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Using a Framework of6 Key Principles to Increase the Effectiveness of Smaller Classes

Maurice GaltonFaculty of Education,

University of Cambridge UK

Seminar on Small Class Teaching – Leadership for LearningJune 2010 Hong Kong

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Six Principles to guide improvements in practice

• Clear statement of learning objectives• Extended questioning during whole class discussion• More active pupil participation• Increased cooperation between pupils by working in pairs

and groups• Less use of corrective and more informing feedback• More use of the assessment for learning approach

Whenever possible exploration precedes instruction and examples are situated in contexts that are meaningful to the pupils

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Justification for the Six Principles

1. Empirical: John Hattie’s meta analysis of numerous studies shows that following these principles results in gains in attainment of the order of 0.5 effect size.

2. Theories of learning (particularly social constructivist ones) predict many of these empirical findings, particularly the idea that ‘talk drives learning.’

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First Key Principle: Specifying learning objectives

Too often objectives are specified only in terms of the content or task (e.g. To count in tens from one to a hundred, to memorise the words of a song/poem)

Teachers need also to consider the purpose behind these activities. Is it to facilitate problem solving (counting) to aid comprehension (recitation) etc?

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Some key action words when specifying learning objectives

Low level (transmission): to recall, define, identify, state, recognise, name, list, measure

Medium level (application): to use, show, perform, explain, illustrate, predict, interpret

Higher level (understanding): to classify, design, organise, compose, discover, summarise, conclude, separate

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Some key questions when specifying learning objectives

• Have I not only described the activity but also its purpose?

• Have I described the purposes in terms of expected pupil behaviour using action words?

• Have I linked the stated objectives to appropriate use of teaching methods? In general the higher the level the less direct instruction and the greater use of teaching strategies based on the six principles.

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Second Key Principle: Extended questioning during class discussion

Much questioning consists of rapid exchanges between the teacher and an individual pupil. In promoting higher level objectives pupils need to partake in more thoughtful discourse. This requires teachers

To provide some ‘thinking’ (wait time). To use encouraging phrases such as,

“Interesting. Can you say more?” “Does anyone else want to add more?” rather than repeating the first answer.

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Some key questions about extended class discussion

• How many pupils generally participated?

• Were thinking times sufficient?

• Did the pupils’ responses indicate that more than simple recall was taking place?

• Did my (the teacher’s) responses help to extend discussion?

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Third Key Principle: More active pupil participation

When endeavouring to apply newly acquired knowledge to novel situations pupils generally find it easier to gain understanding through ‘learning by doing’. It helps if

The context is a familiar one Ideas are shared through activities such as

‘brainstorming’, creating ‘concept maps’, etc as a form of initial scaffolding

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Some key questions aboutactive pupil participation

• As far as possible was the task situated in a context which was meaningful for the pupils?

• Was there some initial exploration of the pupils’ ideas before activity began?

• Was the task sufficiently motivating?• Did pupils demonstrate understanding by

reaching reasonable conclusions?

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Fourth Key Principle: Increased cooperation between pupils

Group and pair work often fails because There is not sufficient academic challenge. Organisation allows only some children to

actively engage in the task. Rules of cooperation have not been established

and are not re-enforced. Class does not engage in a debriefing session in

which they discuss how well they worked together etc. and ways of doing better next time.

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Key questions about increased cooperation between pupils

• Was adequate time allowed?

• Did the task allow most of the pupils to actively participate for most of the time?

• Were pupils reminded about the rules (e.g. taking turns, listening carefully etc.)?

• Did the class have a chance to discuss how well they worked as a group/pair?

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Fifth Key Principle: Less use of corrective and more informing feedback

Much feedback consists of showing pupils where they went wrong and then providing the right answer (corrective feedback)

Feedback can also be used to help pupils to learn how to spot their own mistakes and eventually to self-correct (informing feedback)

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3 Kinds of Feedback1 About Self: should focus on effort rather than on

person. Thus ‘That’s a good try’ rather than ‘Well done’. Purpose is re-enforcement.

2 Task processing: (informing) ‘Where have you got to?’ ‘What do you think may have gone wrong?’ ‘What are you going to do next?’ Purpose is self-regulation.

3 Evaluative: (corrective) most powerful when it is about faulty interpretation rather than supplying missing information. ‘Show me how you got that answer’ rather than, ‘ You need to do it like this.’

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3 Kinds of Feedback: Effect sizesTask processing

self-regulation (informing) 0.95

cues 1.10

Self

re-enforcement of effort 0.94

praise 0.14

Evaluative

corrective 0.37

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Key questions about less use of corrective and more informing feedback

• Did I praise effort as well as success?

• Did my questions help pupils to spot where they went wrong or how they could improve their work?

• When correcting a piece of work did I get the pupil to show me how s/he arrived at the answer?

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Sixth Key Principle: Use of the assessment for learning approach

Assessment for learning makes use of formative assessment in order to diagnose pupils’ learning difficulties and thereby provide the required teaching to remedy these deficiencies. At its lowest it employs techniques such as ‘traffic lights’ to sort pupils into groups for attention. At its best it is personalised and caters for individual needs.

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Key questions in the use of the assessment for learning approach

• Were the forms of classroom organisation sufficiently flexible to allow groups of pupils with similar learning needs to come together?

• Was much of the formative assessment based on what pupils said and did rather than what they wrote?

• Did I build these oral assessments into a pupil profile?

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Professional Development

In facilitating teachers’ paradigm shift in pedagogy, the approach of “Learning Circles” has been crucial. Both inter-school sharing across subjects and intra-school sharing of pedagogical issues, which focuses at any one time on a specific aspects of pedagogy, allows teachers to observe and evaluate each other’s classroom practice and thereby enhances the participants’ professionalism.

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Some Indicators of SuccessWhat a school Principal might look for

1. Teachers shift from interactions with pupils which are brief and random to those that are longer and more sustained.

2. Lessons often provide opportunities for pupils to explore their ideas before formal instruction begins.

3 There is an increase in the proportion of pupil talk, much of it occurring between pupils.

4. Teachers become skilled at assessing pupils’ understanding on the basis of what they say rather than what they write.

5. Teachers are prepared to change classroom layout to meet the requirements of different learning tasks and different kinds of learning talk.

6. Pupils are required to reflect critically on the procedures and methods used when actively engaged on tasks.

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Key References

Hattie, J. (2005) The paradox of reducing class size and improving learning outcomes, International Journal of Educational Research, 43 (6) 387-425.

Hattie, J. and Timperley, H (2007) The Power of Feedback, Revue of Educational Research, 77 (1):81-112.

Watkins, C (2003) Learning: A sense-makers guide, London: Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL).

Wood, D. (1998) How Children Think and Learn, Oxford: Blackwells.