Bridging Research and Practice

How People Learn: Bridging Research and Practice

The National Research Council developed How People Learn, a report that synthesizes research on human learning, in an effort to provide an opportunity for reviewing research-based messages that are clear and directly relevant to classroom practice.

Three key findings:

1. Students come to the classroom with preconceptions about how the world works. If their initial understanding is not engaged, they may fail to grasp the new concepts and information that are taught, or they may learn them for purpose of a test but revert to their preconceptions outside the classroom.

Preconceptions have a powerful effect on students learning and the integration of new concepts and information. For example, some children persist in thinking one-eighth is greater than one-fourth because 8 is greater than 4. Effective teaching elicits students' preconceptions of the area of study to build on or challenge the preconception. "The act of instruction can be viewed as helping the students unravel individual strands of belief, label them and then weave them into a fabric of more complete understanding" (James Mistrell).

2. To develop competence in an area of inquiry, students must: a) have a deep foundation of factual knowledge, b) understand facts and ideas in the context of a conceptual framework and c) organize knowledge in ways that facilitate retrieval and application.

When comparing the learning styles of experts and novices, key distinctions emerged: experts were able to draw conceptual patterns, relationships, and discrepancies. Deep understanding transforms facts into usable knowledge. A key learning is that organizing information into a conceptual framework allows for greater transfer and application.

3. A "metacognitive" approach to instruction can help students learn to take control of their own learning by defining learning goals and monitoring their progress in achieving them.

Children can be taught these strategies, though these strategies are not generic across content areas. Teaching metacognitive strategies must be incorporated in the content area to improve understanding and transfer of knowledge.

Reference: Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. (1999). Executive Summary, How People Learn: Bridging Research and Practice. National Research Council. Order this report from: National Academies Press