Education
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When STEM Lessons Are Too Easy, Students Stop Thinking
contributed by Christopher Feiler, Ph.D The lesson looked great on the surface. Students were on task. Materials were moving. Directions were being followed step by step. But something felt off. No one was stuck.No one was asking questions.No one was thinking. That’s the moment you realize: the problem isn’t engagement. The task is too easy. When STEM Tasks Miss the…
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A Learning Typology: 7 Ways We Come To Understand
contributed by Stewart Hase, Heutagogy of Community Practice This typology is an attempt to redefine how we think of learning in modern classroom context. Current definitions of learning focus on performance rather than holistic growth, and on what the learner can do after a learning experience. Gagne is perhaps the most notable exception. General dictionary definitions of learning refer to learning as…
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An Updated Guide To Questioning In The Classroom
by Terry Heick If the ultimate goal of education is for students to be able to answer questions effectively, then focusing on content and response strategies makes sense. If the ultimate goal of education is to teach students to think, then focusing on how we can help students ask better questions themselves might make sense, no? Why Questions Are More…
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What Is A Whataboutism? | TeachThought
What Is Whataboutism? Whataboutism is a rhetorical move in which a person avoids responding to a criticism, claim, or question by pointing to a different problem, usually with a response such as, ‘What about this other thing?’ Whataboutism matters because it can sound like fairness while functioning as avoidance. Instead of answering the question in front of the discussion, it…
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What Is A One-to-One Classroom?
One-To-One Classroom Related Terms: 1:1 Technology · One-To-One Computing · Blended Learning · Personalized Learning · Digital Learning · One-On-One Instruction Overview: A one-to-one classroom is most often a classroom where each student has regular access to an individual digital device, such as a laptop, Chromebook, or tablet. In less common usage, the phrase may also describe an instructional model…
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What Are Distractors In Multiple-Choice Questions?
Assessment Design Distractors are the incorrect answer choices in a multiple-choice question. When they are well-designed, they do more than make a question harder: they help reveal how students are thinking. Distractor Definition In a multiple-choice question, a distractor is an incorrect answer choice written to appear plausible to students who have a specific misconception, partial understanding, procedural error, or…
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Recognizing Early Expression in Multilingual Young Children
contributed by Iryna Liusik, Early Childhood Educator — Linguistics & Emotional Development Series note: This is Part 1 of a two-part series: Part 2 offers a one-minute classroom observation routine that helps teachers notice comfort that makes early expression visible before assumptions become records. Introduction: In early childhood classrooms, the fastest mistake we make is treating silence as a single…
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What Is Cognitive Dissonance? | TeachThought
Cognitive dissonance is the psychological discomfort people feel when their beliefs, values, or self-image conflict with their actions, decisions, or new information. Definition Cognitive dissonance is a theory in psychology describing the tension that arises when a person holds inconsistent beliefs, or when behavior conflicts with stated values. That discomfort often motivates the person to reduce the inconsistency by changing…
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Why IEP supports Can Fail—And What Teachers Can Do About It
When Accommodations Exist but Access Doesn’t: A Middle School Reality Check contributed by Pramod Polimari, middle school special education strategist In middle school classrooms across the country, accommodations are in place. IEPs are written. Support plans are documented. Students are technically “included.” And yet, many students still struggle to access learning in meaningful ways. This disconnect—where accommodations exist on paper…
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20 Agree/Disagree Statements For The Great Gatsby (High School)
You can find a classroom-ready copy of our Anticipation Guide prompts here. The Great Gatsby Major Characters The Great Gatsby Summary: Set in the decadent Jazz Age, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel follows the enigmatic millionaire Jay Gatsby and his obsessive quest to win back his former love, Daisy Buchanan. Through the perspective of narrator Nick Carraway, the story serves as…
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