Applying Cognitive Psychology to the Classroom
I fear we’re doing it wrong…education, that is. We live at a time when 21st century skills and edtech are all the rage. Creativity, coding, and active learning have become mainstays of teacher professional development. Heck, even the current US Secretary of Education incorrectly believes that we are preparing most students for jobs that haven’t… Continue Reading →
*This is basically a glorified footnote of my post earlier today — On Being Wrong…you may want to read it first…or maybe not. Whatever. Setting the scene: You’ve worked hard at university for four, five, or maybe six years to earn your teaching degree. There was a semester of student teaching, where you were essentially… Continue Reading →
The following article originally featured on Edutopia January 23, 2018 at the following link: https://www.edutopia.org/article/2-evidence-based-learning-strategies Spaced and retrieval practice help students retain content and give them a sense of what they know—and what they don’t. I often say to my students, “If a test is the first time you’re made to think about or with the class material,… Continue Reading →
I’ve written a bit about this before…homework. It isn’t a bad word. I see it discussed often on edutwitter. While I agree there is little point of elementary school-aged students working through copious amounts, I see a lot of purpose for high school students; especially those who are planning on attending college. I have a… Continue Reading →
I’ve been on the blogging scene for just over a year. Due to my beliefs on what education should look like, what it should represent, and how it should be conducted, I find myself generally agreeing mostly with educators in the UK. This is a little odd, due to the fact that I live in… Continue Reading →
Exactly one year ago today, my first ever blog article was published by the wonderful researchers/educators, The Learning Scientists. Since that day, I’ve had the bug…the reading research-writing-learning-growing bug. It’s been an amazing journey so far. A world of education, that I never knew existed, has been exposed to me and it’s changed everything about… Continue Reading →
I’ve written at length about many learning strategies (dual coding and retrieval practice, for example) that positively impact our student’s retention of material. Perhaps one of the toughest learning strategies to ‘show’ your students so they understand its importance is spaced practice. By definition, it can take days, weeks, or months to demonstrate its positive… Continue Reading →
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 →
The following post first featured on the American Psychological Association’s Psych Learning Curve on August 28, 2017: http://psychlearningcurve.org/learn-from-people-we-dont-like/ In a quite popular Ted Talk, Every Kid Needs A Champion, Dr. Rita Pierson says many great things about relationships and education. I have no doubt she was an incredible educator and mentor to students and teachers…. Continue Reading →
Post 3 – Reading the Research The first two posts in this series introduce its purpose and address where to find the research. As a whole, this series intends to empower educators to take control of their professional development with research. Often times, the prescribed whole-school PD doesn’t meet the needs of all classes and… Continue Reading →
Post 2 – Finding the Research As I stated in Post 1, the purpose of this series is to empower educators to take control of their professional development with research. Often times, the prescribed whole-school PD doesn’t meet the needs of all classes and students. I believe teachers should invest in seeking out your own… Continue Reading →
Dear New Teacher, Congratulations on your new job and commitment to the future of the world…a bit dramatic, but whatever. I want to give you a list of advice for your first year at the helm of your classroom. This isn’t your usual list…its purpose is to be completely honest; from one educator to another…. Continue Reading →
*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… Continue Reading →
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… Continue Reading →
I try to make it a habit to participate in edchats whenever possible for two reasons: It helps me to stay ‘plugged in’. Most of the time, I genuinely enjoy the chat. Even if I don’t agree with most of what’s being said, the vibe of it all has a nice energy. Although, I believe… Continue Reading →
I’m not going to lie, I’m hesitant to write this article. Why? Well…I don’t really follow the fads of teaching. As a general rule, I believe the flashier the professional development, the more unneeded or gilded it probably is. I consider myself an educator whose classroom is driven by researched or evidence-based strategies. Ideas of… Continue Reading →
Today, on twitter, I found myself reading through a somewhat comical conversation among a few edu-twitterers/teachers/researchers concerning the compiling of education research: Tom Sherrington (@teacherhead) made a comment that these compilations must help because most teachers would not be able to search for this information via researcher’s names. I agreed and commented that most teachers… Continue Reading →
In one of your latest articles, “4 Things We Don’t Know About AP Tests”, you discuss some of the unknowns of AP classes; citing there has been little independent research on the subject due mainly to the difficulty in conducting the research successfully. You then follow with 4 important questions the experts still don’t know… Continue Reading →
I promise, I was out of my desk to pick up someone’s pencil that fell off their desk. There I was, walking the fine line of detention in Mrs. Andrews’ 12th grade Government/Economics class. You see, Mrs. Andrews was very strict, but very fair. She had one rule everyone had to follow or suffer the… Continue Reading →
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 →
We’re covering developmental psychology in class…you know, from womb to tomb. When introducing the unit, I pose the following questions to the class: What is the best age? When is life at its best? When does one live the “time of their life”? A few students choose years during toddlerhood due to the fact that… Continue Reading →
Teacher A: Tell me about your class. Me: Well, I use mainly direct instruction and really focus on learning strategies to help students retain information. I immediately feel judged. As teaching methods go, I increasingly find myself in the minority. I’m “old-school”. My desks are in rows. For the most part, I lecture. There’s almost… Continue Reading →
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… Continue Reading →
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 →
*The following article first appeared as a guest post on The Learning Scientists blog on January 3, 2017. As schools begin another term, some teachers will have new classes with new students; a fresh start and a blank canvas to create a masterpiece…or not. The first few days of class are key to establishing rapport with students and… Continue Reading →
One of the most important aspects of teaching is the relationships formed with the students. The saying “students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care” certainly rings true. Even now, as I think back to the teachers who most impacted my life, I don’t think about a great lesson… Continue Reading →
Let me begin by apologizing. If you are a teacher of any other discipline, I’m sorry. By saying that psychology class is the best environment for learning, that isn’t saying that other disciplines’ environment isn’t great. Surely, a lot of courses contain many of the reasons listed below, but it is just my belief that… Continue Reading →
Much consideration has been given to the effects of blogging in education. Usually; though, the research considers blogging from the standpoint of the learner: How does blogging enhance a student’s learning environment? Does online interaction between students and/or teachers improve the student’s understanding and educational experience? While most of this research returns positive results, surprisingly… Continue Reading →
By Blake Harvard Blake Harvard is a high school AP Psychology teacher at James Clemens High School in Madison, AL. He earned his B. S. and M. Ed. from the University of Montevallo. Blake has a particular passion for cognitive psychology and its application in his classroom. You can find him on Twitter @coachharvard. *The following was… Continue Reading →
