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
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
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
Some former students appeared in my Twitter followers last week. One reached out with a very complimentary direct message in which he described how he attributed my course to his success and the success of several friends. For context, they we my students in a range of “computer” course while they were in high school. Read More
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
Every so often, I tweet something that catches the attention of a small corner of the “twitterverse” and folks reply and share and the thread becomes a wealth of insight, good questions, and snarky comments. Most recently, it was this one: As I read the thread, I am struck by the willingness of folks to Read More
Socrates, so let’s say 23 centuries), discussion seems to be one of the least well-understood by today’s teachers. One challenge in using discussions well seems to be the confusion between the measurable outcomes that focus so much teaching and the less obvious (but more important) outcomes of discussion. First, let’s be clear. If your goal Read More
Picture a classroom in which class is underway in your mind and you probably imagine a lecture is underway. Students sit quietly, all facing the teacher who stands in the front or center and talks to the students. The central assumption of lecturing is that the teacher has information that must be transmitted to the Read More
When adopting task-centered methods faculty select a task or problem that is derived from the real world and that represents an appropriate challenge for the students. The task as a whole becomes the rationale for the learning. Most tasks will fall outside of the expertise of the learners, so instructors do help identify sub-tasks or Read More
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