STUDY GROUP OUTLINE

Learning to Think, Learning to Learn: What the

Science of Thinking and Learning Has to Offer
Adult Education

By Jennifer Cromley

Published by National Institute for Literacy, c 2000.

Fall 2002

Odessa College Adult Education Program

David Heath, ESOL Coordinator
Irene Kelleher, ABE Coordinator

Written by Alathea Blischke, ESOL Teacher

 STUDY GROUP OUTLINE
Learning to Think, Learning to Learn:
What the Science of Thinking and Learning Has To Offer Adult Education
By Jennifer Cromley,
Produced under a National Institute for Literacy, Literacy Leader Fellowship, c 1999.

Group members: Becky Baze, Marion Crockett, Mary Garcia, and Izabella Richardson
Facilitator: Alathea Blischke
Sponsoring organization: Odessa College Adult Education Program

Introduction
Fact Sheet 1: Literature is not Science
Fact Sheet 2: Making Connections
Fact Sheet 3: Mental Modes
Fact Sheet 4: Thinking About Thinking
Fact Sheet 5: Getting Information into Memory
Fact Sheet 6: Memory and Learning
Fact Sheet 7: Working Memory and Learning
Fact Sheet 8: Long-term Memory and Learning
Fact Sheet 9: How Thinking Develops, Part 1: General and School-Based Development
Fact Sheet 10: How Thinking Develops, Part 2: Changes in Strategies
Fact Sheet 11: How Thinking Develops, Part 3: Experience Makes Some Difference for Adults
Fact Sheet 12: Importance of Teaching Content— A Summary
Fact Sheet 13: What Does Good Thinking Look Like— A Summary
Fact Sheet 14: Critical Thinking
Fact Sheet 15: Active Learning—A Summary
Stimulate your Active Learning
Characteristics of Beginners and Experts
Fact Sheet 16: Problem-Based Learning
Fact Sheet 17: Supporting Good Thinking
Fact Sheet 18: Adult Learning—A Summary
Appendix B: Are There Learning Styles?
Appendix C: What About the Brain?
Appendix D: Newsletter Articles
 STUDY GROUP OUTLINE

Learning to Think, Learning to Learn: What The Science Of Thinking And Learning
Has To Offer Adult Education
By Jennifer Cromley, published by National Institute for Literacy, c 2000.

Introduction: The “Cognitive Revolution” in the Classroom

1. During the mid-Twentieth Century and, in many places into the 1990s, the “behaviorist”
approach to learning was predominant (pg iv). Depending on your age, reflect back
(either as student or teacher) on your grade school, junior high and senior high school
years. What do you remember about your educational experience that is different than
the experiences you offer to your students now?

2. Research in cognitive psychology now shows that people learn not by repetition but by
integration. The authors identify 15 facts about how the mind works (pgs iv-v), including
contextual and subject-specific instruction, transference of skills, practical and immediate
practice of new skills, and development of background knowledge prior to presentation
of new knowledge. Select one or two of these to discuss that surprised you.

3. “Teaching means teaching students to think. It assumes that teaching is not just about
communicating facts or mechanical skills . . . but is a process of coming to understand the
world.” (Pg v) How does this statement relate to your own idea of what teaching means?

4. Since you became a classroom teacher have you performed research projects (informal or
formal) on your students? (Pg vi) Have you referred to published research to learn new
ideas . . .or to confirm your own ideas? If you have consulted research, what did you
find? If you have not, why haven’t you?

5. Very little research has been done specifically on how adults learn, except in the context
of university education and senior citizens. (Pg vi) Why do you think this is so?

Fact Sheet 1: Literature is not Science

Principle: Literature Strategies are Different from Science Strategies

1. Are members of your family or close friends “smart” in one area but definitely lacking
skills in other areas? (Pg 1) What pairs would you make based on the people you know
(i.e., smart in math but no common sense, smart in music but cannot read a road map)?

2. Rochel Gelman feels that “the languages of science and mathematics are better thought of
as different languages than the one we use in everyday talk.” (Pg 2) In your classroom,
do you teach “different languages” and when to speak those languages?

3. Thinking skills appear to be subject-based. They are most effective when taught in
problem-solving ways in each different subject, modeled repeatedly while the process is
demonstrated, discussed by both students and teachers, and practiced using real-life
problems. (Pgs 3-4) How does this compare to your classroom teaching?
 4. Do you consider yourself an “expert” (pg 4) in a subject? On what do you base your
evaluation? How did you become an expert?

5. All children (who are normal physically and mentally) are born with the ability to learn
oral and aural language. Why do you think this innate language-learning ability does not
extend to written language? (Pg 5)

6. If you were to tell your students that “ . . . people who read a lot continue to improve their
vocabulary and knowledge of the world even after school; those who do not read do not
improve those skills” (pg 5), what do you think would be their reaction to this statement?

7. In ABE classes the focus is on teaching content. In ESOL classes the focus is on
teaching strategies. According to the author, is either of these focuses the best approach
to creating an enriched learning environment for the students? What blend of the two
would you like to make the focus of your teaching? (Pgs 6-8)

Fact Sheet 2: Making Connections

Principle: Show Students How to Use Old Skills in New Areas

1. This chapter begins with a slice-of-life dialogue between a teacher and student about
using decimals. (Pg 11) How many of you groaned when it was clear that the student
had not made the connection between classroom worksheets and the cash register? Do
you have your own story to tell?

2. “The question of transfer is perhaps the fundamental educational question.” (Pg 11)
What do you feel is the “fundamental educational question?”

3. The GED test is structured so information taught in one context is tested in a different
context. (Pg 11) Since most adult education teachers have students whose goal is to “get
my GED,” are you preparing your students for the expectations of the GED, whether you
are an ABE or ESOL teacher?

4. The author referred to several studies demonstrating that transference of problem-solving

skills from one area to another is sadly lacking. (Pg 12) In addition to those mentioned,
do you have examples from your teaching or personal life when information has simply
not made the shift?

5. “Good learners do transfer more than poor learners . . .” (pg 12) offers hope to teachers
who nurture problem solving and thinking-skills practice in their classrooms. Six things
are recommended (pgs 12-13). Choose two and describe how you are teaching that skill
now OR how you plan to teach it in the future.

6. Consider the students in your class this semester. Name two who know “when to use a
skill, as well as how to do it” (pg 13). What is different about those students than the
others in your class? On what basis did you select those two students? Can you not think
of any students in your class who know when to use a skill?
 7. “Students who learn new facts through patterns or principles . . . rather than by rote are
better able to transfer that knowledge.” (Pg 14) Give one example of a pattern/principle
lesson you have taught in the past month.

8. “Students who spend time organizing what they know . . . have a deeper understanding of
what they have learned.” (Pg 14) Give one example of something you do in your class
to teach students how to be organized.

9. Did the chart entitled “Is It Better To Learn From Rules, Examples, or Both?” (Pg 15)
surprise you? Consider your own teaching style. Are you more comfortable teaching
rules or examples? As a child, which style(s) were more common in your classes? Do
you personally learn better from rules or examples?

10. When students read aloud in your class which do you say: “Here’s how you say that
word,” or “What do you think that word means?” (Pg 15)

11. Analogies are very effective teaching tools (pg 16), but have you ever used a wonderful
analogy in your classroom and all the students looked blank? What did you do?

12. Research suggests that practice of multiple problems is more effective than multiple
practices of similar problems. (Pg 16) Give an example of how this suggestion could be
implemented in your classroom. What type of material would you use as the basis for
your practice?

13. Teachers are urged to provide instruction in the following areas: transfer, modeling,
analogies, examples, practice, and learning for understanding. (Pgs 17-19) Choose two
of these areas and share ideas you have for doing these things in your classroom. Have
you provided instruction in these areas before? If so, are your suggestions now different
than they were before you read this chapter?

Fact Sheet 3: Mental Modes

Principle: More and Better Models Help Learning

1. Choose five words to describe your “mental model” of the phrase “adult education
teacher.” (Pg 25)

2. Mental models are not static; they change and evolve as our experience of the world
broadens. Mental models also affect how we understand everything we experience. (Pg
25) What is one mental model you have changed, either willingly or unwillingly, in the
past year?

3. “A mental model is a kind of shorthand for experience (or a stereotype of it).” (Pg 25)
We may not even be aware that we hold this mental model because it is such an inherent
part of what we think. In fact, we may not consciously “think” about topics for which we
have rigid mental models. What are some mental models you have noticed in your
students that you suspect they are unaware of having?
4. The author says the parts of a mental model are interconnected; unfortunately they may
be connected to totally unrelated information. (Pg 26) Have you ever evaluated a mental
model (substitute the word “opinion”) of your own by looking at each part? Does your
thinking mirror the “Ideal Mental Model” diagram or the “6th Grade Student’s Mental
Model?” (Pg 26)

5. Mental models help us think in five ways: (1) they organize information, (2) they set up
expectations of what is important, (3) they help us make associations, (4) they help access
background knowledge, and (5) they include problem-solving shortcuts. (Pg 27) Choose
one personal mental model and explain which way is most important to you.

6. Mental models are “stereotypes.” (Pg 27) For the following terms, think about your
mental model: immigrant, refugee, person with no papers, welfare mother, dead-beat
dad, juvenile delinquent, high school dropout. Do your mental models positively or
negatively affect the way you look at students who fall into one or more of these
“stereotypes?”

7. Experts are able to make mental models work for them. They organize facts, access
information at appropriate times, make expectations before they read, and integrate
diverse ideas with what they are reading at that moment. (Pg 28) Based on these
thinking skills used by experts would you identify yourself as an “expert” in one or more
areas? Do you agree or disagree with this list of mental model skills?

8. “Good readers sometimes ‘remember’ information that was not in a text because they
added information from their own background knowledge.” (Pg 29) Accessing prior
knowledge is good; adding information on a test beyond what is in the textbook can be
very bad. Have you explained to your students that when answering test questions they
must limit their answers to those that can be supported by text materials?

9. The author summarizes mental models in a chart (pg 30). She identifies nine
characteristics. Which would you select as the “Big 3” and why would you select those
three rather than some of the other characteristics?

10. Four suggestions are given for choosing teaching materials (pg 30). For each suggestion,
think of one thing you could do in your classroom, regardless of the literacy level of your
students.

11. “Modeling” is a process of demonstrating how you think—of “talking it through.” (Pg
31) Have you used this strategy? How did you feel . . . explaining every thought in
detail . . . and how did your students react to a step-by-step instruction method? If you
haven’t tried this before, what topic might lend itself to this strategy?

12. “Students who grew up in other cultures (even in the U.S.) will have different mental
models.” (Pg 32) Are the mental models of all your Hispanic students similar? Do the
differences seem to occur between different educational levels, country/region of youth,
age/sex, or other factors?

13. Throughout this chapter, Ms. Cromley stresses the need for increased background
knowledge if students are to be able to improve their mental model strategies. For ESOL
 teachers, do your classroom materials stress language only, or do they teach language
while teaching content-area topics like U.S. history, biology, and health and safety? For
ABE teachers, do your classroom materials focus on the “biggies”—math, reading, social
studies, science, and writing—and ignore the richness of oral language?

14. In the sample “Lesson Ideas” section, activities are listed for pre-reading, reading
assignments, after reading, and general practice. (Pgs 32-33) Select any topic you would
like to teach your class, and prepare one or more classroom lessons. Keep a record of the
activities you tried. If your first attempt to teach the topic was unsuccessful, try a
different activity.

Fact Sheet 4: Thinking About Thinking

Principle: Teach Students to Notice Their Own Thinking

1. Ms. Cromley summarizes “thinking about thinking” as (1) asking questions before,
during and after reading, (2) being aware of your own thinking while you read, and (3)
being aware of what you do not understand so you can adapt your reading strategies to
improve understanding. (Pgs 37-38) How do you rate yourself against her “thinking
about thinking” list?

• Help teachers understand what thinking strategies students are using and
2. “Thinking about thinking can:

• Help students learn new thinking strategies and when to use them.” (Pg 38)
Do you focus on both teachers and students when you think about the process of
thinking?

3. The top three reading strategies are: (1) discuss what you already know about the topic,
(2) ask and answer questions as you read, and (3) summarize what you have read. (Pg
38) These are also excellent strategies for writing, speaking and listening. In your
classroom, how often do you use one or more of these strategies? Describe how an
ESOL teacher could use this formula in a beginning-level listening and speaking class.
Describe how an ABE teacher could use this formula in an advanced GED class.

4. “Students need to know a range of effective ways to study once they realize they do not
know a subject well enough.” (Pg 39) Do you know how your students study? Do your
students have “a range of effective ways” to study? What is one specific thing you could
do this week in your classroom to assess the study skills of your students?

5. Eleven reading comprehension strategies are listed (pgs 39-40) that research indicates are
effective. Which one or more do you personally use most often? Which one or more are
you uncertain how to use yourself and even less sure about how to teach to your students?

6. The author lists several “sacred cows” (pg 40) that teachers continue to use despite
research that suggests that these are not effective in most situations. She divides these
into five groups: Background Knowledge, Reading—Decoding, Reading
Comprehension, Teaching Vocabulary, and Other. How many of your favorites are on
this list? Will finding your favorites on this list change your teaching practices? Why or
why not?
 7. What does “self-awareness as a learner” mean to you? (Pg 41) When you look back at
your high school and college years would you describe yourself as a “self-aware
learner?” Do you know how you became self-aware? If you do not describe yourself as
self-aware, why do you think you didn’t develop this skill?

8. The author states that only one reading strategy should be taught at a time (pg 41) and
that the instruction will take “up to 60 hours” and should be limited to one strategy each
semester (pg 43). Do you feel that her estimate of practice time is accurate? Do you feel
that adult education teachers are pressured by their students (or by themselves) to present
information at a fairly rapid rate so students can achieve the goals they set for
themselves? Is mastery of a few skills more important than limited knowledge of many
skills? On what does a teacher base his selection of which skill(s) will be taught?

Fact Sheet 5: Getting Information into Memory

Principle: Students, Teachers, and Lessons Interact

1. “Learning for understanding actually helps people remember better because it helps
information get into memory in a way that is easier to recall . . .” (pg 47). From your
own life, give an example of information you learned from understanding and
information you learned by memorization. Looking back, which information have you
been able to continue using years later?

2. Experts say that memory improves when the purpose of reading is to understand rather
than to complete an assignment (pg 48). Have you ever asked students what is the
purpose of reading? If so, do their answers support the research addressed in the text? If
not, perhaps you could make this the topic of a discussion and graph in an upcoming
class.

3. Do your tests and classroom discussions focus on “getting the right answer” or
“understanding” the material? (Pg 48) How could you revise your classroom activities
to shift the focus from answers to understanding?

4. “Students can answer factual questions surprisingly well even if they do not understand
what they have read.” (Pg 49) When was the last time you realized that you and your
students had an entirely different image of the topic you were discussing or reading
about? How did you find out and what did you do to correct the problem?

5. For meaning to take place, repetition must be “meaningful.” (Pg 49) What repetitive
activities do you include in your classroom presentation? Based on descriptions in the
text of meaningful and meaningless activities how do you rate your use of repetition?

6. If “a question that is connected to the answer in a meaningful way is easier to answer

than one that is randomly related, even if the random information is true” (pg 50) then
how do you compare questions you ask to the author’s standard of related in a
meaningful way?
 7. This is a formula for memory: Memory In + Memory Out = Learning. (Pg 50) Is your
own memory organized for easy access? Are you able to retrieve information you know
you learned at some time in the past but haven’t accessed for many years?

8. When information is learned in multiple ways (i.e., by hearing and by writing vs. by
hearing only) it is easier to access later; in other words, as more learning paths are created
more exit paths for that knowledge to be used are also created. (Pg 51) Describe a lesson
you presented in your class during the past two weeks, explaining the different types of
activities you used to create multiple learning opportunities. If you haven’t used multiple
activities in the past, how could you expand a future lesson to include many different
presentations of the same material?

9. Have you assigned students to be the “teachers” in your class for specific topics, chapters,
days, etc? (Pg 51) If so, did they present the information effectively? What activities
did they/the group use in their teacher role? Did any of the students use an activity that
you have modeled? That you had not modeled?

10. Field trips present opportunities for students to get hands-on experience in areas that
cannot be taught well inside a traditional classroom. (Pg 51) What field trips have you
taken with students, and what preparatory and what follow-up activities did you use to
enhance the field trip? What do you wish you had done differently?

11. Do you tell students in advance what they are going to do in class that day? (Pg 53) Do
you remind them at the end of class what they did that day? Do you tell them how this
day’s instruction fits into the overall strategy for that week . . . month . . . or term?

12. The author suggests that students may learn better from a “10-week unit on the
circulatory and respiratory systems than from 10 weeks on the human body.” (Pg 53)
Why do you think this is true? What material are you currently teaching broadly that you
could revise so you teach it deeply?

13. In the “What it means for teachers” section, the author presents many suggestions,
divided into “Students’ Goals, Teach for Understanding, Questions for Understanding,
Many Senses Are Better Than One, Doing Is Better Than Seeing Or Hearing, More
Detailed Information Is Easier To Remember, and More Meaning for Information Is
Easier To Remember. (Pgs 53-55) Choose any five suggestions and describe how you
will implement those ideas into your lesson plan next week.

14. The “reporter’s questions” (pg 55) or the “W questions” can stimulate students to cross-
reference information they add to their memories. How do you add Who? What? When?
Where? Why? and How? questions to your classroom presentations? Are some of the
questions easier for your students to answer than other questions?

Fact Sheet 6: Memory and Learning

Principle: Memory is Vital for Learning

1. “Memory is not the same as learning. Memory is necessary for learning, but not
sufficient.” (Pg 59) How do you define “learning?”
 2. The author says that memory is important in social interactions and to one’s sense of self.
(Pg 59) Would your students be more willing to study memory skills if they thought that
improved memory would benefit them socially OR if they thought that improved memory
would benefit them academically?

3. The diagram on page 60 shows how information goes into and out of memory. Describe
a lesson you could teach to your class that uses this information and diagram. Be sure to
include defining the terms “working memory” (short-term), “long-term memory”
(encoding), “get out” (retrieve), and “remembering” (finding and pulling information out
of long-term memory).

4. “Working memory is where we understand. Long-term memory is where we remember.”

(Pg 60) Think about yourself—are you better at understanding new information or
remembering old information?

5. Since students remember more of what is presented at the beginning and at the end of
class (pg 61) how could you rework your lesson plans for tomorrow so you maximize
your students’ learning windows?

Fact Sheet 7: Working Memory and Learning

Principle: Working Memory Helps All Learning

• WM is the name for information that we are using when we think (pg 63),
The following information applies to “working memory” (WM)

• WM can hold only a very small amount of information at any one time—if it is

• WM can only do one job efficiently at a time; it can serve as an information storehouse
overloaded, the extra simply backs up and cannot be accessed (63),

but cannot process that information OR it can hold very little information but can process

• WM contains both thinking and linking parts and how a person uses these two parts
that in many ways (pg 63, 64),

• WM seems to be more effective for people who are good at reasoning (pg 64),
determines how quickly or slowly he can read (pg 64),

• WM is intimately connected to long-term memory (pg 64),

• WM involves several different parts of the brain at the same time (pg 64),
• WM “stores words using a kind of ‘talking to yourself’ process which can be merely
repetition, which is not effective in improving WM, or it can be a connection-making

• WM is necessary for reading, understanding, and solving problems; it is responsible for

process where one idea leads logically to another (pg 65),

retaining meaning of the beginning of a sentence or a question throughout the entire

• WM operates more efficiently when information is linked to other information (pg 66),
length of those words (pg 65),

• WM retains information in “chunks,” especially when the information is organized into

• WM “increases as reading skills improve” (pg 67).

logical categories (pg 66), and
 1. Create a lesson plan for your specific class level that uses the information above to
introduce students to working memory.

2. Since working memory can only remember accurately a very small amount of
information how can you repackage your classroom presentations so you present tiny
chunks of related information?

3. Have you ever played logic games with your students? If so, did they enjoy the games,
and did they solve the logic problems more quickly the second and third times you did
the activities? If not, how could you include a logic activity in your lesson plans on a
regular basis?

4. When your students are reading silently at their desks have you ever observed them
mouthing words as they read? (Pgs 65, 68) Are these your better, poorer, or both kinds of
students? Have you ever asked one of the students to explain what he was doing and
why he did it? What was the response?

5. Working memory is necessary for reading because it keeps the question prominent in the
mind while the answer is sought in the reading passage. (Pg 65) ABE teachers: What
kinds of reading assignments could you use that enhance this connectedness between
questions and answers? ESOL teachers: Do you think that working memory is equally
necessary for listening and speaking? What kinds of activities could you do that
strengthen the connectedness between hearing the question and formulating the answer?

6. Linking new information to existing information increases both the amount of

information that can be contained in working memory and the speed with which similar
and related information can be retrieved from long-term memory (pg 66). Create a
graphic organizer on an overhead transparency or on the blackboard for a classroom topic
that links new information that you are presenting with information that students
probably already know.

7. An unusually high percentage of adult education students have one or more learning
difficulties. The author lists short-term memory problems common to students with
reading disabilities (pg 66). Design a lesson targeted towards these students that
specifically addresses their needs.

8. The author refers to some “short tests . . . that can help separate students who have
reading problems because of processing problems from those who had bad instruction or
have been out of school for many years.” (Pg 69) Are you familiar with these types of
tests and do you know where they can be acquired? Why might knowing which students
fit into which categories help you as a teacher? Can you make any predictions about how
different categories of students would use working memory based on the text material?

Fact Sheet 8: Long-Term Memory and Learning

Principle: Long-Term Memory Is A Web

1. The human mind is not like a computer—information in is not necessarily information

out, and there are no easy “word scan” programs that allow students to retrieve all
 information they have stored in long-term memory. (Pg 74) To what would you
compare the human mind?

2. “Associations” are the spider web connections in memory that allow information to be
retrieved easily. More tendrils equal more access. (Pg 74) What are some ways you can
encourage association making during your lesson presentations?

3. “Concept” and “typical” are terms that describe how generalizations are made in
memory. “Concepts” are very broad categories; “typical” identifies closely the items
within the concept category are related. (Pg 75) Choose any two topics you taught
during the past month. Identify the “concept” of the lesson. Then identify what “typical”
examples you used to demonstrate the concept.

4. In your own words, define the terms “defining features” and “characteristic features.”
(Pg 75) Think of five pairs of examples that explain the terms.

5. Is this an accurate formula for long-term memory? (Pg 75)

New Long Term Memory = Facts + Categories + Typical-ness of Information
If yes, describe how you would teach the formula. If no, create a new formula and
describe how you would teach that one.

6. List five ways you can activate knowledge before beginning a new lesson. (Pg 76)

7. “Just seeing information is not enough for learning most of the time.” (Pg 76) If
working memory holds information for only “20-30 seconds” how can you hope to
sustain attention and increase memory during a 2-hour lesson? Name five things you can
do to compensate for short working memory so that long-term memory will be activated.
ESOL teachers: Is this statement accurate if you substitute the words “listening to” for
the word “seeing?”

8. Following are several ways of relating information to previously learned information.

(Pgs 76-77) Which ones are you currently teaching students how to use on a regular

• Work with information (exercise it!) before moving it to long-term memory,

basis? How can you integrate others into future lessons?

• Make connections with other information,

• Create mental descriptions (visual and/or written) of new information,
• Allow enough time for activities so students will associate, rather than repeat, and
• Insist that students discover the answers to their questions rather than getting the
answers from you.

9. The chart on page 78 compares strong and weak ways of learning. Include this
information in a lesson and ask students to evaluate themselves as weak or strong
learners. Does your teaching style stress strong learning methods? When you ask
students for information to be gotten out of long-term memory what types of questions
are they strong in and where are they weak?

10. What information do you include at your class level that must be memorized? (Pg 78)
How do you present it? Do you spend class time on memorization games? What are the
rewards for students now, and in the future, for memorizing the information? What are
 the consequences for students now, and in the future, if they do not memorize the
information?

11. The author lists more than 15 teaching suggestions to improve memory. (Pgs 81-82)
Choose any five and weave them into your lesson plans for next week.

Fact Sheet 9: How Thinking Develops, Part 1—General and School-Based Development
Principle: Some Development is General, Some is Learned

1. “Do adults reading at a 3rd grade level think like 3rd graders? Do adults reading at a 12th
grade level think like 12th graders?” (Pg 85) Consider the students in your class. Is their
reading (or speaking) ability indicative of their thinking ability? Have any of your
students expressed frustration with knowing their reading (speaking) skills are very
poor—perhaps even shame that others will look down on them and treat them as less
intelligent than they are? How did you handle their concerns?

2. “A large part of what we think of as intelligence is made up of these skills that people
learn in school.” (Pg 86) Do your students equate education and intelligence? Do you?

3. The author states, “the spoken grammar of a six year old is almost the same as an
adult’s.” (Pg 86) What was your initial response to this comment? Would your students
believe this statement? Do they equate good grammar with good (complete) education?

4. Thinking skills identified as tied to school include categorization, learning transference,

ability to focus attention on specific problems, phonemic awareness, memory practice,
mental arithmetic skills, ability to create vocabulary and verbal analogies, understanding
of figurative language and symbol systems, and expanded vocabulary. (Pgs 87-88)
Which of these do you remember learning in school and which did you learn at home or
in another setting? Do you feel competent in each of the skills? Are you aware of a lack
in one or more of these areas that has limited your ability to accomplish certain things as
an adult? (For example, is your ability to understand mathematic principles, not just do
arithmetic problems, a hindrance in pursuing a graduate degree that requires a statistics
class?)

5. What is your reaction to this statement? Do you agree or disagree? “People do not totally
understand that all interpretations reflect a particular understanding of the world and that
there are no “objective” opinions until college age or older (if ever).” (Pg 88)

6. Research indicates that children can answer difficult questions and perform advanced
thinking skills if questions are worded in such a way that they can access familiar
knowledge. The author feels that this is also true of adult literacy students. (Pg 88) If
this is true, can we as teachers evaluate a student’s thinking ability by his answers to our
questions on a standardized test OR can we only evaluate a student’s thinking after
asking many different questions about many different topics? What implication does this
have for the way we determine a student’s functioning level if we have only asked
questions that refer to unfamiliar topics?
 7. There are ten reasoning skills that children can perform as early as age three listed on
page 89. Did any of these skills surprise you? If so, which one(s)?

• Begin with familiar examples,

8. Robert Slavin suggests four principles for helping students learn abstract thinking skills:

• Provide additional help during planning stages of a project,

• Ask students to restate concepts in their own words, and
• Provide many opportunities to practice various aspects of abstract thinking. (Pg
90)
Choose two of these principles and describe how you can involve them in your lesson
plans for next week. Why did you choose those particular skills?

Fact Sheet 10: How Thinking Develops, Part 2—Changes in Strategies

Principle: Development Means Changes in Strategies

1. Give an example of a student who fits the comment “Development occurs at multiple
levels and has many faces,” (pg 97). Describe the student’s strengths and weaknesses
and what activities you have tried to improve development in low areas. Is the student
aware of his widely differing abilities? Does he feel that level placement should be based
on high, mid-range, or low skills?

2. There are four things that develop over time and with experience: basic processes, self-
awareness of oneself as a thinker and learner, strategies, and content knowledge. The
author states that strategies and content knowledge are the most important for adult
education teachers. (PG 98) Based on her statement, identify five different reasons that
strategies and content knowledge would be most important to adult education students . .
. and therefore, hopefully, also to their teachers.

• Beginning readers—they do not know when to use a particular strategy, and the
3. The following descriptions fit readers.

• Intermediate readers—they have many strategy options but don’t know when or how
strategies they try are often unsuccessful

• Experienced readers—have access to many strategies but select the appropriate

to use them effectively

strategy(ies) for a specific task, often using far fewer strategies than intermediate
readers but using them more effectively. (Pgs 98-99)
For ABE teachers, decide which category each of your students fits into and explain why
you selected that particular category. For ESOL teachers, how would you reword this
information so it applied to speakers?

4. “Strategy change does not seem to happen because people feel that old strategies are not
working. Rather, it seems to happen when people are challenged with difficult problems
where familiar strategies are too time-consuming.” (Pg 100) How can teachers create
these challenges within their classrooms? How does a teacher decide when a challenge is
too hard for a specific student? How does she create different challenges for different
students at the same time? How can a teacher effectively monitor many students at the
same time who are all experiencing different challenges?
 5. Ms. Cromley says that “it is painful to switch from a strategy that you are good at to one
that you are not good at and to ‘go backwards in order to go forwards.’” (Pg 101) Make
a list of five activities that teachers could try that would push/force students to move from
a comfortable strategy to an uncomfortable one. Create a funny skit is which you, a
know-it-all-teacher, try to convince a very unwilling student to try something new. Next
week, get two students to perform the skit in your classroom

6. One “key” to changing strategies, according to the author, is for students to realize that it
was the new strategy that caused the successful outcome, not just luck. (Pg 101) How
would you encourage students to recognize their new ability and reward them for
venturing beyond their confidence net? Would your students like some visual
recognition (an award certificate, a class cheer, etc)?

7. Children who are more involved in the classroom receive more attention from their
teachers, which allows them to experience more things within the classroom
environment. The same is true for low-level adults. (Pg 101) Have you ever realized
that you are more attuned to some students than to others? What about those students
attracts your interest and time? What response do you receive from those students? Are
other students in your class receiving less attention because they are shy or less able to
verbalize their needs?

8. How much class time do you spend each week on modeling your own thinking process
(orally and on the blackboard) and practicing thinking skills and giving feedback to
students on their progress in developing advanced thinking skills? (Pg 102)

9. In the Lesson Ideas section (pgs 103-104), the author makes ten suggestions of activities
that facilitate development in advanced thinking skills. Select five, explain why you
chose those five, and then describe how you can implement those ideas into your lesson
plans for next week.

Fact Sheet 11: How Thinking Develops, Part 3—Experience Makes Some Difference
For Adults
Principle: Experience Makes Learning Different for Adults

1. Ms. Cromley states, “many adult literacy students have small vocabularies (about 15%
larger than a 5th grader’s vocabulary).” (Pg 108) For ABE teachers: Have you observed
students in your class who are unable to understand synonyms for common words that
you would not identify as “big words?” For ESOL teachers: As students in your classes
add words to their English vocabulary, do you find that they often do not know the word
in their native language either? General: Does a limited, child-like vocabulary hinder
your ability to teach (not their ability to learn)?

2. Adult students can draw on background knowledge to compensate for limited vocabulary.
What knowledge are they most likely to refer to? (Pg 108)

3. Why do you think the author says, “When low-literate adults read about unfamiliar
topics, they perform worse than children who are reading at the same reading level.”? (Pg
108) Have you observed this in your students?
 4. How do you feel about this statement: “[Adult learners] . . . working memory is already
as large as it will ever be.” (Pg 108)

5. Practical skills—“how-to” skills--seem to be easier to learn throughout life, according to

Ms. Cromley. (Pg 108-109) Why do you think that is?

6. The ability to learn practical skills seems to peak between 40-59; the ability to learn
school-type problem solving peaks in the mid-30s. (Pg 109) What implications does this
have for adult education teachers and adult education students?

7. If you told your students that “reading comprehension drops about one grade level for
every year after high school for people who do not continue to read (either in further
education, at work, or recreational reading)” what would be their response? Would this
information discourage them or would it motivate them to attend school regularly,
completing their GED or English classes in the shortest possible time?

8. Research indicates that the education level of parents is a key factor in the vocabulary
level and preparation for school of young children. Children of professors’ are spoken to
and read to the most (11 million words per year); children of working-class parents are
next (6 million); and children of parents on welfare are last (3 million). (Pg 110) Based
on this information, what are the educational prospects for the children represented by
parents in your class? Do you know how many children and/or grandchildren each
student has? How could you use this information to motivate your students to read to
their children more at home?

9. When teachers use familiar topics to teach new information, adult students understand
and remember the new information better. (Pg 111) How can you correlate new
information in next week’s lesson plan to information you are confident students already
know?

10. The author urges teachers to discourage students from simply repeating their own
experiences when they are asked to tell a story. (Pg 111) Why?

11. “The more students know about the real world, the harder it may be for them to ignore
what they know.” (Pg 112) What implications does this statement have for teachers?
Does the inability to imagine—to use imagination creatively—hamper your students?

12. One lesson suggestion is to create a book of anonymous student writings to use as
reading material for later classes. (Pg 112) Have you done this, and, if so, did the
students writing the stories like the idea and did the students who read the stories later
have a greater interest in these stories than ones in commercial textbooks?

13. Explain this statement in your own words: “Whenever you teach adults something you
deprive him or her [sic] the opportunity of discovering it.” (Pg 113)

Fact Sheet 12: The Importance of Teaching Content—A Summary

Principle: Facts are just as important as skills for learning
1. Students in content-based classes improve reading skills significantly more than do
students in skill-based only classes. (Pg 117) Consider your own teaching. Are your
classes more content oriented or skill oriented? Name three specific things you could do
in the next month to increase the amount of content-based information.

2. The following statements are based on “Two Dozen Reasons Why Background
Knowledge Is Important.” (Pgs 118-121) For each grouping, create a lesson(s) that
incorporates each reason. Identify how background knowledge is used and which reason
it specifically addresses. Avoid combining multiple categories since too much
information may be overwhelming and confusing for students.

• Background knowledge helps get information into short-term memory.

Background knowledge improves memory.

• Background knowledge stored in mental models frees up working memory.

• Background knowledge helps get information into long-term memory.
• Background knowledge helps students imagine a situation in their minds, which helps
them remember.

• Background knowledge about sounds (called phonemes) helps people make sense of
Background knowledge helps you understand what you read.

• Background vocabulary knowledge helps people make sense of longer sentences.

what they hear and read.

• People with more, better-organized background knowledge understand what they read

• Background knowledge helps students understand maps, graphs, and other graphics.
better.

• Background knowledge helps students read for meaning, which helps get information

• Students read faster, understand more, and draw more logical conclusions in familiar
into memory.

• Background knowledge gives adult literacy students a basis for understanding somewhat
subject areas.

more sophisticated reading materials about familiar topics than children at the same grade
reading level.

• Background knowledge helps people know what to notice in a problem.

Background knowledge helps people think better and do better at solving problems.

• Background knowledge is stored in mental models that affect what we see and hear.
• People answer questions more logically in areas in which they have background

• Background knowledge about types of problems helps people solve problems.

knowledge.

• However, background knowledge that includes misconceptions can get in the way of

• Having background knowledge allows students to learn from analogies.

learning.

• Background knowledge helps students understand metaphors and figurative language.

• A lot of background knowledge is specific to different topic areas, so students need to get

• Students can transfer knowledge better from one subject to another when they have a
background in many subjects.

good understanding of the subject they are transferring from.

 • Background knowledge helps students learn strategies because they must have something
Background knowledge affects students’ use of strategies.

• New knowledge forces students to learn new strategies.

to use the strategies on.

• Experts have more subject knowledge than beginners.

Background knowledge helps you know what to notice.

• Background knowledge helps learners see what is important in a situation and what is
trivial.

Fact Sheet 13: What Does Good Thinking Look Like? —A Summary
Principle: Experienced thinkers integrate knowledge and strategies

1. What is something you are very good at doing? Why do you think you are good at this
activity? Is it important to know why you are good at a hobby?

2. The author compares the thinking of beginning students with experienced students (pgs
125-126). First, where does your class fit on her continuum? Next, where does your best
student fit? Finally, where does your poorest student fit? Are you surprised at the spread
of thinking skills? What impact does this spread have on the effectiveness of your
teaching style?

3. If you told your class that every single student was an expert at something (pg 126-127)
would they believe you? Would this comment have a positive effect on their individual
self-images? Predict what kinds of experts you would discover in your classroom. How
could you use the discovery of these experts to further your classroom goals?

4. Ms. Cromley identifies seven effects on learning (pgs 126-127) when students improve
their thinking skills. For each effect, think of an example of beginning and/or

• Memory
experienced thinking you have observed in your students.

• Mental models
• Specific topics
• Subject-specific strategies
• Using strategies at the right time
• Automatic
• Deep understanding

5. Experts learn what to notice by watching teachers who point out what to notice, by doing
a lot of problems, by getting feedback on their work, and by talking about how they chose
the most important information. (Pgs 127-128) How could you apply this premise?

6. Experts learn organized subject knowledge by watching what teachers emphasize, by

reading a lot, by getting feedback on how organized their ideas are, and by discussing the
connections among what they read. (Pg 128) How can you be sure that your students are
organizing their newly acquired subject knowledge?
7. Experts learn to inter-connect information by watching teachers explain the deep
connections among systems, by practicing a lot, by getting feedback on how deep their
understanding it, and by discussing the connections among systems. (Pgs 128-129) Give
an example of three different things you taught recently and explain how you can connect
them in the minds of your students.

8. Experts learn appropriate content-area strategies by watching other experts model

strategies, by practicing using strategies, by reading widely, and by discussing content-
area-specific issues. (Pg 129) Identify three strategies you feel are content-area-specific
and explain when they are most appropriate.

9. Experts learn to develop automatic skills by watching other experts use their own
automatic skills quickly and efficiently, by practicing basic skills over and over until they
come naturally, and by practicing specific strategies and then evaluating the effectiveness
of each strategy for a specific application. (Pg 130) What automatic skills do you have
that might help your students?

10. Experts learn to become self-aware of what they do and do not know by observing other
experts’ self-awareness, by practicing being conscious of their own thinking, by reading
widely on many topics, and by discussing what information is important. (Pg 130) This
self-awareness is sometimes called “monitoring” because you observe yourself
objectively as if you were watching a computer monitor. Identify one area where you are
successfully monitoring yourself and another area where you suspect you may not be
very self-aware.

11. In items 5-10, what do you notice as constants in each type of good thinking? What
implications does this have for you as a teacher?

12. “Characteristics of Beginners and Experts” (pgs 131-132) compares beginning and
experienced teachers. In each category, decide where you fit.

Distribute the student handout entitled “Characteristics of Beginners and Experts:

Reading Comprehension” (adapted from pg 132). After students have indicated where
they think they fit, collect the papers and use the information to target needed instruction.
If you feel it is appropriate, place another mark on the line in each category showing your
evaluation of that student’s ability to apply critical thinking skills to his reading
comprehension, and return the form to the student. This could be the basis for individual
progress conferences with students.

13. When students bring faulty preconceptions into the classroom those preconceptions can
sabotage your lesson. (Pg 133) What are two things you could do to correct the students
without being confrontational or embarrassing anyone?

14. How would a long-term project (Project Based Instruction) be an effective setting for
developing problem-solving skills in your students? Have you used projects? If yes,
what kind of project, how long was your project, and what kinds of results did you
observe? If no, does PBI appeal to you as an idea for the future?
Fact Sheet 14: Critical Thinking
Principle: People Make Predictable Types of Thinking Mistakes

1. Before reading this chapter, what was your definition of “critical thinking?” Did your
definition change later?

2. Coming to a favored conclusion without looking at the evidence—Students agree with a

statement but do not look at any evidence. According to the author, this is particularly
common with “emotionally charged issues.” (Pg 138) What is one way you could
encourage your students to look at the relationship between the evidence (premises) and
the conclusion?

3. Not following logic—Students assume the argument is not logical because they don’t
agree with the conclusion. (Pgs 138-139) Would an information web be an effective
tool for showing how different parts of the argument relate or don’t relate to the
conclusion? Why or why not?

4. Choosing the most familiar answer—Students automatically choose the answer that
sounds familiar, regardless of whether it fits the type of question asked. (Pgs 139-140)
How could you use brainstorming, in pairs, small groups, or with the entire class, to
strengthen this weak critical thinking area?

5. Not plugging in information that could disprove their own theory—Students goal is to
prove they are correct so they only seek information that supports their personal opinion.
(Pgs 140-141) How could you practice list-making skills when teaching this critical
thinking skill? (For example, for each “fact” the student has, list three places he could
find support for his position and three places where he would find conflicting
information.)

6. Not noticing details—Students pay attention to main ideas but neglect details. (Pg 141)
Skimming and scanning are very important reading skills. How could these reading skills
be used to teach critical thinking?

7. Not considering other points of view—Students have a very narrow perspective, their
own, and are unable to see things from another person’s perspective; the students may not
even realize that there are other perspectives. (Pg 142) Create a role-play in which each
student in the small group must represent a different person. To help students visual their
characters, give each one a very short character summary that includes the character’s
opinion.

8. Not noticing whether they understand or not—Students assume that if they can read the
words they understand the meaning; because of their assumption, they don’t think about
whether they understand or not. (Pg 142) What are five questions you could ask that
would stimulate students to question their understanding?

9. Credibility of the speaker—Students believe things because they trust the person who
gave them the information, not because they have thought about the information for
 themselves. (Pg 142) Who are the people (types or individuals) your students trust?
How can you use this inherent trust to benefit, rather than hinder, the students?

10. Ms. Cromley includes four definitions of critical thinking (pg 145). Select the one you
are most comfortable with; then explain why you think that is the best definition.

Fact Sheet 15: Active Learning—A Summary

Principle: Active Learning is More Effective Than Lecture

1. “Successful learners are active, goal-oriented, self-regulating, and assume personal

responsibility for contributing to their own learning.” (Pg 147) What is your reaction to
this statement?

2. Beginning learners must be more active in their learning than experienced learners,
whose thinking has become more unconscious. (Pgs 147-148) What advantages does
this unconscious thinking offer experienced learners? How can you move beginners
towards unconscious thinking?

3. The section “Active Learning Tested In the Classroom” (pgs 149-151) offers several
suggestions for teachers, ranging from having students create their own titles and section
headings to making vocabulary cartoons, from summarizing information to having
students become the teachers. Choose any three and include them in lesson plans for next
week. Why did you choose these three? Have you used them before effectively?

4. Ms. Cromley promotes the use of field trips for student learning “if students are actively
involved.” (Pgs 149-150) She states that the more involved students were during and
immediately following the field trip the more they remembered as much as three months
later. What results would you predict for students who prepared for the field trip in
advance, as well as being involved during and after? Have you taken your class on field
trips? Where? What activities did you plan in conjunction with the field trip(s)? Were
you satisfied with the experience(s)? Did your students enjoy the event(s)? Do you ever
refer to field trips taken in past semesters or years (assuming at least some student
carryover from semester to semester and year to year)?

5. Lecture is still a class staple for many teachers, especially when they are introducing
completely new information. The author acknowledges that lecture is an effective
method WHEN it is combined with other active-learning experiences (advanced textbook
study and data examination). (Pg 151) Estimate the amount of time per week you lecture
to your class. How does the lecture time correlate to the amount of time when your class
in interacting with your lecture topic? Does your use of lecture vary widely depending
on the topic you are teaching?

6. “Guided discovery” (pg 152) seems to be an effective approach. Students explore

learning but have clearly defined learning tasks to be accomplished, the teacher provides
guidance, and multiple opportunities for practice are provided. Explain how you could
use guided discovery when planning Internet assignments for your class that feed back
into a content-based lecture.
7. “Adult students are used to active learning at work, but they may not be used to it in
schools. It may help to explain to students why they are writing letters, doing
experiments, taking field trips, or playing educational games rather than listening to a
lecture.” (Pg 152) Have you observed that your students have strong boundaries
between their school life and their job life? What boundaries have you identified because
they hindered the students from learning? Have any of the boundaries actually helped
you categorize information and/or target specific strategies?

8. Alision King proposes 24 questions that teachers could ask in their classrooms. (Pg 153)
Select five and add them to your lesson plan next week. Distribute copies of the student
handout entitled “Stimulate Your Active Learning” (pg 153). Encourage students to ask
each other these questions in class discussions, small group activities, and pair work.
Post a copy of the questions prominently in your classroom to remind students to ask
critical thinking questions.

9. “Making Learning Active,” (pg 154) offers excellent active learning ideas. For each
subject, choose one active learning idea from the list and add two more active ideas from
your own classroom experience. Combine these ideas in a variety of ways to make your
classroom a place where active learning is alive and vibrant! For ESOL teachers, focus
on grammar, literature, American history, social studies, and geography. For ABE/GED
teachers, focus on the sciences, American history, social studies, math, literature, and
grammar.

10. “When you do lecture, also consider giving students a note-taking outline to fill in so that
they learn to take organized notes.” (Pg 155) Have you tried this idea? How do students
like it? Have you observed that their notes are more accurate, better organized, more
legible, and longer since you provided outline shells? Do you do this regularly?
 STIMULATE YOUR ACTIVE LEARNING
Suggestions by researcher Alison King
in Learning to Think, Learning to Learn: What The Science Of Learning And Thinking Has To Offer Adult Education
by Jennifer Cromley, published by National Institute for Literacy, pg 153, c 2000.

1. What is a new example of ___________?

2. How could _________ be used to _________?
3. What would happen if ______________?
4. What are the implications of _____________?
5. What are the strengths and weaknesses of ____________?
6. What is __________ analogous to?
7. What do we already know about ________________?
8. How does _________ affect ___________?
9. How does _________ tie in with what we learned before?
10. Explain why _______________.
11. Explain how ______________.
12. What is the meaning of ____________?
13. Why is ____________ important?
14. What is the difference between _______ and _________?
15. How are _____________ and _____________ similar?
16. How does ___________ apply to everyday life?
17. What is the counter-argument for _________________?
18. What is the best _______________ and why?
19. What are some possible solutions to the problem of ____?
20. Compare ________ and _______ with regard to _______.
21. What do you think causes ____________? Why?
22. Do you agree or disagree with this statement: ________?
23. What evidence is there to support your answer?
24. How do you think ______ would see the issue of ______?
 Characteristics of Beginners and Experts
READING COMPREHENSION
in Learning to Think, Learning to Learn: What The Science Of Learning And Thinking Has To Offer Adult Education
by Jennifer Cromley, published by National Institute for Literacy, pgs 131-132, c 2000.

DIRECTIONS: On each chart below,

draw a vertical line where you think your reading comprehension fits.

Know what Beginners Experts

to notice See all test as the same. Skip headlines, Read headlines, captions,
captions, summaries, and so one. summaries, and so on. Notice
organization of text (sections,
chapters).

Organized Beginners Experts

knowledge See all information as new or related to Relate new reading to prior
“common sense.” Read passively and knowledge. Create mental models
expect to “learn” from text without of text (or diagrams, outlines if
thinking about it. needed).

Deep Beginners Experts

understanding Read to “get through.” Read for understanding.

Strategies Beginners Experts

Have few reading strategies and Have many reading strategies
guess about which to use. (dictionary, sound out, and so on)
and know when to use them.

Automatic Beginners Experts

Need to consciously, slowly, Can make sense of most texts
effortfully make sense of what without having to consciously
they read. think it through.

Self-aware Beginners Experts

Are not aware of whether they Know when they are understanding
understand or not. or not.
Fact Sheet 16: Problem-Based Learning
Principle: Maximize Learning by Starting from Real Problems

1. Problem-based learning uses real world problems that students are interested in and that
draw on skills and knowledge from several different subjects, have no simples answers—
students have to explain why they chose their answer, and are done by groups of students
who work together. (Pg 157) Before you can define “problem-based learning” you need
to define “problem.” What is your definition of “problem?”

2. In answer to the question “Why Problem-Based Learning?” the author lists twelve ways
that PBL creates an effective learning environment. (Pg 158) Most of these ways are
discussed in detail in prior Fact Sheets. Choose three and identify ways that these aspects
of PBL could be integrated into your classroom.

3. The National Research Council has noted, “Asking which teaching technique is best is
analogous to asking which tool is best—a hammer, a knife, a screwdriver, or pliers. In
teaching as in carpentry, the selection of tools depends on the task at hand.” (Pg 158)
How would you use this statement to answer the common student question, “Will this be
on the GED test?”

4. Using the chart on page 159, evaluate your own classroom.

5. “Problem-based learning is harder to teach than lecture classes; it requires more planning
and research and more flexibility from teachers.” (Pg 160) Since the vast majority of
adult education teachers are part-time and receive no stipend or salary for lesson
planning, what implications does this statement have?

6. Studies about learning facts from problem-based learning vary widely. (Pg 160) Why do
you think some studies show that PBL students excel at learning facts, while others show
no change or even poorer performance?

7. If you do not use PBL in your classroom, what method(s) do you use to teach students
how to make and follow a plan? (Pg 160)

8. There is a formula for successful PBL outlined on page 161. What effect would
removing complexity have? Accessibility? Problem-solving methods? Small-groups?

9. Describe a complex, real-world problem that you predict would be of interest to the
students in your current class. (Pg 162)

10. “Teachers need to avoid adding in extra information that they think students should know
but that is not relevant to the problem at hand.” (Pg 163) Have you observed yourself
doing this? What types of information have you deluged students with? Why did you
include the additional information in your instruction on that topic(s)?

11. Ms. Cromley says that more than 100 studies show that students learn best by rewards.
(Pg 164) Do you use rewards? Are they intrinsic or extrinsic? What kinds of rewards
have you used and what results did you get?
 12. The teacher’s role in a PBL classroom is outlined on page 165. What is your personal
reaction to this description of a teacher?

Fact Sheet 17: Supporting Good Thinking

Principle: Motivation Comes from Classrooms, Not Just Teachers

1. Motivation from teachers is important, but, according to the author, motivation from the
overall classroom experience is at least as important. (Pgs 171-173) Why do your
students “want” to learn—because they enjoy socializing in the classroom, because they
want a GED, because they like to learn new things, because there is some outside
pressure (welfare, family, employer, other), or other reasons? How can knowing “why”
affect the classroom environment you attempt to create?

2. How can teachers use a weekly “free reading time” to encourage students to pursue topics
they are interested in learning about? (Pg 173)

3. Are the materials, including textbooks, you use in your classroom focused on real-world
topics and issues? If yes, what have been your most successful topics? If not, how could
you update your materials and topics?

4. What are some ways you help individual students succeed in their choices (for example,
providing a video of Animal Farm to a student who is struggling with vocabulary and
meaning in the book)? (Pg 174)

5. What reading strategies have you taught this year and why did you select those? (Pg 175)

6. Small group learning seems to improve retention of adult literacy students. (Pg 175)
How do you use pairs, triads, and groups of four to six? How many students are in your
class—both on the roll and in class regularly?

7. Federal and state funding is based on standardized tests of knowledge, like TABE and
BEST. Our students’ success throughout their lives is based on understanding. (Pg 175)
How can adult education teachers reconcile these conflicting standards?

8. Give examples of the differences between a teacher showing that he cares about a student
personally and a teacher showing that he cares about a student’s learning. (Pg 175)

9. “Rewards need to be related to learning for understanding (not just the right answer),
using good strategies (not just using ones the student is comfortable with), and making
real progress (not just for showing up, doing exercises, or participating).” (Pg 175) Does
this explain why some students with consistently perfect attendance still move through
ESOL, ABE, and GED programs slowly while others whose attendance is not as good
move rapidly? Think of one student in your current class who is not satisfied with her
learning progress. What could you do with/for this student that would help her see more
progress?

10. The author presents a scenario of her learning to play the violin (pg 176-177). Write your
own scenario for something you have learned.
Fact Sheet 18: Adult Learning—A Summary
Principle: Adults Show The Same Patterns Of Learning As Children, But Very Few Studies
Have Been Done

This fact sheet reviews each of the previous fact sheets.

 STUDY GROUP OUTLINE

Learning to Think, Learning to Learn: What The Science Of Learning And Thinking
Has To Offer Adult Education
By Jennifer Cromley, published by National Institute for Literacy, c 2000.

Appendix B: Are There Learning Styles?

1. The author identifies three “learning styles”—visual, auditory and kinesthetic. (Pg 197)
What is your definition of a “learning style?” Does your definition vary from Ms.
Cromley’s? Do you have a specific “learning style?”

2. Teaching to differing learning styles of students is a popular buzz phrase in education, yet
more than 300 “mainstream” resources do not recommend this as a scientific fact. (Pg
197) When did you first hear about “learning styles” and are “learning styles” part of the
philosophy where you teach?

3. “Several studies show that most people remember better when they learn through several
senses, not just one . . .. [each sense] triggers [different memories.]” (Pg 197) What does
this statement mean for classroom teachers?

4. Although “only 3% of the population is a kinesthetic learner” (pg 198) experienced

teachers know their students remember new material better if the students are actively
involved in doing a related activity during the learning process. Describe a topic you’ve
taught that involved a kinesthetic activity in which all students participated.

5. Ms. Cromley states that a “good test used to diagnose something should be valid . . .
reliable . . . and specific . . ..” (Pg 198) Using these criteria, evaluate common
standardized tests used in adult education (ex: BEST, TABE, GED etc).

6. One study compared results when people were asked how they preferred to learn and how
they actually learned best. It was common for students to have misjudged their best
learning mode. (Pg 199) Why do you think this happened, and does this affect your use
of student preferences in your classroom?

7. The author cites an analysis of 20 studies that looked at learning styles. The conclusion
was that matching teaching method to learning styles does not improve performance
“even though intuitively this might seem likely.” (Pg 199) What instructional decisions
do you make based primarily on intuition?

• Asking students about their own learning raises awareness of their understanding
8. The following reasons are research-supported for asking students how they learn best:

• Teaching a lesson in many ways helps students remember because it creates more
or lack of understanding,

• Teaching study skills for specific content-areas helps students maximize their
access to long-term memory, and

study time. (Pg 200)

 Have you discussed with students how they think they learn best? If yes, how did
you follow up the discussion or checklist? If no, how could you introduce a
discussion or checklist of “learning styles” during the next couple of weeks?

9. In response to the question, “What is the best way to memorize?” Ms. Cromley lists “10
proven methods.” (Pgs 200-201) Choose three of her suggestions and describe how you
will combine them into one lesson that requires memorization during the next month (ex:
learning prefixes and suffixes, punctuation rules, irregular verbs, etc).

Appendix C: What About The Brain?

1. “Brain findings can inform us about thinking, and what we know about thinking can help
inform education, but there is no direct connection between the biology of the brain and
how we teach.” (Pg 203) How do you feel about this statement?

2. What do you mean when you use the word “mind?” The word “brain?” (Pg 204)

3. Have you been told you are a “left-brain” or “right-brain” person? If yes, how did this
label affect the way you viewed your own ability to learn new information? (Pgs 204-
205)

4. Make a list of five strategies you frequently use in your classroom that engage students’
thinking skills in more than one way. Which one is your favorite? Is that the same
favorite of your students? Why might it not be?

Appendix D: Newsletter Articles

1. “Learning in and Out of the Classroom” focuses on helping students transfer knowledge
from one situation to another. (Pg 210) Choose any skill and develop a lesson that
includes all six points in Ms. Cromley’s article.

2. “Using Analogies in Teaching Adults” explains how analogies can be both effective and
ineffective, depending on whether students understand the original example. (Pg 211)
Have you ever totally “bombed” with an analogy, facing the blank, confused stares of
your students? What was your analogy? Have you ever totally “scored” when the
excitement and understanding of your students inspired both you and them? What was
your analogy?

3. “Using All the Senses to Help Memory,” restates the author’s opinion in Appendix B that
effective teaching appeals to all the senses. (Pgs 212-213) Create a lesson appropriate
for your class level that includes at least one activity for all five senses—touch, taste,
smell, sight, and sound. Are you comfortable creating and teaching lessons like this?

4. “Short-Term Memory” makes the analogy of a tiny parking lot filled to capacity and
short-term memory. (Pg 214) Since short-term memory can only hold about seven items
of information at one time, explain how to avoid overloading your students’ short-term
memory when presenting new information.
5. “Memory and Learning: Memory Is A Web” compares computer memory and the
human mind. (Pg 215) Create a graphic organizer for students to use that visually
organizes and links information about a topic you are currently studying.

6. “Memory and Learning: What Does it Mean for Teachers?” offers specific suggestions
for classroom implementation. (Pg 216) Choose one of the nine suggestions for teaching
and one of the questions that build connections; then combine these into one lesson.

7. “Reading Strategies and Reading Development” identifies the characteristics of

beginning readers, intermediate readers, and experienced readers. (Pgs 217-218)
Literacy of a specific student is not determined by which listening and speaking ESL
class he attends; he may be an experienced reader in his native language but a beginning
reader in English. On the other hand, a student may be an experienced reader in one
subject-area and a beginning reader in another. Use your current class and identify which
students fall into each category. How can you use this information to enhance classroom
instruction?

8. “Two Dozen Reasons Why Background Knowledge is Important” divides the benefits of
increased background knowledge into five major categories. (Pg 219) Choose two
categories and develop a lesson that reinforces those aspects of background knowledge.

9. “Problem-Based Learning” always begins with a problem of interest to students. (Pg

220) Identify one problem that could be resolved in two class periods, another in one
week, a third in one month, and a fourth in six months or more. Can you use the same
problem for more than one time period? Is PBL determined by the problem or the
amount of time to find a solution?