Sharing Good Practice

BY : KATE JONES

The Learning Scientists

If you haven ’ t visited the website LearningScientists . org , then I strongly urge you to do so . This is a fantastic website , filled with research informed articles , blogs , videos and resources that are suitable for teachers , students and parents . The Learning Scientists are a team of Cognitive Psychologists based in America and other parts of the world , that all share in common , their interest in research linked to education and how students learn . Their vision is to make scientific research on learning , more accessible to students , teachers , and other educators . They aim to motivate students to study , increase the use of effective study and teaching strategies that are backed by research and also , decrease the commonly held negative views of testing – showing that testing doesn ’ t need to just be a measuring tool but can also be a tool to support learning . On their website the Learning Scientists focus on six strategies for effective learning which are :

1 . Spaced practice : This strategy focuses on spreading out revision over a longer period of time .

2 . Retrieval practice : This involves recalling information from memory .

4 . Interleaving : Switching between ideas whilst studying .

5 . Concrete examples : Using specific examples to understand abstract ideas .

6 . Dual Coding : This involves combining words and visuals .

All of the resources on their website are free and will provide a great source of support and inspiration for both teachers and students !