The Most Important Loop in Learning

A simple graphic represting a "feedback loop"

in "What can I do for my students that would have the greatest impact on their learning?" This question is simple and results-oriented, and I think that we all want to know the answer, since we all are teachers in some capacity!

All that being said, these words from Helen Keller about the teaching that she experienced speaks volumes without empirical data: 

"It was my teacher’s genius, her quick sympathy, her loving tact which made the first years of my education so beautiful. It was because she seized the right moment to impart knowledge that made it so pleasant and acceptable to me." 

On a different note, I will credit Steve LoCascio, who was my "co-operating teacher" as I was learning, with demonstrating that the properly-timed application of the right information and motivation profoundly affected students as individuals and groups. 

In both cases, the power of high quality feedback was highlighted. Feedback is something that we seek as naturally curious creatures: we want to know if our actions have created the result that we imagined. In the learning process, the repeating path of action, feedback, adjustment, and trying again is a loose description of a "feedback loop".

So how important is feedback, really? Imagine trying to learn something without feedback for a moment. It's a bit like trying to park a car in utter darkness! Deprived of direction based upon our performance of a task, we may conitnue to grow in any direction with regard to that task, including a negative one! 

Now we come to a point in connecting this idea to lab work for students: if this strategy is to be effective, feedback and multiple feedback loops must be part of any well-designed lab experience. While this may sound "good", or "obvious", as pointed out in previous posts, it is not the norm. Lab exercises unfortunately are "one-and-done" and rarely revisited. Another important point arises from this: in STEM education, design is emphasized, which in itself is a process involving (you guessed it) feedback loops! Only one conslusion is possible from these facts: common science labwork is inherently incompatible with what we intuitively understand about STEM and design!

Yes, during my in-service, it came to light that feedback trumped all other teacher actions in improving student achievement, including having students do homework. Simple homework, or practice, without feedback, should be rethought and then discarded. Feedback might come in many forms, and does not mean that every stroke of the student's pencil, or keyboard, must be viewed, analyzed and reported back. It does mean that meaningful feedback is necessary to keep the practice from being a waste. 

I am extremely interested in your thoughts on this topic. I believe this should be the cornerstone idea behind any learning environment, from a "brick and mortor" classroom to an online learning system. So yes good reader, I now ask you for what we all need to learn *grins* feedback!

I promise that I will return to the Curiosity mission in my next post. Until then, I can recall sitting in a teacher "in-service" many years ago. Let's say 15 years ago +/- 5 years. The presentation was interesting, and had to deal with research on what teacher activities improved student learning. These activities included lecturing, one-to-one practice, tutoring, cooperative learning and several other teaching techniques and behaviors. Perhaps I am too competitive, but I was interested

Let's Turn Our "Curiosity" to Mars!

This week Mars will be visited yet again by a NASA mission!

This coming week there are several interesting scientific "events" that focus the public on the realm of scientific exploration and thinking. At the same time, though popular, these events provide little about science other than to be stolen opportunities where the craft and practice of science can be highlighted. In other words, non-scientists get a glimpse of what scientists do.

The most striking of these upcoming events is scheduled to happen next weekend when "Curiosity", a Mars lander, attempts to safely touch down on Mars. Unfortunately, much of the science, engineering and mathematics (STEM anyone) that went into the mission will be lost on the public as the focus easily could largely become "Is there life on Mars"? Notice that this focus is a question! Not only the scientific process, but curiosity in general arises from questions. If this question were able to definitively be answered, more great scientific interest from the public would follow. That is the positive aspect of the query.

The negative is that there is a misconception that we send expensive spacecraft and landers with exotic instruments to far away places to answer singular questions, or explore singular ideas. Certainly, Mars captures our imagination and garners the political support to be explored. However, consider what has been thematic since the beginning of this blog: practice, repetition, feedback and how they relate to learning. The same holds true here. These processes are the bedrock upon which science itself is forged - the foundation for scientific thought. How much of this process will be transparent, or even viewable, as coverage heats up for the August 5th touch down attempt?

As the week progresses, I may hone in on the landing attempt as an area of great interest. A great place to keep up to date on news related to the event is that "JPL Facebook Landing Party Event Page". The mission can also be followed  on Facebook and on Twitter at http://www.facebook.com/marscuriosity and http://www.twitter.com/marscuriosity. An expected increase in solar activity over the next few weeks is also of great interest, since the Sun is frothing as it does every 11 years. As we think about Mars Curiosity together, let's try to keep in front of us the deeper science behind the mission. Where did the practice and earlier questions arise from? What have we learned from past missions that are used here? Most importantly, what here will get us to that most compelling of futures where we no longer inhabit one world, but inevitably, multiple worlds. I await and anxiously look forward to your comments and additions!

Added on to the blog later: Awesome video animation of anticipated landing:  Challenges of Getting to Mars: Curiosity's Seven Minutes of Terror .