Using experimental inquiry

When I first read the information about experimental inquiry and deductive/inductive reasoning, my first reaction was that it would work well in a science classroom, but not so great in a foreign language setting.  However, after some reflection, I have concluded that it would be helpful to me and my students if they would explore things like why they are missing the conjugations of verbs that they should have learned in Spanish I.  What has happened is that they are missing content and the realization by the students about what kinds of knowledge they are lacking and what they can do to bridge the gap would be helpful as they pursue the next level of the language.  I like the idea of asking students to explain their reasoning that led them to their answers...again makes the student accountable and encourages them to pause before they write just anything down.

Feedback

I totally agree with the assumption that feedback has to occur soon after the assessment in order to be effective.  What I don't know and have never been able to resolve is how you go over a test or quiz when not everyone has taken it yet.  I seldom (more likely never) give a test on any given day on which all students are present.  So, although I grade the assessments on the evening after I give them, I either have to wait until all of the absentees have completed the test/quiz, or I have to create a new version for them to take.  I have tried both and neither is very effective.  I have parents upset because they want their child to have additional time to complete work, although my policy clearly states that students have five school days to complete missed work after their return to school.  I just had two students take a vocabulary quiz over a month late ( I just returned them to the rest of the class on days when these two were absent again) and they failed it.  Of course they did!  Did anyone think that they were still studying the material and would pass it when we were on new material already?  The parents must have thought so since they insisted that their child receive extra time to complete the work.  Permission was granted, but the effort of the students was less than stellar.  Not a surprise to me...students invariably do poorly on missed tests or quizzes because they also missed a lot of instruction and class practice and they don't ever make that time up.  Any solutions out there for timely feedback without compromising the validity of the assessment...share and compare, please.

Who is responsible for learning?

Marzano's idea that students should be held responsible for their own learning and should keep a learning journal based on their own goals and achievements is revolutionary!  Who knew that students should be held accountable?  In this era when the responsibility seems to lie more and more on the shoulders of the educator, I appreciate the fact that in the end, the student chooses to learn and exert effort or not.  Of course, Marzano does not negate the fact that a lot of preparation of objectives and strategies is the role of the teacher, but sincerely appreciate anyone who will honestly state that students have to take a major role in their own learning.  The idea that the students start with statements about what they want to know is a good starting point for true education to occur. 

Base groups

I discovered in my reading a good reason for having base groups, i.e. make the students accountable to each other for checking on homework issues.  I also like the idea of a base group creating a "team spirit" within the classroom.  My big concern would be that the base group would become a team in which one member does the work and the others just copy it.  I have found that high school students really do not discern the difference between helping someone to learn a skill and just giving their friends the work to copy and saying that was helping them.  I do like the idea of accountability and may work it into my first block class that I see daily...like a contest of which base group has the fewest 0's on homework or the highest quiz/test scores in one grading period.  I will have to give this idea some more thought and perhaps use it during second semester.

Sizes of groups

I agree that the size of groups must be limited, based on the task assigned.  I have found that when there are too many members in a group, little is done because the students don't really know how to divide up the tasks.  When there are the same number of tasks to be done as members of the group, then the students can easily manage completion of the assignment.

Cooperative Learning

As a foreign language teacher, I use cooperative learning a lot just to give the students practice with partners in using what they have learned.  According to Dr. Marzano, the groups I use most often are informal groups and they last maybe 15-30 minutes per class.  I have found these groups to be most effective in dealing with new grammatical structures because one partner can usually help the other partner to understand.  I generally use ability grouping, but I group high learners with low learners as often as possible, especially if I am using groups of two.  When I move to a project and I am grouping the students, I use random grouping and them look at the groups and make sure that they are heterogeneous so that all students have an equal opportunity to succeed on the project.  One thing I do not believe in is giving a group grade for a project.  My students are generally surprised that they can receive different grades and be in the same group, according to their individual effort.  I have the students keep a log of what they have contributed each day that they are doing the project, and I also observe their efforts within the group.  I have always considered it grossly unfair that when students are doing a group project, one student feels compelled to "carry" the others in his/her group for the sake of getting a good grade.  I think that group grades reward laziness.  I did not see this issue addressed in Dr. Marzano's book, but I do feel that it is an important issue and the reason that some students approach group tasks with trepidation because they are the ones motivated to excel and don't want to be responsible for earning a grade for a group. 

Nonlinguistic learning

Since many of my students claim to be kinesthetic learners, then they seem to need to learn by doing something with the new material. Marzano explicitly states that students learn by doing things like creating graphic organizers. I typically encourage my students to organize their notes in this way since just drawing the graphic organizer and then filling it in also helps the visual learners. I am not sure how to use physical movement in a foreign language class, but I have used sign language when teaching some of the new vocabulary and the students can then associate the sign with the Spanish word. I think that some of the author's techniques are better suited for a science class but understand that with various learners, the imagination may play a significant role in assisting them to remember new learning.

The Value of Homework

I was delighted when I read that Marzano's opinion of homework is that it is necessary to develop skills through practice.  I have long been an advocate of homework, particularly on the high school level, much to the dismay of my own students.  The fact that Marzano places importance on homework just helps me with my long-standing argument with parents, i.e. homework is an essential part of the learning process.  In the foreign language classroom, students who do not practice at home are often lost in class the next day.  As I tell parents, the homework is practice for the tests and quizzes and helps the students to know what they still need to ask.  Those who do not do homework regularly have a lower grade and little chance of passing a class in which practice is not a suggestion, but a requirement.  According to Marzano, a good"rule of thumb" for homework is ten minutes per grade level.  The homework for my class should typically take about 15-20 minutes, so I do not feel that is burdensome for high school students.  How much homework is too much?  Is there such a thing as too much homework?  Is the student capable of determining when he/she has achieved mastery and should then be able to quit practicing?   One difficulty that I have seen on the high school level is the number of students who copy their homework from their peers, thus learning nothing from the practice, and earning low scores on quizzes and tests as a result.  I do wish there were a way to limit this common practice! 

Rewarding Mediocrity

Dr. Marzano makes the point on page 59 of his book that students can learn a valuable lesson from the reinforcements that teachers give, i.e. "the harder you try, the more successful you are."  This seems to be in direct opposition to the current trend for standardized tests that have lowered the reasons for trying hard for the most talented students.  Those who work hard get the same kind of score (Advanced Pass or Pass) and don't really receive a lot of recognition for learning more than the most basic information.  What is the motivation for students to strive for higher success in an educational system that rewards mediocrity?   I am at a loss to find such motivation in the schools today and hope that a fellow educator can come up with an answer.  Are we truly training our students to work hard, or are we settling for allowing them to think that they have succeeded when they pass a minimum competency test? 

Abstract Rewards

For many years, I have used "stickers" as a reward for my students.  They earn stickers by participating in class.  I put the stickers on index cards, one per student, and they earn the card after it has five stickers on it.  The card may then be used as a homework pass, or the students may save the card for points on the exam.  I have found that the students will compete for these stickers, even though they are a tangible reward.  I think that they are also a form of recognition and praise, in addition to being tangible rewards.
 
Dr. Marzano is a proponent of giving rewards in the form of recognition and praise instead of tangible rewards like candy or prizes.  Which kind of rewards, if any, do you use and find most effective? 

Effort and Achievement Tracking

Dr. Marzano suggests that you ask students to keep track of their effort and achievment.  Have you ever used this technique?  If so, how did you introduce it to the students and carry it out?  Did you consider this method worthwhile?

Effort and Achievement

Do you believe that teachers must teach students today the connection between effort and achievement? I think that the standardized testing has made students lazy and they exert little effort for the rewards of A's on exams or other extrinsic rewards. What is your philosophy on teaching this connection and on extrinsic rewards?

Taking notes

Dr. Marzano makes a strong case that teachers should teach students how to take notes and uses visuals such as Venn diagrams and informal outlines. I have noticed that many teachers in my high school provide handouts of the notes for the students, and I think that this is detrimental to their education, in that it does not prepare them for the rigorous expectations of college. Do you think that teachers should be providing these handouts, or do you think that the students should be trained how to take notes? If you believe the latter is the better choice, how do you train students to take notes?
I put notes on the overhead and have students copy them, particularly for grammar topics. When I am giving culture notes, I put important names or dates on the board. Later, when I check the notes, I am finding that the only thing that the students write is exactly what I wrote on the board. This leads me to believe that Marzano is correct in that students do not know how to summarize information, selectively choosing the salient details and recording them. I plan to work on helping my students to develop this skill.
What are your plans in your classroom?

Marzano's book "Classroom Instruction that Works" states on page 10 that effective teaching includes the instructional strategies employed by the teacher, classroom management strategies and a curriculum design. Of these three elements, which do you feel contributes most to your success in the classroom and why? And are there any strategies that you can share with others that would help us to be more effective in the classroom?

Plan for this site

If anyone has read books by Marzano and Professional Learning Communities, please share on this site. I am reading about Classroom Instruction that Works and would like to get the opinion of other teachers who have read or are reading this book. What has worked for you in your classroom? What sounds good in theory, but it doesn't really work in practice?