Teaching Strategies

organized facts

Ex. "What are the steps a bill goes through before it becomes a law?" "How were the American and French forces able to bottle up Cornwall and the British at Yorktown?" "How did Robinson Crusoe react when he discovered footprints in the sand?" "What is the commercial method for producing hydrochloric acid?"

Divergent Questions

Ex. "What might happen if Congress passes a law preventing the manufacture and sale of cigarettes in the United States?" "How would the story have been different if John had been a tall, strong boy instead of disabled?" "If you were stuck on a desert island and the only tool you had was a screwdriver, what use might you make of it?" "In what ways would history have been changed had the Spanish Armada defeated the English in 1588?"

Small bits of information

Ex. "Who was the leader of the Free French forces during WWII?" "Who is the main character in Margaret Mitchell's novel, Gone With The Wind?" "During which century did Shakespeare live?" "What is the Spanish verb meaning to run?"

refocusing plan

Ex: "If this is true, what are the implications for . . . ?" "How does John's answer relate to . . . ?" "Can you relate this to . . . ?" "Let's analyze that answer.

Increase critical awareness

Ex: "What are you assuming?" "What are your reasons for thinking that is so?" "Is that all there is to it?" "How many questions are we trying to answer here?" "How would an opponent of this point of view respond?"

Sample Learner Outcomes

Here are some sample learner outcomes one might use for library skills: Students will be able to search a database using Boolean logic and flexible vocabulary in order to retrieve articles that are on-target and topic-relevant. Students will know the name and contact information for their subject librarian in order to get subject-specific library help. Students will be able to develop topic-relevant vocabulary in order to search databases with maximum flexibility and effectiveness. Students will be able to use a thesaurus or controlled language list in order to select topic-relevant vocabulary.

Application

Requires the student to use a concept or principle in a context different from that in which she/he learned it. Concept = Classification of events/objects that have common characteristics. Principle = A relationship between two or more concepts. Ex: "How was Gresham's Law demonstrated in the Weimer Republic of Germany?" "Can you think of an example to fit this definition?

he essential component of effective instruction is effective planning.

T There are several benefits of effective lesson planning. Both students and teachers benefit from effective lesson planning because it provides an organized framework for instruction which allows teachers to know what is being taught and where and how instruction needs to proceed to provide students the necessary educational experiences to attain their academic goals

This is called input

Teachers must communicate new concepts, skills, vocabulary, and knowledge as efficiently as possible to students.

How can you improve your questioning? Consider the following:

Plan and write out questions to be used during the lesson. (Anticipate possible responses.) Thinking about possible probing questions to help students complete an answer or think of ways to redirect students. Decide how many lower-level and higher-level questions to ask? (This decision should be based on the age and the ability of the students.) Practice using wait time appropriate for the complexity of the questions. Use talking sticks, cloth pens or some random format to make sure that questions are posed to many students rather than to only a few. Seek out various resources that can help you improve your questioning.

Inference

Requires inductive or deductive reasoning Inductive: Discovery of a general principle from a collection of specific facts. Deductive: Logical operation in which the worth of a generalization is tested with specific issues. Ex: "We have examined the qualities these world leaders have in common. What might we conclude, in general, about qualities necessary for leadership? Why?" (Inductive) "If the temperature of the gas remains the same, but gas is taken to an altitude of 4000 feet higher, what happens to the pressure of the gas? Why?" (Deductive)

The following are ways in which teacher modeling can positively impact your students:

Teacher as the model makes the concept/skill clear and learnable. High level of teacher support and direction enables the student to make meaningful cognitive connections. Provides students who have attention problems, processing problems, memory retrieval problems, & metacognitive difficulties an accessible "learning map." Links between related skills are directly made, making confusion and misunderstanding less likely. Multisensory cueing provides students multiple modes of process and thereby learn information.

n order to plan effectively, you must decide exactly what is it that you would like your students to learn.

What are the most important concepts, ideas, or skills that I would like my students to know and be able to apply? What background or previous knowledge should the students possess in order to gain a greater understanding? How can I encourage students to make connections between previous learning and the new information and/or knowledge that they need to acquire? How would I like students to demonstrate an understanding of the concepts or skills that I have decided are most important?

objectives (goals)

articulate the knowledge and skills you want students to acquire or demonstrate by the end of the lesson or course. These are statements. Objectives are based on state standards for each subject or content area. the objectives must be clear and align with the Academic Standards adopted for the content area you are teaching. They should also be written in your lesson plans. Please find your state standards for the grade level and/or subject area you plan to teach. Once you have established the state standard you are covering, you can create an objective or a clear statement to describe the desired learning outcome. Once you have a general idea of what you wish learners to know and be able to do, the next step is drafting the text that will clearly and specifically tell them what they can expect to learn. Experience indicates that the text of effective instructional objectives includes three parts. These parts are best described in the work of training and human performance expert Robert Mager:

The Anticipatory Set

begins the lesson. It is used to stimulate student interest and make connections to previous knowledge.The Anticipatory Set also provides a way for the teacher to establish and communicate the focus of the lesson.It is usually a brief activity conducted at the beginning of class and it often requires students to draw upon and connect to prior learning or knowledge that is relevant to the current lesson. U

Comparison

Requires the student to determine if ideas/objects are similar, dissimilar, unrelated, or contradictory. Ex: "Is a mussel the same thing as a clam?" "What similarities and differences exist between Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and Pericles' Funeral Oration?" "What is the connection between Social Darwinism and the Supreme Court actions of the late nineteenth century?"

Good Objectives

Description of a performance - what the learner is to be able to do. Example: be able to write a news article. The performance must be observable. The question to ask when writing this part is: "What do I want students to be able to do?" Conditions - important conditions under which the performance is expected to occur Examples: Given a list of... (sort into stacks); when provided with standard tools... (construct a table); without using references... (know the state capitals) Questions to ask yourself when writing this part include: "What are the important conditions or constraints under which I want them to perform? What will the learner be provided? What will the learner be denied? Are there special conditions which occur on the job or when performing?" Criterion or standard - (the quality or level of performance that will be considered acceptable). Examples: include measures of speed (in less than 30 minutes...), direction (according to manufacturer's specifications...), accuracy (without error...), quality (all cuts must be smooth to the touch). The question to ask yourself when writing this part is: "How well must learners perform for me to be satisfied they've accomplished the objective?"

Cooperative Learning

Establish team policies and expectationsThe initial assignment for teams should be the generation and signing of a list of policies and expectations. The teacher may want to begin the list of expectations and allow students to add to the list for their individual group. Some expectations are being prepared for class, calling one another if they have questions or encounter problems, and treat one another as colleagues with respect and dignity. These policies form the group 'norms' for how they will work together. Keep groups intact for the duration of a major projectIt takes time for a group to learn how to work together, and often, just as a group begins to click, the group members change. Give groups time to work through their issues, and teach all groups that it is expected that they will have issues, but they must learn to work together through their differences. Provide for periodic self-assessment of team functioningPeriodically (every 2 - 3 times the group works together), have the team respond in writing to questions such as,How well are we meeting our goals and objectives? What are we doing well?What needs improvement?What can we do differently next time?Are we on target to complete our project on time? Give students tools for managing conflictTeach students how to manage conflict appropriately. Caution them to deal with conflict quickly and rationally to avoid serious problems later. Teach student's Active ListeningStudents on one side of a dispute make their case without interruption, then students on the other side must repeat that position to the initial group's satisfaction. Next, the second side makes their case uninterrupted, and the first side must repeat it to the second side's satisfaction. Once students have articulated their opponents' cases, the solution usually comes easily.

Examples of input are:

Explain five key vocabulary words for text and have students fill in the definitions on a graphic organizer for each word and draw a picture to represent the word as you explain. Have students read a page in their textbook that describes three different types of rocks and then ask them to share their learnings out loud. Show students different food and beverage containers as you discuss different units of volume.

clarifying

What, exactly do you mean?" "Will you please rephrase your statement?" "Could you elaborate on that point?" "What did you mean by the term. .?"

To be effective, cooperative learning must meet specific criteria.

Criteria for effective cooperative learning groups include an understanding that the membership in a group means all members succeed or fail together. Each group member brings something different to the group that the group needs, creating a positive interdependence. Individuals understand that they are accountable to each other and to the group. Students must learn interpersonal skills such as communication, decision-making, conflict resolution, and time management.

So how do you plan for independent practice?

In your lesson plan make sure to: Clearly state and model behavioral expectations for how students are to practice Allow all students to show mastery of the objective's knowledge and skill independently Write questions so that you can easily determine what each student does or does not know Provide opportunities for extension Plan what you will be doing as students practice - think about how to monitor student work and provide feedback to student questions and responses. Choose your instructional task - solving problems, writing prompts, etc. Consider different factors (see list below) when deciding how you want students to practiceStudent needs and interestsThe nature of the contentTime and resources available Determine how students will be grouped:Individually - the most common way of organizing students as they practice independently.Small Groups - if utilized, make sure you can measure each student's individual level of mastery.Determine how much time to devote to this part of your lesson - always make sure to allot a significant portion of the lesson to student practice.Double-check the alignment of your practice examples - are all problems or questions aligning to what your objective requires?

The primary types of questions fall into four categories:

Managerial: Questions which keep the classroom operations moving Rhetorical: Questions used to emphasize a point or to reinforce an idea or statement Closed: Questions used to check retention or to focus thinking on a particular point Open: questions used to promote discussion or student interaction

sequence of steps and the embedded nature of other teaching strategies within the direct instruction model.

Moore outlines the steps: Orientation. Presentation. Structured practice. Guided practice. Independent practice.

Evaluation

Requires judgment, value or choice based upon comparing of ideas or objects to established standards. Ex: "Which of the two books do you believe contributed most to an understanding of the Victorian era? Why?" "Assuming equal resources, who would you rate as the most skillful general, Robert E. Lee or Ulysses S. Grant? Why?

There are various types of modeling.

Task and Performance Modeling Metacognitive Modeling Student-Centered Modeling Modeling as a Scaffolding Technique

Levels of Bloom's Taxonomy

There are six levels (lowest to highest cognitive skills 1956/2001): Knowledge/Remembering Comprehension/Understanding Application/Applying Analysis/Analyzing Evaluation/Evaluating Synthesis/Creating You can use Bloom's Taxonomy to identify verbs to describe student learning. These verbs need to be observable and measurable. Examples of learning outcomes verbs might include: Knowledge/Remembering: define, list, recognize Comprehension/Understanding: characterize, describe, explain, identify, locate, recognize, sort Application/Applying: choose, demonstrate, implement, perform Analysis/Analyzing: analyze, categorize, compare, differentiate Evaluation/Evaluating: assess, critique, evaluate, rank, rate Synthesis/Creating: construct, design, formulate, organize, synthesize

Goals

are broad statements of what the activity intends to accomplish. Goals and objectives are similar in that they describe the intended purposes and expected results of teaching activities and establish the foundation for assessment. Objectives are brief clear statements that describe the desired learning outcomes of instruction.

Learner Outcomes

are statements of "essential learning." They can be skills, knowledge or information that a learner has achieved and can demonstrate they understand. In other words, learner outcomes involve performance statements that mean that the student does not only possess the knowledge but that the learner can demonstrate an understanding of the concepts related to this knowledge. Learner outcomes are not only statements of what the student will learn; they are also statements of what the learner can do. Learner outcomes can be assessed by asking questions throughout the lesson to ensure and check student understanding. Learner outcomes can also be assessed with a quiz, test or formative assessment. It is important to communicate learner outcomes to the students. This helps both students and teacher clearly identify what content should be mastered by the end of the lesson. As a teacher, it is helpful to identify learner outcomes before writing the instructional procedures for the lesson because they provide a clear definition of what the lesson should focus on. Begin with the end in mind! It is also helpful to make sure the learner outcomes you write are measurable through some form of assessment.

Metacognitive Modeling

demonstrates the thought process used by the teacher when problem-solving, or analyzing data. Another name for this type of modeling is "Think Alouds". Doing "Think Alouds" is a way to make the teacher's thinking visible to students. The teacher demonstrates the process, skill, or concept by talking about the process step by step. The teacher may even pose questions to cause the students to engage in deeper thoughts and cause them to attempt to formalize their thought process and pathways to the correct answer as the teacher is modeling his/her thinking. An example of metacognitive modeling would be a math teacher solving a word problem.

There are various types of modeling.

escribes the teacher's demonstration of a task that student will be expected to do so that student can observe what is expected. An example of this would be a science teacher demonstrating an experiment for the class before having them perform the experiment themselves. A Language Arts example is one of the teachers diagramming a sentence or paragraph for students before the students attempt the task.

DIRECT INSTRUCTION

here is a difference between lecture and direct instruction, however. Direct instruction has a carefully sequenced set of steps that creates an environment most likely to result in student success. Lecture is very teacher-centered, whereas direct instruction is student-centered.

cooperative learning

is a generic term that refers to numerous methods for grouping students. The research literature has formally described at least ten different methods of cooperative learning. As a teacher, look at cooperative learning as a strategy that may have great benefits for your students. Learning occurs when students work together to accomplish shared goals and when there are positive structures in place to support the process.

Modeling

is an instructional strategy in which the teacher demonstrates a new concept or approach to learning in which students learn by observing.

Authentic Engagement

is when students are immersed in work that has a clear meaning and immediate value to them.

Student-Centered Modeling

llows students to serve as teachers to their peers. The teacher utilizes students who have met the expectation of stated learner outcomes to model for their peers. For example, some students in an AP History class have mastered the complex document-based question essay, and some have not. You could pair students who do well with those who are struggling, or you could have them model their process to their partner.

Modeling as a Scaffolding Technique

requires the teacher to model the skill, concept or tasks first. Students are then allowed to work at their own pace in an attempt to work through the skill, concept or task independently. The teacher is then free to model the task multiple times to provide extra support to

Thematic instruction

uses a theme to connect learning for students.