Hierarchic: 4 Main Ideas

s
TM

Makes Sense Sense Strategies Strategies Makes

Box frame
2008 Edwin Ellis, All Rights Reserved Published by Makes Sense Strategies, LLC, !rth"!rt, AL www#MakesSenseStrategies#$!%

Name:

Sam McCall
Is about

Date:

10-8-13

Concept Attainment
Main idea Main idea

Concept Attainment is a teaching model designed to help students of all ages elaborate and reinforce their understanding of concepts and practice critical thinking.
Main idea Main idea

Planning

Implementing

Assessment

Motivation

Identify topics consider students prior experiences. Some familiarity on the students part with the topic and related topics is necessary Specify learning objectives examples include giving students practice with critical thinking by allowing them to form and test hypotheses and helping students understand relationships between concepts Select examples and nonexamples for examples, make sure they fully illustrate the concept in question. Include some surprising examples (such as a squash, if discussing fruit). As with the guided discover model, nonexamples can be just as valuable as examples for students understanding of the material Sequence examples and nonexamples dont put all the easy ones first; make it a moderate challenge to identify the topic. Intersperse examples and nonexamples.

Introduction this is likely a process with which students are unfamiliar, so theyll require a brief explanation before beginning Examples and hypothesizing if students are hesitant to participate, ask guiding questions to help the students become involved in the lesson and begin forming hypotheses The analysis circle allow students to discuss and form hypotheses, then introduce more examples and nonexamples. Allow students to see which hypotheses hold up under the new information, eliminate any that dont, and form new ones that do. Dont tell students whether or not they are correct. Allow them to work it out, but guide as necessary. Closure and application after hypotheses have been narrowed down to one, ask students to identify defining characteristics of the topic, then provide additional examples and nonexamples for them to explain. Try concept mapping to further application.

Four methods of assessment: defining the concept, identifying the concepts characteristics, relating the concept to other concepts, identifying or supplying new examples of the concept. The first two are very shallow assessments. The last is the most effective and deepest method of assessment Assessing critical thinking can also be important and may be done independently of concepts

The lesson is inherently interesting both because it is a puzzle and because it presents a sense of the unknown. This model introduces variety, breaking up the tedium and giving students something new. Solving the puzzle is satisfying Students get to work cooperatively with one another Can be conducted using small groups

So what? What is important to understand about this?

The Concept Attainment model is a valuable tool for helping students develop and enjoy critical thinking. As a bonus, it carries plenty of inherent motivation.