DRIVE LEARNING

BEWARE OF THE CURSE: The Curse of KNOWLEDGE

3/1/2016

Several years ago, I read the great book, Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath. The premise of the book is that many ideas that we are taught or told, are 'sticky"...meaning they are easy to remember. Other ideas are communicated to us in a much less effective manner, making them difficult to "stick" in our memories.

The book describes six key traits for educators, presenters, and sales personnel to communicate their ideas most effectively.

After reading the book, while searching for additional resources to use to help implement my new knowledge, I stumbled on "Teaching that Sticks", a special companion to the original text just for educators. I felt I hit the JACKPOT!

Reading through the PDF I was exposed to some really cool ideas. One though has proven so incredibly "sticky" I share it constantly... the "Curse of Knowledge".

The "Curse of Knowledge" comes from research conducted at Stanford University. In the study, students were asked to tap out, using their fingers, the beat to their favorite song, while a peer tried to "name that tune". Although this seems like an easy task, over 85% of the time the song goes unrecognized. The question then is WHY?

Here lies THE CURSE.

It seems, once a person learns something, it is very difficult to remember what it is like to not know it. Thus the reason why many people once being told the song just tapped out to them was something as simple as "Jingle Bells' or "Mary had a little Lamb" are completely amazed.

So, what does this have to do with teaching and learning? The answer is simple, we often don't remember HOW we learned something. We don't remember what caused us struggle, what strategies we used to learn something or what feedback helped us close the gap from the known to the unknown.

Without those vivid memories, we tend to have a more difficult time helping others when they are struggling. We, because of this memory loss, rely on feedback that is based on being right or wrong rather than specific, focused feedback that moves learning forward.

Having worked and discussed this concept with hundreds of educators, I find the "curse of Knowledge" is very real...especially in the area of math.

Why math many say... well I think it is because most people who teach math and enjoy math have always loved math. It is something that came easily to them. They just got it. This allowed them to excel in this area. The more they excelled, the more "fun" they had and because they had fun, they wanted others to have fun and enjoy it as they did. This is very noble, unless they forget that for most of their students learning math will not come so easily. For most, math is a struggle.

So, math teachers, and us other so called "experts" need to be extra patient when teaching concepts to those who are having difficulty and not catching on as fast as we might have. We need to become incredibly cognizant that the struggle is real. We need to look at things through the learner's lens and not through our own. We need to be patient, active listeners and really hear what each child's needs are in order to help them through their particular stage in learning. And, we need to reach out to colleagues to find ways they have used to help struggling students and not just rely on the tools in our own tool bags. Discussing these strategies better opens are eyes and provides new avenues to helping ALL children become successful.

"BEWARE OF THE CURSE!"

Made to Stick on Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Made-Stick-Ideas-Survive-Others/dp/1400064287

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Learning to Drive

2/29/2016

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Looking back on when I learned to drive I have many fond memories. I remember those early morning hours spent entering and exiting the highway, countless times attempting to parallel parking, the endless hours reviewing traffic safety rules in the classroom and being so lucky as to sit next to Charity Lisles, my secret crush. From all those experiences one key message has stayed with me - one I think of every time I take the wheel; the rule of ten and two. Coach Karl, my driver's education instructor and the school's tennis coach, would beat into our heads that we needed to keep our hands at ten and two on the steering wheel if we wanted to have maximum control of the car. I can still hear his voice to this day when my hands aren't in the proper position.

I think his message of ten and two is a message that is equally applicable in teaching as it is in driving. We, as educators, can use the ten and two rule to enhance our control of student learning. Here is how it works:

Every ten minutes of instruction, students need at least two opportunities to process that information - either independently through writing or better yet, by processing the information with a partner, using a Kagan structure or other form of cooperative learning strategy. This opportunity to process information is crucial to learning. Unfortunately, too often as educators we don't allow students time to digest information.

As I work with educators around the United States, I hear teacher's default to thinking about instruction from a pure engagement perspective only. They often talk about the idea that students can be engaged for their age in minutes. But engagement is not enough! We must remember engagement is great - but learning is the final destination!

Give it a try, I dare you...make that a double-dog dare. Design your next lesson using the rule of ten and two and see how much more student's learn!

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Searching for the Silver Bullet? Start By Looking in the Mirror!

3/1/2015

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REFLECT
Last week I had the opportunity to attend and speak at the National Conference on Bullying in Orlando, Florida. My presentation, "Every Student Has a STORY: Do You Know It?" focused on a variety of research-informed, classroom-proven tips and tools teachers can use in their classrooms daily to better get to know their children and create the conditions for each child to be successful.

I was blown away by the positive feedback I received from participants at the conclusion of the session and very appreciative of the many who stopped, shook my hand, and thanked me personally on their way out or grabbed me in the conference corridors later in the day to tell me how they had been impacted by the presentation. One particular exchange though left a lasting imprint on me.

While I was turning my computer off and gathering my things, a woman who had come in late to the session, came up and introduced herself. I assumed she wanted to find out what research I shared with the group at the beginning of the session before she had gotten there or how to get a copy of what she missed. Instead, she reached out her hand, thanked me, held my hand in hers, looked me straight in the eye and began apologizing for being late for the session. She explained how she had seen the session description and although she thought the material would be beneficial, felt she needed to go to a different session which pushed a specific bullying program. For some reason she was drawn to leave and come to my session after all.

While still holding my hand, she explained how as a principal in Miami-Dade County schools, with over 90% of her students living in poverty, she has been feeling the intense pressure to increase student test scores or be scrutinized publicly by the Florida School Rating System that rates schools on an A to F scale. She felt she had to go back to her school improvement team with a new program to implement. She further explained how she decided to attend the conference in hopes of finding a "silver bullet" that would decrease peer to peer violence, increase student engagement, and thus enable staff to connect with kids in a way that they could make a real difference.

She went on to say, "For years I have been looking for a silver bullet to engage and inspire the students at my school. Each year we implement the next new magical program or intervention that we think is going to solve the challenges we face. Every year we try something new but never see big changes. After all these years, it took this session for me to realize I have been looking in the wrong place.  This session made me realize that the silver bullet is me. I have known it deep down inside me but just wasn't listening. Thank you!"

RETHINK
WOW! Her message really resonated with me.  In today's world test scores, unfortunately, are put above all else. Many teachers and administrators are so worried about the "results of the test" that they are constantly chasing the "next new thing" that will guarantee results. Then when it doesn't, they will introduce another new initiative. Year after year, this occurs. Year after year, common sense is set aside in order to try and get "those results" by any means necessary. We, as a profession, have become so obsessed with attaining these scores that often times, what we know in our teacher guts is effective and important, is put on the back burner. I see it all the time...

"There is no time for recess because we need to teach more curriculum."

"Survey my students to find out what their interests are? Forget it!"

"You want me to set aside time for students to get to know each other, team build or for them to get to
know me on a human level. I am their teacher- not their friend. IMPOSSIBLE!"

It doesn't matter that research and logic have told us for years the importance of building strong, caring relationships with and between students. When such an environment is fostered, students are enabled to feel safe, let their guard down, take changes without fear of being teased for giving the wrong answer, and are receptive to new learning. Instead, we are "all about that test score, yeah, that test score!"

I am glad I work in a district that realizes relationships are the foundation for all learning and with colleagues who ensure ALL students have a home court advantage when they walk in the classroom!

RETOOL
As Dr. James Comer says, "No significant learning occurs without a significant relationship." Stop falling prey to "something shiny syndrome", look in the mirror and realize all students need is a "YOU INTERVENTION!"

YOU ARE THE SILVER BULLET!

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Bloggings by a Bald Man"​React, Reflect, Retool"

BEWARE OF THE CURSE: The Curse of KNOWLEDGE

Learning to Drive

Searching for the Silver Bullet? Start By Looking in the Mirror!

Bloggings by a Bald Man
"React, Reflect, Retool"