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recently published report by the National Center for Teacher Quality (NCTQ) summarizes research-based strategies that new teachers need to help teach students how to learn effectively and then questions the extent to which teachers are learning these strategies in their preparation programs. Future teachers need to learn about learning so that what they teach sticks. Yet, textbooks to teach education psychology and general and subject-specifics methods courses to aspiring teachers are “detached from the field’s bedrock research,” the National Council on Teacher Quality says in its report. “If teacher candidates aren’t being taught the research-proven and workable practices that help students learn new content, they will flounder when they try to make learning last,” the reports says.
The report suggests Six Strategies that Work to help students not only learn the material but retain it:
The first two help students take in new information:
- Pairing graphics with words.
Young or old, all of us receive information through two primary pathways — auditory (for the spoken word) and visual (for the written word and graphic or pictorial representation). Student learning increases when teachers convey new material through both.
- Linking abstract concepts with concrete representations.
Teachers should present tangible examples that illuminate overarching ideas and also explain how the examples and big ideas connect.
The second two ensure that students connect information to deepen their understanding:
- Posing probing questions.
Asking students “why,” “how,” “what if,” and “how do you know” requires them to clarify and link their knowledge of key ideas.
- Repeatedly alternating problems with their solutions provided and problems that students must solve.
Explanations accompanying solved problems help students comprehend underlying principles, taking them beyond the mechanics of problem solving.
The final two help students remember what they learned:
- Distributing practice.
Students should practice material several times after learning it, with each practice or review separated by weeks and even months.
- Assessing to boost retention.
Beyond the value of formative assessment (to help a teacher decide what to teach) and summative assessment (to determine what students have learned), assessments that require students to recall material help information “stick.”
To what extent are our teacher preparation programs and professional development programs communicating these research-proven methods, and how are these programs helping teachers implement these effective practices in their classrooms?
For more information, see Learning about Learning.
