Analyzing a Piece of Teaching Through the Lens of The ABCs of How We Learn: 26 Scientifically Proven Approaches, How They Work and When To Use Them

Kimberly Alexander,Paul Vermette

doi:10.14305/jn.19440413.2018.12.1.02

Abstract

For the continuing development of quality instructional practices, educators must have access to the findings of research and be in a position to explore applications of those findings. We think we may have found such a resource: A 2016 book titled The ABCs of How We Learn: 26 Scientifically proven approaches, how they work, and when to use them by Schwartz, Tsang, and Blair is a concise, insightful, and applicable set of 26 short articles that explain key learning factors, provide examples, and identify the supporting scholarship. In this article, a first-year middle school science teacher and a veteran teacher educator offer teacher educators and professional developers an overview of the 26 factors as they work in a middle school science classroom and an example of how to effectively utilize this text in teacher education programs via vignette creations and analyses.

Highlights

In 2016, Schwartz, Tsang, and Blair published The ABC’s of How We Learn: 26 Scientifically proven approaches, how they work, and when to use them and may have offered a way to revolutionize approaches to teacher lesson planning and reflection
We have found evidence of 14 of the 26 strategies esteemed by Schwartz, Tsang, and Blair in this lesson. Please note that this lesson was adapted from the Modeling Curriculum (American Modeling Teacher Association, 2014)
Alexander frequently pulls from the Modeling Curriculum (American Modeling Teacher Association, 2014) in her classroom as she feels that the lessons reflect the strategies from Schwartz, Tsang, and Blair and dovetail with the New York State Science Learning Standards and the Generation Science Standards

Summary

Introduction

In 2016, Schwartz, Tsang, and Blair published The ABC’s of How We Learn: 26 Scientifically proven approaches, how they work, and when to use them and may have offered a way to revolutionize approaches to teacher lesson planning and reflection. Alexander frequently pulls from the Modeling Curriculum (American Modeling Teacher Association, 2014) in her classroom as she feels that the lessons reflect the strategies from Schwartz, Tsang, and Blair and dovetail with the New York State Science Learning Standards and the Generation Science Standards.

Results

Conclusion