Introduction...1 Factor: Instructional Strategies...9 Strategies Used at Regular Intervals in a Unit...13 Strategies Focusing on Input Experiences...47 Strategies for Reviewing, Practicing, and Applying Content...73 Factor: Classroom Management...97 Strategies for Managing an Effective Classroom Environment...101 Factor: Classroom Curriculum Design...127 Strategies for Designing Curriculum Units...131
Factor: Instructional Strategies Strategies Used at Regular Intervals in a Unit...13 Teacher Planning Guide for Establishing Clear Learning Goals...27 Identifying Your Unit Learning Goals: A Tool for Students...29 Monitoring Student Progress: A Teacher Tool...31 Student Learning Goals Log...33 Student Learning Reflections...35 Balancing Individual and Group Work: A Teacher Tool...37 Student Action Plan for Improving Understanding of Unit Concepts...39 Celebrating Successful Attainment of Learning Goals: A Teacher Tool...41 Putting It All Together...43 Strategies Focusing on Input Experiences...47 Planning for Input Experiences: A Teacher Tool...57 Three-Column te-taking Template...59 Think-Write-Pair-Share...61 Organizing My Thinking...63 Connecting My Learning: A Tool for Students...67 Putting It All Together...69 Strategies for Reviewing, Practicing, and Applying Content...73 Planning for Reviewing, Practicing, and Applying During a Unit: A Teacher Tool...81 Student Decision-Making Template: Applying My Knowledge...83 Classifying Content: A Tool for Students...85 Unit Homework Reflections...87 Picturing What I m Learning...89 Putting It All Together...91 Resources for Instructional Strategies...92 9
Factor: Instructional Strategies Section Strategies Focusing on Input Experiences Input-oriented strategies support students in understanding the content they are about to study and serve two interrelated functions: (1) to prime students for the learning experience before an activity and (2) to help students synthesize new information. Robert Marzano s second approach to implementing research-based instructional strategies involves what he calls input experiences. Educators use input-oriented strategies to frame students thinking, activate prior learning, and focus their understanding of what they are to learn and why they are expected to learn it. What Works in Schools has two interrelated approaches to input strategies: (1) teaching and learning activities that anticipate or occur immediately before other input activities in order to prime students for learning experiences and (2) teaching and learning activities that occur during and after learning experiences, requiring students to synthesize knowledge in both linguistic and nonlinguistic ways. Marzano suggests that the first type of input activity can range from asking students questions to help them identify what they already think they know about content to be studied to establishing direct links between old and new content. Additionally, these anticipatory activities and strategies can also provide students with ways to organize new content in anticipation of studying it. 47
Marzano s during and after input activities engage students in synthesizing new knowledge in both linguistic and nonlinguistic ways. Such teaching and learning practices can include asking students to take notes on the content and construct verbal and written summaries of the content. Teachers can also ask students to represent content through such nonlinguistic forms as pictures, pictographs, and graphic organizers. Marzano emphasizes the power of input activities such as students creation of mental images. Associated Problems The suggested interventions in this section may help you to address problems such as the following: Students don t understand where they are headed and why they are going there while learning about new content, especially content that requires inquiry beyond their current range of knowledge or experience. Students demonstrate a widely divergent body of background knowledge and experience, indicating the need to help them develop a sense of purpose, direction, and personal learning goals for new and often difficult or demanding curriculum content. Suggested Goals and Data Sources Based on one or more of these problems, potential school improvement goals and related confirming data sources might include those shown in the following chart: Goals Results Data Sources To activate prior student learning on which to build new learning Greater student understanding of content being taught Standardized and classroom assessments; student reflections To increase student understanding of the purpose of the content they are studying Gains in student achievement Standardized and classroom assessments; student portfolios 48 Instructional Strategies
Suggested Strategies If your school is experiencing any of the problems identified, you may wish to consider one or more of the following strategies to address this issue: At the beginning of lessons and units, encourage students to articulate what they wish to learn and why they wish to learn it. Prime student learning at the beginning of instruction by posing questions to help students make linkages and connections between what they have learned and experienced previously and what they are about to learn. Use linguistic and nonlinguistic representations, both teacher-generated and student-generated, to encourage students to organize new content and to synthesize connections between and among content elements. Action Tools The following action tools are included for this item: Planning for Input Experiences: A Teacher Tool Three-Column te-taking Template Think-Write-Pair-Share Organizing My Thinking Connecting My Learning: A Tool for Students Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Teacher-Level Factors 49
Priming Students Before an Input Activity Input strategies provide ways to prime students for learning experiences they are about to undertake. The strategies and models presented here all reinforce the notion that students must receive support to activate prior learning and to make connections between their previous learning experiences and new learning activities. Ideas to Consider Engage students in the K-W-L process What do you already know about the content we are about to study? What do you wish to learn about the content? And, at the conclusion of the unit, What have you learned? Use think-write-pair-share to activate students prior knowledge, beginning with a personal reflection think-write, moving on to paired discussion and wholegroup sharing. Ask students to generate guide questions that they wish to have answered, based on their initial understanding of the content to be presented in an upcoming lesson or unit. Engage students in a small-group discussion in which they respond to essential questions that are at the core of an upcoming set of lessons or a unit. Begin the presentation of new content with some form of anticipatory set or warm-up involving students brainstorming of key concepts, generalizations, rules, and skills and procedures they associate with the upcoming unit topic or focus. Engage students in discussion of the horizontal elements of the curriculum they are studying by asking them, How is what you are learning connected to what you are learning in other classes and subjects? Engage students in discussion of the vertical elements of the curriculum they are studying by asking them, How is what you are learning now connected to what you learned in earlier grade levels? Present new curriculum elements in the form of an advance organizer such as an outline, a syllabus, or an overview document. 50 Instructional Strategies
Using Advance Organizers Marzano emphasizes the value of David Ausubel s (1968) concept of the advance organizer, suggesting that students benefit from having a clear and focused picture of what they will be doing, how they will be doing it, and why they will be doing it. Specifically, Marzano suggests that instructors use a variety of such organizers overviews, outlines, and summaries at the beginning of each instructional episode. Exploring this conceptual roadmap with students will ensure that every learner has a clear cognitive map of the purpose of what they are studying and why they are learning it. Ideas to Consider Integrate into your instruction the David Ausabel concept of advance organizers some form of abstract overview, outline, or synthesis that can function as a preview of content students are about to study to reinforce for them the coherence and connectivity within your curriculum. Ask students to revisit this advance organizer as they move through the unit to reinforce their sense of connectivity and purpose. Employ big ideas, themes, and questions as forms of advance organizers, revisiting these elements throughout the unit to reinforce coherence and connectivity. Provide students with a syllabus for the course, ensuring that they understand where they are going, why they are going there, significant time lines and benchmarks along the way, and ways in which they will be evaluated and will evaluate themselves. Ensure that all students understand the goals and objectives they are responsible for mastering. Periodically, stop direct instruction and engage students in written and oral discussions of the purposes of what they are doing in class, the reasons for their studying the curriculum content, and their perceptions about how what they are learning connects to the world beyond the classroom. Use bulletin boards, dry-erase boards, and other classroom resources to engage students in a collaborative construction of advance organizers, visual and written displays of unit and course road maps. Have students periodically create visual representations of key information (core concepts, themes, big ideas, essential questions) from preceding units and course modules in order to foreshadow connections and patterns of relationship to be revisited in upcoming units and modules. Periodically, ask students to use cooperative learning structures (pair-share, Jigsaws) to debrief on what they are learning and how current learning connects to past learning experiences. Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Teacher-Level Factors 51
Synthesizing Knowledge in Linguistic Ways According to Robert Marzano in What Works in Schools, students can receive support to synthesize new knowledge both during and after learning experiences. Input strategies can engage students using linguistic methods such as summarizing and note taking. Ideas to Consider Teach students how to summarize material by modeling various approaches. Emphasize to students that summarizing involves three interrelated processes: (1) determining main ideas, big concepts, and related forms of information that should be maintained in the summary; (2) deleting secondary material that represents supporting or confirming evidence but does not express major ideas or controlling themes; and (3) modifying certain information that is essential but needs to be shortened or abbreviated in order to streamline the summary process. Integrate paraphrasing activities into classroom discussions and inquiries. Revisit the skills of verbal summarizing: the need to keep certain information, to delete subordinate or secondary information, and to modify other information that can be shortened or synthesized. Offer peer coaching and peer response group activities in which students review and critique one another s written and verbal summaries. Encourage students to use a variety of higher-order cognitive skills when summarizing: comparison, classification, induction and deduction, constructing support, pattern recognition, and prediction. 52 Instructional Strategies
Improving Students te Taking Marzano emphasizes that students need much more experience and coaching in the process of taking notes. He specifically asserts that notes should be viewed as a work in progress, and students should be encouraged to revisit their notes to identify emergent patterns as well as any misunderstandings and misconceptions they may reveal. Additionally, he recommends that formal or verbatim notes be complemented by a wide range of tools and strategies, including graphic representations and informal outlining. tes, he affirms, should reflect students growing ability to evaluate information and synthesize key elements and patterns. Additionally, students should be asked to create nonlinguistic representations (e.g., pictographs, graphic organizers, flow charts) in order to process key elements and ideas. Ideas to Consider Teach students multiple approaches to note taking, including the use of formal notes, graphic representations, and informal outlining. Use a variation of the three-column approach (also known as the Cornell method) to note taking, with students taking running notes in the center of their sheet of paper, writing summaries of key concepts, ideas, and questions in the left margin, and creating visual representations, pictographs, and other visual organizers in the right column. Coach students in the process of determining which information to include in their notes and which information to delete, modify, or synthesize. Reinforce the idea that notes are a work in progress, encouraging students to revisit their notes and modify mistakes, errors, and misconceptions. Provide opportunities for students to review their notes and to discuss (as a whole group or in small groups) the big ideas and significant material they should thoroughly understand. Ask students to work collaboratively to create study guides and visual representations of information that they consider useful. Such student-generated products can be extremely useful for peer coaching and study-group purposes, as well as providing valuable resources for future classes to use. Model various note-taking strategies by listening to a lecture (audiotape or videotape versions or actual lectures) with students and then putting your lecture notes on overhead transparencies or on PowerPoint slides. Ask students to compare what they included (or deleted) with your version of the notes. Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Teacher-Level Factors 53
Invite college professors and students who have graduated to present their views on the note-taking process to your students, including their observations on students common mistakes and misconceptions. Post on bulletin boards examples of nonlinguistic representations and visual organizers generated by students to express their understanding of how information in the class is organized. Use conflicting or highly distinct examples to discuss class perceptions and understandings. 54 Instructional Strategies
Synthesizing Knowledge in nlinguistic Ways Robert Marzano suggests that educators frequently fail to take full advantage of students use of nonlinguistic representations as a vehicle for synthesizing knowledge during and after learning experiences. This section offers a range of strategies related to the use of nonlinguistic representations. Ideas to Consider To help students deep process the information they are studying and learning, ask them to form concrete mental images of key content. Before students engage in a complex procedure or process, ask them to visualize themselves being successful at moving through all major phases or steps in that process, just as Olympic athletes do before an athletic activity or competition. Have students create pictures and pictographs representing key concepts as part of their processing of curriculum content. Use a variety of graphic organizers to reinforce students understanding of what they are studying. Whenever possible, do not present these graphic organizers as worksheet activities or fill-in-the-blank exercises; instead, have students play an active role in creating graphic organizers that reflect how they understand content connections and relationships. Just as in the note-taking process, require students to revisit their graphic organizers and other visual representations to identify errors and misconceptions. Use two- and three-dimensional models (for example, math manipulatives) to help students develop a concrete knowledge of complex, abstract concepts. Teach using a multisensory approach, with physical models and simulation activities that require students to use all their senses. Make narratives (either fictional or historical) come alive for students by engaging them in reenactments and dramatizations. Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Teacher-Level Factors 55
Factor: Classroom Management Strategies for Managing an Effective Classroom Environment...101 Classroom Management Planning Guide for Teachers...111 Teacher Self-Assessment for Implementing Classroom Discipline...115 Suggestions for Discussions During Classroom Meetings: A Tool for Students...117 Feedback for My Teacher...119 Resources for Strategies for Managing an Effective Classroom Environment...121 Putting It All Together...123 97
Feedback for My Teacher WHAT IT IS: This is a tool for students to use to provide teachers with input on how well they are managing the classroom. HOW TO USE: Use this tool to gather honest input on how well you manage your classroom and create a welcoming environment. Use this tool at the end of a unit of study or periodically throughout the year to note changes in student perceptions. 2005 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Teacher-Level Factors 119
Feedback for My Teacher Directions: Let your teacher know your honest opinion about how your classroom is managed. Put an X in the appropriate box. My teacher... 1. Quickly identifies and stops problem behaviors in the classroom. 2. Stays calm even when rules are broken. 3. Makes sure he or she shares control of the classroom with students. 4. Makes sure students are involved in developing classroom rules and procedures. 5. Has the same high expectations for everyone s behavior. 6. Works well with students who have problems controlling their behavior. 7. Recognizes all students for their successes. 8. Makes me feel welcome in the classroom. 9. Makes sure that movement from one activity to another is orderly. 10. Makes sure I feel comfortable answering and asking questions, even when I don t understand something. 2005 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 120 Classroom Management
References Ellis, A. (1977). The basic clinical theory of rational-emotive therapy. In A. Ellis and R. Grieger (Eds.), Handbook of rational-emotive therapy (pp. 3 34). New York, Springer. Kounin, J. S. (1983). Classrooms: Individual or behavior settings? Micrographs in teaching and learning (General Series,. 1). Bloomington, IN: Indiana University, School of Education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service. 240070) Meichenbaum, D. (1977). Cognitive behavior modification. New York: Plenum Press. Resources for Strategies for Managing an Effective Classroom Environment Bear, G. G. (1998). School discipline in the United States: Prevention, correction, and long-term social development. School Psychology Review, 27(1), 14 32. Blythe, T., & Associates. (1998). The teaching for understanding guide. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Bransford, J. D., & Brown, A. L. (Cochairs and Eds., National Research Council). (1999). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience, and school. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. Bruner, J. (1996). The culture of education. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Elliott, J. (1991). Action research for educational change. Bristol, PA: Falmer. Glasser, W. (1969). Schools without failure. New York: Harper and Row. Glasser, W. (1986). Control theory in the classroom. New York: Harper and Row. Glasser, W. (1990). The quality school: Managing students without coercion. New York: Harper and Row. Gordon, T. (1970). Parent effectiveness training. New York: Wyden. Gordon, T. (1974). Teacher effectiveness training. New York: Wyden. Larson, J. (1998). Managing student aggression in high schools: Implications for practice. Psychology in the Schools, 35(3), 283 295. Marzano, R. J. (1992). A different kind of classroom: Teaching with Dimensions of Learning. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Marzano, R. J. (1998). A theory-based meta-analysis of research on instruction. Aurora, CO: Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning. (ERIC Document Reproduction. ED 427087) Marzano, R. J. (2003). What works in schools: Translating research into action. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Marzano, R. J., Pickering, D. J., & Pollock, J. E. (2001). Classroom instruction that works: Research-based strategies for increasing student achievement. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. McLean, J. E. (1995). Improving education through action research: A guide for administrators and teachers. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. McTighe, J., & Wiggins, G. (1999). Understanding by design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Perkins, D. (1991, October). Educating for insight. Educational Leadership, 49(2), 4 8. Perkins, D. (1992). Smart schools: From training memories to educating minds. New York: Free Press. Schmoker, M. (1996). Results: The key to continuous improvement. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Sheive, L. T., & Schoenheit, M. B. (Eds.). (1987). Leadership: Examining the elusive 1987 yearbook of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Smith, W. F., & Andrews, R. L. (1989). Instructional leadership: How principals make a difference. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Teddlie, C., & Reynolds, D. (Eds.). (2000). The international handbook of school effectiveness research. New York: Falmer Press. Tomlinson, C. A. (1999). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Teacher-Level Factors 121
Wang, M. C., Haertel, G. D., & Walberg, H. J. (1993). Toward a knowledge base for school learning. Review of Educational Research, 63(3), 249 294. Wiske, M. S. (1997). Teaching for understanding: Linking research with practice. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Wlodkowski, R. J. (1982). Discipline: The great false hope. Milwaukee, WI: The University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service. 224782) Recommended ASCD Resources What Works in Schools. Tape 3: Student-Level Factors. This third tape of a three-tape series, which includes a facilitator s guide with accompanying readings and overhead transparencies, reinforces the critical need for programs that help students to develop self-discipline and personal responsibility. Classroom Management That Works. This three-tape series with accompanying facilitator s guide presents a systemwide solution for classroom management based upon Marzano s ASCD publication of the same title. The tapes include exemplars for sharing rules and procedures, developing relationships, and fostering student self-management. The theme of promoting student responsibility and efficacy is especially evident in Tape 3. How to Design Classroom Management to Enhance Learning. This video demonstrates how educators can streamline tasks and engage students in managing their own learning environment, substantially enhancing time for and underscoring the importance of student learning. Classroom Management: An ASCD Professional Inquiry Kit. This resource will help teachers move beyond traditional classroom management practices to incorporate strategies that lower stress and free up more time for instruction. A series of eight folders emphasizes how to solve classroom management problems and examines classroom routines that promote democratic values. Qualities of Effective Teachers. This three-part video series with accompanying facilitator s guide features the work of effective teachers at elementary, middle, and high schools. Each of the tapes has particular relevance for the issue of classroom management as Robert Marzano presents it. The set covers building a foundation, managing and organizing an effective class, and planning and delivering instruction. 122 Classroom Management
Factor: Classroom Curriculum Design Strategies for Designing Curriculum Units...131 Teacher Planning Guide for Designing Classroom Curriculum...143 Justifying My Conclusions: A Tool for Students...145 Identifying Important Knowledge for Unit Focus: A Teacher Tool...147 Project Planner: A Teacher Tool...153 Resources for Strategies for Designing Curriculum Units...155 Putting It All Together...156 127
Justifying My Conclusions: A Tool for Students WHAT IT IS: This tool is a form for students to use when justifying their decisions with the reasoning they used to reach conclusions for a class assignment. HOW TO USE: Students involved in decision-making tasks or performance-based assessments or complex tasks can use this form to justify their reasoning as they learn unit concepts. Revisit the results with students at the end of a unit or later in the school year to see if their thinking has changed based on new learning. 2005 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Teacher-Level Factors 145
Justifying My Conclusions: A Tool for Students Directions: Use this guide to explain and defend your conclusions on the assigned unit topic. 1. My conclusion: 2. Facts on which my conclusion is based: 3. Evidence that supports my conclusion: 4. Reasons why my evidence should be considered accurate: 5. Limitations to my evidence: 2005 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 146 Classroom Curriculum Design