What Great Teaching Requires

Amy Crawford, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education
December 17, 2025 • 2 min. read

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In many classrooms, teaching is treated as execution. Lessons are delivered and outcomes are measured. When learning falls short, the instinct is often to work harder within the same structure. Amy Crawford approaches teaching differently. She frames it as a design process.

Rather than beginning with activities or materials, Crawford starts with purpose. Effective instruction begins by identifying what students should understand and be able to do. That clarity shapes everything that follows. Without it, lessons may be engaging but unfocused, busy without being meaningful. Once the learning goal is clear, instruction becomes a creative problem. Teachers consider how students might best encounter the idea, what examples will resonate, what questions will prompt thinking and what experiences will help students move from surface familiarity to deeper understanding. This stage requires flexibility, experimentation and a willingness to adjust based on who is in the room.

Only after those decisions are made does planning take center stage. Structure, materials and time are selected to support the goal rather than dictate it. Planning, in this sense, is not about control, but alignment. The lesson is designed so that each element serves a purpose. Instruction itself, however, is only part of the process. What distinguishes effective teaching is what happens afterward. Reflection. After a lesson, teachers step back and examine what worked and what did not. They look closely at student responses, misconceptions and engagement, then revise accordingly. Educational research consistently supports this approach, showing that teachers who regularly analyze and adapt their instruction are better able to meet student needs and improve learning outcomes over time.

This cycle matters most in classrooms with diverse learners. Students bring different backgrounds, strengths and challenges. A design mindset allows teachers to respond thoughtfully rather than rely on fixed scripts. Instruction becomes something that evolves, not something repeated unchanged. Crawford’s framework underscores a central truth about education. Successful classrooms do not happen by accident. They are intentionally built by teachers who think carefully about goals, creativity, structure and reflection. Teaching, in this view, is not about perfect delivery. It is about ongoing refinement. Great teaching requires design, and design requires attention, iteration and care.

Amy Crawford is an Associate Professor of Education at Ashland University. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in the College of Education. Professor Crawford joined the Ashland University faculty in 2019 and brings professional experience as a middle grades history and mathematics teacher, academic coach, Ohio Teacher Evaluator and Ohio Resident Educator Mentor. Her areas of focus include teacher motivation, STEM and STEAM education, restorative practices and working with students in low-socioeconomic communities.

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