Applying Cognitive Psychology to the Classroom
Due to Hurricane Irma, I have not seen my students in four days. We are right in the middle of the most difficult unit of study for the entire year. To combat this difficulty, I make things easier...but not in the way you may be thinking. I make it easier with more frequent low-stakes assessments …
Continue reading Color Coding Recall Attempts to Assess Learning
In my AP Psychology classroom, most of my students are great at memorizing facts and regurgitating them on quizzes/tests. I spend a considerable amount of time introducing learning strategies to my students and incorporating them into their studying/practicing habits. I discuss this further here and here. Under the umbrella of discussing learning strategies with my …
Continue reading Student Assessment of Learning in the Classroom
*The following article originally posted on the American Psychological Association's Psych Learning Curve website on July 17, 2017: http://psychlearningcurve.org/learning-myths-vs-learning-facts/ Unless you’ve been under a rock, avoiding the most infamous jargon of education, you’ve heard the term ‘learning styles’. It has become quite the buzzword in the last decade or so and is almost said with …
Disclaimer: I am not asserting the brain should be worked out like other muscles of the body. Thank you. When discussing retrieval practice, it is easy to focus on the ‘retrieval’ aspect of the learning strategy. It is much more interesting, I believe, to consider the neurological and biological side of the topic in relation to …
Let me put all the cards out on the table: I am a big believer in using researched/proven learning strategies to improve retention of classroom material. I have applied strategies in my high school Advanced Placement Psychology classes and seen notable improvements in three areas: Test scores Study habits Student’s understanding of their learning Improvement …
Continue reading Promoting Metacognition with Retrieval Practice in Five Steps
Let me begin by saying that dual coding, or at least my initial understanding of this learning strategy, is completely foreign to me. I am the antithesis of creative. While others were playing with action figures and creating distant galaxies to be conquered in their mind, I was outside playing some sport. Add to this …
One of the largest gaps in my students’ learning that I encounter regularly is a lack of study/learning skills. I am extremely fortunate to teach at a school that has high expectations for all and produces some amazing kids. About 90% of each graduating class attends a 2 or 4 year college/university every year with …
Continue reading Retrieval Practice in the High School Classroom
