserve the resource of time
Identify the ways you inadvertently waste time and create remedies as soon as possible
Turn those remedies into routines
Part 3. Using modelling
Rule 15. Model and describe
Use modeling to help learners replicate, and use description to help them understand
Using modeling and description together ensures that learners can flexibly apply what they have learned
Rule 16. Call your shots
Before you model, tell those for whom you are modeling what to look for
Rule 17. Make models believable
Model in a context that is as similar as possible to the one in which the learner must perform
In-person modeling is often more believable than models that are prepared on video
Rule 18. Try supermodeling
Model in the way you want learners to perform
Model the skill you are teaching, but use teaching time also to model any other skills that you expect people to eventually learn
Rule 19. Insist they "Walk this way"
When asking people to follow a model, a useful first step is for them to imitate the model exactly
Rule 20. Model skinny parts
Model complex skills one step at a time and repeat when necessary
Play a game of "Copy cat" with learners to model small skills until mastery and then build on that
Rule 21. Model the path
Model the process as well as the product to ensure that people have a clear picture of how to get to the end goal
Rule 22. Get ready for your close up
Use video as an easy way for you or others to capture models that you can analyze, use, and reuse
Part 4. Feedback
Rule 23. Practice using feedback (not just getting it)
Using feedback is a different skill from accepting it. Build a culture where people get better at using feedback by doing it a lot
Cause people to practice putting their feedback to use as quickly as possible - by sending them back to the front of the line, for example
Observing the use of feedback right away helps managers and coaches see whether their advice works
Rule 24. Apply first, then reflect
Reflection, while often worhwhile, can become a barrier to further practice. Ask people to apply feedback first, then reflect on it.
When participants apply feedback and then reflect, they have more data to use in reflecting on the value of the feedback
Try using the phrase "Whose turn is it?" to respond to an excess of discussion when more practice would be preferable
Rule 25. Shorten the feedback loop
Speed of consequence beats strength of consequence pretty much every time. Give feedback right away, even if it's imperfect
Remember that a simple and small change, implemented right away, can be more effective than a complex rewiring of a skill
Rule 26. Use the power of positive
What people do right is as important in practice as what they do wrong
help people use their success in three ways:
With a statement of identification to help participants see what they did right more clearly
With a statement of replication to help them do it again
With a statement of application to help them see new settings in which to apply their skill
Rule 27. Limit yourself
Limit the amount of feedback you give; people can focus on and use only a few things at a time
When people get feedback from multiple sources, use a tracker to ensure that what people hear is consistent and not overwhelming
Rule 28. Make it an Everyday thing
The more consistent you give and get feedback, the more normal it is
Start giving feedback right away when you begin practicing. If you wait until something negative requires it, feedback will be linked to the idea of mistake
Use sentence starters to help everyone give both positive and constructive feedback
Rule 29. Describe the solution (Not the problem)
Try to move from "don't" statements that tell participants what not to do to "What to do" statements that tell them how to succeed
Make sure your guidance is specific and actionable
Look for ways to abbreviate commonly given guidance to make it easier and faster to use.
Rule 30. Lock it in
Don't assume that because you gave feedback, people interpreted is as you intended. Confirm their understanding in at least three ways
Ask recipients to summarize what they heard you say
Ask recipients to prioritize the most important parts of the feedback you gave
Ask recipients to identify the next action they'll take to implement the feedback
Part 5. Culture of practice
Rule 31. Normalize error
Encourage people to challenge themselves and push beyond their performance plateaus by taking calculated risks in practice
Don't minimize or ignore errors, or they will become too ingrained and people won't learn from them
Help performers identify their own errors so that they can improve them independently
practice responding to errors in an effort to prepare for and normalize mistakes
Rule 32. Break down the barriers to practice
Anticipate that some people in your organization will resist practice
Identify and name the barriers to entry that you observe
Overcome the barriers by diving into practice
Rule 33. Make it fun to practice
Utilize friendly and positive competition (for individuals or between individuals)
While striving to make practice fun, always maintain the objective of the practice
Encourage your players to cheer for each other in practice (not just in the game)
Incorporate elements of surprise: Keep people on their toes by asking all participants to plan and by surprising the next person to be called to practice. (It's also a useful accountability tool!)
Rule 34. Everybody does it
As the leader, be willing to model and engage in practice yourself
Ask for feedback on your practice in order to model getting past nice
Use language that is inviting and assumes everybody will practice2
Rule 35. Leverage peer-to-peer accountability
Allow your team to self-identify particular skills and areas of growth they want to focus on (based on consistent feedback)
Encourage team members to make mutual commitments to each other
Rule 36. Hire for practice
Before hiring your team, thoughtfully consider the practice task you want potential employees to demonstrate
When potential hires practice, use the opportunity to gauge their openness to practice and feedback
Ask them to repeat a portion of the practice task. Evaluate their ability to actively incorporate your feedback
Rule 37. Praise the work
Normalize praise that supports good practice
Praise actions, not traits
Differentiate acknowledgment from praise
Be genuine
Create a system of recognition
Part 6. Post-practice: Making new skill stick
Rule 38. Look at the right things
After isolating skills during practice, observe people during the actual performance in order to provide feedback on the discrete skills that were practiced
Create an observation tool to use during performance that is aligned to the skills you have practiced
Allow leaders to practice observing for discrete skills during the performance
If you are going to evaluate a particular skill in performance, allow performers to practice the skill first
Post-practice, ask performers to set their own discrete goals for performance, and then observe them for the skills required to achieve those goals
Rule 39. Coach during the game (don't teach)
You can't teach new things during a game or a performance. It only confuses performers
During the performance (Post-practice) you should only coach on those skills that have already been taught during practice
Coaching during the game should only cue and remind people to use what they have learned
Rule 40. Keep talking
Name the discrete skill and drills that you practice
Use these names to discuss skills and their application post-practice in order to keep them alive in your organization
Rule 41. Walk the line (Between support and demand)
When the game (post-practice) has begun, be transparent about your role as evaluator
Reward hard work and communicate a sense of urgency when improvement is necessary
Post-practice, frame feedback not as helpful advice but as something required to improve perfomance
Rule 42. Measure success
Use performance as a series of data points to evaluate the effectiveness of practice and to drive what is practiced in the future
Use multiple methods to gather this data (self-reporting, observation and evaluation, performance metrics)
Part 7. Conclusion: The monday morning test
Monday morning for organizations
Rule 2: Practice the 20
Rule 10: Isolate the skill
Rule 11: Name it
Rule 16: Call your shots
Beyond monday morning
Monday morning for a mentee or small team
Rule 7: Differentiate drill form scrimmage
Rule 23. Practice using feedback (not just getting it)
Rule 14. Make each minute matter
Rule 22. Get ready for your close-up
Monday morning for yourself
Rule 17. Seek believable models
Rule 23. [seek and] Practice using feedback
Rule 4. Unlock creativity
Rule 31. Normalize error