ReportWire

Tag: Essential

  • 32 Research-Based Instructional Strategies

    32 Research-Based Instructional Strategies

    by TeachThought Staff

    You want to teach with what’s been proven to work.

    That makes sense. In the ‘data era’ of education that’s mean research-based instructional strategies to drive data-based teaching, and while there’s a lot to consider here we’d love to explore more deeply, for now we’re just going to take a look at the instructional strategies themselves.

    See also Examples of Learning Technology

    But upside to sharing this information as a post is that it can act a starting point to research the above, which is why we’ve tried to include links, related content, and suggested reading for many of the strategies, and are trying to add citations for all of them that reference the original study that demonstrated that strategy’s effectiveness. (This is an ongoing process.)

    How should you use a list like this? In 6 Questions Hattie Didn’t Ask, Terry Heick wondered the same.

    “In lieu of any problems, this much data has to be useful. Right? Maybe. But it might be that so much effort is required to localize and recalibrate it a specific context, that’s it’s just not–especially when it keeps schools and districts from becoming ‘researchers’ on their own terms, leaning instead on Hattie’s list. Imagine ‘PDs’ where this book has been tossed down in the middle of every table in the library and teachers are told to ‘come up with lessons’ that use those strategies that appear in the ‘top 10.’ Then, on walk-throughs for the next month, teachers are constantly asked about ‘reciprocal teaching’ (.74 ES after all). If you consider the analogy of a restaurant, Hattie’s book is like a big book of cooking practices that have been shown to be effective within certain contexts: Use of Microwave (.11 ES) Chefs Academic Training (.23 ES), Use of Fresh Ingredients (.98). The problem is, without the macro-picture of instructional design, they are simply contextual-less, singular items.”

    In short, these instructional strategies have been demonstrated to, in at least one study, be ‘effective.’ As implied above, it’s not that simple–and it doesn’t mean it will work well in your next lesson. But as a place to begin taking a closer look at what seems to work–and more importantly how and why it works–feel free to begin your exploring with the list below.

    These strategies are research-based and tuned for 8th-grade classrooms. Each card includes a short description, citations, and two “Try it” moves you can use tomorrow.

    Planning & Clarity

    Setting Goals & Success Criteria

    Make learning goals visible and pair them with concrete success criteria students can self-check.

    Evidence:
    Locke & Latham (2002) ·
    REL Midwest (ERIC open-access, 2018)

    • Co-write 2–4 “I can…” criteria; reference them at launch, mid-lesson, and exit.
    • Run a 1-minute “criteria check” where students highlight where their work meets/doesn’t.

    Cues, Questions & Advance Organizers

    Activate prior knowledge and preview the structure so new content has hooks.

    Evidence:
    Mayer (1979) ·
    ERIC (1979)

    • Start with a 90-second concept map (big nodes only) before instruction.
    • Pose 2 essential questions; revisit mid-lesson and at exit.

    Scaffolding Instruction

    Provide temporary supports (prompts, hints, partial solutions) and fade them as competence grows.

    Evidence:
    Wood, Bruner & Ross (1976) ·
    ERIC (2002 overview)

    • Give a 4-step checklist; remove one step each subsequent attempt.
    • Sentence starters for draft 1 only; original phrasing required on draft 2.

    High Expectations (Warm Demanding)

    Communicate belief in every student’s ability and provide credible pathways to meet the bar.

    Evidence:
    Rosenthal & Jacobson (1968) ·
    ERIC (1968)

    • Set a visible quality bar (exemplar + single rubric row) and require one revision for all.
    • Use growth-focused feedback scripts (“Next step: add a counterexample in ¶2”).

    Plan With the Nine Research-Based Categories

    Use Marzano’s nine categories to balance clarity, processing, practice, feedback, and transfer across units.

    Evidence:
    Marzano et al. (2001) ·
    McREL (ERIC-indexed report)

    • Tag each lesson segment to a category; add one missing category this week.
    • Use a PLC template with nine checkboxes during unit planning.

    Instruction & Modeling

    Direct / Explicit Instruction (Rosenshine)

    Teach in small steps with clear models, guided practice, frequent CFUs, and cumulative review before independence.

    Evidence:
    Rosenshine (2012) ·
    ERIC (2012)

    • Chunk new material into 5-minute bursts with a quick CFU after each.
    • “You do a little / I peek a lot”: circulate and prompt during guided practice.

    Related: TeachThought: Project-Based Learning

    Modeling with Worked Examples

    Show complete exemplars (and non-examples), then fade to completion problems and full independence.

    Evidence:
    Sweller et al. (2006) ·
    ERIC (2006)

    • Model one full problem; then assign a completion problem with the last step blank.
    • Show a non-example; ask students to spot and fix the error.

    Guided Practice (Opportunities to Practice)

    Provide structured practice with immediate feedback before asking for independent performance.

    Evidence:
    Rosenshine (2012) ·
    ERIC (2012)

    • Run “I do → We do → You do” across a single period; pause for quick corrections.
    • Use mini-whiteboards for whole-class guided checks and fast feedback.

    Deliberate Practice & Spacing

    Short, frequent practice with feedback, distributed over time and interleaved with prior content.

    Evidence:
    Cepeda et al. (2008) ·
    ERIC (2012 overview)

    • Turn a 20-minute block into two 8-minute bursts with a 2-minute retrieval check.
    • Open with 3 spaced “warm-backs” from last week before new content.

    Nonlinguistic Representations (Dual Coding)

    Pair words with visuals (diagrams, timelines, gestures) so verbal and image traces reinforce each other.

    Evidence:
    Clark & Paivio (1991) ·
    ERIC (2019)

    • Require a 30–60s sketch for each new concept.
    • Introduce an icon/gesture for key terms and cue students to use them.

    Processing & Meaning-Making

    Cooperative Learning

    Structured peer interaction with shared goals and individual accountability.

    Evidence:
    Johnson & Johnson (1989) ·
    ERIC (1994)

    • Assign roles (facilitator, checker, summarizer) + an individual exit slip.
    • Give a 60-second “quiet think” before talk so every student brings an idea.

    Concept Mapping

    Externalize relationships between ideas via labeled connections and hierarchies.

    Evidence:
    Novak & Gowin (1984) ·
    ERIC (2018)

    • Give 10 terms + verb list (causes, leads to, contrasts with); require labeled arrows.
    • Students write a 2-sentence “pathway” using three nodes.

    Reciprocal Teaching

    Rotate roles (clarify, question, predict, summarize) to build comprehension through coached dialogue.

    Evidence:
    Palincsar & Brown (1984) ·
    ERIC (1992)

    • Run a 10-minute rotation on a short text; swap roles mid-reading.
    • Provide role cards; require a 3-sentence group summary at the end.

    Related: TeachThought: Questioning & Inquiry

    Summarizing & Note-Taking

    Distill essential ideas concisely; generative processing supports retention and comprehension.

    Evidence:
    Hidi & Anderson (1986) ·
    ERIC (1999)

    • Impose a 12-word summary limit, then expand to 40 words with one quotation.
    • Use Cornell notes: add one test question per section before leaving.

    Generating & Testing Hypotheses

    Make predictions, test them, and revise thinking based on evidence.

    Evidence:
    Marzano et al. (2001) ·
    ERIC (2013)

    • Students write a specific prediction and design a 3-step mini-test to check it.
    • Require a “claim–evidence–revision” sentence after results.

    Comparison Matrix (Protocol)

    Use a criteria-by-item grid so students weigh alternatives and justify choices.

    Evidence:
    Marzano et al. (2001) ·
    McREL (ERIC-indexed)

    • Provide a 3×3 matrix with criteria in rows; students rate/justify each item.
    • End with a forced choice: which is best for X and why (cite two criteria)?

    Anticipation Guides

    Use brief agree/disagree statements to surface preconceptions and set a purpose for reading.

    Evidence:
    Buehl (2001) ·
    ERIC (2015)

    • Create 4 statements tied to misconceptions; students justify pre/post.
    • After reading, students flip one stance and cite a specific line or datum.

    Feedback & Assessment

    Low-Threat / Formative Assessment

    Frequent checks for understanding, without grading pressure, surface misconceptions early.

    Evidence:
    Bangert-Drowns, Kulik & Kulik (1991) ·
    ERIC (2019)

    • Use 2–3 ungraded checks (thumb, mini-whiteboard, 1-question poll) per lesson.
    • Exit ticket: “One thing I’m unsure about is…”—address at start of next class.

    Metacognitive Reflection

    Guide students to monitor progress, choose strategies intentionally, and revise based on evidence of learning.

    Evidence:
    Flavell (1979) ·
    ERIC (2019)

    • Students name the strategy they used and why in one sentence on the work.
    • Three-item self-check: “What worked? What didn’t? What I’ll try next.”

    Related: TeachThought: 50 Questions That Promote Metacognition

    Reinforcing Effort & Recognition

    Acknowledge students for meeting explicit performance criteria and for effective strategies—not for generic “trying.”

    Evidence:
    Deci, Koestner & Ryan (1999) ·
    ERIC (2000)

    • Tie recognition to a posted criterion (e.g., “Meets: includes counterclaim with evidence”).
    • Use intermittent shout-outs for effective strategies (“You compared sources before deciding”).

    Homework With a Clear Purpose (Later Grades)

    Homework is most effective when reinforcing taught material with a clear learning purpose and minimal parental involvement.

    Evidence:
    Cooper (1989) ·
    ERIC (2012)

    • Label homework with a purpose tag (“practicing X,” “preparing for Y”).
    • Include a 60-second self-check key so students verify process, not just answers.

    Transfer & Student Independence

    Independent Practice

    Students apply newly learned skills without scaffolds to build fluency and generalization.

    Evidence:
    Rosenshine (2012) ·
    ERIC (2012)

    • Set a fluency goal (correct in a row / within time) and chart progress.
    • 3 scaffolded problems → 3 independent problems → 1 reflection line.

    Directed Reading–Thinking Activity (DR-TA)

    Pause periodically to predict, read, check, and revise; strengthens inference and monitoring.

    Evidence:
    Stauffer (1969) ·
    ERIC (1976)

    • Pause every 2–3 paragraphs: predict → read → check → revise.
    • Students annotate predictions with ✓ / ✗ and explain any change.

    Question–Answer Relationship (QAR)

    Teach question types (“Right There,” “Think & Search,” “Author & Me”) so students choose the correct strategy.

    Evidence:
    Raphael (1982) ·
    ERIC (1987)

    • Color-code questions: Right There (green), Think & Search (blue), Author & Me (yellow).
    • Students must label the QAR type before answering.

    Related: TeachThought: Critical Thinking

    KWL & Previewing Structures

    Activate background knowledge, articulate curiosity, and set a self-guided purpose before reading.

    Evidence:
    Ogle (1986) ·
    ERIC (1992)

    • Spend 2 minutes on K/W; revisit L at exit with an evidence-based sentence.
    • Build a class “W wall” and assign each student one W to answer by Friday.

    Response Notebooks / Journals

    Routinely reflect, question, and reorganize ideas in writing to build transfer via self-explanation.

    Evidence:
    Readence, Moore & Rickelman (2002) ·
    ERIC (2003)

    • Standing 3-line prompt: “Today I realized… / I’m stuck on… / Next I will…”
    • Require one quote or figure referenced in each entry (with page/line).

    Individualized Instruction

    Differentiate paths, pacing, or supports so students work at the edge of their competence toward common goals.

    Evidence:
    Bloom (1984) ·
    ERIC (1986)

    • Offer 2-path choices: Practice A (more modeling) vs Practice B (extension/transfer).
    • Create 3 “just-in-time” mini-lessons students can opt into after a self-check.

    Related: TeachThought: Teaching & Pedagogy

    32 Research-Based Instructional Strategies For Teachers

    1. Setting Objectives

    2. Reinforcing Effort/Providing Recognition

    3. Cooperative Learning

    4. Cues, Questions & Advance Organizers

    5. Nonlinguistic Representations (see Teaching With Analogies)

    6. Summarizing & Note Taking

    7. Identifying Similarities and Differences

    8. Generating & Testing Hypotheses

    See also Hattie’s Index Of Effect Sizes

    9. Instructional Planning Using the Nine Categories of Strategies

    10. Rewards based on a specific performance standard (Wiersma 1992)

    11. Homework for later grades (Ross 1998) with minimal parental involvement (Balli 1998) with a clear purpose (Foyle 1985)

    12. Direct Instruction

    13. Scaffolding Instruction

    14. Provide opportunities for student practice

    15. Individualized Instruction

    16. Inquiry-Based Teaching (see 20 Questions To Guide Inquiry-Based Learning)

    See also The 40 Best Classroom Management Apps & Tools

    17. Concept Mapping

    18. Reciprocal Teaching

    19. Promoting student metacognition (see 5o Questions That Promote Metacognition In Students)

    20. Developing high expectations for each student

    21. Providing clear and effective learning feedback (see 13 Concrete Examples Of Effective Learning Feedback)

    22. Teacher clarity (learning goals, expectations, content delivery, assessment results, etc.)

    23. Setting goals or objectives (Lipset & Wilson 1993)

    24. Consistent, ‘low-threat’ assessment (Bangert-Drowns, Kulik, & Kulik 1991; Fuchs & Fuchs 1986)

    25. Higher-level questioning (Redfield & Rousseau 1981) (see Questions Stems For Higher Level Discussion)

    26. Learning feedback that is detailed and specific (Hattie & Temperly 2007)

    27. The Directed Reading-Thinking Activity (Stauffer 1969)

    28. Question-Answer Relationship (QAR) (Raphael 1982)

    29. KWL Chart (Ogle 1986)

    30. Comparison Matrix (Marzano 2001)

    31. Anticipation Guides (Buehl 2001)

    32. Response Notebooks (Readence, Moore, Rickelman, 2002)

    Sources: Marzano Research; Visible Learning; http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/curriculum/section7.pdf ; 32 Research-Based Instructional Strategies

    TeachThought Staff

    Source link

  • 6 Domains Of Cognition: The TeachThought Learning Taxonomy

    TeachThought Understanding Taxonomy

    by Terry Heick

    How can you tell if a student really understands something?

    They learn early on to play the game—tell the teacher and/or the test what they ‘want to know,’ and even the best assessment leaves something on the table. (In truth, a big portion of the time students simply don’t know what they don’t know.)

    The idea of understanding is, of course, at the heart of all learning, and solving it as a puzzle is one of the three pillars of formal learning environments and education.

    1. What do they need to understand (standards)?

    2. What (and how) do they currently understand (assessment)?

    3. How can they best come to understand what they currently do not (planning learning experiences and instruction)?

    But how do we know if they know it? And what is ‘it’?

    Understanding As ‘It’

    On the surface, there is trouble with the word ‘it.’ Sounds vague. Troublesome. Uncertain. But everyone somehow knows what it is.

    ‘It’ is essentially what is to be learned, and it can be a scary thing to both teachers and students. ‘It’ is everything, described with intimidating terms like objective, target, proficiency, test, exam, grade, fail, and succeed.

    And in terms of content, ‘it’ could be almost anything: a fact, a discovery, a habit, skill, or general concept, from mathematical theory to a scientific process, the importance of a historical figure to an author’s purpose in a text.

    So if a student gets it, beyond pure academic performance what might they be able to do? There are many existing taxonomies and characteristics, from Bloom’s to Understanding by Design’s 6 Facets of Understanding.

    The following actions are set up as a linear taxonomy, from most basic to the most complex. The best part about it is its simplicity: Most of these actions can be performed simply in the classroom in minutes, and don’t require complex planning or an extended exam period.

    By using a quick diagram, concept map, t-chart, conversation, picture, or short response in a journal, quick face-to-face collaboration, on an exit slip, or via digital/social media, understanding can be evaluated in minutes, helping to replace testing and consternation with a climate of assessment. It can be even be displayed on a class website or hung in the classroom to help guide self-directed learning, with students checking themselves for understanding.

    How This Understanding Taxonomy Works

    I’ll write more about this soon and put this into a more graphic form soon; both of these are critical in using it. (Update: I’m also creating a course for teachers to help the, use it.) For now, I’ll say that it can be used to guide planning, assessment, curriculum design, and self-directed learning. Or to develop critical thinking questions for any content area.

    The ‘Heick’ learning taxonomy is meant to be simple, arranged as (mostly) isolated tasks that range in complexity from less to more. That said, students needn’t demonstrate the ‘highest’ levels of understanding–that misses the point. Any ability to complete these tasks is a demonstration of understanding. The greater number of tasks the student can complete the better, but all ‘boxes checked’ are evidence that the student ‘gets it.’

    36 Thinking Strategies To Help Students Wrestle With Complexity

    The Heick Learning Taxonomy

    Domain 1: The Parts

    1. Explain or describe it simply
    2. Label its major and minor parts
    3. Evaluate its most and least important characteristics
    4. Deconstruct or ‘unbuild’ it efficiently
    5. Give examples and non-examples
    6. Separate it into categories, or as an item in broader categories

    Example Topic

    The Revolutionary War

    Sample Prompts

    Explain the Revolutionary War in simple terms (e.g., an inevitable rebellion that created a new nation).

    Identify the major and minor ‘parts’ of the Revolutionary War (e.g., economics and propaganda, soldiers and tariffs).

    Evaluate the Revolutionary War and identify its least and most important characteristics (e.g., caused and effects vs city names and minor skirmishes)

    See also 20 Types Of Questions For Teaching Critical Thinking

    Domain 2: The Whole

    1. Explain it in micro-detail and macro-context
    2. Create a diagram that embeds it in a self-selected context
    3. Explain how it is and is not useful both practically and intellectually
    4. Play with it casually
    5. Leverage it both in parts and in whole
    6. Revise it expertly, and explain the impact of any revisions

    Domain 3: The Interdependence 

    1. Explain how it relates to similar and non-similar ideas
    2. Direct others in using it
    3. Explain it differently–and precisely–to both a novice and an expert
    4. Explain exactly how and where others might misunderstand it
    5. Compare it to other similar and non-similar ideas
    6. Identify analogous but distinct ideas, concepts, or situations

    Domain 4: The Function

    1. Apply it in unfamiliar situations
    2. Create accurate analogies to convey its function or meaning
    3. Analyze the sweet spot of its utility
    4. Repurpose it with creativity
    5. Know when to use it
    6. Plausibly theorize its origins

    Domain 5: The Abstraction

    1. Insightfully or artfully demonstrate its nuance
    2. Criticize it in terms of what it might ‘miss’ or where it’s ‘dishonest’ or incomplete
    3. Debate its ‘truths’ as a supporter or devil’s advocate
    4. Explain its elegance or crudeness
    5. Analyze its objectivity and subjectivity, and how the two relate
    6. Design a sequel, extension, follow-up, or evolution of it

    Domain 6: The Self

    1. Self-direct future learning about the topic
    2. Ask specific, insightful questions about it
    3. Recall or narrate their own learning sequence or chronology (metacognition) in coming to know it
    4. Is comfortable using it across diverse contexts and circumstances
    5. Identify what they still don’t understand about it
    6. Analyze changes in self-knowledge as a result of understanding

    Advanced Understanding

    Understanding by Design’s 6 facets of Understanding, Bloom’s Taxonomy, and Marzano’s New Taxonomy were also referenced in the creation of this taxonomy; a learning taxonomy for understanding

    Terry Heick

    Source link

  • Updates to Xbox Game Pass: Introducing Essential, Premium, and Ultimate Plans – Xbox Wire

    Our goal with Game Pass has been clear: deliver unmatched value, benefits, and a deep library of games for our players. Since launching in 2017, we’ve steadily grown our subscriber and creator satisfaction – and today, creator participation and player engagement in Game Pass are at an all-time high. But we have the opportunity for Game Pass to help more players find the creators and games they love.  

    We know not everyone wants the same thing in their Xbox experience, so we’re evolving Game Pass to offer more flexibility, choice, and value to all players, whether you love day one releases, discovering hidden gems, or playing across multiple devices and screens and across Xbox consoles, Xbox on PC, and Xbox Cloud.

    Starting today, we’re introducing three upgraded Game Pass plans based on how players play: Essential, Premium, and Ultimate. Each includes expanded game libraries, including PC titles, unlimited cloud gaming, in-game benefits (including Riot Games titles), and a revamped Rewards with Xbox experience. Today’s Game Pass Core subscribers will automatically move to Essential, Standard subscribers will transition to Premium, and Ultimate subscribers will remain in the Ultimate plan.

    It’s all a part of our commitment to meet players where they are, so you can choose what works best for you, no matter how or where you love to play.

    Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Just Got Its Biggest Upgrade Yet

    Ultimate has been upgraded for players who want the best of everything. We’re rolling out our most expansive upgrade yet, including more day one games than ever before, Fortnite Crew & Ubisoft+ Classics for the first time ever, enhanced Xbox Cloud Gaming streaming quality up to 1440p, Rewards with Xbox, and more. Now players can have it all. 

    Ultimate subscribers now get access to over 75 day one releases a year. That includes some of the most anticipated upcoming games like Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, High on Life 2, Keeper, Ninja Gaiden 4, and The Outer Worlds 2.  These join a growing library of more than 400 games playable on Xbox consoles, Xbox on PC, and Xbox Cloud on supported devices, with more than 45 new games added today. Think of hits like Blue Prince, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and Hollow Knight: Silksong, plus exclusive benefits like access to EA Play.

    We’re also welcoming major additions to the Ultimate experience. Starting November 18, Fortnite Crew – an $11.99/month value – will be included in Ultimate, with access to the Fortnite Battle Pass, 1,000 V-Bucks each month, and more. This is just the beginning of Xbox and Epic’s work together toward an open gaming ecosystem where friends can play and create together, anywhere, across devices. And today, Ubisoft+ Classics (valued at $7.99/month per platform) joins Ultimate, offering access to a curated selection of Ubisoft games playable on console, PC, and cloud, like Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, and more.

    Cloud gaming is also getting a major boost. Ultimate subscribers exclusively enjoy our best quality streaming and shortest wait times, so it’s easier than ever to jump into your favorite games. Xbox Cloud Gaming has also officially exited “Beta,” as part of our commitment to make gameplay smoother and more responsive. And we’ll keep expanding the Stream your own game collection for all subscribers. Keep an eye on Xbox.com/Play for the latest list of cloud playable games.

    Ultimate subscribers can now earn up to $100 per year (100k points globally) in the Store just by playing games. With our upgraded Rewards program, players can get up to 30% value on select Game Pass games, with 4x points on purchases of games and add-ons, 10% back in points on select Game Pass library titles and add-ons, and up to 20% off select Game Pass games.

    Game Pass Ultimate Breakdown Infographic

    Xbox Game Pass Premium – More Games, More Flexibility

    Premium has been upgraded to offer even more flexibility and value for those who want to play on their own terms at exceptional value. Premium provides access to a broader library of great games and extends the Xbox gaming experience across console, PC, and cloud.

    We’re now giving Premium subscribers more games than ever before, from gaming’s biggest hits to hidden gems, now with access to 200+ games on Xbox console, PC, and supported devices, all still at $14.99. This library, with more than 40 new games available today, is also now playable on PC, including timeless hits like Minecraft, Forza Horizon 5, and Grand Theft Auto V. Plus, Premium subscribers get newly added fan-favorites like Diablo IV and Hogwarts Legacy starting today, and new Xbox-published games within a year of their launch (excludes Call of Duty titles).

    Cloud gaming is also expanding in Premium. Subscribers now enjoy unlimited cloud gaming, including select games you own, and newly added in-game benefits in some of the biggest games like League of Legends, Call of Duty: Warzone, and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege X, instantly unlocking cosmetics, characters, and more to enhance your gameplay.

    Premium also brings new value through Rewards with Xbox. Premium subscribers can also get up to $50 per year (50k points globally) in the Store just by playing games, earning 2x points on purchases of games and add-ons, plus 5% back in points on select Game Pass library titles and add-ons.

    Game Pass Premium Breakdown Infographic

    Xbox Game Pass Essential: A Great Way to Get Started

    Essential is for players who want the essence of everything Xbox. With access to games across console, PC, and cloud, Essential makes it easy to jump in and start playing, whether you’re diving into solo adventures or teaming up with friends.

    Our revamped Essential plan now includes unlimited cloud gaming, online multiplayer, in-game benefits, and Rewards with Xbox, plus a curated catalog of 50+ games playable on both console and PC.

    The Essential library is now fully playable on PC, featuring standout titles like Hades, Cities: Skylines – Remastered, Stardew Valley, and Warhammer 40,000: Darktide. You also get unlimited cloud gaming, allowing you to play games, including select games you own, on the devices you choose — giving you more freedom to play your way.

    Subscribers also get access to in-game benefits in some of the biggest games like League of Legends, Call of Duty: Warzone, and Overwatch 2.

    And with our Rewards with Xbox program, Essential members can earn up to $25 per year (25k points globally) in the Store just by playing. You’ll also get  points on purchases of games and add-ons.

    Game Pass Essential Breakdown Infographic

    Getting Started with the New Xbox Game Pass Plans

    As we continue to evolve Xbox Game Pass, we’re focused on delivering more value, more benefits, and more great games across every plan. Whether you play on console, PC, cloud – or all three – there’s a Game Pass option designed to fit your playstyle.

    With the latest upgrades, Ultimate is now priced at $29.99/month, reflecting the expanded catalog, new partner benefits, and upgraded cloud gaming experience. Standard subscribers will be upgraded to Premium remaining at $14.99/month, offering exceptional value for players who want flexibility and access to new Xbox-published titles within a year of launch. Core subscribers will be upgraded to Essential remaining at $9.99/month, providing a curated library, online multiplayer, and cloud gaming for those who want to jump in and start playing.

    We regularly evaluate exchange rates and market conditions, so pricing may vary by region. For the most up-to-date information on plan features and pricing in your area, visit the plan picker on Xbox.com.

    To learn more about each plan and find the one that’s right for you, head to the Xbox Game Pass site and our Xbox social channels for more details.

    More Games Join Xbox Game Pass Today

    We continue to add more games to Xbox Game Pass. Check out the latest games available starting today below, along with in-game benefits available across each plan. As a reminder, game titles, features, and availability vary over time, by region, Game Pass plan, and platform. Learn more about supported regions here.

    Ultimate – Available Today

    • Hogwarts Legacy (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed II (PC)
    • Assassin’s Creed III Remastered (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag: Freedom Cry (PC)
    • Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood (PC)
    • Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed Liberation HD (PC)
    • Assassin’s Creed Revelations (PC)
    • Assassin’s Creed Rogue Remastered (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed Syndicate (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed The Ezio Collection (Cloud and Console)
    • Assassin’s Creed Unity (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Child of Light (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Far Cry 3 (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Far Cry Primal (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Hungry Shark World (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Monopoly Madness (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Monopoly 2024 (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • OddBallers (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Prince of Persia The Lost Crown (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Rabbids Invasion: The Interactive TV Show (Cloud and Console)
    • Rabbids: Party of Legends (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Rayman Legends (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Risk Urban Assault (Cloud and Console)
    • Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Skull and Bones (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • South Park: The Stick of Truth (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Starlink: Battle for Atlas (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Steep (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • The Crew 2 (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • The Settlers: New Allies (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Tom Clancy’s The Division (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Trackmania Turbo (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Transference (Cloud and Console)
    • Trials Fusion (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Trials of the Blood Dragon (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Trials Rising (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Uno (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Valiant Hearts: The Great War (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Watch_Dogs (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Wheel of Fortune (Cloud and Console)
    • Zombi (Cloud, PC, and Console)

    Premium – Available Today (also in Ultimate)

    • 9 Kings (Game Preview) (PC)
    • Abiotic Factor (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • Against the Storm (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Age of Empires: Definitive Edition (PC)
    • Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition (PC)
    • Age of Mythology: Retold (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • Ara: History Untold (PC)
    • Arx Fatalis (PC)
    • Back to the Dawn (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Battletech (PC)
    • Blacksmith Master (Game Preview) (PC)
    • Cataclismo (PC)
    • Cities: Skylines II (PC)
    • Crime Scene Cleaner (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • Diablo (PC)
    • Diablo IV (PC and Console)
    • An Elder Scrolls Legends: Battlespire (PC)
    • The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard (PC)
    • Fallout (PC)
    • Fallout 2 (PC)
    • Fallout: Tactics (PC)
    • Football Manager 2024 (PC)
    • Frostpunk 2 (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • Halo: Spartan Strike (PC)
    • Hogwarts Legacy (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Manor Lords (Game Preview) (PC)
    • Minami Lane (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Minecraft: Java Edition (PC)
    • Mullet Madjack (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • My Friendly Neighborhood (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • One Lonely Outpost (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Quake 4 (PC)
    • Quake III Arena (PC)
    • Return to Castle Wolfenstein (PC)
    • Rise of Nations: Extended Edition (PC)
    • Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • Sworn (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S)
    • Terra Invicta (Game Preview) (PC)
    • Volcano Princess (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Warcraft I: Remastered (PC)
    • Warcraft II: Remastered (PC)
    • Warcraft III: Reforged (PC)
    • Wolfenstein 3D (PC)

    Essential – Available Today (also in Ultimate and Premium)

    • Cities: Skylines Remastered (Cloud and Xbox Series X|S)
    • Disney Dreamlight Valley (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Hades (Cloud, PC, and Console)
    • Warhammer 40,000 Darktide (Cloud, PC, and Console)

    More Rewards with Game Pass

    Game Pass Rewards Breakdown Infographic

    Editor’s Note (October 1): We’ve clarified the pricing information for Ubisoft titles.

    Joe Skrebels, Xbox Wire Editor-in-Chief

    Source link

  • 8 Of The Most Important Critical Thinking Skills – TeachThought

    Critical thinking is the ongoing application of unbiased analysis in pursuit of objective truth.

    Although its name implies criticism, critical thinking is actually closer to ‘truth judgment‘ based on withholding judgments while evaluating existing and emerging data to form more accurate conclusions. Critical thinking is an ongoing process emphasizing the fluid and continued interpretation of information rather than the formation of static beliefs and opinions.

    Research about cognitively demanding skills provides formal academic content that we can extend to less formal settings, including K-12 classrooms.

    This study, for example, explores the pivotal role of critical thinking in enhancing decision-making across various domains, including health, finance, and interpersonal relationships. The study highlights the significance of rigorous essential assessments of thinking, which can predict successful outcomes in complex scenarios.

    Of course, this underscores the importance of integrating critical thinking development and measurement into educational frameworks to foster higher-level cognitive abilities impact real-world problem-solving and decision-making.

    Which critical thinking skills are the most important?

    Deciding which critical thinking skills are ‘most important’ isn’t simple because prioritizing them in any kind of order is less important than knowing what they are and when and how to use them.

    However, to begin a process like that, it can be helpful to identify a small sample of the larger set of thinking processes and skills that constitute the skill of critical thinking.

    Let’s take a look at eight of the more important, essential critical thinking skills everyone–students, teachers, and laypersons–should know.

    8 Critical Thinking Skills Everyone Should Know

    Essential Critical Thinking Skills

    8 Essential Critical Thinking Skills

    Analyze: Break a whole into parts to examine

    Example: A teacher asks students to break down a story into its basic components: characters, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution. This helps students understand how each part contributes to the overall narrative.

    Evaluate: Assess the value or quality

    Example: A teacher prompts students to evaluate the effectiveness of two persuasive essays. Students assess which essay presents stronger arguments and why, considering factors like evidence, tone, and logic.

    Interpret” Explain the meaning or significance

    Example: After reading a poem, the teacher asks students to interpret the symbolism of a recurring image, such as a river, discussing what it might represent in the poem’s context.

    Synthesize” Combine to form a coherent whole

    Example: A teacher asks students to write an essay combining information from multiple sources about the causes of the American Revolution, encouraging them to create a cohesive argument that integrates diverse perspectives.

    Infer: Draw conclusions based on evidence

    Example: A teacher presents students with a scenario in a science experiment and asks them to infer what might happen if one variable is changed, based on the data they’ve already gathered.

    Question

    Formal or informal inquiries to understand

    Example: During a history lesson, the teacher encourages students to ask questions about the motivations of historical figures, prompting deeper understanding and critical discussions about historical events.

    Reflect 

    Recall and interpret experiences or ideas

    Example: After completing a group project, a teacher asks students to reflect on what worked well and what could have been improved, helping them gain insights into their collaborative process and learning experience.

    Judge: Form an opinion or conclusion

    Example: A teacher presents students with a scenario where two solutions are proposed to solve a community issue, such as building a new park or a community center. The teacher asks students to use their judgment to determine which solution would best meet the community’s needs, considering cost, accessibility, and potential benefits.

    8 Of The Most Important Critical Thinking Skills

    Citations

    Butler, H. A. (2024). Enhancing critical thinking skills through decision-based learning. J. Intell., 12(2), Article 16. https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence12020016

    Terrell Heick

    Source link

  • How I Eliminated (Almost) All Grading Problems In My Classroom

    How I Eliminated (Almost) All Grading Problems In My Classroom

    by Terry Heick

    Grading problems are one of the most urgent bugaboos of good teaching.

    Grading can take an extraordinary amount of time. It can also demoralize students, get them in trouble at home, or keep them from getting into a certain college.

    It can demoralize teachers, too. If half the class is failing, any teacher worth their salt will take a long, hard look at themselves and their craft.

    So over the years as a teacher, I cobbled together a kind of system that was, most crucially, student-centered. It was student-centered in the sense that it was designed for them to promote understanding, grow confidence, take ownership, and protect themselves from themselves when they needed it.

    Some of this approach was covered in Why Did That Student Fail? A Diagnostic Approach To Teaching. See below for the system–really, just a few rules I created that, while not perfect, went a long way towards eliminating the grading problems in my classroom.

    Which meant students weren’t paralyzed with fear when I asked them to complete increasingly complex tasks they were worried were beyond their reach. It also meant that parents weren’t breathing down my neck ‘about that C-‘ they saw on Infinite Campus, and if both students and parents are happy, the teacher can be happy, too.

    How I Eliminated (Almost) All Grading Problems In My Classroom

    1. I chose what to grade carefully.

    When I first started teaching, I thought in terms of ‘assignments’ and ‘tests.’ Quizzes were also a thing.

    But eventually I started thinking instead in terms of ‘practice’ and ‘measurement.’ All assessment should be formative, and the idea of ‘summative assessment’ makes as much sense as ‘one last teeth cleaning.’

    The big idea is what I often call a ‘climate of assessment,’ where snapshots of  student understanding and progress are taken in organic, seamless, and non-threatening ways. Assessment is ubiquitous and always-on.

    A ‘measurement’ is only one kind of assessment, and even the word implies ‘checking in on your growth’ in the same way you measure a child’s vertical growth (height) by marking the threshold in the kitchen. This type of assessment provides both the student and teacher a marker–data, if you insist–of where the student ‘is’ at that moment with the clear understanding that another such measurement will be taken soon, and dozens and dozens of opportunities to practice in-between.

    Be very careful with what you grade, because it takes time and mental energy–both finite resources crucial to the success of any teacher. If you don’t have a plan for the data before you give the assessment, don’t give it, and certainly don’t call it a quiz or a test.

    2. I designed work to be ‘published’

    I tried to make student products–writing, graphic organizers, podcasts, videos, projects, and more–at the very least visible to the parents of students. Ideally, this work would also be published to peers for feedback and collaboration, and then to the public at large to provide some authentic function in a community the student cares about.

    By making student work public (insofar as it promoted student learning while protecting any privacy concerns), the assessment is done in large part by the people the work is intended for. It’s authentic, which makes the feedback loop quicker and more diverse than one teacher could ever hope to make it.

    What this system loses in expert feedback that teacher might be able to give (though nothing says it can’t both be made public and benefit from teacher feedback), it makes up for in giving students substantive reasons to do their best work, correct themselves, and create higher stands for quality than your rubric outlined.

    3. I made a rule: No Fs and no zeroes. A, B, C, or ‘Incomplete’

    First, I created a kind of no-zero policy. Easier said than done depending on who you are and what you teach and what the school ‘policy’ is and so on. The idea here, though, is to keep zeroes from mathematically ruining a student’s ‘final grade.’

    I try to explain to students that a grade should reflect understanding, not their ability to successfully navigate the rules and bits of gamification stuffed into most courses and classrooms. If a student receives a D letter grade, it should be because they have demonstrated an almost universal inability to master any content, not because they got As and Bs on most work they cared about but Cs or lower on the work they didn’t, and with a handful of zeroes thrown in for work they didn’t complete ended up with a D or an F.

    Another factor at work here is marking work with an A, B, C, or ‘Incomplete.’ Put another way, if the student didn’t at least achieve the average mark of C, which should reflect average understanding of a given standard or topic, I would mark it ‘Incomplete,’ give them clear feedback on how it could be improved, and then require them to do so.

    4. I went over missing assignments frequently.

    Simple enough. I had a twitter feed of all ‘measurements’ (work they knew that counted towards their grade), so they didn’t have to ask ‘what they were missing’ (though they did anyway). I also wrote it on the board (I had a huge whiteboard that stretched across the front of the classroom).

    5. I created alternative assessments.

    Early on in teaching, I noticed students saying, in different ways, that they ‘got it but don’t all the way get it.’ Or that they believed that they did, in fact, ‘get it’ but not the way the assessment required (reminder: English Lit/ELA is a highly conceptual content area aside of the skills of literacy itself).

    So I’d create an alternative assessment to check and see. Was the assessment getting in the way–obscuring more than it revealed? Why beat my head against the wall explaining the logistics of an assignment or intricacies of a question when they assignment and the question weren’t at all the points? These were just ‘things’ I used the way a carpenter uses tools.

    Sometimes it’s easier to just grab a different tool.

    I’d also ask students to create their own assessments at times. Show me you understand. It didn’t always work the way you’d expect, but I got some of the most insightful and creative expression I’ve ever seen from students using this approach. As with most things, it just depended on the student.

    6. I taught through micro-assignments.

    Exit slips were one of the the greatest things that ever happened to my teaching. I rarely used them as ‘exit tickets’ to be able to leave the classroom, but I did use them almost daily. Why?

    They gave me a constant stream of data for said ‘climate of assessment,’ and it was daily and fresh and disarming to students because they knew it was quick and if they failed, another one would be coming soon.

    It was a ‘student-centered’ practice because it protected them. They had so many opportunities and, math-wise, so many scores that unless they failed everything every day, they wouldn’t ‘fail’ at all. And if they were,

    I could approach a single standard or topic from a variety of angles and complexities and Bloom’s levels and so on, which often showed that the student that ‘didn’t get it’ last week more likely just ‘didn’t get’ my question.

    In other words, they hadn’t failed my assessment; my assessment had failed them because it had failed to uncover what they, in fact, knew.

    7. I used diagnostic teaching 

    You can read more about diagnostic teaching but the general idea is that I had a clear sequence I used that I communicated very clearly to the students and their families. It usually took the first month or two for everyone to become comfortable with it all, but once I did, grading problems were *almost* completely eliminated. Problems still surfaced but with a system in place, it was much easier to identify exactly what went wrong and why and communicate it all to the stakeholders involved in helping support children.

    Terrell Heick

    Source link

  • 7 Ideas For Learning Through Humility

    Learn Through Humility Teach For Knowledge

    by Terry Heick

    Humility is an interesting starting point for learning.

    In an era of media that is digital, social, chopped up, and endlessly recirculated, the challenge is no longer access but the quality of access—and the reflex to then judge uncertainty and “truth.”

    Discernment.

    On ‘Knowing’

    There is a tempting and warped sense of “knowing” that can lead to a loss of reverence and even entitlement to “know things.” If nothing else, modern technology access (in much of the world) has replaced subtlety with spectacle, and process with access.

    A mind that is properly observant is also properly humble. In A Native Hill, Wendell Berry points to humility and limits. Standing in the face of all that is unknown can either be overwhelming—or illuminating. How would it change the learning process to start with a tone of humility?

    Humility is the core of critical thinking. It says, ‘I don’t know enough to have an informed opinion’ or ‘Let’s learn to reduce uncertainty.’

    To be self-aware in your own knowledge, and the limits of that knowledge? To clarify what can be known, and what cannot? To be able to match your understanding with an authentic need to know—work that naturally strengthens critical thinking and sustained inquiry.

    What This Looks Like In a Classroom

    1. Analyze the limits of knowledge in plain terms (a simple introduction to epistemology).
    2. Evaluate knowledge in degrees (e.g., certain, probable, possible, unlikely).
    3. Concept-map what is currently understood about a specific topic and compare it to unanswered questions.
    4. Document how knowledge changes over time (personal learning logs and historical snapshots).
    5. Show how each student’s perspective shapes their relationship to what’s being learned.
    6. Contextualize knowledge—place, circumstance, chronology, stakeholders.
    7. Demonstrate authentic utility: where and how this knowledge is used outside school.
    8. Show patience for learning as a process and emphasize that process alongside objectives.
    9. Clearly value informed uncertainty over the confidence of quick conclusions.
    10. Reward ongoing questions and follow-up investigations more than “finished” answers.
    11. Create a unit on “what we thought we knew then” versus what hindsight shows we missed.
    12. Analyze causes and effects of “not knowing” in science, history, civic life, or daily decisions.
    13. Highlight the fluid, evolving nature of knowledge.
    14. Differentiate vagueness/ambiguity (lack of clarity) from uncertainty/humility (awareness of limits).
    15. Identify the best scale for applying specific knowledge or skills (individual, local, systemic).

    Research Note

    Research shows that people who practice intellectual humility—being willing to admit what they don’t know—are more open to learning and less likely to cling to false certainty.
    Source: Leary, M. R., Diebels, K. J., Davisson, E. K., et al. (2017). Cognitive and interpersonal features of intellectual humility. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 43(6), 793–813.

    Literary Touchstone

    Berry, W. (1969). “A Native Hill,” in The Long-Legged House. New York: Harcourt.

    This idea may seem abstract and even out of place in increasingly “research-based” and “data-driven” systems of learning. But that is part of its value: it helps students see knowledge not as fixed, but as a living process they can join with care, evidence, and humility.

    Teaching For Knowledge, Learning Through Humility

    wendell berry quotewendell berry quote

    Terrell Heick

    Source link

  • Hue takes on cheaper rivals with the entry-level Essential smart bulb lineup

    Hue just did its biggest product launch ever as part of IFA 2025 and a key product is the new entry-level Essential smart bulb lineup. Though still not as cheap as some products you can find on Amazon, it’s designed to take on budget rivals like Govee and Aqara with bulbs starting under $20.

    The new range includes A19 bulbs, GU10 spots and strip lights with and without color options. Effectively, you’re not losing a lot compared to the regular color/white bulbs. They still run on the same platform and offer Bluetooth out of the box along with extra features enabled when using a bridge or Matter-over-Thread.

    To highlight the differences, Hue released a feature comparison sheet. You can’t dim the Essential bulbs as much, they offer a reduced range of whites (2200 to 6500K compared to 1000 to 20000K) and color quality is less accurate. The latter is arguably the most important feature for folks who use smart bulbs to sync with their TVs or require precise matching between bulbs.

    You’ll be able to buy the Hue Essential bulbs starting this month, with the new A19 bulbs priced at $25 individually or $60 in a four-pack. The Essential strip light arrives in December for $60 in a 5 meter length (16 feet) or $100 for 10 meters (33 feet). You can also grab the A19 bulb in a starter kit in the US starting at $80 for the Essential E27 2 pieces and Hue Bridge V2, up to $100 for the Essential E27 4 pieces and Hue Bridge V2.

    Another primary piece of Hue’s smart lighting puzzle is the Hue Bridge Pro. It has a more serious black look compared to the white models of the past to signify the extra power. That includes five times the processing performance and 15 times the memory of the Hue Bridge V2 that came out 10 years ago.

    Hue takes on cheaper rivals with the entry-level Essential smart bulb lineup

    Along with the extra power, the Huge Bridge Pro debuts a new feature called Hue Motion Aware. That transforms Hue Bulbs (including 95 percent of existing models) into motion sensors able to detect movement and trigger actions or security alerts.

    Hue says you can easily upgrade a current Hue Bridge “with just a few clicks,” and Signify will release support for combining multiple Bridges into a single Bridge Pro by year’s end. The Bridge pro arrives in North America in September 2025 for $90.

    Hue OmniGlow strip lighting

    Hue OmniGlow strip lighting

    (JuanCruzDuranPhotographer for Hue)

    Hue also refreshed its strip lighting with several new products including the flagship OmniGlow (starting at $140 for a 3 meter length and arriving in November), the first Hue strip with no visible hotspots via CSP tech to accent your decor with a seamless glow. It also introduced the Flux lineup with indoor, outdoor, ultra-bright and neon options (in sizes up to 10m) starting at $70 for 3 meters, for applications ranging from indoor accents to outdoor facades. Also new are the Festavia string lights that can be used for holiday decor or year round in a permanent model for rooflines, patios and balconies. Those start at $160 for 7m lengths or $120 for 9 meters for the permanent model with availability in September.

    Signify also introduced a new A19 bulb that can replicate the entire spectrum of daylight while offering 40 percent great efficiency compared to its predecessor. Finally, the company announced a Sonos partnership that will allow you to operates Philips Hue lights using voice controls, and eventually “integrate light and sound in new intuitive ways.”

    Steve Dent

    Source link

  • 50 Critical Thinking Strategies For Learning

    critical thinking strategies

    A critical thinking strategy is simply a ‘way’ to encourage or facilitate the cognitive act of thinking critically.

    Critical thinking is the ongoing application of unbiased, accurate, and ‘good-faith’ analysis, interpretation, contextualizing, and synthesizing multiple data sources and cognitive perspectives in pursuit of understanding.

    What are the 7 critical thinking strategies? Someone emailed me recently asking that question and I immediately wondered how many more than seven there were.

    See also Types of Questions

    1. Analyze

    One of the more basic critical thinking strategies is ‘analysis’: Identify the parts and see the relationships between those parts and how they contribute to the whole.

    2. Interpret

    Explain the significance or meaning of a ‘thing’ in a specific content or to a specific audience. Similar to ‘translate’ but (generally) with more cognitive demand.

    3. Infer

    Draw a reasonable conclusion based on the best available data. This critical thinking strategy is useful almost anywhere–from reading to playing a game to solving a problem in the real-world.

    4. Use the Heick Domains Of Cognition Taxonomy

    In fact, many of these strategies are built-in to the taxonomy.

    5. Separate cause and effect

    And concept map it–and maybe even consider prior causes to the most immediate causes and predict future possible effects. For example, if you’re considering an effect (e.g., pollution), you might see one cause being a new industrial factory built near a river or runoff. But you might also consider what enabled or ’caused’ that factory to be built–a zoning change or tax break given by the local government, for example.

    6. Prioritize

    Prioritizing is an executive neurological function that demands knowledge to then apply critical thinking to or on.

    7. Deconstruct

    And narrate or annotate the deconstruction. Deconstruct a skyscraper or a cultural movement or school or app. This is somewhere between analysis and reverse engineering.

    8. Reverse Engineer

    9. Write

    Writing (well) is one of the most cognitively demanding things students commonly do. It’s also a wonderful strategy to promote critical thinking–a kind of vehicle to help it develop. Certainly one can write without thinking critically or think critically without writing but when they work together–in the form of a thinking journal, for example–the effects can be compelling.

    10. Reflect

    Observe and reflect is a basic pattern for thought itself. The nature of the reflection, of course, determines if it’s actually a strategy for critical thinking but it’s certainly a worthy addition to this list.

    11. Separate the subjective from the objective

    And fact from opinion.

    12. Be vigilant in distinguishing beliefs and facts or truths

    To be able to think critically requires

    Dewey described critical thinking as ‘reflective thinking’ (see #10)–the “active, persistent and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it, and the further conclusions to which it tends.” (Dewey 1910: 6; 1933: 9) It’s clear that to be able to consistently do this requires one to separate beliefs (which are personal and fluid) and knowledge (which is more universal and less fluid–though the depth and nature of knowledge and understanding can change over time).

    13. Link and Connect

    This is somewhere between analysis and concept mapping, but seeing the relationship between things–ideas, trends, opportunities, problems–is not only useful as a strategy but is how the brain learns: by making connections.

    14. Use formal and/or informal inquiry

    15. Use the 5 Ws

    A flexible strategy for inquiry and thought, the 5 Ws provides a kind of starting point for ongoing thought: who, what, where, why, and when.

    16. Use spiral thinking

    17. Concept map

    18. Illustrate what’s known, currently unknown, and unknowable

    This is part analysis, part epistemology.

    19. Use Bloom’s Taxonomy

    20. Apply informed skepticism

    21. Use question and statement stems

    22. Explore the history of an idea, stance, social norm, etc.

    Especially change over time.

    23. Debate

    24. Analyze from multiple perspectives

    25. Transfer

    26. Patience

    27. Adopt the right mindset

    28. Humility

    29. Judge

    30. Study relationships

    Between beliefs, observations, and facts, for example.

    31. See ‘truth’ in degrees/non-binary

    32. Improve something

    33. Curiosity

    Similar to inquiry but more a cause of inquiry than a strategy itself.

    34. Creativity

    35. Explore the nature of thinking and belief

    This sets the stage for long-term critical thinking.

    36. Separate people from their ideas

    This isn’t necessarily a pure critical thinking strategy but it can reduce bias and encourage rationality and objective analysis.

    37. Making some abstract concrete or something concrete abstract

    38. Challenge something

    39. Predict and defend

    40. Form a question, then improve that question before gathering information

    41. Revise a question after information/observation

    42. Critique something

    43. Observe something

    While not actually ‘critical thinking,’ critical thinking rarely happens without it. It’s one (of many) fuels for ‘higher-order’ thinking.

    44. Revise something

    45. Transfer a lesson or philosophical stance from one situation to another

    A lesson from nature to the design of a tool or solution to a problem.

    46. Compare and contrast two or more things

    47. Test the validity of a model

    Or even create a basic mathematical model for predicting something–stocks, real-world probabilities, etc.

    48. Create an analogy

    This helps emphasize relationships, rules, and effects.

    49. Adapt something for something new

    A new function or audience or application, for example.

    50. Identify underlying assumptions

    51. Analyze the role of social norms on ‘truth’

    Or even the nature of ‘truth’ itself.

    52. Narrate a sequence

    53. Identify first truths or principles

    A first principle is a proposition that can’t be deduced from another proposition (or assumption) and thus can be thought of as ‘first’ or most fundamental.

    54. Keep a thinking journal

    55. Identify and explain a pattern

    56. Study the relationship between text and subtext

    Or explicit and implicit ideas.

    57. Elegantly emphasize the nuance of something

    58. Identify cognitive biases and blind spots

    59. Use model-based learning

    I’ll provide a model for this soon but I’ve been using it with students for years.

    60. Take and defend a position

    Similar to debate but it can be one-sided, in writing, on a podcast, or even concept-mapped. It’s a simple strategy: specify a ‘stance’ and defend it with the best possible data and unbiased thinking

    60 Critical Thinking Strategies For Learning

    Terrell Heick

    Source link

  • Alternatives To Bloom’s Taxonomy

    by TeachThought Staff

    At the end of the day, teaching is about learning and learning is about understanding.

    And as technology evolves to empower more diverse and flexible assessments forms, constantly improving our sense of what understanding looks like–during mobile learning, during project-based learning, and in a flipped classroom–can not only improve learning outcomes but just might be the secret to providing personalized learning for every learner.

    This content begs the question: why does one need alternatives to the established and entrenched Bloom’s? Because Bloom’s isn’t meant to be the alpha and the omega of framing instruction, learning, and assessment. Benjamin Bloom’s taxonomy does a brilliant job of offering ‘verbs’ in categories that impose a helpful cognitive framework for planning learning experiences, but it neglects important ideas, such as self-knowledge that UbD places at the pinnacle of understanding, or the idea of moving from incompetence to competence that the SOLO taxonomy offers.

    So with apologies to Bloom (whose work we love), we have gathered six alternatives to his legendary, world-beating taxonomy, from the TeachThought Learning Taxonomy, to work from Marzano to Fink, to Understanding by Design.

    6 Alternatives To Bloom’s Taxonomy For Teachers

    1. The TeachThought Learning Taxonomy

    alternatives to Bloom's taxonomy

    The TeachThought Learning Taxonomy orders isolated tasks that range from less to more complexity into six domains:

    1. The Parts (i.e., explain or describe a concept in simple terms)
    2. The Whole (i.e., explain a concept in micro-detail and macro-context)
    3. The Interdependence (i.e., explain how a concept relates to similar and non-similar concepts)
    4. The Function (i.e., apply a concept in unfamiliar situations)
    5. The Abstraction (i.e., demonstrate a concept’s nuance with artfulness or insight)
    6. The Self (i.e., self-direct future learning about the concept)

    2. UbD’s Six Facets Of Understanding

    facets of understandingfacets of understanding

    Created by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe to work with and through their Understanding by Design model, the 6 Facets of Understanding is a non-hierarchical framework designed to help teachers evaluate and assess student understanding.

    3. Marzano & Kendall/Taxonomy

    Marzano and Kendall's taxonomyMarzano and Kendall's taxonomy
    image attribution: Matt Drewette-Card

    Marzano’s and Kendall’s taxonomy arranges a score of processes into six categories, from lowest to highest level of difficulty. Accompanying each category are verbs and phrases that may prove useful for teachers in designing assessments and evaluating mastery:

    1. Retrieval (i.e., executing, recalling, recognizing)
    2. Comprehension (i.e., integrating and symbolizing)
    3. Analysis (i.e., matching, classifying, analyzing, generalizing, specifying)
    4. Knowledge Utilization (i.e., decision-making, problem-solving, experimenting, investigating)
    5. Metacognition (i.e., monitoring accuracy, monitoring clarity, process monitoring, specifying goals, examining motivation)
    6. Self System Thinking (i.e. examining emotions, examining efficiency, examining importance)

    4. The Taxonomy Of Significant Learning

    taxonomy of significant learningtaxonomy of significant learning

    Dr. Dee Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning describes attributes of ‘significant’ learning as opposed to ‘less significant’ learning (the former having greater endurance, resonance, and potential to improve student learning, and the latter being more classroom-centered and less relevant or applicable outside of the classroom). The center of the taxonomy is the ‘sweet spot’ of learning design.

    5. Webb’s Depth Of Knowledge Framework

    DOK snapshotDOK snapshot
    image attribution: Edmentum

    Webb’s Depth of Knowledge framework is designed to promote rigor, and organizes specific strategies and higher order thinking skills into four domains, moving from lower to higher complexity:

    1. Recall
    2. Skill/Concept
    3. Strategic Thinking
    4. Extended Thinking

    6. The SOLO Taxonomy

    SOLO taxonomySOLO taxonomy
    image attribution: Structural Learning

    SOLO stands for the “structure of observed learning outcomes.” Created by John Biggs and Kevin Collis, the SOLO taxonomy is made up of five levels of understanding, as illustrated above. According to Biggs, “At first, we pick up only one or few aspects of the task (unistructural), then several aspects that are unrelated (multi-structural), then we learn how to integrate them into a whole (relational), and finally, we are able to generalize that whole to as yet untaught applications (extended abstract).”

    Terrell Heick

    Source link

  • How I Eliminated (Almost) All Grading Problems In My Classroom

    How I Eliminated (Almost) All Grading Problems In My Classroom

    How I Eliminated (Almost) All Grading Problems In My Classroom

    by Terry Heick

    Grading problems are one of the most urgent bugaboos of good teaching.

    Grading can take an extraordinary amount of time. It can also demoralize students, get them in trouble at home, or keep them from getting into a certain college.

    It can demoralize teachers, too. If half the class is failing, any teacher worth their salt will take a long, hard look at themselves and their craft.

    So over the years as a teacher, I cobbled together a kind of system that was, most crucially, student-centered. It was student-centered in the sense that it was designed for them to promote understanding, grow confidence, take ownership, and protect themselves from themselves when they needed it.

    Some of this approach was covered in Why Did That Student Fail? A Diagnostic Approach To Teaching. See below for the system–really, just a few rules I created that, while not perfect, went a long way towards eliminating the grading problems in my classroom.

    Which meant students weren’t paralyzed with fear when I asked them to complete increasingly complex tasks they were worried were beyond their reach. It also meant that parents weren’t breathing down my neck ‘about that C-‘ they saw on Infinite Campus, and if both students and parents are happy, the teacher can be happy, too.

    How I Eliminated (Almost) All Grading Problems In My Classroom

    1. I chose what to grade carefully.

    When I first started teaching, I thought in terms of ‘assignments’ and ‘tests.’ Quizzes were also a thing.

    But eventually I started thinking instead in terms of ‘practice’ and ‘measurement.’ All assessment should be formative, and the idea of ‘summative assessment’ makes as much sense as ‘one last teeth cleaning.’

    The big idea is what I often call a ‘climate of assessment,’ where snapshots of  student understanding and progress are taken in organic, seamless, and non-threatening ways. Assessment is ubiquitous and always-on.

    A ‘measurement’ is only one kind of assessment, and even the word implies ‘checking in on your growth’ in the same way you measure a child’s vertical growth (height) by marking the threshold in the kitchen. This type of assessment provides both the student and teacher a marker–data, if you insist–of where the student ‘is’ at that moment with the clear understanding that another such measurement will be taken soon, and dozens and dozens of opportunities to practice in-between.

    Be very careful with what you grade, because it takes time and mental energy–both finite resources crucial to the success of any teacher. If you don’t have a plan for the data before you give the assessment, don’t give it, and certainly don’t call it a quiz or a test.

    2. I designed work to be ‘published’

    I tried to make student products–writing, graphic organizers, podcasts, videos, projects, and more–at the very least visible to the parents of students. Ideally, this work would also be published to peers for feedback and collaboration, and then to the public at large to provide some authentic function in a community the student cares about.

    By making student work public (insofar as it promoted student learning while protecting any privacy concerns), the assessment is done in large part by the people the work is intended for. It’s authentic, which makes the feedback loop quicker and more diverse than one teacher could ever hope to make it.

    What this system loses in expert feedback that teacher might be able to give (though nothing says it can’t both be made public and benefit from teacher feedback), it makes up for in giving students substantive reasons to do their best work, correct themselves, and create higher stands for quality than your rubric outlined.

    3. I made a rule: No Fs and no zeroes. A, B, C, or ‘Incomplete’

    First, I created a kind of no-zero policy. Easier said than done depending on who you are and what you teach and what the school ‘policy’ is and so on. The idea here, though, is to keep zeroes from mathematically ruining a student’s ‘final grade.’

    I try to explain to students that a grade should reflect understanding, not their ability to successfully navigate the rules and bits of gamification stuffed into most courses and classrooms. If a student receives a D letter grade, it should be because they have demonstrated an almost universal inability to master any content, not because they got As and Bs on most work they cared about but Cs or lower on the work they didn’t, and with a handful of zeroes thrown in for work they didn’t complete ended up with a D or an F.

    Another factor at work here is marking work with an A, B, C, or ‘Incomplete.’ Put another way, if the student didn’t at least achieve the average mark of C, which should reflect average understanding of a given standard or topic, I would mark it ‘Incomplete,’ give them clear feedback on how it could be improved, and then require them to do so.

    4. I went over missing assignments frequently.

    Simple enough. I had a twitter feed of all ‘measurements’ (work they knew that counted towards their grade), so they didn’t have to ask ‘what they were missing’ (though they did anyway). I also wrote it on the board (I had a huge whiteboard that stretched across the front of the classroom).

    5. I created alternative assessments.

    Early on in teaching, I noticed students saying, in different ways, that they ‘got it but don’t all the way get it.’ Or that they believed that they did, in fact, ‘get it’ but not the way the assessment required (reminder: English Lit/ELA is a highly conceptual content area aside of the skills of literacy itself).

    So I’d create an alternative assessment to check and see. Was the assessment getting in the way–obscuring more than it revealed? Why beat my head against the wall explaining the logistics of an assignment or intricacies of a question when they assignment and the question weren’t at all the points? These were just ‘things’ I used the way a carpenter uses tools.

    Sometimes it’s easier to just grab a different tool.

    I’d also ask students to create their own assessments at times. Show me you understand. It didn’t always work the way you’d expect, but I got some of the most insightful and creative expression I’ve ever seen from students using this approach. As with most things, it just depended on the student.

    6. I taught through micro-assignments.

    Exit slips were one of the the greatest things that ever happened to my teaching. I rarely used them as ‘exit tickets’ to be able to leave the classroom, but I did use them almost daily. Why?

    They gave me a constant stream of data for said ‘climate of assessment,’ and it was daily and fresh and disarming to students because they knew it was quick and if they failed, another one would be coming soon.

    It was a ‘student-centered’ practice because it protected them. They had so many opportunities and, math-wise, so many scores that unless they failed everything every day, they wouldn’t ‘fail’ at all. And if they were,

    I could approach a single standard or topic from a variety of angles and complexities and Bloom’s levels and so on, which often showed that the student that ‘didn’t get it’ last week more likely just ‘didn’t get’ my question.

    In other words, they hadn’t failed my assessment; my assessment had failed them because it had failed to uncover what they, in fact, knew.

    7. I used diagnostic teaching 

    You can read more about diagnostic teaching but the general idea is that I had a clear sequence I used that I communicated very clearly to the students and their families. It usually took the first month or two for everyone to become comfortable with it all, but once I did, grading problems were *almost* completely eliminated. Problems still surfaced but with a system in place, it was much easier to identify exactly what went wrong and why and communicate it all to the stakeholders involved in helping support children.

    Terrell Heick

    Source link

  • 8 Of The Most Important Critical Thinking Skills

    8 Of The Most Important Critical Thinking Skills

    Critical thinking is the ongoing application of unbiased analysis in pursuit of objective truth.

    Although its name implies criticism, critical thinking is actually closer to ‘truth judgment‘ based on withholding judgments while evaluating existing and emerging data to form more accurate conclusions. Critical thinking is an ongoing process emphasizing the fluid and continued interpretation of information rather than the formation of static beliefs and opinions.

    Research about cognitively demanding skills provides formal academic content that we can extend to less formal settings, including K-12 classrooms.

    This study, for example, explores the pivotal role of critical thinking in enhancing decision-making across various domains, including health, finance, and interpersonal relationships. The study highlights the significance of rigorous essential assessments of thinking, which can predict successful outcomes in complex scenarios.

    Of course, this underscores the importance of integrating critical thinking development and measurement into educational frameworks to foster higher-level cognitive abilities impact real-world problem-solving and decision-making.

    Which critical thinking skills are the most important?

    Deciding which critical thinking skills are ‘most important’ isn’t simple because prioritizing them in any kind of order is less important than knowing what they are and when and how to use them.

    However, to begin a process like that, it can be helpful to identify a small sample of the larger set of thinking processes and skills that constitute the skill of critical thinking.

    Let’s take a look at eight of the more important, essential critical thinking skills everyone–students, teachers, and laypersons–should know.

    8 Critical Thinking Skills Everyone Should Know

    Essential Critical Thinking Skills

    8 Essential Critical Thinking Skills

    Analyze: Break a whole into parts to examine

    Example: A teacher asks students to break down a story into its basic components: characters, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution. This helps students understand how each part contributes to the overall narrative.

    Evaluate: Assess the value or quality

    Example: A teacher prompts students to evaluate the effectiveness of two persuasive essays. Students assess which essay presents stronger arguments and why, considering factors like evidence, tone, and logic.

    Interpret” Explain the meaning or significance

    Example: After reading a poem, the teacher asks students to interpret the symbolism of a recurring image, such as a river, discussing what it might represent in the poem’s context.

    Synthesize” Combine to form a coherent whole

    Example: A teacher asks students to write an essay combining information from multiple sources about the causes of the American Revolution, encouraging them to create a cohesive argument that integrates diverse perspectives.

    Infer: Draw conclusions based on evidence

    Example: A teacher presents students with a scenario in a science experiment and asks them to infer what might happen if one variable is changed, based on the data they’ve already gathered.

    Question

    Formal or informal inquiries to understand

    Example: During a history lesson, the teacher encourages students to ask questions about the motivations of historical figures, prompting deeper understanding and critical discussions about historical events.

    Reflect 

    Recall and interpret experiences or ideas

    Example: After completing a group project, a teacher asks students to reflect on what worked well and what could have been improved, helping them gain insights into their collaborative process and learning experience.

    Judge: Form an opinion or conclusion

    Example: A teacher presents students with a scenario where two solutions are proposed to solve a community issue, such as building a new park or a community center. The teacher asks students to use their judgment to determine which solution would best meet the community’s needs, considering cost, accessibility, and potential benefits.

    8 Of The Most Important Critical Thinking Skills

    Citations

    Butler, H. A. (2024). Enhancing critical thinking skills through decision-based learning. J. Intell., 12(2), Article 16. https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence12020016

    Terrell Heick

    Source link

  • Chicago’s Essential Italian Ice Spots

    Chicago’s Essential Italian Ice Spots

    Italian ice is unquestionably an essential summertime Chicago dessert. The basic recipe for the iconic frozen treat is fairly agreed upon: A proper ice should contain sugar, frozen water, and whole fruits or juice. Italian ice comes in a rainbow of flavors but the most classic and widespread variety is lemon, sometimes also called frozen Italian lemonade. Though some makers blend pulp, seeds, or even fruit peels in their mixtures, others strain out the fruit and go for a creamier recipe.

    Here are some of the city’s coolest spots for Italian ice. Many are open seasonally, so check in before heading over during the colder months.

    Read More

    Naomi Waxman

    Source link

  • Strategies To Help Students Retain What You Taught Them

    Strategies To Help Students Retain What You Taught Them

    Strategies To Help Students Retain What You Taught Them

    by Terry Heick

    Reflection is a natural part of learning.

    We all think about new experiences–the camping on the car ride home, the mistakes made in a game, or the emotions felt while finishing a long-term project that’s taken months to complete.

    Below I’ve shared 15 strategies for students to reflect on their learning. Modeling the use of each up front can go a long way towards making sure you get the quality of work you’d like to see throughout the year–and students learn more in the process.

    15 Reflection Strategies To Help Students Retain What You Just Taught Them

    1. Pair-Share

    Pair-share is a classic learning strategy where students are paired, and then verbally ‘share’ something that will help them learn new content, deepen understanding, or review what they already know. It can also be used as a quick and dirty assessment tool, as the conversations generally reflect a level of understanding the teacher can use gauge mastery and plan further instruction.

    2. Sentence Stem-based responses

    Sentence stems are great because they’re like training wheels–or to mix a metaphor, tools to coach students into thinking and speaking in certain patterns. For example, you can implore students to ‘think critically,’ but if they don’t have even the basic phrasing of critical thinking (e.g., ‘This is important because…’), critical thinking will be beyond their reach.

    You can also see our sentence stems for critical thinking here for other examples (you don’t have to buy the materials to see the samples).

    3. Layered Text

    Layered text is something I’ve meant to write about for years and never have. A layered text is a digital document that is filled with hyperlinks that communicate, well, just about anything: Questions students have, opportunities for further inquiry, odd references and allusions that reflect the schema students use to make meaning, and so on. (Rap Genius does a version of this.)

    By adding ‘layers’ of meaning to a text through meaningful hyperlinking, students can reflect back on anything, from a pre-assessment journal entry that demonstrated their lack of understanding, to a kind of ‘marking up’ of what they learned when, and from where.

    4. Tweet

    140 characters forces students to reflect quick and to the point–great for brief bursts of reflection or hesitant writers who would struggle to write meaningful journal entries or essays. In fact, you can combine twitter with #6 for twitter exit slips.

    5. 3-2-1

    3-2-1 is a tried-and-true way to frame anything from a pair-share or journal entry (e.g., ask students to write 3 things they think they know, 2 things they know they don’t know, and one thing they’re certain of about a topic) pre-assessment to a post-assessment (e.g., list three ways your essay reflected mastery of skill X, two ways skill Y still needs improving, and one way you can make your argument stronger in the next five minutes) to a reflection of the post-assessment.

    Read more about using the 3-2-1 format for critical thinking.

    6. Exit Slips

    Whether you call them exit slips or exit tickets, asking students to briefly leave behind some residue of learning–a thought, a definition, a question–is a powerful teaching strategy. In fact, ‘exit-slip teaching’ literally drives how I use data in the classroom. Asking students to drop some bit of reflection of the learning process on a chair by the door on the way out is a no-brainer.

    Some examples?

    How did you respond emotionally to something you struggled with today? What did you find most surprising about _____? How did your understanding of _______ change today? What about _____ still confuses you or makes your curious?

    7. Write-Around

    I love write-arounds–easy ways for students to write asynchronously and collaboratively. And the writing fragments students use don’t have to be prose–certain key vocabulary and phrases can help students reflect, but most importantly in a write-around, help students learning from one another as each student is able to read other responses before creating theirs.

    8. Sketch

    Whether by sketch-notes or doodles, allowing students to draw what they think they know, how they believe their learning has changed, or some kind of metaphorical pathway towards deeper understanding is a great learning strategy for students that tend towards creative expression, and a non-threatening way for struggling students to at least write something down on paper you can use to gauge understand and plan your (their) next step.

    9. Podcast

    Through podcasting as a reflecting strategy, students will talk about their learning while recording. If you want to keep it ‘closed-circuit’ (not published), or actually push it to a public audience of some kind depends on the learning and students and privacy issues and so on.

    This can also be simply an audio file recorded and uploaded to a private YouTube channel that’s shared with teachers or parents.

    10. Brainstorming

    Brainstorming can be an effective reflection strategy because it disarms issues with other approaches. For hesitant writers, journaling may not work because the writing process could overwhelm the learning. Podcasting may not work for shy students, Pair-Share may not work well if students are paired effectively, and so on.

    Brainstorming is much simpler. Students could take an allotted time to write down everything they remember about a topic. Or, they could brainstorm questions they still have (things they’re confused or curious about). They could even brainstorm how what what they learned literally connects with what they already know by creating a concept map.

    11. Jigsawing

    Jigsawing is a grouping strategy where a task, concept, or something ‘larger’ is broken down into small puzzles pieces, and students in groups analyze the small puzzle piece, then share out to create the puzzle at large. Using this approach for reflection is seamless: Among other approaches, you can prompt students in groups to gather and share questions they have (you could group by readiness/ability, for example) in groups, and then choose one question that they weren’t able to answer among themselves with the whole class (anonymously–no one has to know who wrote the question).

    12. Prezi

    Think of a cross between a sketch, collage, and presentation, and you have a prezi. Engaging–though distracting and overwhelming if the reflection you need is minor–reflection tool that allows students to create an artifact of learning for their digital portfolios.

    13. Vlog

    This reflection strategy is close to ‘Podcasting’ and even has something in common with pair-sharing. By reflecting through vlog’ing, students simply talk about their learning to a camera.

    This approach would be successful for students that love talking to a camera, but less so for others (who, if they have to talk at all about their learning, may prefer podcasting–or simply recording audio files that are never published.

    14. Collage

    You could do a normal collage of learning reflections, but a multimedia collage is also possible–maybe a sketchnote with a voiceover recorded as a YouTube video to share as a quick presentation with the class (or absent students).

    15. Journaling

    The University of Missouri-St Louis offers 3 kinds of journals that demonstrate the different possibilities of the otherwise vanilla-sounding ‘journaling.’

    1. Personal Journal – Students will write freely about their experience. This is usually done weekly. These personal journals may be submitted periodically to the instructor, or kept as a reference to use at the end of the experience when putting together an academic essay reflecting their experience. (Hatcher 1996)

    2. Dialogue Journal – Students submit loose-leaf pages from a dialogue journal bi-weekly (or otherwise at appropriate intervals) for the instructor to read and comment on. While labor intensive for the instructor, this can provide continual feedback to students and prompt new questions for students to consider during the semester. (Goldsmith, 1995)

    3. Highlighted Journal – Before students submit the reflective journal, they reread personal entries and, using a highlighter, mark sections of the journal that directly relate to concepts discussed in the text or in class. This makes it easier for the instructor to identify the student to reflect on their experience in light of course content. (Gary Hesser, Augsberg College)

    15 Strategies For Students To Reflect On Their Learning; image attribution Flickr user woodleywonderworks

    Terrell Heick

    Source link

  • Chicago’s Essential Mexican Restaurants

    Chicago’s Essential Mexican Restaurants

    Kie-Gol-Lanee is one of the city’s best Mexican restaurants. | Jack X. Li/Eater Chicago

    From dynamic fine dining options to tasty taco takeout, Chicagoans should be proud

    ​​Chicago has lured food aficionados with its well-known local staples for decades. Still, its Mexican culinary scene has undoubtedly positioned itself as one of the best in the country — one that draws, surprises, and delights locals and tourists alike.

    And it’s no wonder why: being home to the second largest Mexican-born immigrant community in the U.S. after Los Angeles and being geographically protected from the immediate impact of border town influences, Chicago is a place of culinary convergence, creativity, and discovery.

    With its size and ubiquity, the Mexican community’s presence in the city is reflected in the array of easily found quality eateries available far beyond the enclaves that cater primarily to Mexicans of all generations. From traditional flavors, techniques, and ingredients to modern takes on popular dishes and brand-new creations inspired by the diverse collection that makes up Mexico’s flavors, Chicagoans have it all. Here are some of the best spots in Chicago to enjoy this vast and fascinating cuisine.

    Brenda Storch

    Source link

  • The Pedagogy Of John Dewey: A Summary

    The Pedagogy Of John Dewey: A Summary

    by TeachThought Staff

    What did John Dewey believe about education?

    What were his views on experiential and interactive learning and their role in teaching and learning?

    As always, there’s a lot to understand. John Dewey (1859–1952) developed extraordinarily influential educational and social theories that had a lasting influence on psychology, pedagogy, and political philosophy, among other fields. Stanford University explained that because Dewey “typically took a genealogical approach that couched his own view within the larger history of philosophy, one may also find a fully developed metaphilosophy in his work.”

    One way to think of his ideas, then, is unifying and comprehensive, gathering otherwise distinct fields and bringing them together in service of the concept of teaching children how to live better in the present rather than speculatively preparing them for a future we can’t predict.

    See also 15 Self-Guided Reading Responses For Non-Fiction Texts

    Major Works By John Dewey

    My Pedagogic Creed (1897)

    The Primary-Education Fetich (1898)

    The School and Society The Child and the Curriculum Democracy and Education Schools of Tomorrow (1915)

    Experience and Education (1938)

    See also John Dewey Quotes About Education, Teaching, And Learning

    What Did John Dewey Believe About Teaching And Learning?

    What was the pedagogy of John Dewey? Put briefly, Dewey believed that learning was socially constructed, and that brain-based pedagogy (not his words) should place children, rather than curriculum and institutions, at its center. Effective learning required students to use previous (and prevailing) experiences to create new meaning–that is, to ‘learn.’

    Most of Dewey’s work is characterized by his views on education itself, including its role in citizenship and democracy. But in terms of pedagogy, he is largely known for his emphasis on experiential learning, social learning, and a basic Constructivist approach to pedagogy, not to mention consistent support for the idea of self-knowledge, inquiry-based learning, and even self-directed learning, saying, “To prepare him for the future life means to give him command of himself” and considered education to be a “process of living and not a preparation for future living.”

    Further, his philosophy on pedagogy would align strongly with the gradual release of responsibility model that while still in need of a ‘more knowledgeable other’ (the teacher) would create learning experiences designed to result in the autonomy and self-efficacy of a student as they master content.

    What Dewey believed about ‘pedagogy’ depends on what parts of his work you want to unpack, but broadly speaking, he was a constructivist who pushed for a ‘human’ education experience that leveraged communal constructivism and the role of inquiry and curiosity in the active participation of a student in their own education.

    Further, his social constructivist theories pre-date those of Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky (who are arguably more well-known for these ideas), and he lamented even around the turn of the century the problems with ‘traditional’ approaches to pedagogy that focused on institutional curriculum, instructional practices, and assessment patterns.

    Wikipedia’s entry on Dewey provides a succinct overview of his work: “Dewey continually argues that education and learning are social and interactive processes, and thus the school itself is a social institution through which social reform can and should take place. In addition, he believed that students thrive in an environment where they are allowed to experience and interact with the curriculum, and all students should have the opportunity to take part in their own learning.”

    “He argues that in order for education to be most effective, content must be presented in a way that allows the student to relate the information to prior experiences, thus deepening the connection with this new knowledge. In order to rectify this dilemma, Dewey advocated for an educational structure that strikes a balance between delivering knowledge while also taking into account the interests and experiences of the student. He notes that “the child and the curriculum are simply two limits which define a single process. Just as two points define a straight line, so the present standpoint of the child and the facts and truths of studies define instruction” (Dewey, 1902, p. 16). It is through this reasoning that Dewey became one of the most famous proponents of hands-on learning or experiential education….”

    Education is a social process. According to the creed, it should not be used for the purposes of preparation for living in the future. Dewey said, “I believe that education, therefore, is a process of living and not a preparation for future living.” We can build a child’s self-esteem in not only the classroom but in all aspects of his or her life.”

    TeachThought Staff

    Source link

  • The Inside-Out School: A 21st Century Learning Model

    The Inside-Out School: A 21st Century Learning Model

    by Terry Heick

    This post has been updated from a 2012 version

    As a follow-up to our 9 Characteristics of 21st Century Learning we developed in 2009, we have developed an updated framework, The Inside-Out Learning Model.

    The goal of the model is simple enough–not pure academic proficiency, but instead authentic self-knowledge, diverse local and global interdependence, adaptive critical thinking, and adaptive media literacy.

    By design this model emphasizes the role of play, diverse digital and physical media, and a designed interdependence between communities and schools.

    The attempted personalization of learning occurs through new actuators and new notions of local and global citizenship. An Inside-Out School returns the learners, learning, and ‘accountability’ away from academia and back to communities. No longer do schools teach. Rather, they act as curators of resources and learning tools and promote the shift of the ‘burden’ of learning back to a more balanced perspective of stakeholders and participants.

    Here, families, business leaders, humanities-based organizations, neighbors, mentors, and higher-education institutions all converging to witness, revere, respond to and support the learning of its own community members.

    The micro-effect here is increased intellectual intimacy, while the macro-effect is healthier communities and citizenship that extends beyond mere participation, to ideas of thinking, scale, legacy, and growth.

    The Inside-Out School: A 21st Century Learning Model

    The 9 Domains Of the Inside-Out Learning Model

    1. Five Learning Actuators

    • Project-Based Learning
    • Directed and Non-Directed Play
    • Video Games and Learning Simulations
    • Connected Mentoring
    • Academic Practice

    2. Changing Habits

    • Well-being (for teachers and students) as a matter deserving of innovation & design
    • Acknowledge limits and scale
    • Reflect on interdependence
    • Honor uncertainty
    • Curate legacy
    • Support systems-level and divergent thinking
    • Reward increment
    • Require versatility in the face of change

    3. Transparency

    • Between communities, learners, and schools
    • Learning standards, outcomes, project rubrics, performance critera persistently visible, accessible, and communally constructed
    • Gamification and publishing replace ‘grades’

    4. Self-Initiated Transfer

    • Applying old thinking in constantly changing and unfamiliar circumstances as a constant matter of practice
    • Constant practice of prioritized big ideas in increasing complexity within learner’s Zone of Proximal Development
    • Project-based learning, blended learning, and Place-Based Education available to facilitate highly constructivist approach

    5. Mentoring & Community

    • ‘Accountability’ via the performance of project-based ideas in authentic local and global environments
    • Local action –> global citizenship
    • Active mentoring via physical and digital networking, apprenticeships, job shadows and study tours
    • Communal Constructivism, meta-cognition, Cognitive Coaching, and Cognitive Apprenticeship among available tools

    6. Changing Roles

    • Learners as knowledge makers
    • Teachers as the expert of assessment and resources
    • Classrooms as think-tanks
    • Communities not just audience, but vested participants
    • Families as designers, curators, and content resources

    7. Climate of Assessment

    • Constant minor assessments replace exams
    • Data streams inform progress and suggest pathways
    • Academic standards prioritized and anchoring
    • Products, simulation performance, self-knowledge delegate academia to a new role of refinement of thought

    8. Thought & Abstraction

    • In this model, struggle and abstraction are expected outcomes of increasing complexity & real-world uncertainty
    • This uncertainty is honored, and complexity and cognitive patience are constantly modeled and revered
    • Abstraction honors not just art, philosophy, and other humanities, but the uncertain, incomplete, and subjective nature of knowledge

    9. Expanding Literacies

    • Analyzes, evaluates, and synthesizes credible information
    • Critical survey of the interdependence of media and thought
    • Consumption of constantly evolving media forms
    • Media design for authentic purposes
    • Self-monitored sources of digital & non-digital data
    • Artistic and useful content curation patterns

    The Inside-Out Learning Model Central Learning Theories & Artifacts: Situational Learning Theory (Lave), Discovery Learning (Bruner), Communal Constructivism (Holmes), Zone of Proximal Development & More Knowledgeable Other (Vygotsky), Learning Cycle (Kolb), Transfer (Thorndike, Perkins, Wiggins), Habits of Mind (Costa and Kallick), Paulo Freire, and the complete body of work by Wendell Berry

    Terrell Heick

    Source link