Lorin W. Anderson

School transitions: beginning of the end or a new beginning?

Abstract Moving from elementary to middle/junior high school or from middle/junior high to high school is difficult for most students and especially problematic for some. This chapter explores the reasons that these transitions are difficult, the kinds of students that have the greatest difficulty with transitions, and the process of disengagement from school that too often follows unsuccessful transitions. Facilitating successful transitions requires that attention be paid to students’ preparedness for the transition and the kinds of support students need before, during, and after the transition. The chapter concludes with a series of recommendations for facilitating successful transitions.

Research in classrooms : the study of teachers, teaching, and instruction

This work examines the epistemological issues concerning classroom research and pursues them in relation to design and methodological matters.

The Relationship Among Teaching Methods, Student Characteristics, and Student Involvement in Learning:

Various classroom teaching methods have been termed &dquo;lesson formats&dquo; (Dunkin & Biddle, 1974) or, more simply, &dquo;teaching methods&dquo; (Berliner & Gage, 1976). The latter define teaching methods as &dquo;recurrent instructional processes, applicable to various subject matters, and usable by more than one teacher&dquo; (p. 5). Three commonly used teaching methods are lecture, discussion, and seatwork. Although teachers use a variety of these methods in their classes, they have received little help from theorists or researchers as to which method, or methods, best facilitates learning. Early research, mostly conducted at the postsecondary level, compared the effectiveness of any two teaching methods. Dubin and Taveggia (1968)’ reviewed 36 experimental studies on the most popular comparison between lecture and discussion methods. They found that 51 percent of the comparisons favored the lecture method, and 49 percent favored the discussion method. Virtually no overall difference in the effectiveness of the two methods was indicated.

Values, Evidence, and Mastery Learning

The decision about learning and learners [is a decision] about an ideal, about how we [conceive] what a learner should be in order to assure that a society of a particular valued kind could be safeguarded. … At the heart of the decision process there must be a value judgment about how the mind should be cultivated and to what end. (Bruner, 1985, p. 5)

Merlin C. Wittrock and the Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy

Merl Wittrock, a cognitive psychologist who had proposed a generative model of learning, was an essential member of the group that over a period of 5 years revised the Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, originally published in 1956. This article describes the development of that 2001 revision (Anderson and Krathwohl, Editors) and Merls contributions to that effort.

The Activity Structure of Lesson Segments.

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this article is to suggest one way to consider classroom instruction. Drawing extensively from the work of the ecological psychologists, classroom lessons are viewed as a sequence of lesson segments, a segment being a block of time with a particular focus or intention. Each segment is conceptualized as consisting of three components—purpose, activity format, and topic or assignment—which help characterize the instructional environment. The instructional environment shapes teacher and student roles, which, in turn, influence the behavior of teachers and students and determine the nature of their classroom interaction. Taken together, the segment components, the teacher and student roles, and the behavioral interaction define the “activity structure of the lesson segment.” We argue that this relatively molar unit of analysis provides a useful means of conceptualizing the instructional environment. The article concludes by discussing the segment “script” as one way of viewing how lesso...

Designing instructional strategies which facilitate learning for mastery

While early proponents of mastery learning (ML) provided operational definitions regarding appropriate teaching/learning procedures, they did not provide guidelines for developing specific instructional strategies and activities. This article aims to provide such guidelines based on theories of learning and cognition. Part 1 describes the general instructional procedures developed by early ML proponents. Parts 2–4 provide guidelines for (a) the initial group‐based instruction, including guidelines for teaching to three different types of objectives (informational, conceptual, and procedural) and for varying four different modes of presentation (lecture, dialogue, discussion, and searwork) (b) sequencing; (c) developing correctives; and (d) developing enrichment activities.

An experimental investigation of the effectiveness of inservice teacher education in Thailand

Abstract One hundred fifth-grade mathematics teachers throughout Thailand were assigned either to an experimental or control group. Experimental teachers participated in a 6-day workshop in which classroom organization and management, lesson development, and questioning and feedback were emphasized. Prior to the workshop, all students were administered a mathematics test and an attitude survey; all classrooms were observed. Following the workshop, all teachers taught six month-long mathematics units, with each classroom being observed once each unit. At the end of the study, the mathematics test and attitude survey were readministered. Observable differences between the two groups of teachers in all three areas of emphasis were noted. Differences in the involvement and achievement of their students were also evident.

The Role of Conceptual Frameworks in Understanding and Using Classroom Research

(1990). The Role of Conceptual Frameworks in Understanding and Using Classroom Research. South Pacific Journal of Teacher Education: Vol. 18, No. 1, pp. 5-18.

Understanding Teacher Behavior in the Classroom: A Must for Sound Evaluation.

A great deal more information is necessary about the constraints and demands placed on teachers before we can begin to conduct sound, defensible evaluations of teachers based on their class room performance. Thats the finding of the study described by this writer.