Visible Learning is all about children taking ownership for their learning

 

Uniforms, academies, targets, class sizes: Are Australian schools worrying about the wrong things?  John Hattie, author of Visible Learning and Visible Learning for Teachers, found that there are plenty of ways to improve performance in schools. They're just not the ones most people think they are.

In an interview with Richard Garner, Hattie argues that "instead of concentrating on eradicating the difference in performance between different schools, he argues, schools (and teachers) should be spending more time looking at the differences in performance within schools."

The aim of the book is not to overwhelm the reader with the wealth of research; rather it builds an exploratory story about the influences on student learning and then defends the nature and value of this story through the research evidence.

The overall message in this book is the importance of "visible teaching" and "visible learning". Hattie suggests that visible teaching and learning occurs when learning is the explicit goal: when there is feedback given and sought and when there are active, passionate, and engaging people, including teachers, students, and peers participating in the act of learning. Hattie points out that the main feature of the research evidence is that the "biggest effects on student learning occur when teachers become learners of their own teaching, and when students become their own teachers". This allows students to show self-regulatory attributes that are most desirable for learners, such as self-monitoring, self-evaluation, self-assessment, and self-teaching. The research evidence supports another important message: "what teachers do matters", particularly those who teach in the most deliberate and visible way.

Visible Learning is the result of the research undertaken by John Hattie to understand what provides the most success in learning.  It is based on over 68,000 studies and 25 million students.  John Hattie defines Visible Learners as students who can:

• Articulate what they are learning
• Explain the next steps in their learning
• Set learning goals
• See errors as opportunities for further learning
• Know what to do when they are stuck
• Seek feedback

Goonengerry Public School staff and community spend time actively discussing what the dispositions are that students need to be successful learners.  Teachers and students have collaborated to select our four learner dispositions, develop a comprehensive understanding of what they are, really know what they mean, and what impact they have on student learning.

The term 'learner dispositions', sometimes called 'habits of mind' or 'dispositions to learning', refer to the way in which learners engage in and relate to the learning process. Learning dispositions affect how students approach learning activities and, potentially, the outcomes of the learning. It is widely acknowledged that developing these dispositions is just as important as learning subject-specific content and competencies if students are to succeed in 'a rapidly changing world'.

Drop in and see us if you want to know more.