Task 1-3 - educ 533- Best Practices Research

Research on Best Practices in Education

Block Scheduling - I experienced block scheduling for the first time this past school year and I thought it was great. As the NEA website suggests, "Students have more time for reflection and less information to process over the course of a school day." This is a major pro in my mind for having a block schedule. With the current 7 period schedule, I find that students are overwhelmed with the information they learn in up to 7 classes in one day. In addition, the 7 period schedule seems to decrease what the teacher and students are able to accomplish in the classroom and therefore the teacher must schedule more homework to make up for the lost time. I also liked that the block schedule gave teachers more contact time with students for individualized instruction.

http://www.nea.org/tools/16816.htm

Cooperative Learning - The idea that students sit in teams and help each other learn seems like a great way to teach. For one, students often explain concepts in a language that is easy for their peers to understand. As I do my practicum in the middle school, I see students sitting in groups of 4 and there are specific rules posted on the wall for group work. The most important rule is that no one is finished until all group members completely understand the assignment. The other rule I liked is that no one is allowed to ask the teacher a question unless all group members are confused as well. Students will experience tremendous growth from this arrangement as they learn to struggle through problems and work in teams.

http://www.nea.org/tools/16870.htm

Research on Best Practices in Instruction

Math Power Hour - This one caught my attention because it was submitted by an elementary school near my hometown in Walnut Creek, CA. The school was able to raise state math scores from 85% passing to 100% passing and 35% Commended level performance to 43%. The school gave the students an assessment at the start of the year and a list of missed objectives was generated. The students were then placed into small groups based on the areas they missed for a weekly "power hour" where the teacher spent the entire hour working on mastery of those skills. I like this because the new principal saw that this was a problem and he did something about it. This method worked really well! I would consider this "deliberate practice" because they are working on specific areas with the intent to raise scores. It's shocking what happens when you actually teach to the student's needs.

http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/bestprac/bpc_instruction.html

Reinforcing effort and providing recognition (Marzano) - Studies have shown that a little praise for legitimate effort goes a long way in building confidence in students and motivating them to learn. Teachers should show students the connection between the added effort and the quality result. This is something that may seem obvious, but not enough teachers praise their students when they do things well. Especially at the middle school level, students are so fragile at this point that they are deeply affected by feedback from the teacher.

http://www.slideshare.net/Lorrene/marzanos-best-practices-and-instructional-strategies