WEBVTT

00:00:00.506 --> 00:00:04.546


00:00:05.046 --> 00:00:06.466
I'm Don Deshler.

00:00:06.696 --> 00:00:11.446
I work at the University of Kansas where I'm a professor in the School of Education,

00:00:11.616 --> 00:00:14.776
and I serve as the Director of the Center for Research on Learning.

00:00:14.776 --> 00:00:22.166
Something that I am most excited about is the amount of progress that has been made

00:00:22.226 --> 00:00:29.886
within our field about learning how to most effectively teach students who struggle.

00:00:29.886 --> 00:00:34.706
While there's many things that we still need to learn,

00:00:34.866 --> 00:00:40.056
we know a sufficient amount that we can develop very solid programs.

00:00:40.846 --> 00:00:46.456
Among the things that we frequently see in those classrooms

00:00:46.676 --> 00:00:53.636
where "master teachers" are applying their craft are these things:

00:00:53.736 --> 00:00:59.166
They are very good at clearly giving the rationale to students,

00:00:59.796 --> 00:01:02.676
"Here's why we're engaged in doing this.

00:01:02.766 --> 00:01:14.976
There's a few things within your approach to reading that can be enhanced.

00:01:15.156 --> 00:01:19.326
Hence, there's this strategy that we'd like to spend some time working on.

00:01:19.466 --> 00:01:22.316
But here's how it can pay some dividends for you."

00:01:22.346 --> 00:01:26.316
If they're going to be investing their time and their energy,

00:01:26.816 --> 00:01:29.376
they want to know, "What is the payoff?

00:01:29.476 --> 00:01:31.906
What is going to be the return on my investment?"

00:01:32.556 --> 00:01:37.896
And we have an obligation to do that and to provide them with clear rationales

00:01:37.896 --> 00:01:42.746
and make them partners in the learning process with us.

00:01:42.746 --> 00:01:51.066
Another thing that we see master teachers using is to do wonderful models

00:01:51.406 --> 00:01:56.936
of how to use a new learning strategy.

00:01:57.716 --> 00:02:01.816
If I am going to teach you how to improve your golf swing,

00:02:02.596 --> 00:02:08.786
it's a relatively easy thing to show because it's a physical act.

00:02:09.306 --> 00:02:13.296
You know, I can say, "Okay, you hold your left arm a little more straight.

00:02:13.296 --> 00:02:14.096
You go back.

00:02:14.096 --> 00:02:15.416
You swivel your hips.

00:02:15.416 --> 00:02:16.556
Can you feel that?

00:02:16.556 --> 00:02:17.966
I can demonstrate it."

00:02:18.036 --> 00:02:23.446
When I'm saying, "Here's how you should think about this paragraph that you are going

00:02:23.576 --> 00:02:29.236
to be reading," that's something that is going on inside one's head,

00:02:29.236 --> 00:02:37.836
and that's where we need to rely on what we often refer to as expert teacher thinking

00:02:38.006 --> 00:02:41.796
or providing students with a cognitive apprenticeship.

00:02:42.386 --> 00:02:44.706
Here, the teacher is a master learner,

00:02:44.706 --> 00:02:49.396
and he or she is sharing their craft of learning with the student.

00:02:49.396 --> 00:02:56.206
And one of the ways to do that is to model for them how they actually go

00:02:56.206 --> 00:02:59.146
about approaching a reading task.

00:02:59.626 --> 00:03:05.546
And they make visible and audible to the student,

00:03:05.756 --> 00:03:09.056
things that they're thinking about in their mind.

00:03:09.116 --> 00:03:10.876
"Here, this is by this author.

00:03:10.876 --> 00:03:14.606
When I've read this person before, it's been a little difficult.

00:03:14.606 --> 00:03:17.456
I found it was helpful if I look at the summary.

00:03:17.566 --> 00:03:19.406
I think that's where I will start."

00:03:19.586 --> 00:03:21.756
And you point out to the student,

00:03:21.796 --> 00:03:26.726
"Those are some of the things that I quickly go through in my mind."

00:03:26.786 --> 00:03:32.726
So, teachers who are effective in helping students close the gap are ones

00:03:32.726 --> 00:03:38.216
who understand the importance of modeling and not just doing it one time.

00:03:38.216 --> 00:03:44.326
A third one is how opportunities for practice are designed

00:03:44.326 --> 00:03:48.316
and structured by the teacher for the student to follow.

00:03:48.546 --> 00:03:52.816
Master teachers recognize that, and one of the things

00:03:52.866 --> 00:03:58.096
that they do is they scaffold learning experiences for students.

00:03:58.336 --> 00:04:02.966
And so, they are very careful in the selection of the reading materials

00:04:03.046 --> 00:04:05.546
that they give them practice within.

00:04:05.546 --> 00:04:12.196
They want them to be at a level that the students can comprehend the text,

00:04:12.226 --> 00:04:15.996
but they also have an opportunity to practice the new strategies within the text,

00:04:15.996 --> 00:04:18.116
and they don't get overly frustrated with it.

00:04:18.216 --> 00:04:26.916
But as confidence grows, then the master teacher notches up the difficultly level of the text,

00:04:27.046 --> 00:04:32.656
and the supports that he or she as a teacher might be providing to the student,

00:04:32.656 --> 00:04:37.076
the prompts that they might be providing to the student, tend to be pulled away.

00:04:37.306 --> 00:04:43.176
That bridges into or should be very closely coupled with that is that the way

00:04:43.176 --> 00:04:46.416
in which teachers provide feedback to students.

00:04:47.136 --> 00:04:53.256
Now, one of the most powerful things that teachers can do,

00:04:53.306 --> 00:04:59.936
I believe where they quite frankly really earn their salaries is how they

00:05:00.086 --> 00:05:06.276
look at responses that students have made, how they analyze those responses and say, "Okay,

00:05:06.656 --> 00:05:14.006
here is where we really need to focus in on some additional information to the students

00:05:14.006 --> 00:05:17.546
so they can understand how they're performing at this point in time."

00:05:17.686 --> 00:05:22.906
So, we find that the most helpful feedback is feedback that is timely,

00:05:23.586 --> 00:05:31.956
that happens as soon after what a student practices as possible, that is specific-that is,

00:05:32.186 --> 00:05:36.156
we outline, "Here's what you did correctly."

00:05:36.216 --> 00:05:40.436
The primary reason we say, "Here's specifically what you are doing well,"

00:05:40.826 --> 00:05:48.086
is so that they remember next time I want to repeat that particular behavior.

00:05:48.376 --> 00:05:52.796
We sometimes will ask the student to repeat back to us, "Okay, now,

00:05:52.796 --> 00:05:56.856
next time you practice tomorrow, what are you going to focus on?"

00:05:56.856 --> 00:06:02.776
We want to push as much of the responsibility for learning onto the student

00:06:02.776 --> 00:06:08.416
and have them engaged in the process of setting goals and predicting

00:06:08.776 --> 00:06:11.246
and so forth what they are going to be doing with their learning.

00:06:11.756 --> 00:06:18.406
Something that then follows after good scaffold practice coupled out with feedback is we need

00:06:18.406 --> 00:06:24.486
to make certain that we deliberately teach students how to generalize

00:06:24.486 --> 00:06:30.006
and transfer the specific skills or strategies that we've been teaching to them.

00:06:30.006 --> 00:06:36.076
Very explicitly build in to the instructional routine opportunities for the student

00:06:36.176 --> 00:06:43.566
to generalize the skills and strategies that were taught to other instructional materials

00:06:44.016 --> 00:06:49.656
and contexts where the students are prompted to use the strategies in other settings.

00:06:49.916 --> 00:06:53.146
And even there's collaborative planning with other teachers,

00:06:53.256 --> 00:06:58.396
where those other teachers that the student encounters throughout the school day can prompt the

00:06:58.396 --> 00:07:01.566
student to use the strategies at the appropriate time.

00:07:02.516 --> 00:07:08.390
[Music]