Teaching Strategies Catalogue

Christopher Wells -

001174477
Strategy

Explanation

KeyConsiderations

KWLChart
(Direct)

Howdoesitwork?
Bycreatingthechartstudentsmirrortheprocessofscientific
inquiryandareabletoreflectonthelearningprocessandseetheir
academicdevelopment

Benefits?Limitations?
Helpsteachers/facilitatorstogainanawarenesstowherestudentsarein
relationtothetopicofstudyandcanthereforeconstructthetopicin
referencetothisknowledge
Canbeadaptedinavarietyofwaysandexpandedtoincludeevidenceof
learning,furtherquestions,andmore.
Helpsteachersandstudentstoseeifhelpmaybeneededifthereisalarge
discrepancybetweenlevelsoflearningamongpeers
Ifstudentsareunwillingtoshareorcopyoffofotherstudentsthenthekwl
chartwillnotshowprogressionoflearningorcangivefalserepresentations
ofstudentspriorknowledge

Resourcesneeded?
StudentsheetforKWLchartorpremadehandout
Topicofstudy
Stepstoimplement?
Firstidentifythetopicofinvestigationandintroduceittostudents
HavestudentsfirstcreateaKWLchartorhandapremadeoneout
Thenhavestudentsshare/writedownwhattheyalreadyknow
aboutthetopicintheKbar
Afteraskthemtowritedownwhattheywanttoknowaboutthe
subjectintheWbar
AsthetopicendshavestudentsreturntotheirKWLchartand
recordwhattheyhavelearnedintheLbar
Havestudentsreflectorsummarizeonthisprogression
Diagram:

Identifying
Similaritiesand
Differencesby
VennDiagrams
(Direct)

Howdoesitwork?
Theyhelptocompareandcontrasttwoormoretopicswhile
organizingdatathathassomerelationships.Theycanbeusedto
compareanumberofissuesorconceptsbyhavingtwocircles
overlap,ineachcircletheelementsareofasetandwhereit
overlapstheelementsarecommon.

Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Thatstudentsarenotknowledgeableinthetopicpriortointroductionand
alsothatstudentsmayhavesomeknowledge
Needforstudentstorepresenttheirknowledgetruthfully
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Inthisexamplethestudentsknowledgeistheonethatcountssinceithelps
themselfreflectontheirowndevelopment
Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Ahighlyeffectiveandsimpleteachingstrategythatgivesaconcrete
exampleofstudentprogressionandallowsforselfreflectionandassessment
Canbeusedforsomesummativedevelopmentassessment

Benefits?Limitations?
Createsawarenessofsimilaritiesanddifferencesbetweentwotopicsand
makesthemanalyzeinformationtocreatedeepercomprehensionby
organizingcomplexrelationshipsinavisualexample

Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Studentshaveknowledgeofhowtousediagramorthatstudentshavehigh

Resourcesneeded?
Theconstructofavenndiagram,handoutorhanddrawn
Explainthecirclesandwhatgoeswhere
Contradictionsandsimilarities
Stepstoimplement?
Createthediagramandintroducetwotopicsthatwillbethefocus
foryourcomparison
Confirmthatstudentscomprehendthetopicsaddressed
Havestudentscompareandcontrasttheseandputideasinthe
correspondingcircle
Theycanselfreflectandanalyzethetopicsinordertocreate
furthercomprehension

enoughunderstandingandcomprehensionofmaterialinordertoeffectively
usethediagram
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Studentknowledgeoftheircomprehensionisakeyproponent;teachers
thenassessthestudentscomprehensionbyevaluatingthediagrams
Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Canbehighlyeffectiveingivingavisualaidtoshowtherelationshipand
differencesbetweendifferentsetsofinformationaslongastheyare
proficientintheirunderstandingofhowthediagramswork

Diagram:

Nonlinguistic
Representations
(Experiential)

Howdoesitwork?
Nonlinguisticrepresentationshelpstudentstorepresentand
elaborateonknowledgeusingalternateformsofrepresentation;
thesecanbevisualimages,physicalsensations,andsound.
Resourcesneeded?
Dependsonthestudentsformofrepresentation,buttheyneeded
tobegivensomeguidelinesfortheapplicationoftheir
representation
Stepstoimplement?
Introduceatopicthatisabletorepresentedthroughothermeans
thanlinguistically
Provideguidelinesthatdescribeandgiveexamplesofwaystodo
this
Havestudentsgivefeedbacktotheteacherinordertoassesstheir

Benefits?Limitations?
Agoodactivitytohelpdisplaydeepercomprehensionandanalysis,while
alsoalargefocusondevelopingcreativity
Helpswithcooperativelearningandreflectionofpeersknowledgethrough
representationandpresentation
Largelimitationsasfarasassessmentprocedures
Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Studentswillbeabletounderstandthislevelofcomprehensionandwill
activelyparticipateintheexercise
Studentsthatareabletoprovideacreativemeansofrepresentation
Canlimitstudentsthatareprimarilylinguisticallybased
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Overalltheteachermustapprovetherepresentationandevaluatehowit
hasadequatelyrepresentandelaborateonknowledge

JigSaw
(Independent)

representationandconfirmifitwillmeetthecriteria

Studentsaregivencreativecontrol,butthisshouldstillbeapprovedbythe
teacherinsomescenariosinordertoassessknowledge

PointstoKeepinMind
Nonlinguisticrepresentationscomeinmanyforms
Theymustidentifycrucialinformation
Studentsshouldbeabletoexplaintheirrepresentation
Representationstakealotoftimeandwork(feedback)
Studentsshouldbeabletorevisetheirworkwhennecessary

Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Fordifferentiatedlearnersorexperimentationthiscanbeaneffective
strategy
Italsoprovidestheplatformtogroup/classdiscussionaboutthereasoning
forstudentschoiceinrepresentation
Providesaplatformforcreativityandmetacognitivedevelopmenttowards
analysis

Howdoesitwork?
Bydividingthelearningresourcesbetweenhomegroupsand
specializedgroups,studentsareabletogaindeepknowledgein
multipleareas,gainpeerreflection,andhavetheopportunityto
presenttheirknowledgetotheirpeersasaninstructor.Theentire
classcanlearnadiverseamountofmaterialanddosoinawaythat
providesahigherlevelofcomprehensionandunderstanding

Benefits?Limitations?
Emphasisoncooperativelearningthroughgroupworkandshared
responsibility
Helpsimprovelistening,communication,andproblemsolvingskills
Teachersmustmonitorthestudentparticipationwithinthegroup,ensure
thatstudentsareontaskandmanagingtheirworkwell
Teachersmuststopandcheckthatallstudentsaregainanunderstandof
thematerialandallstudentsvoicesarebeingheard

Resourcesneeded?
Dependingonthelessonplanandobjectivesthiscanvaryfrom
nothingtoextensiveresourceplanningnecessary.
Stepstoimplement?
Teacherintroducesthetechniqueandtopictobestudied
Studentsareputintohomegroupsandgivenequalpartsofthe
informationprovided
Studentsthenmeetwiththeirspecialistgroupofstudentsdoing
thesamematerial
Thespecialistgroupsmastertheconceptstheyareassignedand
planhowtointroduceanddescribetheirmaterialtotheirhome
group
Studentspracticeteachingthecontentandreturntotheirhome
groupwheretheyteachtheirspecializedmaterialtotheirgroup
Thisisrepeateduntilallthehomegroupmembershavepresented
theirspecializedmaterial
Diagram:

Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Allstudentswillparticipateandprovideknowledgetothebestotheir
ability
Homegroupswillactivelyparticipateinthelearningprocessfromoneof
theirpeers
Shouldbeimplementedinaclassroomthathashighlevelofmutual
respectandgoalsfordevelopment;orismonitoredcarefullythroughoutthe
process
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Forthespecializationandhomegroupsthestudentknowledgecounts
Teachersholdthepowerintheoverallclassroomandmustensurestudents
areequallyrepresentedintheirgroupwork
Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
canbehighlyeffectiveaslongasallstudentsparticipateandarewillingto
effectivelypresenttheirspecializedknowledgeinaclearandconcise
manner;ifthereisalapsebyonestudenttheentiregroupcanbecome
hinderedasaresult

Summarizingand
NoteTaking
(Independent)

Howdoesitwork?
Itteachesstudentstodiscernthemostimportantideasinatext
andignoreirrelevantinformation,whileintegratingcentralideasin
ameaningfulway.
Resourcesneeded?
Aselectedpiecethatstudentswilllistentoorread
Writingutensilsforstudents
Stepstoimplement?
Beginbyhavingstudentslistentoorreadaselection
Afterwardsaskthemtoidentifykeyideasandcrucialinformation,
whilealsowritingdownwhatinformationisirrelevanttothe
selectionasawhole
Havethemusekeywordstosummarizethemainpoints
Teachstudentsrulebasedsummarizingstrategies
Usesummaryframesinregardstoinformationprovided
Teachstudentstothinkanalyticallyaboutinformationrecorded

CaseStudies
(Indirect)

Howdoesitwork?
Casestudiesrepresentrealistic,complex,andcontextual
informationthatbridgesthegapbetweentheoryandpractice;while
alsogivingstudentsexperienceidentifyingproblemsanddifferent
pointsofviewinordertodevelopproblembasedlearning

Benefits?Limitations?
Highlybeneficialtoearlylearning,helpsfornotetakingaseducation
developsandincreases,alsohelpstoidentifystudentscomprehensionof
materialandabilitytoquicklyanalyzeinformationandrepresentit
Ifstudentsareunabletoutilizestrategythentheycanbeputata
disadvantage
Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Studentsareabletohavequickcomprehensionandwritingabilityinorder
toidentifykeyconceptsandignoretheirrelevantinformation
Studentsmightnothavelevelofliteracycomprehensiontousestrategy
andifnottheywillbeunabletofullyimplementstrategy
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Teacherappliesknowledgetostudent,studenthastothencomprehendand
interpretinordertoeffectivelyutilizestrategy
Teacheroverstudentpowerdynamic
Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Highlyeffectiveandusefulstrategythatisappliedinalmostevery
curriculumanddevelopsasaneffectivetoolaseducationallevelincreases
However,assessmentofstrategyisinterpretiveandcanbehardtoevaluate
inregardstostudentcomprehension/application
Benefits?Limitations?
Engagesstudentsinresearchandreflectivediscussion,encourageshigher
orderthinking,facilitatescreativeproblemsolving,allowsstudentstoapply
previousknowledge,createsopportunityforstudentstolearnfromone
another,allowsstudentstodevelopsolutionstocomplexproblems,and

experience
Theyareoftenbasedonactualeventsandareusedasatoolfor
analysisanddiscussion;theyareeffectiveatallowingstudentsto
practicallyapplyskillsandknowledgetosituations
Resourcesneeded?
Theintroductionofacasestudythatisrelevanttothetopicof
studyandraisesathoughtprovokingissueandencouragesstudent
totakeaposition
Stepstoimplement?
Introducethecasestudyandprovideaframeworkforanalysis
thatstudentswillfollow
Intheframeworkprovidesubquestionsandpromptstoencourage
studentsandkeepthemfocusedontheanalysis
Havestudentsprovidetheirreflectionsandanswerstothe
questions
Providestudentswithasynthesizedanswerifitisapplicableto
thecasestudyandinformationprovided;thiscanbedonebythe
teacherorthestudent

Generatingand
Testing
Hypothesis
(Indirect)

Howdoesitwork?
Havingstudentsgenerateandtesthypothesiscausesthemtothink
inductivelyanddeductively,creatingabetterunderstandingofboth
generalizationsandfactsbasedonthetopicthroughdifferenttypes
ofinvestigation
Resourcesneeded?
Simpleintroductionofknowledgeandapplication
IfIdothis,whatwillhappen?
Studentsusehighlevelthinkingskillsandpreviousknowledgeto
askquestionsandtestthem,whileexplainingtheconclusionof
evidence
Stepstoimplement?
Atopicorideaisintroducedtotheclass
Afterwardstheyarepromptedbyanopenendedquestionthatwill
requirecriticalanalysisforaprediction
Studentsarethenaskedtopredictthefeasibilityoftheir

helpsstudentstodevelopmetacognitivethinkingandapplyit
Theycangoofftopicquicklyandifnotappliedcorrectly,orthewrong
casestudyischosenasanexample,itcancausestudentconfusionand
hindertheirapplicationofknowledge,loweringselfesteemandcreateabias
towardsthefailuretoapplyknowledgeinrealworldcontexts
Studentscancreateabiasedargumentbasedontheanalysiswhichwill
makethemfallofftopic
Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Thatstudentsareabletocomprehendandevaluatetheproblemofthecase
studyandanalyzeitinaneffectiveway
Theapplicationofstudentsknowledgeisabletotransfereffectivelytothe
casestudyprovided
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Thestudentsselfreflectionisthemainpowerinthelearningprocess
Theteacherdoesreviewthisafterwardsandprovidescriticalfeedbackon
thestudentsprocessandknowledgeapplication
Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Canbehighlyeffectivetowardsapplicationofknowledgetonew
environmentsandareasifthestrategyisimplementedcorrectly
Supportsinquiryofproblemanddevelopsknowledgeandskillapplication
Benefits?Limitations?
Canbeausefulstrategytofosterreasoningandpredictionskillswhilealso
developingtheirdecision
Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Thatstudentswillbeabletounderstandthetopicormaterialthattheywill
bepredictingtheresultsfor
Studentswillhavetheopportunitytotest/discusstheirpredictionsand
makerevisionsorconfirmtheirpredictions
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Thestudentspredictionsthattheywilltestagainsttheresultsofthe
experiment
Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Canbeeffectiveatdevelopingpredictionsforresultsofevidencebased
uponpriorknowledge(bothasanintroductiontoatopicorasasummative
ofatopic)

predictionsorcomparetheirpredictionstotheconclusionof
evidence
Stateaclaimbasedonwhattheyhavelearnedsofar
Identifywhatinformationisalreadyknown
Considerareasofconfusionandcontradictionsaroundthetopic
Developaplausibleresolution
Reflectontheinitialclaim,revisingtheirknowledge
Strategiesforproblemsolvingordecisionmaking
TalkingCircles
(Interactive)

Howdoesitwork?
Theapplicationoftalkingcirclesiswhenthediscussionhasno
rightorwronganswer,orindividualsneedtosharehowtheyfeelin
asafeenvironment.
Thisissothatstudentsareabletogaintrustintheirclassmates
andfeelthattheircontributiontodiscussionwillbeheardand
acceptedwithoutcriticism
Resourcesneeded?
None,justtheestablishmentofasafeenvironment;supportifthis
isnecessary
Stepstoimplement?
Decideonsizeofgroupinreferencetotheapplication,butmake
surethattalkingcircleguidelinesarefollowed.(Facilitator
supervisionmay/maynotberequired)
Allcommentsareaddressedtothequestionorissueandnotto
commentsotherparticipantshavemade
Onlyonepersonspeaksatatimewhiletherestlisten
Silenceisanacceptableresponseandstudentsareallowedtopass
ifitistheirturntospeakandchoosenottoo
Everyonemustfeelinvitedtoparticipateandthediscussion
shouldnotbedominatedbyonlysome
Studentsshouldavoidcommentsthatarenegativeorpositivein
ordertoremovejudgmentorpersonalassociations.

Benefits?Limitations?
Createsanenvironmentwherestudentsareabletodiscussissuesorcontent
inasafeandequalenvironment
Fosterstakingturns,developmentofrespectfullearningenvironmentsand
classroomcommunity,buildworkingrelationshipsandsocialconnections
withintheclassroom,andgivessomestudentsavoicewheretheydidnot
havetheopportunitybeforehand.
Afterthetalkingcirclestrategysometimeswhatmaybediscussedinasafe
environmentcanbetakenoutofthecontextandintoareasthatarenot
established/monitored
Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Hopefulthatstudentsarewillingtoparticipateandopenupwithinthe
circle
Studentswillfollowtheguidelinesandthatwhatmaybediscussedinthe
circleremainsthere,assomediscussionsmaybeabouthowastudentfeels
andthiscanleadtoimplicationsoutsideofthecircle,classroom,school,etc.
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Equalrepresentationofknowledgeandonly
Equalpowerwithinthetalkingcircle,withtheonlyapplicationofapower
differentialisifthefacilitatorisrequiredtostepin
Theguidelinesarethebaselineforallparticipants
Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Itismoreeffectivetoholdtalkingcirclesinsmallgroups
Effectiveinmonitoringsmallequalparticipationandintroductioninto
groupprojectsandworkingtogether

WholeClass
Brainstorming
(Interactive)

Howdoesitwork?
Thestrategyencouragesparticipantstogenerateideasinan
unhinderedmanner,participateingeneratingideas,and
acknowledge/understandthebenefitstoapproachingaproblem
frommultipledimensions.
Resourcesneeded?
Areatohavediscussionpointwrittendown
Canbeonboard,handout,paper,etc.
Stepstoimplement?
Writethediscussionpointontheboard,givehandouts,orhave
studentswriteitdown.
Encouragestudentstoinputtheirthoughtsandideas,thiscanbe
supportedbythepreparationofsubquestionstohelpdirectthought
Havestudentsrecordtheinformationcollectedsothereisnot
repetition
Setatimelimittoonthediscussion,andafterwardshavestudents
canreflectandsummarizetheideasthatwerediscussed

SocraticSeminars
(Interactive)

Benefits?Limitations?
Helpstomotivatestudentstofreelyexpresstheirideasandthoughtsona
topicwithouttheevaluationofbeingcorrect/incorrect
Helpstheclassconnectbetweenpreviousknowledgeandwhattheyare
currentlylearning
Studentsareencouragedtolistenandconsidertheirpeersinsightsina
respectfulmanner
Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Thatstudentswillactivelyparticipateequallyamongtheclass,quiet
studentswillbeabletovoiceopinionsandcontributeequally
Studentsarerecordingthedatathatisbeingdiscussedbytheclassandthat
thisdataisbeingusedinreflectionoftheirownthoughtsandopinions
Whoseknowledgecounts?PowerDynamics?
Studentknowledge,theteacheractsasafacilitatorthatdoesntaddtheir
evaluationorcommentsontheideaspresented
Theteacheronlyhelpsguideinthecaseofsubquestionsbeingpresented
andindoingsodisplayslightpowerdifferentials

Application
Structuredeverystudentcontributesanidea(afterwardsthese
canbereevaluatedanddecideifyouwanttoremoveanyorleave
themall)
Unstructuredisbasedononlythosewhochoosetoparticipatein
thediscussionprocess

Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Canbeeffectiveincreatinginitialinsightintoatopicandhelptofacilitate
earlyinquiryofatopic
Dependingonthemethodimplementedstructuredvs.unstructured

Howdoesitwork?
Studentinquiryandthinkingarecentraltothestrategy,andthe
goaloftheeducatoristofacilitatetheenvironmentforconstructive
discussions.Thefocusisthatstudentsdiscussopenended
questionswhichallowsthemtothinkcritically,analyzemultiple
meaningsinthetext,andexpresstheirownideas.

Benefits?Limitations?
Canbeagreatwaytofacilitatecriticalthinkinganddiscussionaslongasit
ismonitoredeffectively.Canleadtodebateissuesandinsomecaseclass
hostilityoveradifferenceofopinionorbeliefs/values.
Somevoicesmaynotbeheardandcaninherentlycauseonesided
discussionsordebates,needtomonitorandcontrolthissoitdoesnot
happen.(Canalsouseitemsthatlimitthenumberoftimesallowedtotalk)

Itisaformaldiscussion,usuallyinresponsetoatext,wherethe
leaderasksopenendedquestionstostartdiscussionandthen
allowsstudentstoengageinmeaningfuldiscussion.
Canbelargeorsmallgroups,ortheentireclass
Studentslistentothecommentsbeingmadeandthinkcritically
onthetopicwhileformulatingtheirownresponses.
Thegoalisthatstudentsworkcooperativelytogetherwhile
answeringquestionsintelligentlyandcivilly.

Assumptionsaboutteachingandlearning?
Thatstudentshavethoughtcriticallyandanalyticallyaboutthecontent,
thattheclass/groupdiscussionwillstayontaskandnotturnintodebatesor
aggressivearguments.(Needfortheteachertobeawareofcontentand
discussion,whilealsomonitoringduringstrategy)
Whoseknowledgecounts?Powerdynamics?
Thestudentsknowledgeisthefocusforwhatcounts,comprehensionand

Resourcesneeded?
Aformaltextortopicthatinvitesauthenticinquiryintothe
contentmatterorsubjectoffocus
Preparethestudentsbyinformingthemofwhatwillhappenafter
thereadingsotheycanfocusonkeypointsthattheychooseto
discuss
Preparetheopenendedquestionsthatwillhelptoguideand
facilitatethediscussions
Establishstudentexpectationsthatitisdiscussionbasedrather
thanadebate
Establishyourroleasateacherrequiresonlytheexamplesof
questionsandpossibleguidingifofftopicdiscussionhappens
Assessingefficacy

analysisofthetext/contentleadstofurtherknowledgebuilding.
Primarilystudentbasedwithequalpower;theteacheronlypromptsopen
endedquestions,keepsthetaskonhand,andmonitorsthatdiscussionstays
positiveandconstructive.
Efficacyofteachingstrategy?
Hasthepotentialtobeahighlyeffectiveteachingstrategythatcancreatea
morecomprehensiveunderstandingofcontent,whilealsodeveloping
metacognitioninstudents.

Stepstoimplement?
Findachallengingtextandcreatecopiesandhavestudentsread
thetext/orhavethemdosobeforehand
Createasetofquestionstoguidegroupdiscussion
Establishlessonguidelineandsetgoals/groundrules

References
KWLChart
LanguageinEducationhandout
o Fisher,D.,Brozo,W.,Frey,N.,andIvey,G.(2011)InstructionalRoutinestoDevelopContentLiteracy
https://www.facinghistory.org/foreducators/educatorresources/teachingstrategies/kwlchartsassessingwhatw
VennDiagrams
http://arbs.nzcer.org.nz/strategies/venn.php
https://education.alberta.ca/media/352984/is.pdf
NonlinguisticRepresentations
http://www.wisp.k12.wi.us/education/components/links/links.php?sectiondetailid=14268
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educationalleadership/may10/vol67/num08/RepresentingKnowledgeNonlinguistically.aspx
https://escmarzano.wikispaces.com/5.+Nonlinguistic+Representations
Jigsaw

http://www.adlit.org/strategies/22371/
Roscoe,Keith.2012.AnIntroductiontoCurriculumandInstruction

SummarizingandNoteTaking
http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/summarizing
http://www.wisp.k12.wi.us/education/components/links/links.php?sectiondetailid=14270
https://magnificentmarzano.wikispaces.com/Summarizing+%26+Note+Taking
CaseStudies
https://teaching.unsw.edu.au/casestudies
https://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/teach/instructionalstrategies/casestudies.html
http://www.bu.edu/ceit/teachingresources/usingcasestudiestoteach/
GeneratingandTestingHypothesis
https://teachingnlearning.wikispaces.com/Hypothesis
http://www.schoolimprovement.com/helpingstudentstogenerateandtesthypotheses2/
http://www.marzanocenter.com/blog/article/teachingstudentshowtogenerateandtesthypotheses/
TalkingCircles
https://education.alberta.ca/media/352984/is.pdf
http://bigideasineducation.ca/2014/10/01/talkingcirclesinpositiveeducationalenvironments/
Brainstorming
http://www.cirtl.net/node/2600
https://k12teacherstaffdevelopment.com/tlb/howcanifacilitatebrainstormingintheclassroom/
SocraticSeminars
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/topteaching/2010/11/higherordercomprehensionpowersocraticseminar
http://www.readwritethink.org/professionaldevelopment/strategyguides/socraticseminars30600.html