Study Strategies for School Success

Research Based Techniques to Maximize Student Potential

Course Description

Study Strategies for School Success has been developed to introduce the participant to researched based strategies that optimize learning experiences for students. Participants also have the opportunity to analyze their current educational practices in reference to best practices in instruction. Reflection time is afforded the participant to internalize the instructional approaches and strategies. Practical application of research is part of the course with the participants bringing content meaning to the strategies.

The research work of Marzano (2001) is used as the course base with the addition of the work of Sandra Parks. Attention to learning styles and providing instruction that meets the needs of various learners is incorporated into the application of theory for this course. As participants understand the correlation between research, strategies, and achievement, they will be better prepared to deliver instruction that meets the needs of a diverse population of learners.

Objectives

Acquire information related to the most current educational research regarding study strategies and their effect on student performance.
Incorporate into the school setting a variety of effective instructional methods correlated to research and student achievement.
Access and use research-based strategies to enhance student understanding and use of textbooks information across content areas.
Reflect on teaching methods.
Gain awareness of effective teaching methods.
Acquire methods for explicit instruction related to comparing, contrasting, graphic organizers, metaphors, analogies, note taking, problem solving, and questions.
Review motivational strategies.
Understand the importance of specific feedback, and specific praise.
Provide instructional strategies that enable students to use homework as reinforcement for content skills.
Teach effective communication skills and utilize cooperative learning instruction to enrich the teaching and learning process.
Address issues and concerns related to the implementation of strategies within the educational setting.

Time Requirements
Study Strategies for School Success is a 3 credit graduate level or forty-five hour professional development course taught on weekends or over five full days.

Course Materials
The required textbook for this course is A Handbook for Classroom Instruction that Works by Robert J. Marzanao, Jennifer S. Norford, Diane E. Paynter, Debra J. Pickering Barbara B. Gaddy. A student guide will also be provided.

Curriculum Design
Students will participate in an array of activities and assignments. Students will also review research and best practices in the strategies delineated throughout course. This course demands rigor and active participation on the student’s part. This course is a forty-five hour, three credit graduate level course taught in the classroom.

Session Outline

Session One
Course Orientation/Overview
Contents:

Course Objectives, Requirements, and Expectations
Self-Reflection on Teaching
Effective Teaching Strategies and Research
Learning Theories and their Implications

Session Two
Research and Study Strategies
Contents:

Learning Styles
Research and the Text
Working with Comparisons
Application of Working with Comparisons

Session Three
Use of Strategies
Contents:

Strategies for: Non-Linguistic Representations
Graphic Organizers: Descriptive Patterns, Time Sequence Pattern Organizer, Process/Cause Effect Pattern
Classifying

Session Four
Metaphors, Analogies
Contents:

Creating Metaphors
Why use Metaphors?
Using Metaphors
Figural Analogies

Session Five
Summarizing and Note Taking
Contents:

Summary Frames: Narrative or Story
Topic Restriction-Illustration (T-R-I)
Definition, Argumentation, Problem or Solution, and Conversation
Note Taking

Session Six
Cues, Questions, and Advanced Organizers
Contents:

Introducing Cues
Working with Questions
Three Kinds of Questions
Advance Organizers

Session Seven
Providing Recognition, Reinforcing Effort, and Homework
Contents:

Providing Recognition
Pause, Prompt, and Praise Technique
Reinforcing Effort
Bibliotherapy
Homework and Related Issues

Session Eight
Specific Types of Knowledge: Vocabulary, Details
Contents:

Vocabulary
Five-Step Process for Teaching Vocabulary
Reinforcement of Concepts through Demonstration CD

Session Nine
Problem Solving, Decision Making
Contents:

Problem Solving: Working with Unstructured Problems
Sample Problems
Problem Solving Models

Session Ten
Review and Educational Issues
Contents:

Issues and concerns
Student Presentations of Final Project Activity
Identification of Resources Used in Course
Assignments Collected
Collection of Journal Entry
Final Exam
Course Evaluation

Student Requirements

Attend all class sessions for the requisite number of hours (45) and actively participate in all class activities

Complete all journal entries and submit five entries by the last session.

Final Project

Address a content area with the following components: Ten activities selected from the instructional strategies taught in this course with each activity representing a different instructional strategy. These activities should be adapted for what will work with your content area. The content must be stated as well as the grade level. Also include the following:

Learning objective of the activity,
Desired student outcome,
Detailed description of the activity,
Materials needed and,
Ways to assess student competence for the activity (sample of assessment, i.e. if rubric is used to access the activity, define the rubric).

Pass the final exam.

Grading

Assignment	Points	Grading Scale
Attendance	40	100 – 93	A
Journal Entries	20	92 – 85	B
Final Project	30	84 – 77	C
Final Exam	10
Total Points	100

Student Academic Integrity
Participants guarantee that all academic class work is original. Any academic dishonesty or plagiarism (to take ideas, writings, etc. from another and offer them as one's own), is a violation of student academic behavior standards as outlined by our partnering colleges and universities and is subject to academic disciplinary action.

Register
To register to take TEI's Study Strategies for School Success classroom graduate course, go to the Course Registration page.