Designing Meaningful Learning Tasks

1. Eric Bright 8th Grade Math Charleston Middle School brighte@charleston.k12.il.us Designing Meaningful Learning Tasks Achieving student content mastery

2. AGENDA • 4:30 – 5:00 Dan Meyer • 5:00 – 5:30 Learning Task Research • 5:30 – 6:00 Tasks vs. PBL • 6:00 – 6:30 Task Examples • 6:30 – 7:15 Design Task Ideas • 7:15 – 7:30 Share Out Take a break as needed!

3. Dan Meyer • “Math Class Needs a Makeover” • Implications: • Mathematical structure should serve the problem. • Use multimedia. • Encourage student intuition. • Ask the shortest question. • Let students build the problem. • Be less helpful.

4. Learning Task Research • Research Findings: • Focus: • Start with the standards (content and practice). • Does it incorporate differentiation opportunities? • Coherence: • Are there connections with prior or future knowledge? • Rigor: Concept, Procedure, Application • Is there a context that leads to mathematical need? • Other Considerations • Is it a problem or an exercise? • Do students have motivation for learning?

5. Learning Task Research • Research Reflections: • No task or lesson will be perfect and incorporate everything. (Opportunity, not mandate.) • It’s OK for students to be frustrated and not know what to do. Keep in mind this is a learning task, not a summative assessment. • Learning tasks may look a lot like summative assessments, but their purpose and use change because we don’t expect content mastery at the moment of learning.

6. Authentic Task Framework • University of Wollongong (Australia) • Real-World • Ill-Defined • Investigated Over Time • Different Perspectives • Collaboration • Reflection • Multiple Disciplines • Formative Assessments (see BIE assessment map) • Polished Products • Multiple Solutions

7. Task vs. PBL • Learning task • A day or two activity to learn a specific grade level content standard. • PBL • A much longer process to learn several specific multi-disciplinary grade level content standards.

8. 8 Essentials for PBL • From BIE • Significant Content • A Need to Know • A Driving Question • Student Voice and Choice • 21st Century Skills • Inquiry and Innovation • Feedback and Revision • Publically Presented Product • BIE School Assessment

9. IMSA PBL Process • Problem Based Learning (from IMSA) • Prepare the Learners • Meet the Problem (Hook) • Ill-defined • KNK (Know and Need to Know) • Define the Problem • Task and Solution Criteria • Problem Statement: How can we as … do… in such a way that we have considered…

10. IMSA PBL Process • Problem Based Learning (from IMSA) • Gather Information and Share Information • Debrief Periodically • Generate Possible Solutions • Find Best Fit Solution (Using Solution Criteria) • Give Presentation/Product (Communicate Solutions) • Debrief Experience (What did we learn?) Compare to studygs.net

11. Task vs. PBL • When is a task better than a PBL unit? • How can we incorporate some of the ideas from PBL into a more basic learning task?

12. Example Tasks • Short Task Examples • University designed • MARS Tasks • Longer Task Examples • Rubber Band Launch • Linear Weight Analysis • Star Trek • Transformations

13. Our Task Process • What standard are we trying to master? • Are we seeking conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, application or a mixture? • What mathematical practices are best highlighted for this standard(s)? • Follow the rest of the research summary document.

14. Sketch a Lesson • Develop a quick sketch of a learning task that you could use next week or next semester.