OverviewHuman memory is quirky, complicated, and unreliable. Even when we think we're remembering everything accurately, chances are things have gotten twisted along the way. On top of that the passive teaching methods used in most classrooms are too theoretical and exam-oriented (Shah, 2008) to adequately train students to meet the workplace needs. So how can we create environments where students can learn?
We know that lecturing is only effective/interesting in small doses and not the most efficient method of transferring knowledge, so if we want to do better we need to look at other options. Freeman et al. (2013) found that active learning. active learning was better than lecturing in helping students pass (learn?) as shown in the accompanying graph. Most experts in the field agree that for students to be truly successful learners they need a student-centered (AKA "active") learning environment that emphasizes the following skills (Dearing, 1997):
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Establish Focus |
To ensure that we are truly "student-centered" we begin each new quarter with a whole class meeting to review what we have learned and look at where we are going in the new term. Sitting together in a circle so that everyone can see and be seen by everyone else, the students greet one another, share news about themselves, review the class’s overall academic, behavior, attendance, and study skill performance on the previous unit. They brainstorm ways to make the class more fun and better able to help them learn using the following questions:
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Establish Teams |
To ensure that we have the right people leading the charge we reorganize our Learning Teams each new quarter. We elect new Learning Facilitators and Classroom Monitors, select new roles for the team members, and receive training on those roles. This meeting sets a positive tone for the quarter and builds ownership while allowing students, including English Language Learners, to practice the essential language, social, and academic skills.
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