Preparing teachers to develop advanced performers: A cognitive - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Preparing teachers to develop advanced performers: A cognitive approach to teaching, learning and assessment

TEACHING AND LEARNING CONFERENCE 2017 North-West University, South Africa 6 June 2017 Deon Van Tonder Magda Kloppers Mary Grosser

Aims of the presentation This presentation will focus on:

• Reporting on the initial findings of a SoTL

research project with a group of in-service teachers to establish their knowledge and practical skill in develo lopi ping g learne ners rs to become advan ance ced perfo forme rmers rs prior to and after a short learning programme in Cognitive Education.

• This presentation will focus on the teachers’

reflections about their experiences with the training.

2

What What is is th the e ro role of le of un univer iversities sities in in co community mmunity de deve velopmen lopment? t?

3

The role of universities in community development

4

Background about the SLP in Cognitive Education

Aim:  Encourage and support the deve velop

• pmen

ment,  implem lementat entation

• n and

 sys ystem emat atic ic research of new, uniqu quely ely South th Africa ican n and  contextually relevant approac proache hes and  proces

• cesses

ses for  the enhancem hancement ent of think nking ing and d learning arning  thro rough ugh teach ching ing and ass ssessm essment ent.

 One-ye year ar course for 25 CPD PD points  10 Saturdays (4 hours per Saturday) across a year (80 notion

• nal

al hours rs: 40 hours facilitation and 40 hours practical at own time)  Participants will receive a Cert rtificat cate e in Cogni gnitive Educat cation

• n endorsed

rsed by the NWU WU  Teachers, therapists and psychologists in possession of an approved teaching qualification may enrol for the SLP, or need to provide proof of possessing a basic knowledge of:

• Learning theories that underpin

teaching and learning

• Basic teaching strategies
• Approaches to assessment

5

Background about the SLP in Cognitive Education

Aim:  Encourage and support the deve velop

• pmen

ment,  implem lementat entation

• n and

 sys ystem emat atic ic research of new, uniqu quely ely South th Africa ican n and  contextually relevant approac proache hes and  proces

• cesses

ses for  the enhancem hancement ent of think nking ing and d learning arning  thro rough ugh teach ching ing and ass ssessm essment ent.

 One-ye year ar course for 25 CPD PD points  10 Saturdays (4 hours per Saturday) across a year (80 notion

• nal

al hours rs: 40 hours facilitation and 40 hours practical at own time)  Participants will receive a Cert rtificat cate e in Cogni gnitive Educat cation

• n endorsed

rsed by the NWU WU  Teachers, therapists and psychologists in possession of an approved teaching qualification may enrol for the SLP, or need to provide proof of possessing a basic knowledge of:

• Learning theories that underpin

teaching and learning

• Basic teaching strategies
• Approaches to assessment

6

In Intro trodu duction: ction: Ba Backgroun kground d of

• f th

the e res esea earch rch an and C d Con

• ncep

eptua tual l Fram amework ework

7

• 1. Inclusive Education in the South African

context

 Crea eating ng car aring ng cond nditions ions for learning  Ac Accom commod modat ating ing and d comp mpensat ensating ing for different bar arriers riers to learning  Raisi ising ng the over erall all perform rforman ance ce of all lear arners ners

8

• 2. What kinds of learners should schools

be producing?

 Advanced performers  Enterprising learners  Global citizens Learner arners s who

• possess

ssess skil ills ls for lear arning, ning, work rk and d life

9

What are the expectations for all learners?

What kinds of characteristics do learners need if they are to be successful in school, the workplace and society?

• Character
• Citizenship
• Communication
• Critical thinking and

problem solving

• Collaboration
• Creativity and

imagination

10

• 3. How well are we doing?

 Lack of skills  Academic performance  Drop out rates  School effectiveness and dysfunctional schools

11

How well are we doing?

12

• Attai

tainme nment nt levels of education after 12 years - very y low (Van der Berg, Taylor, Gustafsson, Spaull & Armstrong, 2011).

• South African educati

ation n regarded as ineff ffect ctive ve (Pretorius, 2014).

• Large numbers of schools are dysfun

funct ction

• nal

al (Pretorius, 2014).

• Inability

ility of SA education system prepare learners adequately for future study, work and citizenship (Jansen, 2012).

• Absence

ce of teaching important 21st century thinking skills and dispositions/attitudes to learners (Booyse, 2016 (Umalusi).

Ideals versus Reality

13

The he Sho hort t Le Lear arni ning ng Prog

• gramm

ramme e in in C Cog

• gni

nitive tive Edu ducati ation

• n as

as a w a way ay to to as assist sist te teac achers hers to to sha hape pe te teac achi hing ng an and lea d learni ning ng en envir ironments

• nments

to to em empo power er al all l le lear arne ners rs to to ac achi hiev eve e suc uccess. cess.

14

• 4. The proposition

You u are e not t th there re yet, t, but t you u can n get t th there! re!

High Performance Learning theory suggests that most learners are capable of achieving high levels

• f academic performance once seen as the

domain of the very few, and that the role of a school is to help learners make this a reality

• Prof. Deborah Eyre

15

What does Advanced Performance refer to?

Academic achievement Advanced Performers

• Adva

vanced nced per erform

• rmance

nce: foundation of life time suc uccess. cess.

• Adva

vanced nced per erform

• rmance

nce for all, not just a few.

• Life ready

eady lear arners ners with the right skills and attitudes.

• Learners with a global

bal outlook.

• Not only good grades (Acade

ademic mic ach chievem evement ent)

16

Compete etencie cies s to behave ve Compete etencie cies s to think nk

• 5. Schools that build Advanced Performers

17

The DNA of High Performing Schools Creating Meta- thinking Linking Analyzing Realising

 Creative and enterprising  Risk-taking  Persevering  Confident  Inquiring  Collaborative  Concerned for society

Advanced Cognitive Performance characteristics (ACPs) Values, Attitudes and Attributes (VAAs)

Co Competen etenci cies es

18

The explicit teaching of thinking

Today's problems will not be solved with the same level of thinking that created them (Einstein) It is therefore important for us as teachers to ensure this generation behaves more intelligently than the last. Teach chin ing about about thinkin king Metacogn acogniti ition

• n:

: learne ners rs become me aware e of their ir

• wn & others

rs thinki king Teach chin ing of

• f thinkin

king Focus: us: How to become me effective ctive thinke kers rs - strate ategies gies Teach chin ing for thinking king Engage ge learners ers in effective ective thinking king – higher r

• rder

r quest stioning

• ning

19

Pi Pill llar ar 1: 1: Mi Mind nd-set set shift shift  Correct mind-set: precondition for High Performance Learning  Believe the ability is flexible and can be developed: embrace this approach Pi Pill llar ar 2: 2: Enqu Enquiry iry-ba based sed Le Lear arning ning  Not only about “what” is taught, but “how” it is taught.  Making “thinking” visible in the classroom

20

Pillar 3: Expert Pillar 3: Expertise ise development development Pillar 4: Pract Pillar 4: Practice and tr ice and training aining

21

 Not just passing of exams.  Not just covering curriculum.  Deve velop loping ng habi bits ts and d behav haviour iours s associated with expe pert rtis ise in a given domain.

Pi Pill llar ar 5: 5: Fe Feed edba back ck Pi Pill llar ar 6: 6: Enga Engage ge pa pare rent nts

22

 Frequent quent and specific ific feedback back to learners on learning progress.  To be diagnostic

• stic and

prescriptive criptive.  Encoura urage self-regula regulati tion

• n.

 Comments ents on progress ress and and on the gap gap betwe ween en curre rent nt performan

• rmance

ce and

• ptimal

mal perfo formance rmance.  Instil til a sense e of confi fidenc dence e that there is growth th and what is realistica isticall lly y possib ible e to achieve. eve.  Feedba back ck as “feed forwa ward rd” (Booyse, 2016).

 Committing to a journey with teachers and learners.  Parents working in harm rmony

• ny with the school.

 Keep parents infor

• rmed

med and invo volve lved.

Pillar 7: With learners not to them

 Learners taking responsibility for their own wn learning.  Learners are involve ved and make decisions.  Co Continu nuou

• usly

sly refl flect ect on their

• wn growth

wth and development pment.  Understanding the building g blocks s of advanced thinking and learning.

23

The importance of teacher self-efficacy to develop advanced performers

24

25

The importance of teacher self-confidence to develop advanced performers

1.

• 1. Act with confid

fiden ence ce 2.

• 2. Exami

mine ne what you want t to teach ch 3.

• 3. Learn

n the characte acteristics ristics of effe fect ctive ve teach chin ing 4.

• 4. Enter

er the class s with specifi cific c goals in mind 5.

• 5. Use active

ve learni ning g strate rategi gies 6.

• 6. Teach

ch less, , bette ter 7.

• 7. Do not be a perfectio

fectioni nist st 8.

• 8. Relax

x and admit it if you do not know someth ethin ing 9.

• 9. Ask for information,

rmation, advice, ce, feedba back ck from m stude dents/col nts/colle leagu gues (Eison, 2012)

Research Methodology

• Quantitative, descriptive survey research (pilot study).
• Pre-questionnaire data obtained from a heterogeneous group of 20

in-service teachers to establish their understanding of Cognitive Education, their beliefs and attitudes regarding teaching and education, and the strategies that they presently apply in their classrooms to advance cognitive education that would enable learners to become Advanced Performers, prior to instruction in Cognitive Education.

• Construction of questionnaire items guided by the HPL framework
• f Eyre (2016).
• By means of a qualitative content analysis, the presentation will also

briefly explore the reflections of the in-service teachers in relation to their experiences with the information contained in the first three study units of the SLP.

26

• 6. Research findings: Intentionally building

Advanced Performance in schools

Prima mary ry res esearc earch h question: estion: To what extent do in-service teachers possess knowledge and skills to assist learners to become advanced performers? Resp sponses nses of Se Sect ctions ions C – H in in terms rms of Part rticipa icipant nt respons sponses es Ques estionn ionnaire aire items ms respons sponses es Means ans

27

Section C

28

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Respon

• nses

es Participa pants nts

Teaching hing attitud tudes es and beliefs fs about educati ation

• n

Series1

Section C: Average = 2,966

29

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Respon

• nses

es Question

• nna

naire e items

Teaching hing attitud tudes es and beliefs fs about educati ation

• n

Section D

30

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Reponses Participa pants nts

Percep epti tions

• ns about current

ent teaching ing practice tice

Section D: Average = 2,570

31

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 Responses Question

• nna

naire e items

Percep epti tions

• ns about current

ent teaching ing practice tice

D

Section E

32

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Responses Participa pants nts

Competen tency: cy: Applica catio tion n of teaching hing and assessment ssment strateg tegies ies

Section E: Average = 2,851

33

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Respon

• nses

es Question

• nna

naire e items

Competen tence: ce: Applicati cation

• n of teaching

ing and assessme ssment nt strate ategi gies

Section F

34

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 4 4,5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Responses Participa pants nts

Self-conf confiden idence ce : Applica catio tion n of teaching hing and learning ing strate ategies ies

Section F: Average = 2,718

35

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 Respon

• nses

es Question

• nna

naire e items

Self-conf confiden idence: ce: Application cation of teaching hing and learning ing strate ategies gies

Section G

36

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 4 4,5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Responses Participa pants nts

Competen tency: cy: Teaching ing thinki king ng skills s and dispositions sitions

Section G: Average = 2,965

37

0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Responses Question

• nna

naire e items

Competen tence: ce: Teaching hing thinkin ing skills/proce ls/processes sses and dispositi sitions

Section H

38

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Responses Participa pants nts

Belief f in own self-effi efficacy cacy

Section H: Average = 6,971 All responses between 6 and 7

39

6 6,2 6,4 6,6 6,8 7 7,2 7,4 7,6 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Responses Question

• nna

naire e items

Belief f in self-effecti effectivity vity

Open responses

40

Teachers’ understanding of advanced performance: nobody indicated that it implies the balanced acquisition of thinking skills and dispositions. What t are the thinkin king skills ls and disposi

• sitio

tions ns that t learners ers need for the 21st

st

centu tury? ry? Teachers appear to understand what the different thinking skills (analysis, evaluation, reflection, synthesis, problem-solving, creative thinking, critical thinking) and dispositions (open minded, respect, inquisitive, self-confidence, perseverance etc. are. The teach chin ing strate ategie ies s teach chers ers use to achieve eve advanced nced performa formance nce: Mainly: Questioning, cooperative learning, discovery (limited strategies). Fixed ed or growth th mind-set set: Encouraging: Teachers appear to have growth mind-sets as the majority believe that it is possible to nurture learner potential and to develop skills/dispositions that are fragile or non-existent.

Reflections: Study units 1-3

41

Teac ache hers s noted ed, among

• ng other

ers s the follow

• wing

ing about

• ut the SLP:

 Eye-opener to see how the world has changed and how teaching should be transformed to equip learners better.  Realisation of the importance of cognitive education to achieve CAPS objectives.  Not aware of the minds of the future that learners need to acquire.  The importance of stimulating the brain through teaching.  Understanding their roles as teachers better in relation to explicitly nurturing thinking among learners.

• 6. Findings and the way forward

 Teaching attitudes and beliefs about education  Perceptions about current teaching practice  Competency in the application of teaching and assessment  Self-confidence in the application of teaching and assessment strategies  Competence in teaching of thinking skills and dispositions/attitudes/ habits of mind as well as  Self-efficacy beliefs need to improve in order to assist learners to acquire the skills and dispositions required for the 21st century. The SLP might capacitate teachers to create conditions to deliver improved instruction that would lead to improved learning outcomes for all learners. It is envisaged to include the SLP content in undergraduate teacher training after the conclusion of the pilot study. A fo follow

• w-up

p questi estion

• nnaire

naire will be complet mpleted ed after er the SLP.

42

What concerns us? What encourages us?

Concerns erns Encourag uragin ing Passing exams more important than how content is taught. Learners need to question information presented to them. Learners are not allowed to take part in designing classroom activities. Creating opportunities to nurture thinking skills. Learners are not asked to explain their thinking. Encouraging learners to question information presented to them. Problems in formulating good questions for learners. Growth mind-set.

43

Final word

Nurturin rturing Adva vanced nced Perf rform

• rmance

ance is the key ey to unlocking

• cking potent

ential ial for r grea eatness ness within in each ch child ild and d equipping uipping them m with compe mpetencies encies that would uld enable able them m to beco come e smart arter er at th think nking ing and d behaving having to cope pe with 21st

st centur

ntury y chal hallenges. lenges.

Thank you!