All measurements are subject to error; this is well-known to carpenters who “measure twice and cut once,” and it is known to observers of elections in which recounts result in much different returns than the original count. Measurements in schools are subject to error as well. If a student is handed back a quiz with Read More
Category: Learning
On Social Learning
I had a discussion with some colleagues recently about active and social learning. We seem to have come to agreement on this elevator pitch: We know human brains are adapted to social learning. Just what we mean by social learning is open to interpretation and not every lesson is amenable to it. In situations where: Read More
Briefly Considering Cognitive Engagement
One of the discoveries of the cognitive and learning sciences with the greatest implications for teaching is that students cannot learn passively. While lecture, readings, and similar tasks do still have a role in classrooms, effective teachers include a range of task that lead to active cognitive engagement. These tend to find students discussing, asking Read More
On Teaching for Learning
Learning scientists have identified several strategies whereby individuals can improve their memories, however. While these can be used effectively when adopting a content-only approach to teaching, they can also be incorporated in other ways. For example, faculty can recommend students use these outside of class in homework situations and design activities that facilitate these; this Read More
On Observation as Learning
One of the most commonly used methods of learning in informal settings is observational learning. Learners watch those who are experienced do and listen to those describe what they want to learn, then they repeat and practice what they observed. Beyond trial-and-error, observational learning is a highly guided method of learning, and learners assume greater Read More
Placing Deeper Learning
Schools have been caught in the middle of a debate over their purpose for a long time. In the United States one of the central players in that debate was John Dewey. He is well-known for founding and leading the University of Chicago Laboratory School in 1896. The school was designed to focus the teaching Read More
The Many Types of Motivation
The question, “Why do I need to know this?” By posing this question, students are informing the teacher, “I do not find this valuable or interesting,” thus we would fully expect interest to wane. Informing students “you will need this next year” introduces external motivations that are unlikely to increase interest. Unfamiliar, incongruous, or personally Read More
A Brief Response to Bloom’s Taxonomy
One of the common responses when it is suggested that faculty design their courses for deeper learning is, “I will, but they need the basic information first.” While this may seem to be a reasonable response given the fact that many students arrive with little prior knowledge in the field it is an untenable position. Read More
Heutagogy
Everyone who works in or studies education is familiar with the word pedagogy. It comprises the strategies and methods teachers use to teach. Included in pedagogical practices are a wide range of activities that are grounded in behaviorist, cognitive, and connectionists psychologies. The methods are connected by several assumptions, however. Specifically, pedagogy assumes the teacher Read More
Tests: Learners as Rulers: Clouds
Consider for a moment clouds. We know they are collections of water (or ice) droplets, and they are “things.” When we look at the sky, we know they are individual things, but when we look out of the airplane window, we see they are less clearly bounded than they appear, and foggy days confirm they Read More