Teach to the human brain
Powerful Teaching and Learning | STAR Framework, Protocol, and Process | STAR Learning Walks and Lesson Plans
Research shows that teaching to the human brain leads to better outcomes. Browse the information below to get a better understanding of what it means to change your instructional behavior.
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Powerful Teaching and Learning |
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Powerful Teaching and Learning is a term we use to describe brain-based, reform-like instruction that is characterized by active-inquiry, in-depth learning and performance assessment. Powerful Teaching and Learning is student-centered, builds conceptual skills and knowledge, shows evidence of meta-cognition and personal reflection, is relevant to the learners and is supported by strong relationships.
The Research
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Research shows that the traditional model of teaching and learning in public schools -- teachers deliver content to students -- does not prepare students for life in the 21st Century. This is the major catalyst for the changes we see in education today. Developments in studies of the mind over the last several decades indicate that students benefit most from teaching that has three practices: active-inquiry, in-depth learning, and performance assessment. Student achievement improved for when these teaching practices were used.
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How People Learn
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Learning is a basic, adaptive function of humans. People are designed to be flexible learners and active agents in acquiring knowledge and skills. Much learning occurs without formal instruction, as we know from observing young children interact with their environment. Highly organized systems of information such as reading, mathematics, science, and history, however, require formal training. Research has shown that diligent drill and practice is not a very efficient way to proceed with learning, nor does information gained in this way transfer to novel situations. Rather, a focus on conceptual understanding and application of knowledge produces the greatest learning and ability to apply knowledge in novel situations.
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1st and 2nd Order Change
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First order changes do not challenge an educator’s fundamental beliefs and so they may be met with less resistance. Second order changes require teachers to become learners, to think deeply about their practice, and to adopt new and often challenging ideas about their role in the classroom. These philosophical changes could engender some resistance initially, because they are deeply personal in nature. However, when educators are provided a safe and inspiring process and commit to aligning beliefs and instructional practices with the direction of reform efforts, classroom teaching and learning achieve success.
Research revealed that schools have significantly better chances for achievement gains when, rather than focusing on implementing specific strategies, their improvement efforts addressed basic concepts of how students should be taught and collaborative culture in the school and classroom. Second order changes in successful schools incorporate three factors:
As you will see with the STAR Process, all observations are always conducted at the Indicator or Component levels; not the Strategy level. The purpose of this is to help participants remain focused on the bigger idea behind the strategies that we see manifested (the Second Order Change). |
Changing Instructional Behavior
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Effective pedagogical change is inspired. It cannot be imposed upon teachers. Instruction is a human behavior and can only be changed at an individual level and must develop out of voluntary, personal commitment that is achieved through self-reflection.
These practices do not come about overnight. Changing and aligning behavior related to instruction is a developmental process that goes through four stages in order to realize wide-spread effective pedagogical practice.
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Align your instructional practices with brain-based learning.
STAR Framework, Process, and Protocol |
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STAR Framework
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The STAR Framework for Powerful Teaching and Learning is the foundation for all STAR Online activities. The framework contains five Essential Components (Skills, Knowledge, Thinking, Application, and Relationships). Within each component are three Indicators and example strategies. These are research-based indicators of highly effective instruction, and can be used for lesson planning, lesson reflection and data collection. If you’re new to The BERC Group, our Leadership and Facilitator Guides would help you fully understand the STAR Process and how to use the protocol to improve teaching and learning in your school or classroom.
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STAR Process
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Most people assume that the purpose of classroom observation is to make judgments and provide feedback to the teacher observed. With the STAR Protocol and STAR Process, nothing is further from the truth.
The STAR Protocol and Process simply uses classroom observation as an opportunity for us to reflect on our own instruction. Classroom observations should be opportunities to enter learning labs. We are NOT trying to critique the teacher observed. Rather, we are trying to determine if WE see the various elements of Powerful Teaching and Learning. Commenting on another teacher's classroom practice is much more about our own understanding of Teaching and Learning than it is about the quality of the lesson itself. Reflection on our own practices rather than judging someone else can be a new experience. If we are going to learn to change our practice, we need to follow a few simple, yet somewhat counter-intuitive, steps.
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STAR Protocol
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The STAR Protocol was developed by and for The BERC Group, Inc. It is a research instrument used to measure the degree to which Powerful Teaching and Learning is present during any given period of observation time in a classroom. Through deductive use of 90+ strategies spread amongst 15 Indicators, the STAR Protocol efficiently assesses student learning in the five Essential Components: Skills, Knowledge, Thinking, Application, and Relationships.
By popular demand, The BERC Group also developed modified versions of the original research instrument to be used by professional development groups. Through 15 Indicators, the STAR Protocol efficiently assesses student learning in the areas of Skills, Knowledge,Thinking, Application, and Relationships. |
Align your instructional practices with brain-based learning.
STAR Learning Walks and Lesson Plans |
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STAR Learning Walks
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Typically, only administrators conduct classroom observations, and their purpose is to judge whether the teacher is doing a “good” job. However, we believe it is important for everyone to be in classrooms, on a regular basis, to see instruction take place and learn to reflect on their own classroom practices, without providing feedback to the person being observed. Administrators demonstrate their support by allocating time and resources for teachers to do this and by modeling the process themselves in STAR Learning Walks for Reflection and STAR Learning Walks for Data Collection, which are described in more detail in the Powerful Teaching and Learning Leadership Guide®.
STAR Learning Walks come in many forms, including walking from classroom to classroom and watching video simulations to see teaching and learning in action. The transition from video to live observations requires an understanding of the culture in your school. Instructional practice is a very personal and sensitive issue, so we encourage participants to observe teaching and learning through video and in classrooms outside their own district or school initially, with the eventual goal of bringing the process home to an appreciative and trusting community within their own building. |
STAR Lesson Plans
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Write lesson plans aligned with the STAR Framework for Powerful Teaching and Learning or your own instructional framework. List out your lesson activities with the materials you’ll need, its essential questions, the learning target, and indicate the specific instructional strategies you plan to use while teaching the lesson. A lesson could focus on just one component like Thinking, or focus on different components throughout the different sections of the lesson. Sometimes it’s helpful just to plan the first and last ten minutes of the lesson. The planner can be used for staff meetings, professional development trainings, or classroom lessons. After the lesson you can return to the lesson planner and reflect on how the lesson went and share it with your teammates. Lesson planning individually or in a group is a way of ensuring that Powerful Teaching and Learning will be observable in your lesson. The more you intentionally plan your lessons, the more natural it becomes.
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Align your instructional practices with brain-based learning.
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