Classroom Instruction that Works : A Strategy Study

1. Classroom Instruction that Works : A Strategy Study August 2010 Brandon Valley

2. Today…. • Understanding of the 9 strategies • Consider technology • Examples of tools

3. Applying the Research on Instruction • As a result of analyzing achievement scores of more than 100,000 students across hundreds of schools, researchers concluded that the most important factor affecting student learning is. . .

4. the teacher!

5. In addition to YOU….McREL(Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning) • A meta-analysis combines the results from a number of studies to determine the average effect of a given technique. The results are referred to as an effect size. • The increase or decrease in achievement of a group exposed to a certain strategy as expressed in standard deviation units, which can then be translated into percentiles

6. 9 Instructional Strategies • Identifying similarities and difference • Summarizing and note taking • Reinforcing effort and providing feedback • Homework and practice • Nonlinguistic representation • Cooperative learning • Setting objectives and providing feedback • Generating and testing hypotheses • Cues, questions and advance organizers

7. Create Evaluate Analyze Apply Understand Remember Bloom’s Taxonomy

8. What is effect size? • The unit of measurement used to express the increase or decrease in achievement of the experimental group (the group of students who are exposed to a specific instructional technique). • Effect size of .20 considered small. • Effect size of .50 considered medium. • Effect size of .80 considered large.

9. Instructional Strategies that Affect Student Achievement • Identifying similarities and differences (1.61) • Summarizing and note taking (1.00) • Reinforcing effort and providing recognition (.80) • Homework and practice (.77) • Nonlinguistic representations (.75) • Cooperative learning (.73) • Setting objectives and providing feedback (.61) • Generating and testing hypotheses (.61) • Questions, cues and advance organizers (.59)

10. Identifying Similarities and differences

11. Identifying Similarities and Differences • Assign in class and homework tasks that include • Comparison - similarities • Classification - differences • Metaphors – patterns that aren’t related on surface or literal level • Analogies – relationships between relationships Man does not live by Venn diagrams alone!

12. Recommendations • Have students use comparing, classifying, metaphors, analogies when identifying and articulating similarities and differences. • Provide students a model of the steps for engaging in the process. • Use a familiar context to teach students these steps. • Have students use graphic organizers to visually represent the similarities and differences. • Guide students as they engage in each process but gradually release support.

13. Creating Metaphors My love is a rose…. The two items in a metaphor are connected by an abstract or nonliteral relationship. -Marzano,2001

14. Graphic Organizer for Metaphors Literal Pattern 1 Element 1 Literal Pattern 2 Element 2 Abstract It depicts that two elements have somewhat different literal patterns, but they share a common abstract pattern.

15. Creating Analogies • Analogies help us to see how seemingly dissimilar things are similar. • They increase our understanding of new information. -Marzano,2001 Examples, Carpenter is to hammer as painter is to brush. Hot is to cold as night is to day. Oxygen is to humans as carbon dioxide is to plants. Core is to earth as nucleus is to atom.

16. Part/Whole Analogy • Example: • Tire is to bike as • Eraser is to ________ • Possible Answer: pencil • Sentence starter: A tire is part of a bike, and an eraser is part of a pencil.

17. Graphic Organizers for Analogies Is to Relationship Is to

18. Resources • http://manila.esu6.org/instructionalstrategies/stories/storyReader$12 • http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/student-interactives/venn-diagram-circles-30006.html • http://www.losteyeball.com/index.php/2007/06/19/56-worstbest-analogies-of-high-school-students/ • http://www.teachersdesk.org/vocabanal.html

19. Summarizing and note taking

20. Summarizing and Note Taking • Two of the most useful academic skills for all students. • Both require students to distill and then synthesize. (Blooms) • Struggling students might not have necessary skills

21. Notetaking • Generalizations • Verbatim note taking = least effective • Notes should be considered works in progress. • Notes = study guides for tests. • The more notes that are taken, the better. • Give students teacher-prepared notes. • Teach students a variety of note-taking formats • combination notes, cornell notes, etc

22. Summarizations Generalizations • Students must delete some information, substitute some information, and keep some information when they summarize. • To effectively delete, substitute, and keep information, students must analyze the information at a fairly deep level. • Being aware of the explicit structure of information can help students to summarize.

23. Amelia E. Activity!!! • Read • Summarize • Summarize • Summarize • Share!

24. Resources • Incredible Shrinking Notes • Note Taking with Crayons • http://www.schools.manatee.k12.fl.us/3160MARZANO/3160marzano/summarize___note_taking.html • Cornell notes

25. Reinforcing effort and providing feedback

26. Reinforcing Effort and Providing Recognition • Reinforcing the importance of effort • Some don’t recognize this….poverty… • Celebrating progress towards learning goals • Assisting students in discovering the connection between effort and achievement

27. Research Findings: • Not all students know the connection between effort and achievement. (Seligman, 1990,1994; Urdan, Migley, & Anderman, 1998)

28. How do students learn this connection? • Have students identify a personal hero or role model and list the traits that make this person worthy of emulating. • Discuss: How can those traits help you succeed? • Leave sticky notes of descriptive appreciation for good work on a paper, in a student’s textbook, on a student’s locker or desk. • Have students keep a personal record of effort • Use a classroom cheer to recognize individual or group achievement

29. Resources • http://gets.gc.k12.va.us/vste/2008/3effortandrecognition.htm • http://www.allkindsofminds.org/activity.aspx?id=12

30. Homework and practice

31. Matching purpose to task Communicating purpose to students Duration Format Differentiating tasks to meet students’ needs The role of parents Feedback and its effects on homework Homework and Practice

32. Homework Considerations: • Extends the learning opportunities for students to practice, review, and apply knowledge. • Grade levels and disabilities or special needs impact homework’s format. • Students must receive feedback on homework. • Teachers and parents should work together to facilitate effective use of homework.

33. Practice • Enhance students’ ability to reach the expected level ofproficiency for a skill or process

34. Tips from Marzano • Homework needs to be completed in order to produce the highest achievement gains. Design it with ease of completion in mind. • A large amount of homework does not result in better learning. • Homework should be academically purposeful, not a punishment or a symbol of the seriousness of study. • Homework should be explicitly tied to the current learning goals of the class. • Homework should be able to be completed without adult assistance. • Parents or guardians should not be expected to act as content experts. • Parents should, however, be provided with clear homework guidelines. • Assignments that involve using the parents' expertise or personal experiences (such as interviews) are often successful.

35. Read the article…. • Think, Pair, Share: • How do you reinforce students’ effort in your classroom? • What is the purpose for reinforcing effort in the classroom? • What makes reinforcing effort effective or ineffective? • What questions do you have about reinforcing effort?

36. Resources • http://www.netc.org/focus/strategies/home.php • http://web2thatworks.com/index.php?title=Homework_and_Practice • http://www.scholastic.com/kids/homework/

37. Nonlinguistic Representations

38. Understand and use the following Nonlinguistic Representations: • Graphic Organizers • Physical Models • Mental Pictures • Pictures and Pictographs • Kinesthetic Activities

39. Nonlinguistic Representations… • Represent knowledge and articulate • Enhance their content understanding and talk about their choices to increase academic language • Nonlinguistic representations can be tools for language development.

40. Pictograph example…

41. Graphic Organizers • Graphic organizers make thinking visible. • Different graphic organizers represent different kinds of thinking. • Students must be taught how to use graphic organizers. • The goal is for students to be able to select the appropriate graphic organizer.

42. Kinesthetic Activity • Ever heard of “body writing”? • Let’s try it! • Write your name in the air with your right elbow. • Now with your left foot. • Now with your head. • The best for last: Now with your hips.

43. Resources • Bobby Bear • http://www.tltguide.ccsd.k12.co.us/instructional_tools/Strategies/Nonlinguistic/Nonlinguistic.html • http://classroom.leanderisd.org/webs/links/simulation_links.htm

44. Cooperative Learning

45. Cooperative Learning • Differences between group work and cooperative learning - collaboration • Effective strategies for planning and implementing cooperative learning • Opportunity for interaction • Small size groups • Not overused • Systematic • Grouping….?

46. Cooperative Learning • Organizing groups based on ability should be done sparingly. • Students of low ability perform worse when they are placed in homogeneous groups. • Students of high ability perform only marginally better when homogeneously grouped. • Middle ability students benefit most.

47. Cooperative Learning • Cooperative groups should be kept small in size—3 or 4 members. • Cooperative learning should be applied consistently and systematically, but not overused.

48. Cooperative Learning • Tasks given to cooperative groups should be well structured. • If students do not have sufficient time to practice skills independently, cooperative learning is being overused.

49. Five Components of Cooperative Learning 1. Positive interdependence 2. Face-to-face interaction 3. Individual accountability and personal responsibility to achieve the group’s goals 4. Interpersonal and small-group skills 5. Group processing • 21st Century Skill – Collaboration and Communication

50. Resources • http://www.orangeusd.k12.ca.us/yorba/cooperative_learning.htm • http://www.netc.org/focus/strategies/coop.php • http://www.tltguide.ccsd.k12.co.us/instructional_tools/Strategies/Cooperation/Cooperation.html#games