creating a positive learning environment

Six Tips For Creating A Positive Learning Environment In Your Classroom

InI write that when students enter your classroom at the beginning of the term there are two questions in their minds – “Can I do the work?” and “Will I be accepted here?” Their potential for success depends on them being able to answer “yes” to both of these questions. The language you use plays a big role in this. Here are some tips to help you in creating that positive learning environment for all students.

Tip 1 –

Always build classroom rules and procedures collaboratively and in the positive. I cringe when I visit classrooms and see “No Talking” as classroom rule #1. I suggest beginning by have a discussion with your students about how they learn best and then fashion your rules accordingly. If some students say they need a quiet area to work in at times, try a sign like, “Quiet Area, Brains at Work.” Also, if your classroom rule says “We don’t use cellphones in class.” the students shouldn’t see their teacher texting someone. Classroom rules should apply to everyone equally.

Tip 2 –

Continually let your students know you believe in them. Saying “I know you can get this” rather than “You need to try harder” for example is an indication of your belief in them rather than an accusatory statement. Saying, “We talked about this yesterday. Did you forget?” is laying blame on the student. Instead a statement like, “You had this so well yesterday. I know you can get it today.” reminds the student of their past success. These are both subtle differences in language that can make a big difference in your students’ perception of your faith in their as learners. Think about Carol Dweck’s work on fixed and growth mindsets.

Tip 3 –

Speaking of mindsets, examine your own mindset. Do you believe in your own ability to learn and grow? Do you believe it is your obligation as a teacher to model learning and growing? Look at this graphic on an educator’s mindset and do a little self-reflection.

Tip 4 –

Use your language to show students that they are learning for their own benefit, not yours. I can’t begin to count the number of times I have heard teachers begin an instruction or direction by saying, “What I need you to do for me…”. This tells the student they are doing a task for the benefit and approval of the teacher. Just eliminate that part of the direction and begin with, “The first thing you need to do to learn this is…” The learning has to be for the benefit of the learner, not the teacher.

Tip 5 –

Be honest in your feedback. Good feedback tells the learner what they did correctly, where they may have missed the mark, and what specifically they need to do next. I remember being a 7th grade student art class. I have a number of talents, but drawing isn’t one of them. The teacher wrote, “nice job” on my sketch of an orange. I knew very well that my smudged mess of an orange wasn’t a nice job. It wasn’t even a decent representation of any fruit known to man. I would have benefited by her telling me one thing I could do to make it better. Maybe something like “We are learning about perspective. Try adding a shadow behind your sketch.” Her “nice job” told me little about how to improve. Knowing I received undeserved praise lessens the impact or praise when it is truly earned.

Tip 6 –

When dealing with a student conflict or behavioral issue, be objective rather than accusatory. For example, rather than say, “Why did you take Jacob’s pencil?” begin by asking what happened. Asking why a student did something will likely provoke a defensive comment. “I took is pencil because he called me a name.” This leads to the inevitable “No I didn’t, yes you did” cycle. Asking what happened will allow both students to tell their story, moderated by the teacher. Give prompts like, “How did you think that make Jacob feel?” – “How else do you think you might have reacted?” – “What might you try next time?”

Students are more likely to learn in a safe learning environment – one in which they feel valued and protected. As you build and cultivate this environment, also be sure to use research-based instructional strategies to be sure students clearly know what they are expected to know, understand, and be able to demonstrate. Building a strong learning environment and using research-proven instructional strategies makes it more likely that students are able to answer “yes” to the questions, “Can I do the work?” and “Will I be accepted here?”

connecting prior learning to new learning

Making Connections to Prior Learning and Experience

Posted on February 9, 2018

It’s Week 2 of the school year. We have set up a supportive learning environment so next we go about finding out what students already know. This will include results from last year, other data we can access but will also likely include other in-class activities. We already have our curriculum and course guides in place, so why do good teachers spend time finding out what students already know? This post looks to explore the research behind our practice.

Students learn best when they are able to integrate new learning with what they already understand. (pg 34 of the New Zealand Curriculum)

Image from pg 71 “Hidden Lives of Learners” by Graham Nuthall

This figure is Graham Nuthall’s explanation of how our brains make sense of new information. All experiences, learning activities, discussions etc. are stored in our working memory which then attempts to make connections with our prior knowledge and related experiences. The working memory then evaluates this information, integrates the new experience with our prior knowledge and changes (or maintains) our understanding. (Hidden Lives of Learners, 2007).

This process also shows why it is important for us to identify any misunderstandings that students have in their prior knowledge. Otherwise they may continue to misinterpret what we are trying to teach them.

Lynfield College students using a whiteboard table last year to collate their ideas.

Different types of prior knowledge activities can reveal different types of prior knowledge so it is important to try a variety of methods rather than just one brainstorm to identify what students know (or think they know). For more on this, I highly recommend reading pages 84-92 of Effective Pedagogy in Social Sciences Best Evidence Synthesis by Graeme Aitken and Claire Sinnema.

Prior Knowledge Activity	Tools I have found useful for this
Multi-Choice	Google Forms, Kahoot
Open Question	Conversations, Essays, Google Forms/Slides/Drawing
Concept Maps	Old fashioned A3 paper! Google Drawing, LucidChart
Brain storms	Whiteboard tables, A3 paper, Padlet, Post Its

When teachers deliberately build on what their students know and have experienced, they maximise the use of learning time, anticipate students’ learning needs, and avoid unnecessary duplication of content. (pg 34 of the New Zealand Curriculum)

Once we know what our students already understand we can then purposefully design the learning that they need. All teachers complain about not having enough time, now we can ensure that we don’t waste time covering what they already know.

By knowing their needs, we can also scaffold the learning opportunities appropriately. By finding that sweet spot of just enough challenge to stretch students’ thinking and abilities we make the most of our time in class with them. WIthout doing so, we risk either making students bored or making them give up. I love how Daniel Willingham phrases this. When we pitch the learning content at just the right level, we allow students to feel “The pleasurable rush of solving a problem” (from Why Don’t Students Like School).

Teachers can help students to make connections across learning areas as well as to home practices and the wider world. (pg 34 of the New Zealand Curriculum)

By knowing more about experiences that students have had outside our classrooms we can help them make links between what we are studying and what is happening outside our classroom. This will also encourage students to look at their understanding from a different perspective. Think about the science involved in cooking, how can this help students to better understand what they are learning in Chemistry (for a great example of this, see the Kitchen Science Cook Book.

Also, by getting students to make connections with other learning areas, home experiences or global situations, we are pushing them to develop much deeper thinking about ideas. SOLO Taxonomy considers the ability do this higher thinking skills and calls them relational and extended abstract thinking (http://pamhook.com/solo-taxonomy/).