
3 Easy
Tactics, A Review
by
Steve Wallis, Ph.D.
Three Easy Tactics to
Use in Your Classroom
By Win Wenger, Ph.D.
ISBN 978-0-557-45547-8
Center for Modern Socratic Innovation, Buffalo, New York
Project Renaissance, Gaithersburg, Maryland 2010
There are many tools
available for teachers today. Many of them are good; they help to
improve student performance. Most tools, however, require more effort
on that part of the teacher in order to get those results. Few tools
will both improve student performance AND make the teacher's job
easier. Three Easy Tactics To Use In Your Classroom is
one that provides such tools.
The author is a former schoolteacher, turned scholar/author, who now
pioneers innovative and effective methods for education. In this book,
Dr. Wenger contrasts traditional educational philosophy and practice
with the benefits of new and more effective methods. The methods
presented in this book are not merely theoretical. They were applied
recently at St. Andrew's Country Day School in Buffalo, New
York, for students in the third through the seventh grade with rather
impressive results. The sharp increase in student scores comes as an
encouraging contrast to the dismal results around our nation.
Recent tests such as the Progress in International Reading Literature
Study (PIRLS) and the Trends in International Mathematics and Science
Study (TIMMS) have provided new insight into our educational system.
They suggest that the more years our children spend in our school
system, the less effective they are at learning.
In sharp contrast, using the methods in this book, the students at St.
Andrew's were actually accelerating in their enthusiasm and ability to
learn. For example, third-grade skills in reading, language arts, and
math improved by an average of 2.5 years over the course of a single
year. By seventh grade, students improved by 6.8 years over the same
one-year period. Clearly, something good is happening here.
Those powerful positive effects spurred my own interest in reviewing
this book. Also, the methods developed by Dr. Wenger are similar to
those I have used with great success.
In a nutshell, this book presents three tactics (Instant Replay,
Highlighter Questions, Planning Questions).
The first two tactics are primarily focused on getting students
talking, reflecting, and focused on the subject matter. These may be
applied at the end of the session to summarize and reinforce the
information, or any time in the middle where a teacher might want to
refocus the students (and, perhaps, gain a quick respite). The third
tactic suggests a more comprehensive template for classroom activities.
That approach includes ideas for introducing the topic, developing
preliminary understanding, and leading toward deeper and more
challenging questions. All of these approaches serve to create a
classroom atmosphere that is more conducive to student learning.
There are additional sections that give the reader the opportunity to
take these methods to the next level. One approach is the Dynamic
Format, which is a useful approach for
working with students that have become comfortable with the three easy
tactics. The Dynamic Format actually brings students into the learning
process in a more conscious and purposeful way by creating a set of
rules for small group conversations that serve to further accelerate
the learning process.
One important strength of Wenger's
book is that the questions posed for students are very clear; and they
are designed to generate conversations that are highly relevant to
learning, understanding, and appreciating the material. In short, these
approaches keep students engaged as active participants in their own
educational process, which is what we want as teachers!
One approach, for example, can be simply understood as asking students
to turn to one another and respond to a simple question (the question
is also written up on the board, so the students don't forget!). From
my own experience in education and facilitation, I know that this kind
of approach works wonders for energizing students and getting them
focused on the topic at hand.
In addition to the straightforward presentation of effective
techniques, this book is also a springboard to additional opportunities
for improving teaching techniques, with web links and other sources
suggested to the reader.
This book could be improved by adding more concrete examples, although
the level of abstraction is not so high as to be distracting. Any
teacher with a reasonable knowledge of the material should be able to
easily "fill in the blanks" with the relevant information from their
own topics.
Also, the organization of the book seemed, at first, a little odd.
Instead of presenting the three methods in simple order, there are a
couple of digressions to other methods and discussions. In retrospect,
this does not detract much from the book, as those other topics are
interwoven with the methods presented.
Given the proven benefits of these techniques in boosting student
scores, while simultaneously easing the burden of our dedicated but
overworked teachers, I would have to conclude by saying that I can
think of no more cost-effective approach to improving the learning
experience of young students than to put this reasonably priced book
($9.95) into the hands of teachers everywhere.
The book thus reviewed, 3 Easy Tactics To Use In Your Classroom
How To Teach Smarter, Not Harder, is obtainable in hardcopy
from Project
Renaissance or from its publisher,
or from its publisher as a downloadable e-book.
Steve Wallis, Ph.D., is co-author of Easy Genius: Awakening Your Whole Brain to Build a More
Powerful Memory.
3 Easy
Tactics
A review by
Kathy Carroll, Educator
Win
Wenger's latest book, 3 Easy Tactics,
demonstrates three simple ways to transform any classroom into a true
learning community. Through these tactics, the focus on the individual student's
associations reaches into what matters to the student instead of what the student thinks will please
the teacher (right-answer fixation).
The strategies
respect the learner for what matters to him or her, whatever it is.
Applying these tactics engenders a habit of digging down for authentic
answers and the habit of providing a safe space for those insights to
be voiced. As every student's deliberation enjoys the respect of the teacher, students increase their
respect for each other. As students experience their own deep knowing,
they also grow in self respect and respect for and interest in the
subject they are learning. This happens when students ask themselves,
"What matters to ME here?" and "How does this connect with my life?"
In this way, the classroom becomes a center for
collaboration of thinking and feeling individuals rather than a single
thinking person (the teacher) and a bunch of mindless receivers of the
thinking person's wisdom (the students). It raises the bar of
expectations for students. "You matter! What you think, feel, need, and
how you see this matters! You are expected to pull your weight in this
classroom by contributing your insights and brilliance to the rest of
us! You can help us see what we are learning in a new light! YOU
MATTER!" This creates a context and paradigm of respect, self-connection,
and a love of knowledgeprime ingredients for lasting
learning. No wonder the test scores at Saint Andrew's are soaring!
An educator of students from
pre-school through graduate school for over 30 years, Kathleen Carroll
is an international presenter and author of educational books and CDs.
See www.kathleencarroll.com.
3 Easy
Tactics
A review by
Emily Millett
Once again Win Wenger has written a book that is
easy to read and implement if you are willing to think
differently. He encourages creativity and innovative thinking and
most of all challenges you to be a genius. His information is
certainly not "cookie cutter advice"so be prepared to be your own
Einstein as you read this small book.
I first met Win at the
International Alliance for Learning in 1986. He did a session on Learning
like Einstein. For me it was very different, but soon I
realized how much we need to foster creativity and new ways of thinking
and learning in our education system. 3 Easy Tactics
carries on that tradition in a very concrete format. Teachers and
learners of all ages should treat themselves to this book.
Emily Millett is a schoolboard member. She can be
reached by email at millett_e@popmail.firn.edu
3 Easy
Tactics
A review by
John H. Langer, Ed.D.
Three Easy Tactics to use in your
classroom, by Win Wenger (Center for Modern Socratic Innovation,
2010), is a deceptively seductive supplementary text for teachers. This
brief but very practical book can be almost immediately useful to
teachers in many subject-matter areas.
Why do I say
"deceptively seductive"? The "tactics"
are indeed easy. They can be used in either routine classroom
practice or limited to specific activities. Though the tactics are much
easier for students than for teachers, nevertheless, whether you are an
enthusiastic beginning teacher or an experienced one at the top of your
game, these tactics have the potential to greatly increase your
students' immediate retention of your classroom instruction.
The processes are simple: The first tactic, INSTANT
REPLAY, is a focused review procedure that simplifies getting and
keeping the attention of every student. The second tactic, THE
HIGHLIGHTER QUESTION, makes the "takeaway" concept in a teacher's presentation almost impossible for
students to ignore. Finally, if used at the end of a class, THE PLANNED
QUESTION involves a way to raise once again the main points of the day's class.
These questions do require planning and use classroom time.
However, they are much more than repetition— that is, a version of the
old "tell 'em what you are going to tell 'em, tell 'em,
and then tell 'em what you told 'em. The question format requires
students rather than the teacher to formulate their version of what
they have just learned and use it.
A major value of these tactics is their flexibility. They
can be adjusted to the needs of both the class and individuals within
it. In addition, once students learn to "use" the process, they will
work more and more independently. This 56-page book can be a stepping-off
point for a significant change in a teacher's way of interacting and helping
students interact with each other and with the course materials.
A significant bonus is the inclusion of Win Wenger's website, which includes hundreds of pages of material related to learning and which can be downloaded by
teachers and students.
There are a few minor caveats: being able to USE
effectively the Three Easy Tactics
assumes what is obviousthat a teacher is prepared, the material is a
presentation of a topic of value, and that he/she understands the value
of student involvement. In addition, the question format may need
flexible seating arrangements to gain the best efforts of some
students.
Though the question format may appear to be merely an interruption, data are cited that these tactics have shown
significant results in learning. Measurement of their impact can be
developed. On page 40 is listed a series of objectives, but
teachers, in these days of over-testing of fact retention, can identify
their own ways of evaluating the effects of these tactics.
My personal method is to give regular brief quizzes that
question what was taught earlier, with no more than a handful of
questions. Then I tally and record the results. These may or may not be
used for student grades. However, it provides almost immediate feedback
on student attention, progress and need for additional help. There are
other, very different ways implied or suggested in the book, not
involving quizzes or paperwork. Evaluation
and measurement of progress should be an on-going process. These three
easy tactics, because they require teachers to focus on what is most
important in what they teach, take much of the guesswork out of
evaluation.
Finally, I said that the book can be seductive. It opens
new pathways to helping students learn without requiring curriculum
revision or an entirely new approach. Teachers can use as much of, or
as little of, what they find useful; they can adjust the process to
student needs, time constraints and the requirements of the curriculum.
The Dynamic Format (p.19) is the general method behind these three tactics. A gradual incorporation of the format will happen
even though a teacher uses only a portion of the processes. I am sure,
as their proficiency increases and their value becomes clear, these
tactics will become a part of the repertoire of any teacher who will
take the time to try them.
John H. Langer, Ph.B., M.A.,
J.D., Ed.D, retired from Federal service where he held a
number of management positions. He was Associate Professor of Education
at Indiana University and also taught at Oakland University,
Wayne State University, and the University of Detroit. He
was a public school administrator and principal and worked in private
industry for IBM, and as a consultant. He has numerous publications in
professional journals and other media on education, substance abuse,
social science and law enforcement.
3 Easy
Tactics
A review by
Brian M. Morrissey, Educational Consultant
The cultural inhibitor of optimal learning and creativity in the classroom
today is the same as what has been limiting educational achievement for
the past 500 years: our obsession with the idea that the factory
production model emerging with the Industrial Age applies equally to
mass education. It's true that the factory production model has
freed many of us from material need from food growing to time saving
and energy production. But that success in the physical world
doesn't automatically translate over to the abstract, mental world: the
arena for education and learning.
In the
Industrial Era view, the school was conventionally thought to be best
designed analogous to an assembly line in which students, with their
heads open (like so many lids on jars) pass under a huge dispenser of
knowledge (the teacher, textbook publishers, and educational system) to
have their brains filled with facts and concepts of every description,
some how-to's, etc., before passing out the other end of this learning
factory at graduation time. The more information you put in those
heads during the course of their educational process, the more will be
retained and eventually applied in the real world.
When it
comes to the learning and teaching, however, this model has the
education process backwards and out-of-balance. As 3 Easy Tactics points out, the art
and science of the educational process for the new, Internet and
computer-driven 21st century needs to put the emphasis not on the
input side of the learning cycle, but on its output side: how
information and knowledge is used and assimilated to allow the students
to make it their own.
There is
no better method for restoring the balance in the education system than
the Socratic Method from the Ancient Greeks. Nowhere in all of
human civilization have there appeared more world-class geniuses than in
Ancient Greece. 3 Easy Tactics
provides teachers in our schools the means to begin employing the
Socratic Method to produce a much-needed crop of geniuses today.
3 Easy Tactics puts into the hands
of the teacher the necessary first step in a simple, ready-made manner
that will begin the reversal of classroom emphasis from input to
output. The computer and Internet have made a tremendous databank
of information and knowledge widely available; as a consequence,
providing a quantity of educational input to produce a quality of
educational achievement no longer applies.
In today's world, the
most important part of education is giving students the opportunity to
reflect on, articulate and synthesize knowledge they discover and/or to
which they are exposed, for themselves. The word educate itself derives
from the Greek term, "to draw forth". The Socratic Method of
developing genius by giving students this opportunity prior to 3 Easy Tactics has not been
feasible simply because if a teacher started doing this with a few of
the students, the rest would easily become bored and have their
attention turned away. Classroom disruption easily resulted. Time and
numbers in mass education limited the applicability of a Socratic
approach. But 3 Easy Tactics
synthesizes a cooperative learning approach with a Socratic line of
questioning and review, and the result is to liberate the mental state
in the classroom from the stifling effects of continuous "one size fits
all" inputting. Furthermore, 3 Easy
Tactics points out how conventional teaching takes a big toll
energy-wise and psychicallyfrom the teacher; whereas his or her use
of 3 Easy Tactics, when
mastered sufficiently, actually gives instructors a much-needed
opportunity to recharge their batteries in the process of producing
genius levels of creativity and thought as their students'"output".
Brian Morrissey is an educational consultant, brain wave researcher, and originator of Brain States Mastery. He has served in the U.S. Office of Education, as well as in the Lozanov Learning Institute.
As consultant, instructor and/or director, he has served in a number of
different colleges, universities and educational programs, both in the Washington, DC,
area and abroad. He has researched and authored two published books on the topic of brainwave states that are conducive to learning.
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