Lesson Planning « learntolearn

One Path to Facilitating a Child’s Executive Function Learning

by Fran

What Path Can We Follow to Facilitate a Child’s Executive Function Learning?

Here’s one pathway to follow:

Begin with a Tentative Definition.

Understand Normal Development of Cognitive/Social/Emotional Learning.

Exploring Models of Executive Function, including models that address, for example, Self-Management, Self-Direction, Self-Regulation. These “Self-“ models often address the same attitudes, skills and behavior.

Translating the most promising model for your situation into Context-Based Instruction

*Begin with a Plan to Understand and Collaborate with Individual Children

*Choose Instructional Principles

*Sequence Goals and Objectives

*Engage in Diagnostic Teaching

*Monitor Progress

*Work toward Generalization

Apply to A Domain and then Across Domains

Continue to Grow By Following the Literature (Reference List)

Beliefs About Learning Classrooms and Context Collaborative Learning Executive Function Lesson Planning

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Kids as Executive Learners (5): Understanding By Design (UbD)

by Fran

This is the last in a series of learning framework that focuses more generally on how students learn, although each has some reference to the concept of self-management. Subsequent posts will look at two other types of teaching/learning frameworks: individualizing learning and personal qualities of learners, which focus more singularly and specifically on ideas related to “executive function”.

In this post I focus on what I understand to be the connections between the PORTALS framework and the Understanding by Design framework. The connections noted come from a publication that lists “The Big Ideas of Understanding by Design,” published in http://www.grantwiggins.org/documents/UbDQuikvue1005.pdf For additional details of their work, see the links below the chart.

	Understanding by Design by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe is a well- developed framework first published as a text in 1998 and revised in 2005. In listing their Big Ideas of Understanding by Design, they list #1 as “UbD is a way of thinking purposefully about curriculum planning and school reform, a set of helpful design tools, and design standards—not a program or recipe.” (p. 14) I directly quote these Big Ideas below.
PURPOSE	6 UbD transforms Content Standards and other goals into focused learning targets based on “big ideas” and transfer tasks.
OPERATIONS	3 Evidence of understanding is revealed through performance—when learners transfer knowledge and skills effective—using one or more “facets” (explain, interpret, apply, shift perspectives, empathize, and self-assess).
REMEMBERING	2 “…and the ability to transfer learning….”
TEAM WORK	4 Educators are coaches of understanding, not mere purveyors of content and activity. 8 UbD reflects a “continuous improvement” approach to design and learning. The results of our curriculum designs (e.g., assessment results, quality of student work, degree of learner engagement) inform needed adjustments.
ACTION	2 The end goals of UbD is understanding and the ability to transfer learning—to appropriately connect, make sense of, and use discrete knowledge and skills in context. 5 Planning is best done “backward” from the desired results and the transfer tasks that embody the goals.
LAYING A FOUNDATION	2 “….to appropriately connect, make sense of, and use discrete knowledge (and skills) in context.”
SELF-MANAGEMENT	7 Design Standards guide self-assessment and peer reviews of curriculum, instruction, and assessment for quality control.

For additional information about the Understanding by Design framework, see the links below.

See McTighe’s ASCD article on the “confluence of evidence from two streams—theoretical research in cognitive psychology, and results of student achievement studies.” Found at

http://jaymctighe.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/A_Summary_of_Underlying_Theory_and_Research2.pdf

For a detailed description of this UbD work see:

http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/siteASCD/publications/UbD_WhitePaper0312.pdf

Source: Adapted from Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2011). The Understanding by Design guide to creating high-quality units. Alexandria, VA: ASCD

Or see comments on the 2^nd Edition:

http://www.ascd.org/Publications/Books/Overview/Understanding-by-Design-Expanded-2nd-Edition.aspx

About This Book

”What is understanding and how does it differ from knowledge? How can we determine the big ideas worth understanding? Why is understanding an important teaching goal, and how do we know when students have attained it? How can we create a rigorous and engaging curriculum that focuses on understanding and leads to improved student performance in today’s high-stakes, standards-based environment?

Authors Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe answer these and many other questions in this second edition of Understanding by Design. Drawing on feedback from thousands of educators around the world who have used the UbD framework since its introduction in 1998, the authors have greatly revised and expanded their original work to guide educators across the K–16 spectrum in the design of curriculum, assessment, and instruction…. “

Beliefs About Learning Foundational Beliefs Frameworks/Research Lesson Planning

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KaEL: Cognitive Apprenticeships (4)

by Fran

Cognitive Apprenticeship: Making Thinking Visible by Allan Collins, John Seely Brown, and Ann Holum:

Authors’ permission for publishing on the internet noted on internet site: Reprinted with permission from the Winter 1991 issue of the AMERICAN EDUCATOR, the Quarterly journal of the American Federation of Teachers.

The authors draw a contrast between “cognitive apprenticeship” and both schooling and traditional “apprenticeship.” They provide details about creating environments with focus on the content taught, pedagogical methods employed, the sequencing of learning activities and the sociology of learning. Following a critique of schooling based on the lack of visibility of both the teacher’s and the students’ thinking and problem solving, they propose a model that:

“^Identifies the processes of the task and makes them visible to students;

^Situates abstract tasks in authentic contexts, so that students understand the relevant of the work; and

^Vary the diversity of situations and articulate the common aspects so that students can transfer wheat they learn.”

Before going into detail on the “cognitive apprenticeship” model, they offer examples in reading (Reciprocal Teaching). Writing ((1985; Scardamalia, Bereiter, and Steinbach, 1984), and Math (Schoenfeld (1983, 1985).

P.O.R.T.A.L.S.	Cognitive Apprenticeship: Making Thinking Visible by Allan Collins, John Seely Brown, and Ann Holum: There are 4 dimensions to the Cognitive Apprenticeship model: Content (Domain Knowledge, Heuristic strategies, Control strategies, and Learning strategies); Method (Modeling, Coaching, Scaffolding, Articulation, Reflection, and Exploration); Sequencing (Global before local skills, Increasing complexity, and Increasing diversity), and Sociology (Situated learning, Community of practice, Intrinsic motivation and Cooperation)
Purpose	Sociology: Intrinsic motivation; Method: Exploration (teacher invites students to pose & solve their own problems
Operations	*Content*: Heuristic strategies, Control strategies, Learning Strategies
Remembering	Sequencing: By implication-tasks leading to generalization Sociology: Situated Learning: Carrying out tasks and solving problem that reflect use in the future
Team Work	Sociology: Situated learning. Community of practice, Cooperation. Method: Modeling, Coaching, Scaffolding Content: types of knowledge required for expertise: Heuristic strategies, Control strategies, Learning strategies)
Action	Method: Exploration Sequencing: Increasing complexity, Increasing diversity
Laying a Foundation	Content: Domain Knowledge, Global before local (building a conceptual map before exploring the terrain) Content: types of knowledge required for expertise: Heuristic strategies, Control strategies, Learning strategies)
Self-Management	Method: Articulation, Reflection, Exploration

Some additional links. Note that some of these links have cautions about opening the link.

The 21st Century Learning Initiative gives you the full article from American Educator

http://www.21learn.org/archive/cognitive-apprenticeship-making-thinking-visible/

Remember to scroll down on this site to get to the article on Cognitive Apprenticeship

Cognitive Apprenticeship links:

http://web.cortland.edu/frieda/ID/IDtheories/37.html

Developed by Linda Darling-Hammond, Kim Austin, Ira Lit, and Daisy Martin With Contributions From Annmarie Palincsar Stanford University School of Education

http://www.learner.org/courses/learningclassroom/support/08_cog_app.pdf

Beliefs About Learning Collaborative Learning Frameworks/Research Lesson Planning Metacognition

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Connecting Frameworks and P.O.R.T.A.L.S. Planning

by Fran

Here is one example of connections I have made with the “Authentic Learning” framework. Over the next few posts, I will show connections to other frameworks that have influenced my thinking on how learners become “Executive Learners.” My goal is to translate these ideas into “Actions” that teachers (and students) can take to help Kids become “Executive Learners.”

PORTALS	Authentic Learninghttp://authenticlearning.info/AuthenticLearning/Home.htmlSee also:Herrington, J. and Oliver, R. (2000) An instructional design framework for authentic learning environments. Educational Technology Research and Development, 48 (3) If you click on the links below the chart, you will see the “Authentic Learning” framework in much more detail.
Purpose	1.Provide authentic contexts that reflect the way the knowledge will be used in real life2.Provide authentic tasks and activities
Operations	3. 3.Provide access to expert performances and the modelling of processes (See also 4—enable abstractions)
Remembering
Team Work	4. 4.Provide *multiple roles and perspectives5. 5.Support collaborative construction* of knowledge
Action	1. 1.Provide authentic contexts that reflect the way the knowledge will be used in real life9.Provide for authentic assessment of learning within the tasks
Laying a Foundation	6. 6.Promote reflection to enable abstractions to be formed(See also 3—expert performance)
Self-Management	7. 7.Promote articulation to enable tacit knowledge to be made explicit8. 8.Provide *coaching* and *scaffolding* by the teacher at critical times

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

AUTHENTIC LEARNING MODEL

Multiple perspectives

Collaboration

Articulation

Reflection

Coaching and scaffolding

Authentic assessment

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

AUTHENTICITY MATRIX

Beliefs About Learning Frameworks/Research Heart and Mind Learning How to Learn Learning Process (Operations) Lesson Planning Meta Teachers

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How Do You Plan for Metacognitive Learning?

by Fran

A revised post from July 1, 2014

Do you need to plan for “learning how to learn” (metacognitive learning)? How do we teach students to do that? Could they write their own “lesson plans? Here’s one “lesson planning” framework for meta learning:

P.O.R.T.A.L.S. PLAN	Expectations–Strengths and Challenges; Reflections
PURPOSE: What is the goal for this lesson or unit? Is the goal clear? Do you need to break it down into smaller parts?
OPERATIONS: How will you process the concepts/facts/ideas? Do you know/understand the “action” verbs (identify, trace, analyze, etc.)? Do you have the skills necessary to carry out these cognitive operations? If not, what will you do to get help?
REMEMBERING: You will need to “hold on to” the ideas/information in working memory and transfer and retrieve the ideas/info to and from long term memory. How will you do that?
TEAM WORK: Who can help you do the task/reach the goal/solve the problem? How would they help?
ACTION: What will the outcome of your work be? How will you demonstrate what you have learned/achieved? Will you disseminate the outcome? How? How will you use formative and summative feedback?
LAYING A FOUNDATION. All goals are about something—the content: concepts, ideas, information. What content will you need/use to achieve your goal? How will you use and/or expand your current knowledge base about that content?
SELF-MANAGEMENT: Is your plan for making this a successful experience a good starting place? Do you have strategies for each part of the plan? When and how will you reflect on your learning process and outcome?

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Beliefs About Learning Learning How to Learn Lesson Planning Metacognition

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Learning About Learning: Working Memory

by Fran

Learning is “multidimensional.” Here is one important dimension!

Here is a link to add to your knowledge base about learning:

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/put-working-memory-to-work-donna-wilson-marcus-conyers

Put Working Memory to Work in Learning

February 12, 2015 Donna Wilson, Ph.D.

Developer of Masters and Ed.S. Degree Programs in Brain-Based Teaching

An excerpt:

“Working memory involves the conscious processing and managing of information required to carry out complex cognitive tasks such as learning, reasoning, and comprehension. It has been described as the brain’s conductor. Memory has long been viewed as a key aspect of learning, but as the emphasis in educational standards has shifted away from rote memorization and toward the knowledge and skills needed to process new information, working memory is increasingly taking center stage.”

Learning Process (Operations) Lesson Planning Metacognition Remembering (R)

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Here’s One Teacher’s Answer to When….

by Fran

Here’s one teachers view on “when” to teach kids to be metacognitive.

An excerpt

“This year I decided to study formative assessment plans and the use of said plans to help students create and meet learning goals. Thus began my journey of studying and practicing formative assessment plans to help my students create and meet learning goals. The nature of the literacy interventionist is to adjust teaching to meet learners’ needs. That’s just what we do. However, I wasn’t consciously using the information gained to share with my little learners. I was telling them my analysis, and showing them how to do it my way. I never really discussed their learning with them. Until now!….” (Bolding mine)

http://www.adventuresinliteracyland.com/

Classrooms and Context Learner Stories (Self-Management} Lesson Planning

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And Still More About Hearing Children’s Voices (about Learning)

by Fran

Personalized Learning and Query Books
DECEMBER 11, 2014
Cathy Knutson An excerpt

“My interest in personalized learning and Genius Hour began changing how I worked with students, as I created opportunities for them to choose the way they demonstrate their learning, and provided choices for collaboration. I focused them on creating and sharing with their own voice.
An obstacle became immediately apparent as students began to direct their own learning. When allowed to choose which interests to pursue, many of my students didn’t know where to begin! They were not accustomed to this responsibility and didn’t consider their own ideas to be as valuable as those provided by others.

“They were not accustomed to this responsibility and didn’t consider their own ideas to be as valuable as those provided by others. Many struggled with the act of being curious or with pondering their own questions. They simply hadn’t given it much thought and couldn’t just flip a switch for instant illumination. As fourth and fifth grade students, they were used to adults telling them what to do rather than asking them to pursue their own ideas and interests — especially in an educational setting. They needed extra time to focus on and mull over their options. You cannot develop passion projects if you have no passion or haven’t really considered what those passions are. They had to first think through what piqued their interest. What would they like to know more about? What everyday problems have they noticed that need solutions? If they had never thought about it, they needed to reexamine their world with their eyes open to problems and their minds eager to find solutions.”

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/personalized-learning-and-query-books-cathy-knutson

Learner Stories (Self-Management} Learning How to Learn Lesson Planning Uncategorized Voices and Choices

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Hearing Learners’ Voices, Making Learning Transparent

by Fran

A short excerpt from a Grant Wiggins’ post on what 5th graders think about learning..

https://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2014/11/14/5th-graders-speak-out-survey-results/

A survey of what 5th graders think about school and learning….an excerpt

I learn best in class when –
1. Teacher is explaining a subject well and not upset or being strict because a student is being annoying.
2. Teacher is not talking too much and keeps the class moving
3. I learn best in class when the teacher explains things clearly
4. When they show pictures or videos or do not talk too little or too much.
5. Is showing a video.
6. Is describing clearly and orderly.
7……………33

Learner's Stories Lesson Planning Metacognition

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Meta Connections online

by Fran

I came across a blog on my email and thought it was a good match for my work on Metacogntion.

I believe that the following blog post on Edutopia of Giving Student Voice and Choice by Rebecca Alber reflects many of the Meta Learning Foundations:

Meta Learning Foundations: Learning to Learn Blog
This P.O.R.T.A.L.S. Lesson Plan format is based on five foundational beliefs.
(1) Students are capable of learning to direct their own learning.
(2) Learning is situated in particular contexts and is best when motivated by authentic goals and outcomes.
(3) Learning is most successful when it addresses both the strengths and challenges of individual learners.
(4) Students learn about something (concept/idea/skill/process) and use a variety of cognitive and affective processes to accomplish that learning.
(5) Building a learning community in the classroom/school benefits all learners.
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/five-strategies-more-voice-choice-students-rebecca-alber
“Two educational theorists who inform my thinking about co-constructing knowledge are Vygotsky and Freire. Both saw learning as a social act, where teachers and students dialogued and all created knowledge together, rather than teachers filling the students with content and information as if they were empty vessels”
(5) Building a learning community in the classroom/school benefits all learners.

#1) Stuff We Want to Know About
“Brainstorm an on-going class list of “stuff” they want to know about and are interested in — a phenomena, an event, a law, for example. If you are a science, math, or history teacher, you can ask that it be about those topics, but I also encourage you to have it be about anything (and then you can find connections to content later). Inquiry is a skill all teachers should build regardless of content..”
(1) Students are capable of learning to direct their own learning.
(2) Learning is situated in particular contexts and is best when motivated by authentic goals and outcomes.

#3) Assessing Their Needs & Wants
”We should never underestimate the power of the five-point Likert scale as a quick, quantitative measure to see where students are. You can create several statements for a unit of study to gauge student interest first, and then their understanding and experience with the content, materials, activities….”
(3) Learning is most successful when it addresses both the strengths and challenges of individual learners.

#4) Think-Alouds
Model for students your learning as you read aloud an article on a current event or a topic of study. For example, as you read, pause, asking questions and making comments and connections to things you already know or even things you’ve explored as a class. Then have students do the same with a partner, then eventually in groups of three or four. For high school students, I like Kelly Gallagher’s Article of the Week he uses with his high school students. Building the prior knowledge of students is also part of our job — and not just knowledge about the content we teach, but also about the world.
(4) Students learn about something (concept/idea/skill/process) and use a variety of cognitive and affective processes to accomplish that learning.

#5) Project Options & Self-Grading
“When we think about how this sounds, “You will have several projects to choose from,” instead of, “You will create a tri-fold poster…” it might remind us that no matter the age, we all like to have choices especially when it comes to demonstrating our skills and abilities….”
(1) Students are capable of learning to direct their own learning.