How Miles Elementary Increased Math Proficiency by 10 Points — By Making Teacher Talk Visible

Atlanta Public Schools, GA

For 11 years, Principal Thalise Perry has led Miles Elementary School in Atlanta. And for most of those years, she walked into classrooms and saw the same pattern: teachers talking, students listening. Not a lot of engagement. Not much discourse.

"Teachers were consistently speaking most of the time," Perry says. "It was not a lot of student engagement and student discourse."

The problem wasn't that teachers didn't care. It was that they couldn't see it. "When you're meeting with a teacher, you have to show them what you're actually talking about," Perry explains. "You can't really just have this one-on-one conversation. You have to have some data to be able to allow them to see it."

The Angst — and the Breakthrough

Two years ago, Perry piloted a new approach with 7-8 teachers, focusing on what she calls "economy of language" and gradual release. Teachers would record their own lessons, see the data on who was talking and how much, and use it to adjust their practice.

The reaction at first? Resistance.

"Anytime you're introducing a tool that is focusing on a teacher's technique, teachers have angst about that," Perry says. She had to relieve that anxiety by making it clear: administrators couldn't see the recordings unless teachers chose to share them. "This is for you," she told them. "You have to welcome me into your world."

One teacher, Mr. Jones, was particularly skeptical. "He wanted to know, what are we doing? Why are we doing this? How is this going to benefit me?"

But after seeing the data from his first few recordings, Jones became a convert. Today, he records multiple sessions every week and texts Perry on weekends about it. "He could be just the spokesperson for this," Perry laughs. His enthusiasm spread across his team — their recording numbers have increased dramatically because he bought in first.

And Perry can see the impact in his classroom. "He has clear, concise models. His academic dialogue is to the point, related to the standards. He has eliminated extra information that wasn't actually needed. Most importantly, the students are talking in his classroom."

The Results: 10-Point Math Gain

Perry's math teachers have been among the most active users — recording lessons, bringing data to planning sessions, sharing it with instructional coaches and students. Students now ask: "Did we talk more? Did we talk more?"

The results: Miles increased math proficiency by 10 points.

Perry is clear that multiple factors contributed. But she gives significant credit to the visibility the recordings created. "I don't want to put an exact percentage on it, but I will say a very instrumental piece," she says. "It's not just about improving student engagement — it's about not presenting weaknesses as weaknesses. You phrase it as, it could be seen as a strength, but let's just maximize that."

Perry and her leadership team review the data biweekly. Coaches build true coaching cycles around what the recordings show. "We see what the data is showing us, how many people are recording, and what is it saying about us as well."

What District Leaders Should Know

Perry initially had her own doubts. "When I first started, I did not dive in deeply with the teachers," she admits. It took a deeper conversation with her implementation partner to see the full potential.

Now, she's convinced this approach should be district-wide. The data gives teachers clear, actionable feedback without judgment. It helps them center their focus and become more effective — whether they're in year one or year twenty. Mr. Jones and her veteran math teachers are proof of that.

When asked to describe the impact in one sentence, Perry doesn't hesitate: "TeachFX has put us on the trajectory of moving from good to great."

Miles Elementary School serves students in Atlanta Public Schools under Principal Thalise Perry, who has led the school for 11 years. The school piloted TeachFX two years ago and has since expanded usage across grade levels and content areas.