Be a Sage on the Stage: How traditional methods of instruction can improve student learning

1. Be a Sage on the Stage:How traditional methods of instruction can improve student learning Presenter: Michael Zwaagstra, B.Ed., P.B.C.E., M.Ed. Frontier Centre for Public Policy

2. fcpp.org • michaelzwaagstra.com

3. What is Traditional Instruction? • Teacher in charge of the classroom. • Focus on a defined body of knowledge and skills. • Direct instruction takes place. • New concepts taught step-by-step and sequentially. • Individual seatwork that gradually progresses in difficulty. • Moderate use of technology.

4. What Traditional Instruction is NOT • Teacher lectures for the entire time with minimal student interaction. • Memorizing outdated and/or irrelevant facts. • Harsh discipline of students. • Teaching each class exactly the same way. • Total ban on technology.

5. Teacher-directed “Canon” of knowledge Desks arranged in rows Whole-class instruction Phonics Standard math algorithms Student-directed Knowledge created by students Desks arranged in groups Most instruction with small groups Whole language Students develop math strategies Traditional vs. Constructivist

6. Jeanne Chall • Professor of Education at Harvard University from 1965 – 1991. • Founded the Harvard Reading Laboratory in 1967. • Considered one of the world’s foremost experts on reading instruction.

7. “Traditional, teacher-centered schools, according to research and practice, are more effective than progressive, student-centered schools for the academic achievement of most children. And that approach is especially beneficial for students who come to school less well-prepared for academic learning – children of less educated families, inner-city children, and those with learning difficulties at all social levels.” Jeanne S. Chall, The Academic Achievement Challenge, 2000, p. 176.

8. Clark, Kirschner, and Sweller • Richard Clark – professor of educational psychology, clinical research professor of surgery, and director of the Centre for Cognitive Technology at the University of Southern California • Paul Kirschner – professor of educational psychology at the Open University of the Netherlands • John Sweller – emeritus professor of education at the School of Education at the University of New South Wales

9. “Evidence from controlled, experimental (a.k.a. ‘gold-standard’) studies almost uniformly supports full and explicit instructional guidance rather than partial or minimal guidance for novice to intermediate learners. These findings and their associated theories suggest teachers should provide their students with clear, explicit instruction rather than merely assisting students in attempting to discover knowledge themselves.” Richard Clark, Paul Kirschner, and John Sweller, “Putting Students on the Path to Learning,” American Educator, 2012.

10. Project Follow Through • Took place in the United States from 1968-1977 and involved more than 72,000 students in approximately 180 schools. • Direct Instruction (D.I.) and four other methodologies were compared. • D.I. students gained superior basic math and reading skills. • They also had better reading comprehension and math problem-solving abilities.

11. “Perhaps the most famous example of policy makers not using or being convinced by evidence was Project Follow Through… As Carnine commented, the romantic view of students discovering learning was more powerful than a method invented by a teacher that actually made a difference; a method that required an attention to detail, to deliberately changing behavior, and to teaching specific skills. The rejection of Direct Instruction in favor of Rousseian inspired methods ‘is a classic case of an immature profession, one that lacks a solid scientific base and has less respect for evidence than for opinion and ideology.’” John Hattie, Visible Learning, 2009, p. 258.

12. Remember the following seven words • National Congress on Rural Education in Saskatoon

14. Now try these seven words • Envelope Molded Association the Outside Microsoft Plaque

16. Which is easier to remember? • A random 11-digit number i.e. 287410482375 • Your personal phone number plus one extra digit • i.e.306-867-5309-5

17. Cognitive Load • Cognitive load refers to the total amount of effort being used in the working memory. • People have only a limited amount of working memory. • Automaticity reduces our cognitive load and makes higher order learning possible.

18. 3y + (5 x 6) = 42 What is the value of y? Answer = 4 To solve you need to know: 1) Your times tables 2) The order of operations 3) Basic addition

19. “New Math” • The key problem with the so-called “New Math” is that it unnecessarily increases cognitive load. • Instead of showing students the most efficient way of solving questions (i.e. standard algorithms), it encourages them to create their own, less efficient, strategies. • The “New Math” also places too little emphasis on the memorization of basic math facts.

20. Key Findings of a Recent Study • This study analyzed data from more than 13,000 first-grade students. • Routine drill and practice was the most effective instructional practice. • This was particularly true for students experiencing difficulty in math. • Paul Morgan, George Farkas, and Steve Maczuga, “Which Instructional Practices Most Help First-Grade Students With and Without Mathematics Difficulties?” Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, June 2014.

21. JUMP Math • Junior Undiscovered Math Prodigies (JUMP) was founded by mathematician John Mighton. • JUMP is a math instructional program used in schools across Canada and in other countries with great success. • Emphasizes basic skills, step-by-step scaffolding, and guided discovery. • Visit jump.org to find more information and supporting research studies.

22. Learning to Read • In order to become a fluent reader you must be able to do two things: • Decode the words on a page. • Comprehend what the words and sentences actually mean.

23. Phonics vs. Whole Language • Fifty years ago, Dr. Jeanne Chall published a definitive review of the research showing the superiority of phonics over whole language. • Learning letter sounds reduces cognitive load and makes it possible to sound out more advanced words.

24. “In summary, whole language programs have negligible effects on learning to read—be it on word recognition or on comprehension. Such methods may be of value to later reading, but certainly not for the processes of learning to read; it appears that strategies of reading need to be deliberately taught, especially to students struggling to read.” John Hattie, Visible Learning, 2009, p. 138.

25. Reading Comprehension “The specific teaching of the Old Testament as to predestination naturally revolves around the two foci of that idea which may be designated general and special, or, more properly, cosmical and soteriological predestination; or, in other words, around the doctrines of the Divine Decree and the Divine Election.” What does this sentence mean?

26. Knowledge is the key to reading comprehension. • The more you know about a topic, the more you will understand what you are reading. • This applies to any topic, whether it be sports, politics, history, or science. • That is why students can read far above their so-called reading level when they are familiar with the topic.

27. Importance of Prior Knowledge Confirmed • Donna Recht and Lauren Leslie, “Effect of prior knowledge on good and poor readers’ memory of text. Journal of Educational Psychology, 1988, pp. 16-20. • Key finding – Students with high knowledge about baseball could better understand a text about baseball than students who lacked knowledge.

28. “I’ve listed four ways that background knowledge is important to reading comprehension: (1) it provides vocabulary; (2) it allows you to bridge logical gaps that writers leave; (3) it allows chunking, which increases room in working memory and thereby makes it easier to tie ideas together; and (4) it guides the interpretation of ambiguous sentences.” Daniel Willingham, Why Don’t Students Like School?, 2009, p. 36.

29. What about Rote Learning? • Drill and Kill? • Actually, drill leads to skill, when done properly. K. Anders Ericsson, Ralf Th. Krampe, and Clemens Tesch Romer, “The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance,” Psychological Review, 1993, pp. 363-406.

30. The Value of Handwriting • When young students print by hand, it creates memory traces in the brain that assist with the recognition of letter shapes. • This does not happen when typing on a keyboard or tablet. • Cursive writing makes it possible to write more quickly and this also contributes to reading fluency. Hetty Roessingh, “The magic of writing: Dispelling the myths of early literacy development,” 2014, in review, The Reading Teacher

31. What About Technology? Claim: “The integration and effective use of technology is vital to Saskatchewan’s teaching and learning environment and to enhancing learner success.” Saskatchewan Ministry of Education, Technology in Education Framework, June 2013.

32. Reality Check “It seems safe to conclude that, most of the time, ICT does have a positive, albeit relatively small, impact on students’ achievement across many content areas. The effect of computer technology seems to be particularly small in studies that use either large samples or randomized control groups. Thus, claims that any particular technology, in and of itself, will bring large, radical, or revolutionary impact on achievement should be met with skepticism.” Peter Reimann and Anindito Aditomo, “Technology-supported learning and academic achievement,” International Guide to StudentAchievement,2013

33. Recommendations • Recognize the importance of specific content knowledge. • Encourage teachers to use direct instruction in the classroom. • Allow for some memorization and practice in the learning process. • Be wary of the overhyped promises of education fads.

34. Thank you for your attention. • Questions? Comments? • For more information, contact Michael at: mzwaagstra@shaw.ca 204-371-5125 michaelzwaagstra.com