Today we’re diving into… Assessments! In this blog article, we will be comparing objective and performative assessments, as well as looking at their standardization, and the advantages and disadvantages of these two kinds of assessment.

To begin, let’s look at the definitions of Objective Assessment and Performance Assessment. ( Seifert & Sutton, 2009) Objective Assessments are assessments that measure students’ progress using quantitative data. Objective Assessments often come in the form of multiple-choice questions, true/false questions, and extended matching questions.  Performance Assessment is when “student completes a specific task while teachers observe the process or procedure.” As the term might indicate, performance assessments are more “performative” in nature, in that they present more complex tasks (such as writing an analysis, performing on a musical instrument, or through skits on the selected topic).

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using Objective assessments? (Subjective vs. Objective Assessment, n.d.) Well, objective assessments, due to its quantitative nature, allow for all students to be assessed fairly and to see how well they are able to understand core material. Additionally, another advantage is that objective assessments are seen to be reliable: If a student passes a written assessment on cell anatomy, then that teacher can assume that the student is able to understand the information presented in class. On the other hand, some teachers (McCambridge, n.d.) can also be seen as unreliable: this is due to the idea that “regurgitating historical facts” for a history exam doesn’t mean that a student is able to critically analyze information presented in class. (Darling-Hammond, & Adamson, 2010) One researcher remarked that “I have seen more students who can pass the [state test] but cannot apply those skills to anything if it’s not in the test format. I have students who can do the test but can’t look up words in a dictionary and understand the different meanings…. “

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using Performance assessments? (Stecher, 2010) Performance assessments allow for students to complete tasks that are more similar to real-life tasks and projects, instead of choosing a predetermined option like on an objective assessment. Also, performance assessments allow teachers to evaluate students’ critical thinking skills in addition to providing answers in different contexts, which a teacher wouldn’t be able to accurately evaluate on an objective assessment. However, performance assessments, since they rely on the “…instructor’s professionally developed awareness of quality in academic or other work…”, this means that a performance assessment is more prone to bias grading than an objective assessment (Subjective v.s. Objective Assessment, n.d.). Additionally, if a performance assessment is not carefully guided and controlled, a student may present information inconsistent with the teacher’s objectives and lack information to see if the students understand certain concepts and skills taught in the classroom (McCambridge, n.d.). This last concern however, may be combated with a clear rubric and a standardization of performance assessments.

Both performance assessments and objective assessments are integral to teaching, so what are some ways that you can balance their usage?

References:

Seifert, K., & Sutton, R. (2009). Educational Psychology(2nd ed.). Retrieved June 24, 2019.

(n.d.). Subjective vs. Objective Assessment Retrieved from http://www.iupui.edu/~idd/assessment_strategies/asm_3.05.htm

Darling-Hammond, L. & Adamson, F. (2010). Beyond basic skills: The role
of performance assessment in achieving 21st century standards of learning. Stanford, CA: Stanford University, Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education.

Stecher, B. (2010). Performance Assessment in an Era of Standards-Based
Educational Accountability. Stanford, CA: Stanford University, Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education.

McCambridge, T. R. (n.d.). Performance Assessment, One. Retrieved June 23, 2019, from http://public.callutheran.edu/~mccamb/performanceassessment1.htm

Pearson North America (2015, August 26). Retrieved June 24, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZKhc3_2k4Q

Brunold, T. (2009, August 26). Retrieved June 24, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvfNl2_ypyA

Curiosity comes first. Embrace the mess. Practice reflection. (Musallam, 2013)

When I was in elementary school I remember skipping recess to read books. Why? That’s the first question everyone asks me when I share that piece of information with them. Let me assure you this, it had nothing to do with being in trouble all of the time – it did – but that was only the beginning of it.

I stayed in from recess because I discovered something I was curious about, tanks.  I’m sure it’s not hard for you to believe that a 10-year-old boy was curious about something blowing other things up. But it’s what happened next that changed everything for me.

 It took awhile for Mr. Fischer, my fourth grade teacher, to figure out why two of my friends and me continued to get in trouble so we would have to stay in for recess. Eventually he discovered it was because we enjoyed reading the books more than being out on the playground. And this is where the magic happened. The following day Mr. Fischer walked into class with a milk crate full of books. Instead of punishing us by making us stay in for recess he told us that if we behaved we could look through all the books in the crate.

Mr. Fischer had gone to the public library the night before and checked out all sorts of books on tanks, war, and everything related to it. Little did we know that Mr. Fischer understood that instructional material should be as diverse as possible to fit everyone’s need. You see Mr. Fischer had answered the exact question we are all desperately searching for. How do we motivate our students to take learning into their own hands, and thus, create a lesson plan that will help foster that growth?

What I didn’t know at that exact moment is that Mr. Fischer knew he had a lesson plan on African American History coming up. Even though one of us was Caucasian, another Hispanic, and myself African American, he found a way to use content integration so all three of us would become interested in his lessons. How might this relate to tanks you ask? Well, Mr. Fischer had mixed in books on minority troops in battle, books on the Vietnam war protests, and the Mexican American war (spoiler alert: no tanks were involved in this war). So when, we finished reading the books with tanks on the front, it led us to ask the question, “What wars were these tanks used in?” That led to another question on who was allowed to be in the tanks?” then another question came from it of why these people were fighting in the war in the first place.” This led me to reading a book on Mohammed Ali and his protest of the war.

You see, without me realizing it Mr. Fischer had used those books to cover various curriculums we were required to go over at some point that year. Based on the follow up questions we had after reading the books, he was able to put together lesson plans on the gaps in our knowledge. When it came time to work on group assignments, Mr. Fischer would separate us into different groups so others in the class could learn from the prior knowledge we already held. Mr. Fischer had Embraced the mess that comes with changing your lesson plans so your students get the most out of it.

Through those books I learned about engineering, which led to politics, which led to race, which led to being even more interested in history. And now 15 years later I’m so curious about it that I want to teach it to others. How did Mr. Fischer do it? Well that answer is really simple, he started with our own Curiosity. This was Mr. Fischer’s emergent curriculum. Curriculum that explicitly builds on interests expressed by students, rather than goals set by curriculum writers, curriculum documents, or teachers. (Seifert & Sutton, 2009)

As Ramsey Musallam says in the Ted Talk below, there are 3 rules to spark learning, and curiosity always comes first. Musallam says our greatest tool as a teacher is our students’ questions. And Mr. Fischer had taken advantage of all our questions in the best way possible.

In Education Pyschology Siefert and Sutton explain, “The main purpose of education is to develop individuals for society or develop them for their max potential.” (Seifert & Sutton, 2009) If this is the main purpose of education, Mr. Fischer did just that by allowing us to drive our own learning and using it to peak our interest in other areas as well.

  As future educators we also ask the question how do you choose and formulate actual learning objectives when it comes to an assignment? Siefert and Sutton describe two ways of doing so; either by selecting content or topics that you want students to know (the cognitive approach) or start with what you want students to do (the behavioral approach). (Seifert & Sutton, 2009)

Mr. Fischer did both and more. He allowed us to believe that we had selected the topics (the cognitive approach), then used that to steer our learning towards what he wanted to teach us. Since we started these topics by reading books (the behavioral approach), this allowed us to learn background information on the topics he planned to teach, making us more knowledgeable when they subjects we read about came up.

Because there wasn’t a set amount of goals needed to be learned, we focused on our curiosity with the topic and tried to consume as much knowledge as possible leading to our mastery of the subject. Before we knew it we went from disrupting the class with off topic conversations, to disrupting the class by being a “know it all”.

The last thing for Mr. Fischer to do was to connect the books to the curriculum and make sure we stayed interested. His lessons were like magic. Some days we walked into class and he had history videos ready for us to watch. Other days he spent the whole class lecturing, something that is never a good idea with a class of fourth graders. But because we found the content so interesting, you would never know he was just standing up in front of us discussing people’s right to vote. The variety in the way he taught the lesson only strengthened the classes knowledge of the subjects. In this sense, this was Practicing reflection and further developing our knowledge.

Few teachers were gifted in the way he was. And if you plan on working in an urban environment I suggest you try to find your own piece of magic as well. This Ted Talk may help you.

Plan for what students do, not what the teacher does. (Seifert & Sutton, 2009) This may seem obvious, but it’s easy to overlook when creating lessons. Mr. Fischer understood this better than most people and because of that I have him to thank for writing this blog post. If you have any particular lesson plans or ideas that stick out to you, feel free to leave a comment below.

References

Baxter-Bateson, T. (2017, November 09). 12 Must-See TED Talks for Teachers. Retrieved from https://www.weareteachers.com/ted-talks-teachers/

Cunningham, G. (n.d.). Chapter 7. Lesson Plans and Unit Plans: The Basis for Instruction. Retrieved from https://study.com/academy/lesson/instructional-planning-quality-materials-strategies.html

Emdin, C. (2013, October). Teach teachers how to create magic. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/christopher_emdin_teach_teachers_how_to_create_magic/discussion#t-392296

Hammond, Zaretta, & Jackson, Yvette (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain: Promoting authentic engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students. Corwin, a SAGE Company.

Kelly, M. (2018, October 07). Planning, Developing, and Organizing Instruction. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/planning-and-organizing-instruction-8391

Musallam, R. (2013, April). 3 rules to spark learning. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/ramsey_musallam_3_rules_to_spark_learning#t-364624

Seifert, Kevin, & Sutton, Rosemary (2009). Educational Psychology (2nd ed.). The Saylor Foundation.

I want everyone to think of their FAVORITE class ever…now think why was that your favorite class?

Was it because of the subject? The teacher? Or how it was ran?

My favorite class was a biology class my freshman year of college. First time ever, I walk into the class with massive TV screens, tables in a circle, smart boards at every table, and chairs around the tables. All I kept thinking was…did I just walk into first grade??Every single day the teacher gave us a topic/assignment and away we went with it. We decided how we wanted to present our findings via the smart board, TV, or an oral presentation. Class was never boring and moved along quite quickly. I came from a very small high school, my graduating class was only twenty-two, we never had the opportunity for this. Now after the fact, I think the class size I had would have been perfect for this. It just takes the right mindset from the instructor and institution to make it work.

At first, I was so lost and felt like my whole thought process of how I learn was crashing like the ocean into the rocks. I thought this was a lazy way for the professor not to have to do anything, but did my way of thinking change quite fast. After only a couple weeks, I was always so excited for this class, never missed it, felt more bonded to class and felt more included, like I was needed there for my group.

Being student-centered does not mean, however, that a teacher gives up organizational and leadership responsibilities completely. It only means a relative shift in the teacher’s role, toward one with more emphasis on guiding students’ self-chosen directions.

Seifert and Sutton (2009)

Student centered learning (SCL), I thought, was a modern way to include technology, but also a way to get our nose out of our phones. Everyone thinks of  SCL linking to Dewey’s work in the 50s, but Hayward actually came up with the concept back in 1905 in a non-educational concept though( Attard, A., Di Loero, E., Geven, K. and Santa, R. (2010).

I soon realized that everyone in my group liked doing things very differently. We had people who had to read the material six times, others would write out what they read, and others used physical materials to learn. This is where student-centered learning really helps, EVERYONE is able to explore different options and use what works for them. This gave everyone the freedom to learn their own way, but learn what others like.

We were given the responsibility of how we learn and what we want to do with it. Being able to learn from peers and the ability to show our professor how we understand the material, not how they think we should understand it. The whole concept changed what I thought a classroom was.

“..student-centered typically refers to forms of instruction that, for example, give students opportunities to lead learning activities, participate more actively in discussions, design their own learning projects, explore topics that interest them, and generally contribute to the design of their own course of study. Additionally, student-centered instruction is often associated with classrooms that feature desks arranged in circles or small groups (rather than rows of desks that face the teacher), with “self-guided” or “self-paced” learning, or with learning experiences that occur outside of traditional classroom settings..”

Partnership, G. (2014)

A big concern that I have noticed people wonder about is how do we teach student-centered learning with certain subjects such as politics, English, etc. this video really shows that it is possible to find a way. At the very end, seeing all the different stats can show how SCL is beneficial to not only the student, but the school district as well. There are so many ways that SCL can be included even if the classroom is not set up for that educational setting. Here are several ways to incorporate SCL into the classroom.

“Is it within my potential?”

Ayla Postelnek

Ayla Postelnek speaks about her personal story with student-centered learning and explains very well why and how it can be beneficial.

What is your favorite student-centered learning method?

Attard, A., Di Loero, E., Geven, K. and Santa, R. (2010). Student-Centred Learning: Toolkit for students, staff and higher education institutions. [online] Esu-online.org. Available at: https://www.esu-online.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/SCL_toolkit_ESU_EI.compressed.pdf 

Edutopia (2017). Student-Centered Learning: Building Agency and Engagement. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXS5FnaWyDk&feature=youtu.be

Kelvin Seifert & Rosemary Sutton. (2009). Educational Psychology, 2nd Ed.

Partnership, G. (2014). Student-Centered Learning Definition. [online] The Glossary of Education Reform. Available at: https://www.edglossary.org/student-centered-learning/ 

Postelnek, A. (2017). The Power of Potential: Student Centered Learning | Ayla Postelnek | TEDxYeshivaUniversity. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI1GtWRI55A

Staff, T. and MacMeekin, M. (2019). 28 Student-Centered Instructional Strategies –. [online] TeachThought. Available at: https://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/28-student-centered-instructional-strategies/

What is a growth mindset verse a fixed mindset?

Growth mindset is a theory that came out of research done by Carol Dweck, the idea is that children with a growth mindset know that their skill set is growing, which can lead to working out problems and the willingness to work through the hard problems. This is in contrast with a fixed mindset where children believe their skills are set in stone and that failure means that they have no more skills to help solve the problem.

The first year I started working in a school right away I learned the schools ideals about growth mindset vs fixed, and how to praise a student for ‘using their brain’ not just for a ‘good job’. So pretty much I thought that growth mindset was teaching kids that trying was the goal not just that when you accomplish something you are smart. I would also preface all of that with that I was an AmeriCorps volunteer and had never set foot in a classroom before, and was slightly overwhelmend. However, this idea that kids could learn to learn seemed pretty good for a very untrained person. When our Professor brought up in class last week, the fact that schools and educators alike had been misusing this theory, it brought up all types of questions for me. One of the big ones was, is there a right way to use the theory? In Dweck’s own blog she talks about how even though they have done 20 years of research they are still only just finishing building the foundation stage of building the house. There is so much that need to be done before they can even answer all the questions on the effects of growth mindset.

How was growth mindset theory being missed used in educational settings?

Growth mindset is not just throwing up motivational posters or teaching children that they have the ability to grow their brain. Another way that growth mindset is being miss handled is the connection with the school system as a whole, schools are based on the idea that doing well is getting a good grade or test score, which is a fixed mindset carristic. However if a kiddo is trying and using a growth mindset but still not succeeding in away that schools measure success what does that tell the kid. In an article from The Atlantic, Dweck clarifies the affects of the ‘false growth mindset’, which is when one thinks they have a growth mindset but they either don’t or don’t understand what a growth mindset is. She also goes to say that a lot of the times it is the educators who have these false growth mindsets-

“is that instead of taking this long and difficult journey, where you work on understanding your triggers, working with them, and over time being able to stay in a growth mindset more and more, many educators just said, “Oh yeah, I have a growth mindset” because either they know it’s the right mindset to have or they understood it in a way that made it seem easy.”

Dweck, 2016

“The thing that keeps me up at night is that some educators are turning mindset into the new self-esteem, which is to make kids feel good about any effort they put in, whether they learn or not. But for me the growth mindset is a tool for learning and improvement. It’s not just a vehicle for making children feel good.”

Dweck, 2017

Growth mindsets can be a great tool for learning however I think that if we as educators don’t take the time to really learn what these tools do then we are not helping the kiddos.

What can we do to connect this theory to real classroom interventions in the right way?

References

Dweck, C. (2017, August 10). Growth mindset is on a firm foundation, but we’re still building the house. Retrieved June 18, 2019, from https://mindsetscholarsnetwork.org/growth-mindset-firm-foundation-still-building-house/

Gross-Loh, C. (2016, December 16). Don’t Let Praise Become a Consolation Prize. Retrieved June 18, 2019, from https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/12/how-praise-became-a-consolation-prize/510845/

Hendrick, C. (2019, June 18). Schools love the idea of a growth mindset, but does it work? – Carl Hendrick | Aeon Essays. Retrieved June 18, 2019, from https://aeon.co/essays/schools-love-the-idea-of-a-growth-mindset-but-does-it-work

Macnamara, B. (2019, June 03). Schools are buying ‘growth mindset’ interventions despite scant evidence that they work well. Retrieved June 18, 2019, from http://theconversation.com/schools-are-buying-growth-mindset-interventions-despite-scant-evidence-that-they-work-well-96001

What many in education get wrong about growth mindset. (n.d.). Retrieved June 18, 2019, from https://www.eab.com/daily-briefing/2018/05/07/praising-effort-doesnt-work-for-building-grit-in-teens

As educators, motivation is something that we think about often. Motivation as a whole gets talked about all the time when teachers are sharing about what goes on in their classrooms. We all want to know how to harness and increase motivation with our students so they can be engaged independent learners who are successful and productive. First, we need to look at what motivation actually is.

“Motivation is an internal state or condition (sometimes described as a need, desire, or want) that serves to activate or energize behavior and give it direction” (Huitt, 2011).

Motivation is the drive an individual has that serves to not only give our behavior direction but also energize it or put it into action. So motivation isn’t just about wanting to get that good grade but also actually getting out of bed and getting to the library to work on what needs to be done. Now there are two main sources of motivation that we need to understand when it comes to our educational practice and students- intrinsic and extrinsic.

Extrinsic motivation is motivation that is sources from things outside one’s self. It means that someone is “motivated to perform a task as a means to an end, not as an end in itself” (Omrod, 2010). In a classroom this could be prizes, good grades, extra credit for completing extra work. The motivation is coming from something other that the task itself.

Intrinsic motivation is when this drive comes from reasons within. Ryan and Desi (2000) state that an “intrinsically motivated a person is moved to act for the fun or challenge entailed rather than because of external prods, pressures, or rewards.” What does this look like with our students? Independent, self motivated learners are able to use strategies to self start on complicated tasks, know how to get unstuck, and can get information from their longterm memory (Hammond, 2015). They are motivated to learn because they have some kind of connection or interest in it.

Is there a place for both types of motivation in our classrooms? The answer is yes, but both have different consequences on learning.

Oromod (2010) says that “in some instances, extrinsic motivation—perhaps in the form of extrinsic reinforcers for academic achievement or productive behavior—may be the only thing that can get students on the road to successful classroom learning and productive behavior. Yet intrinsic motivation is ultimately what will sustain students over the long run. It will encourage them to make sense of and apply what they are studying and will increase the odds that they will continue to read and learn about writing, science, history, and other academic subject matter long after they have left their formal education behind.”

We all know that there are just some days that you will need rewards and other external motivation to get through the day, but fostering intrinsic motivation is what will help us achieve our goal of helping our students to become lifelong independent learners because “intrinsically motivated people try harder and longer, perform more flexibly and creatively, and learn more deeply than extrinsically motivated people” (Sheldon, 2013). This video is geared towards business but many of the ideas can be applied to education and why intrinsic motivation is important. That being said, we do have to consider the possible effects of the undermining student’s intrinsic motivation with external rewards. This has been called  the “overjustification effect” (Lepper, Greene, & Nisbett, 1973). This suggests that we need to be very careful with how we give external rewards so we don’t stifle any intrinsic motivation a student might already be coming to us with.

So know that intrinsic motivation is the longer lasting, more valuable kind of motivation for creating lifelong learners, the next question is how do we create a space in which our students can increase their intrinsic motivation?  

The major key to unlocking students intrinsic motivation is looking into what kind of mindset they have. Hammond (2015) says that “often we misinterpret a student’s self doubt or negative mindset as a lack of engagement or motivation.” Many teachers feel frustrated with students when they don’t complete their homework or struggle to start a task. “It’s easy!” they say. These students are most like dependent learners who could really benefit from a change in mindset. Helping students to get a more positive sense of self efficacy, which is “the belief that you are capable of carrying out a specific task or of reaching a specific goal” (Seifert & Sutton, 2009) is a huge part of increasing intrinsic motivation. Hammond discusses how stress hormones get released when a student with low self-efficacy and a negative mindset tries to stretch themselves academically. This makes a lot of sense because many times these behaviors manifest as shutting down and avoidance. If this task is completely stressful why even try?

Hammond (2015) talks about how we, as their coach on the path of becoming independant learners, need to help students create counter narrative to the negative narrative that is playing in their head currently. We need to help them in interrupting and reframing their negative self talk and validate them when they are showing signs of an growth mindset. I believe that the most important precursor to teaching is to create a sense of community. A sense of belonging and creating stable relationships are at the core of what we do (as talked about in this really awesome TED talk). Once they feel that they belong, we can start to help them shift their mindset and increase self-efficacy- so school and learning can be more fun, valuable, and meaningful for everyone.

What ideas do you have for helping students develop a strong sense of intrinsic motivation?

Each week we have new guest bloggers, follow us to stay in the loop – just click the follow button on the lower righthand side.

Citations

Hammond, Z. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain: Promoting authentic engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin, a SAGE Company.

Huitt, W. (2011). Motivation to learn: An overview. Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved from http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/motivation/motivate.html

Lepper, M. R., Greene, D., & Nisbett, R. E. (1973). Undermining children’s intrinsic interest with extrinsic reward: A test of the” overjustification” hypothesis. Journal of Personality and social Psychology, 28(1), 129.

Ormrod, J. E. (2010). How motivation affects learning and behavior. Source: Pearson Allyn Bacon Prentice Hall.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary educational psychology, 25(1), 54-67.

Seifert, K., & Sutton, R. (2009). Educational Psychology (2nd ed.). The Saylor Foundation.

Sheldon, K. M. (2013). Motivation: Internalized motivation in the classroom. Activities for Teaching Positive Psychology: A Guide for Instructors., 155-160.

As I walked through the hallway at South High School in Minneapolis one day, I came across a small group of students laughing and talking as they crashed a bicycle into the hallway walls and fell over, one after another. The teacher, Morgan Fierst, was there too, laughing along and taking video footage on her phone. “This looks fun!” I thought, and I asked the students what the heck they were doing.

“IT’S A BACKWARDS BIKE!” they exclaimed, and offered that I could give it a try. The bike had been rigged up with a special gear so that when you turn the handlebars left, it would turn the front tire THE OPPOSITE WAY, turning the bike to the right. An avid cyclist myself, I thought the backwards bike would be easy to ride…. I was so wrong.

The Backwards Bike became a hit at South High School, and I would enjoy watching teachers, students, and administrators show their vulnerability and persistence as they fell off the bike over and over again. I thought the bike was a fun hands-on (constructivist!) learning experience for students, but I didn’t realize the full extent of its purpose until Ms. Fierst presented about it to South staff at a Professional Development. The Backwards Bike project was actually a lesson on self-regulation, motivation, modeling, and the wonderful effects of persistence on our plastic brains.

In this blog, I will relate the backwards bike learning process to the Social Cognitive Theory approach to learning. But first, you should probably watch this “Smarter Every Day” video that inspired the South High Backwards Bike so you know what I’m talking about:

Advanced Algebra teachers, Morgan Fierst and Sara VanDerWerf, set out to prove to their students that we are capable of learning anything if we put forth the dedicated effort to train our brains.

VanDerWerf relates the epic learning journey in her awesome teaching blog:

Our original intent with the bike was to begin learning to ride it for 5 minutes a day in the hallways of our school so we could be an active daily model of persistence to our students.

Social Cognitive Theory is a psychological model of learning behavior conceived by Albert Bandura in the 1970s that emphasizes how people learn through the observation of models (Denler, et al). The Backwards Bike experiment is a perfect example of teachers modeling Bandura’s key concepts of agency, self-efficacy, goal-setting, and self-regulation through their own struggles and persistence. In this case, the teachers represent a coping model, in that they struggle and make mistakes, and only eventually become proficient in their goal.

A key concept in Social Cognitive Theory is that people have agency, or “the ability to influence their own behavior and the environment in a purposeful, goal-driven fashion” (Denler). Fierst and VanDerWerf used this agency to set goals that provided the objectives for self-regulation, or “students’ management or control of their own learning behaviors” (Denler).

Fierst and VanDerWerf’s initial goal was simple: learn how to ride the backwards bike.

But through the 3 sub-processes of self-regulation — self-observation, self-judgement, and self-reaction — they learned they must break that goal into smaller, more attainable goals, in order to better recognize their progress. Soon, each tiny step in the process was a little victory. Now they focused on making one revolution of the wheel at a time… then another… and another. They weren’t just learning how to ride a bike, they were strategizing about HOW they were learning.  (That’s so meta…. Am I right?!)  Meanwhile, they were modeling this process publicly… at school… every day.

Modeling can also affect one’s self-regulated learning. The skills needed to manage one’s behavior, as well as beliefs and attitudes that serve to motivate self-regulation, can be obtained through modeling.

Denler, et al.

The teachers shared their joys and frustrations with each other and with their students. They realized the importance of normalizing struggle as part of learning. They gained new levels of empathy for students’ struggles in math, and related the tiny victory of one wheel revolution to celebrating the smallest victories of progress in student learning. (VanDerWerf) After several months of practicing the bike for 5 minutes every day, Fierst was finally able to ride the bike successfully. (Click here for a fabulous video montage of South staff trying to ride the bike and Fierst’s fierce dedication.)

The process of un-learning the old way of riding a bike and re-learning a new way is an example of our brains’ neuroplasticity. Through years of bike-riding experience, we have strong neural pathways that tell our bodies how to balance and turn on a bicycle. But very slowly, with lots of practice, we can forge new neural pathways.

A fixed mindset might tell a student that they can never learn to ride a backwards bike, or that they will never be good at math, because that neural pathway is very strong from past failures (Hammond). Our own self-doubt, accompanied by our brains’ negativity bias which causes us to pay 3 times more attention to our failures than our successes, plus structural inequities in school systems and microaggressions, can continue to strengthen those neural pathways that say “I’m no good at this” (Hammond).

But there is hope. If we can encourage self-efficacy, “the belief that you are capable of carrying out a specific task or reaching a specific goal” (Seiffert), and model self-regulation, we can help students shift their mindset to become self-motivated (Seiffert).

One amazing and powerful way that teachers can help students build self-efficacy is through “exposure to peer models who initially struggle but who are ultimately able to complete tasks effectively (i.e., coping models)” (Denler). As teachers, our modeling of struggle, self-regulating behaviors and persistence teaches students that they can conquer challenges too.

Fierst and VanDerWef conclude their presentation with a call to action. They challenge other teachers to practice something very challenging for 5 minutes a day, and to do it publicly so students and community can share in their struggle and little victories. One South teacher chose to shoot 100 basketballs each day, with the goal of someday making all 100 baskets (VanDerWerf).

So… What will you do for 5 minutes a day?  How can you model self-efficacy, self-regulation and persistence for your students?

Each week we have new guest bloggers, follow us to stay in the loop – just click the follow button on the lower righthand side.

Sources

Denler, H., Wolters, C., Benzon, M. (2014, Jan 28). Social Cognitive Theory: An Overview for Educators. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/social-cognitive-theory/.

Fierst, Morgan & Van Der Werf, Sara (2016). The Backwards Brain Bicycle in Math Class. Powerpoint Presentation. Retrieved from https://www.saravanderwerf.com/the-backwards-brain-bicycle-the-best-thing-we-did-all-year/

Hammond, Zaretta, & Jackson, Yvette (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain: Promoting authentic engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students. Corwin, a SAGE Company.

Seifert, Kevin, & Sutton, Rosemary (2009). Educational Psychology (2nd ed.). The Saylor Foundation.

SmarterEveryDay (2015, April 24). The Backwards Brain Bicycle – Smarter Every Day 133. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFzDaBzBlL0.

Van Der Werf, Sara (2016, August 18). The Backwards Brain Bicycle – the best thing we did all year. Retrieved from https://www.saravanderwerf.com/the-backwards-brain-bicycle-the-best-thing-we-did-all-year

“Were all instructors to realize that the quality of mental process, not the production of correct answers, is the measure of educative growth something hardly less than a revolution in teaching would be worked.” – John Dewey, Democracy and Education (1916)

Think about a time when you were really excited to learn something… Were you vigorously taking notes in a lecture on a topic that you didn’t really care about? Were you watching a grainy, monotone video about the American Revolution? Maybe so! Or maybe you learned something that helped contextualize or re-contextualize something personal to you. Maybe you and a group of classmates solved something you had been working on together. When you were really excited during this moment, were you a passive learner or an active learner? I’m willing to bet it was the latter.

While it is difficult to define in prompt terms, progressive education can be described as a combination of collaboration, community, social justice, intrinsic motivation, deep understanding, and active learning (Kohn 2008). Boiling it down even further, progressive education shifts focus from the student being a passive learner under more traditional forms of education to the student being an active learner. Active learning isn’t just limited to the student’s engagement with the material they are learning about. They are engaging with their peers and the world around them to figure how the topics they are learning about fit into it. As we learned from Vygotsky early in the course, cognitive development and learning aren’t just about the intake of information into a child’s mind while their brain develops as time slowly passes. Social interaction, one of the main tenets of progressive education, guides learning and cognitive development (McLeod 2018).

You may be thinking, and Kohn poses this exact question, “If progressive education is so terrific, why is it still the exception rather than the rule?” First off, the familiarity with the dominant, traditional form of education makes it easier for educators to execute. The simplicity of being able to present vast amounts of information in the hopes that students remember it compared to the complexity of critically engaging and evaluating the mental processes of students is a main reason why traditional education has remained so steadfast. Facilitating learning is much harder than it sounds. Along with educators, it also asks a lot more of students. Progressive education requires students to rely on their independence for learning, and the transition from dependent to independent learning could take up until the third grade, sometimes even past that especially in underserved communities (Hammond p. 13).

Seifert and Sutton discussed the ways in which teaching has changed over the past few decades, but the ways they touched on, such as increased diversity, increased instructional technology, and greater accountability for educators (p. 10) don’t exactly indicate a shift from a traditional approach to a progressive approach to education. Progress in terms of diversity, technology, and teacher-professionalism are obviously good things in their own right and can contribute to a progressive environment in education, but they don’t constitute progressive education on their own. As Kohn’s research shows, many classrooms seeing these exact developments are still using more traditional approaches to education. Progressive education is still a rarity.

Kayla Delzer’s Ted Talk “Reimagining Classrooms: Teachers as Learners and Students as Leaders” shows how these advancements in technology can go hand-in-hand with the expansion of progressive education.

Delzer takes what I see as the best approach to getting people on board with a shift to progressive education, which is to show them how compatible it is with the ways in which society is changing. It is much easier for students, with the technological tools they have at their disposal, to become active, independent learners now than it was even 10 years ago. John Dewey may have envisioned a progressive education system long before iPads existed, but they may now help fully realize his vision.

“What would a classroom that implemented a progressive approach for the education of its students even look like?” is a question one who isn’t familiar with this concept or might be critical of it might ask. Well…

I know it’s daunting. The complete overhaul of our education system is an almost unimaginable task that would require great dedication from educators, students, and communities as a whole. We, as a society, have an opportunity though, and now is as good of a time as ever to fully embrace progressive education.

References:

Delzer, Kayla (2015, October 13). Reimagining Classrooms: Teachers as Learners and Students as Leaders. TEDx Talks. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6vVXmwYvgs

Dewey, John (1916). Democracy and Education. Macmillan Publishers.

Hammond, Zaretta, & Jackson, Yvette (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain: Promoting authentic engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students. Corwin, a SAGE Company.

Kohn, Alfie (2008). Progressive Education Why It’s Hard to Beat, but Also Hard to Find. Retrieved June 9th from https://www.alfiekohn.org/article/progressive-education/

Mcleod, Saul (2018). Lee Vygotsky. Retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/vygotsky.html

NBC4 WCMH-TV Columbus (2012, April 27). Progressive Education Program. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XycNgAEXiGo

Ryan, D. P. (2017, October 31). “Why Progressive Education?” The Progressive Education Approach. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/aIXM4rt736I

Seifert, Kevin, & Sutton, Rosemary (2009). Educational Psychology (2nd ed.). The Saylor Foundation.

Many people view learning as a process of trial and error.  In some respects it is but the key element according to social cognitive theory is observational modeling.  So what exactly is social cognitive theory? 

“Social cognitive theory favors a model of causation involving triadicreciprocal determinism. In this model of reciprocal causation, behavior, cognition and other personal factors, and environmental influences all operate as interacting determinants that influence each other bidirectionally.”

Bandura, A (1989)

The above definition is from Albert Bandura who is considered the father of social cognitive theory. He is quick to point out that although all of the influencing factors mentioned (behavior, cognition, environmental influences) are related bidirectionally this doesn’t mean they are all of equal strength. This stresses the importance of diverse social practice and teachings due to the multitude of factors that may or may not hit home for some students.

Modeling

Modeling is a prime example of a teaching strategy that incorporates social cognitive theory. Now a model can be a multitude of things as described by Denler, Wolters, and Benzon.

“Live demonstrations of a behavior or skill by a teacher or classmate, of course, typify the notion of modeling. Verbal or written descriptions, video or audio recordings, and other less direct forms of performance are also considered forms of modeling.”

Denler, H., Wolters, C., & Benzon, M. (n.d.). Articles. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/social-cognitive-theory/

Bandura summarizes observational modeling into four main parts: Attention, Retention, Production, and Motivation.

Let’s look at a hands on model to dissect these four processes. For example, let’s say a classroom is working on a community garden. The attention process starts when the students notice something about their environment (a plant is sprouting, it’s sunny outside, the soil is dry). This then piggybacks on to the retention process where a student remembers what they noticed (my plant was greener yesterday after it rained, my plant doesn’t look as good because I forgot to water it). These connections to observations are the basis of retention. The production process is when students use their retention skills to emulate a desired result (I’m going to water my plant everyday so it’s healthy, I’m going to move my plant into the sun to encourage growth). The motivation process is the understanding of why the students want to care for their plants and utilize the things they’ve retained (I want to have the biggest plant in the class, I want to see it flower).

Now many of you are probably saying so what, it’s easy to do observational modeling when you’re teaching science, but by breaking it down into these four parts it makes it a lot easier to construct a model that is relevant to your classroom. After all that is the art and beauty of teaching.

Modeling Behavior

Classroom etiquette is a tool for modeling behavior. Bandura touches on this by stating, “In the transactions of everyday life, behavior alters environmental conditions and is, in turn, altered by the very conditions it creates. The environment is not a fixed entity that inevitably impinges upon individuals.” (Bandura, 1989) For example, when a student talks out of turn the teacher may scowl at the student which alters the environment and lets other students know that talking out of turn is unacceptable behavior. Based on Bandura’s definition modeling doesn’t have to be a tangible object and therefore can be subjected to students in a number of ways which includes molding behavior.

One interesting study sampled four schools and focused on modeling sustainability. The teachers served as active role models to encourage sustainability habits among their students. Some of the behaviors are listed here in this excerpt from the study.

“Behaviors engaged in by teachers and staff included (a) driving a hybrid car, carpooling, hiking, or walking to school; (b) eating organic, local food with minimal disposable packaging; (c) wearing second hand clothes; (d) participating in community service; (e) composting, recycling, and reusing; (f) picking up litter; (g) turning off lights when leaving a room; (h) promoting democratic, equitable classroom environments; (i) using appropriate conflict-resolution strategies; and (j) encouraging diverse and divergent opinions. Although teachers did not always engage in these behaviors exclusively for the purpose of modeling sustainability, their actions nevertheless served as models for students.”

Amy, L. H., & McMillan, V. M. (2006). Teaching through modeling: Four schools’ experiences in sustainability education. The Journal of Environmental Education, 38(1), 39-53.

The schools themselves also created a culture of sustainability by making their facilities more green as well as sponsoring environmentally friendly activities outside of school. The students also served a crucial role in promoting a sustainable environment which is described here:

“Neither school employs custodial staff. Instead, the students and faculty serve as school caretakers, cleaning, collecting trash, recycling, tending gardens, composting, preparing food, and caring for school animals. Students at both schools are responsible for about 30 min of chores per day, as well as longer work projects that involve ongoing maintenance, building construction, and gardening.”

Amy, L. H., & McMillan, V. M. (2006). Teaching through modeling: Four schools’ experiences in sustainability education. The Journal of Environmental Education, 38(1), 39-53.

The researchers attributed observational modeling for the change in students’ behavioral approach to maintaining a sustainable lifestyle.

Hands on Learning in the “Real World”

Looking at how most companies operate it is safe to say that most use observational modeling as their essential training tool. No electrical company (hopefully) is going to throw a new employee out into the field and say, “Figure it out!”, no instead, they require on-the-job training and job shadowing prior so that the new employee can use observational learning to understand their role. So if this practice works so well then why isn’t it being used in schools? It is but there are some subjects that make it a little more challenging to be hands on. That’s why it is important as educators to look for opportunities when lesson planning to utilize hands on experience if able to, which is explained in this video by Sean Rice.

One related study looked at the path to becoming a teacher and concluded that teachers’ effectiveness was mostly influenced by their placement with an effective mentor. This may seem like a no brainer but the study also looked at student teachers’ schools and specific factors associated with their place of study such as diversity, staff turnover, etc. The study was based on a sample of 1,000 student teachers in the Washington state area and they evaluated the mentors educational value prior to pairing the student teachers. They then followed the sample of 1,000 student teachers in the workforce and found a positive correlation between their students’ standardized test scores and the educational value of the mentorship they received. People tend to associate hands-on learning with trades, when in reality it can be utilized to enhance learning in all fields of study.

Another similar study looked at 30 different elementary schools and observed teacher performance (specifically in math and english) after they had received on-the-job learning from their colleagues. They shared what they concluded in this quote.

“Results suggest that formal professional development and on-the-job opportunities to learn are both significantly associated with changes in teachers’ instructional practice in mathematics and English language arts.”

Parise, L., & Spillane, J. (2010). Teacher Learning and Instructional Change: How Formal and On-the-Job Learning Opportunities Predict Change in Elementary School Teachers’ Practice

Now this study focused on teachers with all sorts of teaching experience as opposed to focusing on student teachers, which begs to question if their needs to be more observational learning for our teachers regardless of experience?

After researching social cognitive theory I also had some other questions, like where does behavioral modeling fit in with progressive education? Are the four schools that designed their culture around sustainability a model for what future schools will look like? If modeling is the future, then how do schools get parents and communities on the same page? Could educational video games or interactive simulation be a suitable resource for modeling? In your own experience what lessons stand out the most to you throughout your educational career and how can you relate them back to social cognitive theory? Feel free to discuss in the comments down below!

Each week we have new guest bloggers, follow us to stay in the loop – just click the follow button on the lower righthand side.

Sources

Bandura, A. (1989). Social cognitive theory. In R. Vasta (Ed.), Annals of child development. Vol.6. Six theories of child development (pp. 1-60). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.

Amy, L. H., & McMillan, V. M. (2006). Teaching through modeling: Four schools’ experiences in sustainability education. The Journal of Environmental Education, 38(1), 39-53. Retrieved from https://ezproxy.augsburg.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.augsburg.edu/docview/233055421?accountid=8430

Parise, L., & Spillane, J. (2010). Teacher Learning and Instructional Change: How Formal and On-the-Job Learning Opportunities Predict Change in Elementary School Teachers’ Practice. The Elementary School Journal, 110(3), 323-346. doi:10.1086/648981

Goldhaber, D., Krieg, J., & Theobald, R. (2019, May 20). Leveraging the Student Teaching Experience to Train Tomorrow’s Great Teachers. Retrieved June 14, 2019, from https://www.brookings.edu/blog/brown-center-chalkboard/2019/05/20/leveraging-the-student-teaching-experience-to-train-tomorrows-great-teachers/

Denler, H., Wolters, C., & Benzon, M. (2014). Social Cognitive Theory: An Overview for Educators. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/social-cognitive-theory/

Each week we have new guest bloggers, follow us to stay in the loop – just click the follow button on the lower righthand side.

If you are anything like me and the many experts that we have read about and listened to this week, you may agree that progressive education is something that is difficult to put into a single sentence (Ryan, 2017). It’s something that is better explained through a variety of educational experiences rather than a simple definition. I think many of us have grown up with the “traditional education” experience, so trying to imagine something different often causes some uneasiness. After watching the video “Changing Education Paradigms,” a speech written by world renowned education and creativity expert Sir Ken Robinson, I’m left wondering why we aren’t rethinking the educational experience for students (The RSA & Robinson, 2010).

In an effort to do justice to some of the foundational educational thinkers of our time, please allow me to take you through some of the theories behind progressive education. I will use constructivism as a lens to shed light on one form of progressive education called place-based learning. Before I get ahead of myself, let me start off with the meaning of constructivism.

Constructivism is the view of learning through experience (Seifert & Sutton, 2009).  For example, instead teaching students about biodiversity in plant species through books, lectures, and photos; constructivism would suggest that you bring students outside to count and document plant types as a means of anchoring learning in experience. There are two types of constructivism, psychological constructivism and social constructivism (Seifert & Sutton, 2009).

On the psychological side, humans learn through the experiences that they encounter. This aligns with Jean Piaget’s view, in which he states that humans bring their past experiences and apply their schema to new situations through assimilation. When the student’s schema does not align with the new situation, then they are put into disequilibrium. This is when the student uses accommodation to change or alter their thinking and to learn new material in order to bring them back to equilibrium. This results in the creation of a new schema (Seifert & Sutton, 2009).

Social constructivism lends itself to the theory of Lev Vygotsky, in which he states that we learn from interactions with people that are more capable.  It is important to note that Vygotsky suggested the opportunity to learn is fostered by exposure to experts, who help to relate the new information to prior knowledge that is already meaningful to the student. The knowledge gap that exists between a novice and the more knowledgeable other, the teacher, is called the zone of proximal development. The focus of the teacher or expert is taking on the role of a guide or facilitator, providing the opportunity to learn, and tailoring instruction to match the students’ progress (Seifert & Sutton, 2009).

 Lastly, I would be remiss if I did not mention John Dewey, who was said by many to be one of the main advocates of the progressive education movement. Dewey believed that learning should integrate the student into the decision-making process, or learning through democracy. The students’ talents, skills, and prior knowledge should help shape curriculum that is relevant and holds weight with the student (PBS). “John Dewey rejected the notion that schools should focus on repetitive, rote memorization & proposed a method of directed living” (UCD Teaching and Learning). He argued that learning done by doing is crucial to a child’s development (PBS).

So, by this point you are probably thinking, “Ok, thanks for the refresher,” but I now want you to think about what you picture when I say the word “classroom.”

Everyone have a mental image?

You probably thought of an indoor space, surrounded by a couple of walls. Maybe sprinkle in some desks arranged in rows or small groups. You may have pictured quiet students, a teacher at the front, a whiteboard, some computers, maybe a SMARTboard or projector. Alright, let’s call this the CLASSROOM WORLD. Hold onto that term for a moment.

Growing up in school, there always seemed to be that one student in the class that would ask, “When will I ever use this?” or “What is the REAL-WORLD application?” The teacher would do their best to relate content information to skills in the real world. The students would continue to learn the in-depth information, struggle to recall it on the test, and shortly after forget portions of the material to make room for new lessons.

What if I told you that by connecting the CLASSROOM WORLD and the REAL WORLD in the same place helps students to put content material into practice to gain a more thorough understanding? Hammond references this same idea when describing the third stage of information processing (Hammond, 2015).

“The application stage focuses on giving the brain opportunities to apply [the] new knowledge through deliberate practice and real life application. Opportunities to apply what we have learned come through place-based learning, project-based learning, or problem-based learning and help solidify learning”

(Hammond, Z., & Jackson, Y. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain: Promoting authentic engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin, a SAGE Company. 127.

So, what is place-based learning? The Place-based Education Evaluation Collaborative defines place-based education as

“[an immersion] in local heritage, culture, landscapes, opportunities, and experiences as a foundation for the study of language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, and other subjects. Place-based education encourages teachers and students to use the schoolyard, community, public lands, and other special places as resources, turning communities into classrooms.”

Place-Based Education Evaluation Collaborative (PEEC). (2010). The Benefits of Place-Based Education: A Report from the Place-Based Education Evaluation Collaborative [Brochure]. Retrieved June 8, 2019. 2.

Looking at the context of how Hammond uses the term place-based learning, you may be thinking that schools already do this to some extent. Well, instead of just doing it occasionally, only a few times a year, let’s take place-based learning and put it as the focus by which schools revolve around on a daily basis. To see what this looks like in practice check out Hood River Middle School in Hood River, OR. (Edutopia & Hood River Middle School, 2016)

What are the Benefits for Students?

Students that attend place-based learning schools are more engaged due to the hands-on approach to learning. Engagement is one thing, but in today’s educational climate focused on standardized test scores, how do these schools measure up?

The Environmental Middle School in Portland, Oregon, consists of more than 200 students in grades six through eight. The school focuses on natural processes and landforms as a means to teach social studies, science, math, and language arts. It has also been successful at attracting a diverse student population. The school’s location allows for students to use public transportation to take frequent field trips to connect their studies with place. Two days a week, classes take place in the natural landscape or community. The remaining days of the week are typical classroom days. “Students at the Environmental Middle School consistently perform at high levels in comparison to their peers in other schools, despite the fact that their teachers do not focus on test preparation” (Smith, 2002, p. 589).

A study conducted by the Harvard Graduate School of Education for the Rural Trust looked at the benefits for connecting students’ education with the local community. The study evaluation concluded that as schools work together with the community “students’ academic achievement improves, their interest in their community increases, teachers are more satisfied with their profession, and community members are more connected to the schools and to the students” (Powers, 2004, p. 18).  

What are the Benefits for the Community?

Place-based education anchors learning in the community and surrounding environment which helps to validate students and the world that they come from. Whether a students’ culture is more collective based or individual, this educational approach makes learning relevant and meaningful by empowering students through community projects and individualized instruction.  Gregory Smith, associate professor for the Graduate School of Education at Lewis and Clark College states,

“The primary value of place-based education lies in the way that it serves to strengthen children’s connections to others and to the regions in which they live. It enhances achievement, but, more important, it helps overcome the alienation and isolation of individuals that have become hallmarks of modernity. By reconnecting rather than separating children from the world, place-based education serves both individuals and communities, helping individuals to experience the value they hold for others and allowing communities to benefit from the commitment and contributions of their members.”

Smith, G. A. (2002). Place-Based Education: Learning to be Where We Are. Phi Delta Kappan, 83(8), 594.

So, there you have it.  Place-based education, a progressive alternative to today’s educational approach.

Now consider these questions:

What are some lessons we can take away from place-based learning?

How can we apply them to a traditional classroom?

What does the next generation of education look like?

References

Edutopia & Hood River Middle School. (2016, April 19). Place Based Learning: Connecting Kids to Their Community. Retrieved June 8, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQi2UWzba3g

Hammond, Z., & Jackson, Y. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain: Promoting authentic engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin, a SAGE Company.

PBS. Only A Teacher, School House Pioneers: John Dewey (1890-1952) (C. Scott, Ed.). Retrieved June 8, 2019, from https://www.pbs.org/onlyateacher/john.html

Place-Based Education Evaluation Collaborative (PEEC). (2010). The Benefits of Place-Based Education: A Report from the Place-Based Education Evaluation Collaborative [Brochure]. Retrieved June 8, 2019, from https://promiseofplace.org/research-evaluation/research-and-evaluation/benefits-of-place-based-education

Powers, A. L. (2004). An Evaluation of Four Place-Based Education Programs. The Journal of Environmental Education, 35(4), 17-32. doi:10.3200/joee.35.4.17-32

Ryan, D. P. (2017, October 31). “Why Progressive Education?” The Progressive Education Approach. Retrieved June 8, 2019, from https://youtu.be/aIXM4rt736I

Seifert, K., & Sutton, R. (2009). Educational Psychology (2nd ed.). The Saylor Foundation.

Smith, G. A. (2002). Place-Based Education: Learning to be Where We Are. Phi Delta Kappan, 83(8), 584-594. Retrieved June 8, 2019.

The RSA & Robinson, K. (2010, October 14). RSA ANIMATE: Changing Education Paradigms. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U

UCD Teaching and Learning. (n.d.). Education Theory: Constructivism and Social Constructivism. Retrieved June 8, 2019, from http://www.ucdoer.ie/index.php/Education_Theory/Constructivism_and_Social_Constructivism

Each week we have new guest bloggers, follow us to stay in the loop – just click the follow button on the lower righthand side.

This week we’re tackling how trauma affects information processing. This is a beast to unpack, so stay with me, folks. However, before we get into the meat of this analysis, let’s start from the beginning. What is information processing? And while we’re at it, we should probably explore trauma as well.  

Let’s start with information processing. The video below by the Association of American Medical Colleges and Khan Academy provides a helpful overview of information processing. In short, information processing is what allows our brains to store information for us to access later.

Information processing starts with deciding what information is important to process. Zaretta Hammond, in her book Culturally Responsive Teaching & the Brain, explains that the reticular activating system in the lower part of our brain helps complete this task. Next, the information that the brain decides to process moves to the limbic brain, specifically the hippocampus, to be stored in short term memory. The information can fade from there or move to the elaboration stage. This is also called working memory, the place where our brain can put the information on a “tabletop” and organize it to remember later on. In this stage, the brain is working to make neural connections between existing information and the new information. The last stage, as Hammond describes, is application, in which the brain is working to strengthen the neural connections from the new learning. It is in this stage that students must use the information or lose it, or as Hammond explains in terms of neuroscience:

“The brain is working hard to turn those neurons’ new dendrites into a permanent neural pathway. We have 24-48 hours to revisit, review, and apply what we have learned in order to make it permanent and move it to long-term memory where it becomes part of our skill set, background knowledge, or conceptual understanding”

Zaretta Hammond, Culturally Responsive Teaching & the Brain (2015, p. 125-127)

Alright, set that information on the tabletop of your working memory. We’ll come back to it in a bit. The neuroscience tells me I’ve got about 20 minutes before we need to apply it to cement it.

For now, let’s turn to trauma. Trauma is more difficult to pin down, and even therapists and professionals working in the field of trauma seem to disagree on a single definition. Stephen Joseph,  Professor of Education at the University of Nottingham (2012), contends that there are two schools of thought regarding trauma: trauma can be described as a deeply distressing or disturbing experience, encompassing events from “everyday life,” or trauma can be defined more specifically as an event “involving actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others, and which involved fear, helplessness, or horror.” For the purposes of this investigation, we aren’t going to dive into which definition is right or wrong—rather, it’s important to know that there are some murky waters in this discussion.

Trauma therapist, Odelya Gertel Kraybill, takes this one step further and dives into developmental trauma which she defines as trauma that occurs early in life, disrupting normal sequences of brain development and the subsequent cognitive, emotional, physical and social development (2019). Because we are a group of educators, after all, let’s spend our time here—unpacking how early-in-life trauma affects the brain.

Kraybill explains that the brain is meant to develop like a ladder—meaning the healthy development of the lower part of our brains, responsible for survival and stress response, paves the way for the development of the higher parts of our brains, responsible for executive functioning like problem solving or exercising moral judgement. When trauma occurs while lower parts of the brain are still developing, foundational steps for the healthy development of our higher brains are missing.

Others in the field seem to agree. Corey Teague (2009), in his dissertation examining academic achievement and trauma, adds that because trauma occurring in childhood disrupts critical development milestones, trauma among children can have much more complex outcomes than trauma occurring in adulthood. He goes further to say that two crucial parts of the brain affected by trauma are the amygdala and hippocampus which, we learned above, play important roles in information processing (p. 41).

Now we can start to see the connection between these two concepts. Information processing begins with the reticular activating system sending a message to our limbic system. Great. However, Kraybill explained that trauma occurring during the development of our lower brain (the reticular activating system) affects later development, and Teague explained that trauma affects two major components of our limbic system—the amygdala and the hippocampus. If the reticular activating system is in charge of input and the limbic system is in charge of short term and working memory, then it is clear how trauma during the development of these systems has the potential to put the whole information processing system off kilter.

Additional scientific research supports this argument. In research published last year, a team of researchers measured brain waves among young females with Acute Stress Disorder (ASD), a condition that can develop after experiencing trauma (Han, C., Park, M., Lee, J., Jung, H. Y., Park, S. M., & Choi, J., 2018). The study was targeting the P300 brainwave, as it reflects neural activity related to working memory processes. The researchers found that the amplitude of the P300 brainwave was reduced significantly among the participants with ASD, compared to the control participants. The team concluded that these findings indicate that there are information processing deficits among patients with ASD, suggesting that young people who experience trauma may not process information at the same capacity as their peers who have not experienced trauma. (Stay tuned later for a discussion on improving the deficit-based language seen here.)

Alright, so we’ve gotten pretty deep into this inquiry, but what does this all mean for educators? Teague explains why this presents a problem specifically for educators:

“One of the main goals of education is for the child to process information presented to him in a manner that allows him to retrieve that same information at a later date.” 

Corey Teague (2009)

So, I am left wondering:

What now?

Shawn Ginwright, Professor at San Fransisco State University, in his article The Future of Healing: Shifting From Trauma Informed Care to Healing Centered Engagement explains that the term “trauma-informed care” has gained popularity as a way to support students who have experienced trauma, describing the philosophy as a necessary change from policies such as discipline and suspension that further harm such students. Trauma-informed care looks to support the person instead of the symptoms, through restorative practices such as therapy or counseling. And while trauma-informed care is an essential shift from previous policies, Ginwright argues that it doesn’t go far enough.

He argues that trauma-informed care runs the risk of reducing students to their trauma and harm rather than seeing a whole person capable of healing and possessing potential. Trauma-informed care also looks at the experience as an individual problem, rather than a collective experience that requires healing among neighborhoods, families, schools and communities. Ginwright offers an alternate philosophy, called healing-centered, “involving culture, spirituality, civic action and collective healing.” Healing-centered involves changing the way we look at trauma, and moving into an asset-based approach, rooted in a deep belief that culture, identity and interconnectedness have power. The approach also puts an emphasis on changing the systems that create trauma, tackling the issue as political rather than clinical. In his article, Ginwright gives more examples of what a healing-centered approach looks like, offering an important and necessary resource for anybody working with youth. Check it out and give it a full read.

Alright, you made it through! Come back again in a day if you really want to hold on to what you’ve learned. Comment below with your ideas for creating a healing-centered classroom or with your thoughts on the information presented above.

References

Gatewood, H. Purple and Pink Plasma Ball. [Image]. Retrieved from
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