Tag: Teaching methods

Strategies for facilitating productive dialogue in collaborative learning

By Liu Ziyu; Institute of Curriculum and Pedagogy, Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University, China

Collaboration is more than just a 21st-century skill—it’s a powerful teaching strategy that helps students grow cognitively, socially, and emotionally. While group work is common in classrooms, simply putting students together doesn’t guarantee success. As with adults in professional settings, young learners benefit from clear guidance and practice to collaborate effectively. Without structured support, group tasks can lead to frustration or off-task behavior rather than meaningful learning.

Recent research underscores the transformative power of well-guided collaboration. A 2024 review of 24 studies by Dr. Liru Hu and Dr. Gaowei Chen found that when students elaborateon their own ideas and respond to the ideas of others, known as “productive peer talk moves,” they experience better learning outcomes. These strategies led to strong improvements in the quality of student interactions (Hedge’s g = 1.27), boosted subject-specific knowledge (g = 0.96), and strengthened general skills like critical thinking (g = 1.02). Even problem-solving abilities saw moderate gains (g = 0.70). These findings highlight that when students engage in meaningful dialogue, they don’t just master content—they also learn to work together more effectively.

To foster effective collaboration, teachers can start by embedding proven effective “talk moves” into everyday instruction. For example, follow-up questions like “Can you explain why you think that?” or “How does your idea connect to what we learned yesterday?” promote reasoningand help students build on one another’s ideas. Equally important is combining explicit training with in-the-moment support. Before group work, teachers can model how to ask constructive questions (“I wonder if…” or “What if we tried…?”) and explain their purpose (“Questions help us dig deeper!”). During activities, tools like sentence starters (“I agree because…” or “Another perspective is…”) can keep discussions productive. Teachers should circulate the room to gently redirect off-task groups (“Let’s revisit our main goal…”), ensuring conversations stay focused, respectful, and inclusive.

A systematic review on how teachers support students’ self-regulated learning

By Liu Ziyu; Institute of Curriculum and Pedagogy, Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University, China

Self-regulated learning (SRL) helps students take charge of their own learning by planning, monitoring, and adjusting their efforts, yet many teachers struggle with how to effectively teach and support SRL in their daily instruction. In a 2020 article, researchers from Germany and the Netherlands suggested two practical strategies: the direct approach, where teachers explicitly teach SRL skills—such as showing students how to set goals, use strategies, and reflect on their progress—and the indirect approach, where teachers create a classroom environment that encourages SRL through group work, real-life problem-solving activities, and engaging challenges.

The researchers analyzed 17 observational studies of teacher-student interactions in K-12 classrooms, conducted between 1990 and 2019, to better understand how SRL is supported in practice. The findings revealed that while many teachers naturally foster SRL by creating supportive environments, they often focus more on teaching cognitive skills (like memorization or problem-solving) and less on metacognitive skills (like planning and self-reflection). Planning, in particular, is frequently overlooked. Without direct guidance, even the most supportive learning environments may not lead to better SRL outcomes—and in some cases, they may even hinder progress.

To help students succeed, teachers can take simple but effective steps: clearly explain how and why SRL strategies work, provide regular opportunities for students to practice planning and reflecting, and design lessons that encourage active engagement. For example, teachers might start by modeling how to break down a complex task into smaller steps, then have students work in groups to solve a real-world problem while reflecting on their progress. By combining clear instruction with a supportive classroom environment, teachers can empower students to become more independent and confident learners. These insights, drawn from decades of classroom research, offer practical guidance for educators looking to integrate SRL into their teaching practices.

Examining the impact of phonological-only instruction on reading

By Feifei Wang, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Phonological awareness (PA), the the ability to recognize and manipulate sounds in spoken language, is closely associated with reading success, and educators often include PA-focused activities in their reading instruction. Due to ongoing debate regarding the effectiveness of PA-only instruction without exposure to print or letters, a recent meta-analysis examined its impact on reading outcomes compared to print-based instruction.

The meta-analysis focused on studies involving participants from preschool through first grade in either randomized or quasi-experimental settings, examining the effects of different instructional methods on phonological awareness and reading outcomes. After applying inclusion criteria, 38 studies with a total of 3,880 participants (average age 5 years and 7 months) were analyzed, resulting in 293 calculated effect sizes. The results showed that PA-only instruction had a moderate overall effect on reading outcomes (g = +0.57). However, it was less effective than instruction that included print (g = -0.54), and less effective at improving word reading outcomes compared to PA skills alone (g = -0.33). The findings suggest that while PA-only instruction can be beneficial for reading, its effectiveness depends on two key factors: the type of reading outcomes and the comparison condition. Additionally, its effect on reading was more pronounced in kindergarten and first grade than in preschool. This meta-analysis did not find evidence that PA-only instruction is specifically necessary for at-risk readers compared to typical readers.

Effectiveness of flipped classrooms on student outcomes

Marta Pellegrini, University of Cagliari, Italy

Flipped classroom refers to an instructional approach where students first learn new material through videos outside of class, and then use class time for reviewing the content, hands-on activities, and deeper learning.

A meta-analysis conducted by Li and colleagues examined the effects of flipped classrooms on K–12 student outcomes. The authors included randomized and quasi-experimental studies with more than ten students in which flipped classrooms were compared to regular teacher practice. After excluding the studies that did not meet the criteria, 129 studies were included in the review.

The average effect sizes after excluding outliers were +0.53 for student performance, +0.56 for cognitive outcomes, and +0.46 for affective outcomes. Due to the high variability in effects between studies, the authors examined which characteristics are factors (e.g., duration, teacher training) that moderate the effects of flipped classrooms. Region was found to be a significant moderator, with a larger effect in low- and middle-income countries compared to high-income countries. Considering methodological characteristics, the authors found that it is more effective when the same instructor teaches consistently than when instructors change during an intervention. In addition, outcomes that include a wide range of tests show smaller effect sizes than those that use more specific measures, such as a unit test.

Overall, the characteristics related to educational context and research methodology explained a substantial portion of the variability in the overall effects.