Notes for Acts of Teaching: Chapter 8
works on a different aspect or unit of arithmetic
FOUR MORE INSTRUCTIONAL
ALTERNATIVES:
COOPERATIVELEARNING, DISCOVERY
LEARNING, CONSTRUCTIVISM, AND
DIRECT INSTRUCTION
Cooperative Learning: Teaching Learners to
Like And Care For One Another
What Is Cooperative Learning?
- the term used to describe instructional procedures
whereby learners work together in small groups and
are rewarded for their collective accomplishments
Purpose and Characteristics of Cooperative
Learning
- To cause students to work together for both the
individual and common good.
- Should be Heterogeneous (mixed) groups, Group
tasks, usually either mastery or project work, and
Rule of behavior is "all for one, one for all
members help each other , Group reward is shared
equally by individual members
Some Variations on the Theme of Cooperative
Learning
Student Teams, Achievement Divisions (STAD)
- Of the variations, the simplest to understand is In
STAD, the student teams must master some content,
usually presented by the teacher, perhaps new
vocabulary.
- The STAD process involves teacher presentation,
team study, individual quizzes, determination of
team scores, and team reward or recognition.
Teams, Games, Tm.1rnaments (TGT)
- The procedure for TGT follows STAD except that,
instead of an individual quiz being given, the teams
compete against one another. T
- TGT procedure is teacher presentation, teamwork,
team-versus team competition, scoring, and team
reward.
Team-Assisted Individualization and Team-
Accelerated Instruction (TAI)
- TAI combines the notions of cooperative learning
and individually paced instruction.
- instead of working together, each team member
according to her or his needs.
- In TAJ, team members check one another's work,
and more advanced students serve as tutors.
Jigsaw
- A jigsaw group of students is given an assignment
or puzzle to solve. Each member of the group is
assigned or chooses a piece of the puzzle and
investigates it. When the investigations are
completed, members report what they have learned,
and a more complete picture of the problem or
puzzle emerges.
Cooperative Integrated Reading and
Composition (CIRC)
- CIRC is mainly used to teach reading and
composition.
- pairs work and teams work
- Individual students quizzes
- Team scoring
- Recognition
Good Leaders of Cooperative Learning
- Believe in the importance of getting learners to
work together for the individual and common good
- Are able to get diverse learners to work
cooperatively
- Are competent presenters and use independent
study assignments effectively
- Are especially effective organizers and
coordinators of work
- Are especially effective diagnosticians and
clinicians, i.e., are able to identify and help students
and teams having difficulty
Good Cooperative Learning
Preparation:
- Prepare the presentation utilizing elements of a
"good presentation"
- Prepare the team assignment
- Prepare students for future engagement in
cooperative learning by explaining effective
interpersonal and interactive skills
Delivery
- Make the presentation utilizing elements of a
"good presentation"
- Set team goals
- Prepare students for work with their team
- Give the teams the assignment
Notes for Acts of Teaching: Chapter 8
- Quiz the students
- Recognize team accomplishments
Closure
- Remind students of what they learned
- Relate new learning to past or future learning
- Provide opportunity for practical use of
information
When Cooperative Learning Should Be Used
- often-but not always because: variety in
instruction is extremely important, to avoid putting
all our eggs into the cooperative learning basket is
that different kinds of educational objectives are
best achieved using different instructional
alternatives.
- when the class needs to develop a sense of
harmony and community building (all for one, one
for all)
- when students are at risk or generally suffer from
low self-esteem,
- when teachers want to help integrate
mainstreamed students.
Limitations of Cooperative Learning
- to succeed, team members must not simply share
answers but, more importantly, explain how they
derived the answers and why they are correct.
- Could it be that individual team members be
accountable to the team?
- team members must stay on task, since time on
task is consistently related to students' learning
- individuals must get along with one another
- it appear likely to increase dependency
Summary on Cooperative Learning
Discovery learning: Figuring Things Out for
Yourself
What Is Discovery Learning?
- or inquiry learning refers to learning that takes
place when students are asked to find out or figure
out something for themselves as Sherlock Holmes
does.
Purposes and Characteristics of Discovery Learning
- To get learners to think for themselves
- To help learners discover how knowledge of
formulated
- to promote higher order thinking Skills.
- should: Teacher sets the stage for knowledge
discovery
- Teacher rewards exploration and independent
thought.
- Learners accept the challenge of finding out things
for themselves-discovering knowledge
- Learners' participation and interaction are high
- Learners operate at higher-order cognitive levels:
analysis, synthesis, evaluation
Good Facilitators of Discovery Learning
Believe in the purposes of discovery learning
- Tend to be inquirers (curious) themselves
- Are optimistic and confident in students' ability to
inquiry.
- Hold high expectations of students
- Are nurturing
- Are thoughtful
- Are patient
- Accept students' ideas
- Are reflective
Good Discovery Learning
Preparation
- Determine the general purpose of the lesson
- Determine the specific lesson objectives: identify
the concepts, facts, generalizations, rules, or laws to
be discovered
- Collect useful resources and materials
- Plan the discovery lesson
- Ensure that learners are ready to use inductive
method
Delivery
- Obtain students' attention via set induction
- Present the challenging or baffling situation
- Utilize questions that will promote discovery
- Ensure that learners know what they are supposed
to do
- Monitor and guide student activity and thinking
- Encourage observation, collection and
organization, manipulation, analysis of ideas and
data, and so forth
Closure
- Help learners to organize and phrase what they
have concluded: the concepts, facts, generalizations,
Notes for Acts of Teaching: Chapter 8
and so forth.
- Provide opportunity to use the new knowledge
When Discovery Learning Should Be Used
-(1) to get students to think for themselves
(2) to help them discover how knowledge is created.
(3) to promote higher-order thinking.
- when it best serves the personal and educational
needs of you and your learners.
- when you have developed the qualities of a good
facilitator and you know and can follow the regimen
for good discovery learning.
Limitations of Discovery Learning
- discovery learning allows students to make errors.
Unless these errors are corrected, serious confusion
can result.
- not everything students must learn is amenable to
classroom discovery.
Summary on Discovery Learning
Constructivist Teaching and Learning: Problem
Solving under Teacher Guidance
What Is Constructivism?
- Constructivism is a way of teaching and learning
that intends to maximize student understanding.
- it is situated within meaningful learning in the
cognitive school of thought.
Purposes and Characteristics of Constructivism
- To enable students to acquire information in ways
that it is most readily understood and usable.
Should be:
- Active learning in groups
- Authentic and situated learning
- Bridging
- Scaffolding
- Reflection
- Resolution
Good Constructivist Teaching and Learning
Preparation
Determine the purpose of the lesson
- Describe how the purpose will be attained
- Decide how grouping will be used
- Decide how to link new learning to old
- Collect useful resource materials
- Decide how reflection will occur
Delivery
- Ensure groups are pursuing lesson goals and
interacting humanely with others
- Ensure learners are together and contributing
Closure
- Determine what learners now understand and the
extent to which the understanding is new or
different in some way
Good Facilitators of Constructivist Learning
Believe in the purpose of constructivism
- Want learners to draw their own conclusions and
form their own opinions
- Have high respect for constructivist principles
including active learning, concrete learning, group
learning, and reflection.
- Are willing to help all students understand by
intervening and providing support or scaffolding as
needed.
When Constructivism Should Be Used
- when you want to ensure that your students
understand something well.
Limitations of Constructivism
- It would be difficult for novices to learn how to do
something if they do not have the needed prior
knowledge.
Summary on Constructivism
Direct Instruction: Teaching in the Most
Efficient and Effective Way
What Is Direct Instruction?
- is a variation on the theme of teacher presentations
in that it is teacher-dominated and directed.
Purpose and Characteristics of Direct Instruction
- To directly cause students to learn academic
content or skill.
Should be:
- Teacher should provide strong direction
- Orientation is very academic
- Concern is for achievement; high expectation that
students can/will learn
- students made to fell psychologically safe.
- Student behaviour is controlled.
Notes for Acts of Teaching: Chapter 8
Examples of Direct Instruction Programs
Basic Practice Model
- This kind of DI follows four steps: lesson
introduction, lesson development, guided or
structured practice of what is to be learned, and
independent practice.
Explicit Teaching
- has six phases of instructional activity: review and
check homework, present new content/skills, guide
student practice, provide feedback and correctives,
move to independent practice, and conduct weekly
and monthly reviews.
Active teaching
- It has five instructional phases: opening,
development, independent work, homework, and
continued review.
- review, review, check homework , develop lesson,
check on understanding, provide independent work
in class, review.
The Mastery Teaching Program
- has three major phases:
input, where the teacher provides children with
knowledge or skill through lecture or another means
of presentation.
modeling, where the teacher shows an example of
what is expected as the end product of their work.
checking for understanding, where the teacher
determines if the children "got it." A
Good Direct Instructors
- Enthusiastic
- Warm, accepting
- Humorous
- Supportive
- Encouraging
- Business-like
- Adaptable-flexible
- Knowledgeable
- Holders of high expectations for student success
Good Direct Instruction
Preparation
- Research on effective teaching hardly addresses
whatteachers do to prepare. We might assume they
do the same things they would do when preparing a
good presentation.
Delivery
- Collect, review homework
- Review earlier, related information
- Communicate to learners what they are to know
and be able to do
- Present an overview or orientation of how the
lesson will be conducted
- Present information/skill to be learned
- Proceed in small steps
- Maintain a quick pace
- Use many illustrations, examples
- Encourage involvement of all students
- Ask many questions to check for understanding
- Repeat and elaborate on major points to notice,
remember
- Provide teacher-guided whole-class practice
- Provide feedback and reteach to eliminate
misunderstandings
- Ensure that students can practice with at least 80
percent accuracy
- Provide independent practice
- Let students know the work will be examined
- Monitor the work to keep students involved and to
eliminate errors
- Continue practice until learners are confident and
their responses are both rapid and accurate
Closure
- Assign short, regular, related homework
- Establish when this information or skill will next
be reviewed
When Direct Instruction Should Be Used
- when the hoped-for result is to improve
achievement in basic skills as measured by tests.
- When teaching knowledge and explicit concepts
and procedures.
- When the content to be learned is well structured,
clear, and unambiguous.
- When the target material is arranged in a
hierarchical or sequential manner.
Limitations of Direct Instruction
- causes teachers to follow a script: teachers are told
exactly what to say and do.
Summary on Direct Instruction
TWO KINDS OF DIRECT INSTRUCTION
Research-based
- Derived from observations of effective teachers
- Basic practice, Explicit teaching, Active Teaching
Notes for Acts of Teaching: Chapter 8
Learning-based Theory
- Derived from what is known about learning Is There a Single Best Instructional Alternative?
- Mastery teaching, DI STAR - it all depends upon your purpose