Watching presidential candidates struggling to squeeze their debate statements into 30- or 60-second bites reminds me they are just like kids in class. Timers are becoming key to school instruction, which some teachers like and others do not.
I first noticed this in the late 1990s when I came in contact with the “Success For All” program. It engaged students by having teachers time their lessons so they did not bog down. Success For All is still going strong, with around 500,000 students in 1,000 schools, but its emphasis on time has spread to many other programs.
Two books written by former English and history teacher Doug Lemov, “Teach Like A Champion” and “Teach Like A Champion 2.0,” have emphasized timers, along with dozens of other techniques, to help students absorb and understand what they are learning. The two books are among the most successful teacher guides ever, so far selling 1.1 million copies. Read more about utilizing timers in instruction.
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