It's OK (Beneficial Actually) for Students to Struggle and Vocabulary Instruction

Excellence in Education: Causing a Student to Struggle

“Causing a student to struggle,” sounds counter-intuitive to our mission as educators, doesn’t it?

It’s not.

So when I saw a math teacher challenge students to solve a problem without telling them how, I was excited. Research shows that when you’re asked to solve a problem before being shown  how to solve it, the subsequent solution is better learned and more  likely to be remembered.

So whether it’s solving a math problem, or asking students, “How do you think (insert historical figure/event and a scenario?” or having students make corrections to something they haven’t yet learned, you’re actually priming their brain for learning. It’s perfectly acceptable for them   to struggle—learning shouldn’t be easy and learning is actually made more permanent when it is difficult.

For more information see Daniel  Willingham’s Why Students Don’t Like School or Make it Stick by Peter Brown, Henry Roediger, and  Mark  McDaniel. 

Ideas for the Classroom: Vocabulary Instruction

Vocabulary is a vital part of all learning, so important that it cannot be ignored because the correlation between vocabulary knowledge and learning and comprehension is undeniable.

Effective vocabulary instruction takes time and research shows that having students look up the definitions is perhaps the least effective means to improving student vocabulary. Robert Marzano has developed the following 6-step program to teach vocabulary.

Use direct instruction to provide students with a description, explanation, and an example (and a non-example) of the word. You can also provide a visual.

Have students restate the description, the explanation or an example in their OWN words.

Students should construct their own visual (graphic, picture, symbol, etc.) for the word.

Allow students to use the words in different settings and in different ways (interact with each other by sharing their visualizations, working together on graphic organizers, etc.)

Use periodic games or other high-interest strategies to learn the terms (Bingo, tech games, Pictionary, etc.)

Administrative Notes

Positive Referral Link: http://goo.gl/s0KXRB So far only 2 students have been nominated for positive referrals. Let’s make it a goal for each of us to nominate at least one student by next Wednesday.

Work Order Request Form: http://goo.gl/H7hFwK

We’ll have one more fire drill this week. We’ll have a school-wide lockdown drill on Wednesday. Thanks to all of you who practiced lockdowns on Thursday.

What I’m Reading

Seven Ways to Engage Students In Class : Simple strategies to ensure every student is part of the learning process

Five Research-Based Tips for Providing Feedback : Testing is an effective means of monitoring student progress and providing meaningful feedback 

NY Times: Liking Work Really Matters : A lot of good stuff in this article which includes talk of interest, how to gain interest, and cognitive psychology

Lectures Aren’t Just Boring, They’re Ineffective Too : This is a scientific article, but also includes suggestions for how to enhance learning while not disbanding lectures 

Is a Degree Still Worth It? : Statistics show that a bachelor’s degree is near an all-time high.

Feedback, Fist of Five

Excellence in Education: Feedback

Research (John Hattie) clearly indicates that feedback, whether it be positive reinforcement, areas for improvement, or clarifying goals, is one of the most important things we can do to advance student learning.

Since high quality feedback can be provided in a variety of ways, I’ve been on the lookout for ways to provide effective feedback. Here are some ways that I’ve observed in first couple of weeks:

• Written notes on student work, especially with no grade attached or comments/questions that require students to respond. 
• After students completed an assignment, the teacher grouped students based on the feedback they needed. This created about six different feedback groups and the teacher was able to provide specific feedback to the groups and they were able to work together to solve their problems.
• Self-reflective feedback that required students to evaluate and reflect on their own work.  
• Pluses and minuses was a peer feedback technique that I saw a teacher use. Students simply commented on what was done well (based on a general rubric) and what could be done better. The teacher prompted them with the discussion question: What’s next? as a conclusion to peer feedback.

Ideas for the Classroom: Fist of Five

Any questions?

Does everyone understand?

I’ve finished the lesson, the directions, the lecture, whatever and far too often I asked the above questions. Simply put, these questions are not effective for a variety of reasons.

A better technique: Fist of Five. It’s simple, fast and accurate. Instead of the generic Does everyone understand? ask students to reflect on the goal/objective and how confident they are on a scale of 1-5, with 1 meaning not at all and 5 meaning they possess an expertise.

After giving them some time—and it’s important to give them time to reflect—ask them to put their fists in the air when their ready. When all fists are  in the air, ask them to shoot their  numbers to reveal their votes. I tended to use 4 as an acceptable cutoff.

What I did next depended on the number of ones, twos and threes. Sometimes I would simply ask what they were unsure of, what their concerns were. Other times, I would pair students up. Other  times I’d have an additional learning activity ready to go.

Administrative Notes

Due Dates for Initial Goal:

1.      Comprehensive Cycle: September 5, please remember to give pre-assessment as soon as possible.

2.      Annual Cycle: February 6

Positive Referral Link: http://goo.gl/s0KXRB

Work Order Request Form: http://goo.gl/H7hFwK

What I’m Reading

Rethinking AP Classes

How We Learn Best: Smart Studying Strategies

            Quiz: How Good Are You at Teaching the Art of Learning?

The Typical HS Student Survey: I Learn Best When…