Once again, Numbers Matter is a good
example of mastery learning and teaching because it doesn't shy away from the facts — the final number does matter — while at the same time creating strong feelings of engagement from students.
Not exact matches
The reason children require a number
of years to develop
mastery of certain basic concepts, according to some child psychologists, is not that they are slow in
learning the words — they actually know the words quite early — but that they have to start experiencing the world in a new, more simplified way that corresponds with the classifications suggested by these words.4 For
example, young children may know the words spoon, teaspoon, silver, knife, and metal but find it difficult for several years to apply them appropriately to objects in their environment, the reason being partly that these words form multiple and overlapping classifications.
Equipped with their own computers and Internet access, for
example, New Tech students can research any topic, communicate with experts and teachers, write journals and reports, develop presentations with PowerPoint, video, and podcasts, and develop their Professional Digital Portfolio, demonstrating their
mastery of the school's
Learning Outcomes.
Today, there is way too much emphasis on superficial
mastery of technique rather than deeper
learning, for
example in the sciences and mathematics.
Shanghai teaching has also been talked about as rote
learning, when at the heart
of Shanghai
mastery are varied, carefully thought - out mathematical
examples and problems.
For
example, Mr. Mislevy pointed to diagnostic systems now used in computer - based programs such as Carnegie
Learning and Khan Academy, in which students work through individual topics at their own pace, taking brief tests
of their
mastery along the way, with feedback delivered to the student and teacher on individual processes or misconceptions that cause the student problems.
Many (for
example, see iNACOL, KnowledgeWorks, and The America Forward Coalition) are advocating using the opportunity to foster greater innovation and implementation
of learner - centered and personalized approaches to
learning that focus on
mastery in a competency - based environment.
Doesn't a low score on an early quiz and a high score on a final test, for
example, indicate that the student has
learned and has
mastery of the content?
For
example, you know that your state test assesses all major components
of your course and set a gap - reduction goal based on that assessment, but you may set an additional
mastery goal that students will also master 80 %
of the
learning goals based on another assessment.
For
example, as a fifth grade Language Arts teacher, you will most likely have a big goal that focuses on your students» reading growth and
mastery of writing
learning goals.
While containing aspects
of an educative (what we are calling teaching teachers) model
of teacher
learning, the model in Reading Recovery must, in the final analysis, be regarded as either as a training model, because
of its emphasis on the
mastery of a specific set
of teaching procedures, or as an
example of training set in the context
of teaching, a topic to which we will return as we speculate about the future
of this line
of research.
The competency - based model is revolutionary in that it will allow students a choice to demonstrate
mastery in a variety
of ways and places other than standardized examinations in traditional classrooms — for
example, through Extended
Learning Opportunities (ELOs),
Learning Seminars, and Place - Based
Learning projects.
Schools that meet the needs
of black students also offer opportunities for students to make choices about their
learning — for
example, letting students decide which topics to research, the order in which they will complete activities, and the method
of demonstrating content
mastery.
Another
example is personalized or competency - based
learning programs, where the pace
of learning is determined by individual students»
mastery and not according to a traditional «one grade per year» schedule.