LEARNING TO LEARN
those who , in the context of oral work , might all too easily give way to the student / s who always raise their hand and thereby feel absolved of the need for any kind of cognitive work . Finally , there is considerable merit to come from silent teaching : cognitive overload that can occur when students find their attention divided between looking at , for example , a PowerPoint slide with text and then hearing the teacher talk at the same time , can be mitigated by a teacher who models silently their answer to a problem and asks students to write down steps being taken , before engaging in explanatory talk once the problem is solved . In other words , curbing our habitual inclination to talk can have a very powerful impact . ( Ollin 2008 )
Although silence is an effective means of engaging students in learning , studies nevertheless show that students who do engage in class discussion by speaking , as well as listening , typically achieve greater outcomes ( Sedova et al , 2022 ). Anxiety about vocal participation in lessons should not mean that we do not seek the development of this skill . To do so would in effect further entrench , perhaps even exacerbate difficulties associated with anxiety and confidence . This is why practices such as cold calling – when a teacher nominates a student to respond rather than allow hands up ; think , pair , share – when students consider an answer to a question on their own and then share with a partner before being ( potentially ) asked to speak , or wait time – when students are asked to consider what their answer is going to be before putting up hands – are potentially very ‘ engaging ’ techniques . Studies have shown that teachers will typically wait for no more than 1 ½ seconds for an answer to a question before rephrasing or moving on to a different student , but preventing students from putting up their hands or cold calling after at least 3 seconds have elapsed in order to enable ‘ think time ’ can demonstrate significant advantages . ( Stahl , 1994 )
In his seminal work on teaching , Doug Lemov writes about ‘ champion teachers ’ who successfully utilise strategies such as these , which nurture a sense of equivalence between a high level of thinking and a high level of participation , demonstrated in different contexts e . g . in speaking , listening and writing . This is a version of the ‘ goldilocks zone ’, in which students are actively , and cognitively challenged , but not so much that they experience overload and therefore disengagement . And to create this kind of dynamic , as Lemov points out , it helps if we normalise behaviours most conducive to learning by making explicit reference to them in our classrooms . Peppering lessons with more metacognitive talk such as , “ I ’ m seeing people thinking deeply and jotting down thoughts . I ’ ll give everyone a few more seconds to do that ”, for example , is one example of a technique through which an appropriate atmosphere can be generated . ( p . 247 )
Ultimately , much of the relevant literature comes to suggest a correlation between independent engagement and capacity for self-regulation . Students who reflect on their learning and deliberately apply strategies that will plug gaps in their knowledge and skills are metacognitively aware . They see learning in terms of mastery rather than performance . These are students who focus on understanding the material and acquiring the necessary skills to solve problems , as opposed to dwelling on how they compare with others in the group or the grade they are likely to achieve once the task is completed . As Lisa Bloom ( 2009 ), cited in Kirschner and Hendrick ( 2020 ) states , “ mastery goals may be optimal for academic engagement .” ( p . 179 ) The demonstration of intrinsic motivation , in other words , is a hallmark of the most engaged learners .
Being mindful of the efficacy of this approach to learning , I would argue , is more likely to develop our sensitivity to whether or not students are engaged , as well as consideration of different strategies that make engagement more likely . And in talking to our students about what the evidence shows , about what it means to be engaged , about the development of approaches that will – in the end – facilitate life-long learning , we will almost certainly be nurturing young people who will learn to perform better , but more importantly , who will also learn to flourish .
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