What is a reading list without Hattie?

How could I forget John Hattie?  While reading his tome, Visible Learning: A Synthesis of over 800 Meta-Analyses Relating to Achievement, I uncovered many lines worth highlighting, but since I borrowed the book, I refrained! 

"The greater the challenge, the higher the probability that one seeks and needs feedback, but the more important it is that there is a teacher to provide feedback and to ensure that the learner is on the right path to successfully meeting the challenges."

 

But I could not skip that one above from page 24 discussing learners and teachers.

 

During classroom walk-thoughs this year, I noticed many situations warranting and receiving feedback!  (Great job teachers of WMS)  According to Hattie, appropriate feedback is a major contributor to student growth! (0.73)  It also builds esteem, confidence and tents to recalibrate the locus of control back to within the students.  Students begin to take ownership and responsibility for their learning.

After getting preliminary MAP data, everything is viewed through the successes and challenges faced during last year’s efforts and reporting.  Working through Hattie's first 3 chapters has both confirmed a few things but energized me for the upcoming year. 

Pushing and prodding, extolling and encouraging while listening and observing to grow and progress in student terms of success in achievement.

 

Whats next? What is going to change?  What will be different?  I have some ideas but together, we work to build effectively, efficiently and around students needs using research based activities!

 

 John Hattie

Visible Learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement
@visiblelearning

Pop Quiz: Rank these according to Hattie Research?

Below, the morning sun is trying to shine its light through the distractions of the trees and branches.  Sort of like our best practices try and rise to the surface to displace less effective teaching actions.  The light overcomes the darkness.

Sunrise, July 16th, 2013

For instance, lets take a look at this Pop Quiz:   Rank these following terms from greatest impact on student learning to least:

a.       Summer School

b.      Peer influences

c.       Classroom Behavior

d.      Socio-Economic Status

 

A. Here we have an instance where we can probably eliminate the lowest one.  Summer School is scored with 0.23.  This implies the effect is slight.  Those activities scoring below a 0.2 have little effect and too low (below 0.0) actually have negative effect.

 

The typical or regular classroom, if there is such a thing, scores at about a 0.4.  This implies activities above that score are better than average.  The other three choices in our Pop Quiz all fair better than the 0.4 cutoff.

 

B. Peer influence submits a score of 0.53, implying a pretty good positive effect on students achievement levels.

There were 138 parameters in this 15 year long study.  Over 200 million students were assessed in over 50,000 different studies regarding impact and effect of these various parameters.  Our Pop Quiz only address four.

 

D. Closely scored at 0.57 is Socio-economic status.  Yes poverty does have an impact on students success, but with proper PD, faculties are able to adjust and compensate for these challenges.

With all these variables addressed, we would be poor stewards indeed if we failed to examine the implications on teaching, classrooms and true "best-practices."

 

C.  Finally,  of these four characteristic and parameters, the one with the greatest impact on student learning is actually classroom behavior.  It seems a secure environment where there are boundaries, limits and a sense of connection actually encourages students to take educational risks and try.  This seems especially true when considering the converse:  In a chaotic environment, students may not want to risk failure.

 

The ranking according to Hattie, from most impact to least,   C, D, B and A.  Well done to those who figured it out!

What does this mean for us?  Maybe we should invest more time in working at effective practices and less time in easy or practices that have less impact!

Credit to:

 @visiblelearning
John Hattie:   http://visible-learning.org/hattie-ranking-influences-effect-sizes-learning-achievement/
Summer School, Peer Influence, Classroom Behavior, Socio-Economic Status

Q: What are the most important things to do in a classroom?

This sunset pic was taken at Tan-Tara, Lake Ozark Missouri.

 A:  Ask John Hattie

What were we doing at Lake Ozark?  Training, of course!

 

All these meetings and training?  Do they really impact student learning?*  Do our efforts as educators actually impact student learning?  If so, can we determine how effective or measure the impact of what we do?  What about the effect of teaching activities on the students in our classes?  What about home life, poverty or even summer vacation?  Do these impact learning? (It sure seems like a lot of questions but hopefully, they are worth asking.)

 

IS ONE PRACTICE BETTER THAN ANOTHER?

Can we isolate the most effective things to do in the classroom as well as the least effective things?  John Hattie says we can!  He measures and quantifies many school functions, rating and assigning a score to each. This 15 year study was completed a published in 2009

 

For instance, how does cooperative learning compare to inquiry based teaching?  He scores cooperative learning a 0.41 yet inquiry based teaching at 0.31.  Many parameters (138 total) of our favorites are scored and sorted and the results are surprising!  Especially the summary impact to describe what and how we should make adjustments.

THE SCALE:

Ranking above a 0.4  Better than average

Ranking below a 0.4  Mediocre at best

Rankings below a 0.2  Little to negative effect on students achievement

 

Consider what this means.  A few minor adjustments and a teacher's influence can climb from a mediocre 0.17 to an influential 0.60.  Jump to here for a good review an application for teachers.  Don't take their word for it and run a google search and see all the results.

 

Any thoughts or feedback?  Does it align?  Does it make sense?  How close are we to being effective or just coasting or getting by?  What adjustments can we make directly?  How do these things effect our students?  Is it worth the investment to consider the data?

 

 

 

*Professional Development for Teachers  (Hattie Score: PD = 0.62, putting it in the top 20 of 138)

 

John Hattie http://visible-learning.org/hattie-ranking-influences-effect-sizes-learning-achievement/

Visible Learning Laboratories

University of Auckland 

Visible Learning  on Twitter @VisibleLearning