Running head: LITERATURE REVIEW: DOMAIN E 1

Literature Review: Domain E

Amanda Boyer

National University
LITERATURE REVIEW: DOMAIN E 2

Abstract

This paper is a literature review of ​Paula Rutherford's book, “Active Learning and

Engagement Strategies.”​ Rutherford provides strategies and examples of best practices that

have been successful in differentiating instruction to reach all students. This book was chosen

specifically for the California Teacher Performance Expectations Domain E, which is about

instructional time and the social environment.

LITERATURE REVIEW: DOMAIN E 3

Paula Rutherford's ​Active Learning and Engagement Strategies​ provides many

different strategies for teachers to ensure that all students are interacting and engaged

with concepts, processes, and information. There are seventy-seven strategies for planning

instruction time and learning experiences for students in their social environment.

Take-Away Tips

One activity that Rutherford provides is the use of signal cards. Signal cards are for

students to signal understanding of concepts or progress in projects. Signal Cards are a

great tool to use in a visual arts class where students are working on individual or group

art projects. Rutherford explains that the cards are best used “to check for understanding,

to have students self-assess, to let students know that they are not supposed to know that it

is fine that they do not learn everything the first time around, to provide a format for

students to provide the teacher with formative assessment data” (Rutherford, 2012, p. 84).

The cards are a non-verbal cue for students to use to indicate if they are on track, a little

confused, or need help right away. I can see the cards being beneficial for classroom

management and checking for understanding in project-based instruction.

Another section that was meaningful to me was the “Grouping Practices, Putting

Students into Groups, Structuring Small Group Work, Cooperative Learning” (Rutherford,

2012, p. 128-136). In a video production art class, there are a lot of group projects that I

will be assigning. The grouping practices that Rutherford describe are helpful for thinking

through as far as guidelines, flexible grouping possibilities, and how to structure group

work. Collaborative learning can be effective especially in producing videos on with a crew,

so this is helpful information to think through and be intentional with.

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Another learning activity strategy for pre-assessment, activating prior knowledge;

collaborative learning; and community building was “Stir the Class: Purposes, Process and

Possible Topics” (Rutherford, 2012, p. 90). This strategy for active engagement could be

used in many ways to collect information, data, and ideas from students in a visual arts

classroom. As a result of the stir the class activity, students will compare lists, prioritize,

categorize, brain storm, and design their projects.

Rutherford also includes a “Top Ten Questions to Ask Myself As I Design Lessons,”

which is a list of questions that I found extremely beneficial for ensuring intentionality and

a well thought through lesson plan (Rutherford, 2012, p. 3). As a new teacher, this list is a

helpful resource to ensure that my lesson plans are engaging students.

This book is a great resource for teachers to use as they are intentionally planning

active, engaging lessons for instructional time. The strategies and activities are easy to

understand and apply to all content areas. Rutherford explains the purpose, activity,

opportunities for collaboration and cooperative learning, the assessment, and reflection.

Implementation is made easy for teachers as they read through the different activities for

student engagement and have access to online templates and tools. The student-centered

activities are a great reference for teachers as they build curriculum in the social

environment of a classroom.
LITERATURE REVIEW: DOMAIN E 5

References

Commission on Teacher Credentialing. (2016). California teaching performance

expectations [PDF file]. Retrieved from https://www.ctc.ca

Rutherford, P. (2012). ​Active learning and engagement strategies.​ Alexandria, VA:

Just ASK Publications.