How to Engage Your Students in the Learning Process

This article is part of a series about how to drive authentic, equitable, and sustainable learning by decisions that empower learnership. In other words, the more students know about their learning, the more opportunity they have to own their learning which leads to increased student achievement. Elevated Achievement’s Learning Model is the tool teachers need to support students in ownership of their learning, thereby developing learnership.

In other articles in this series, we provided an overview of the Learning Model and its five student-centered phases: setting the Learning Context, stating the Learning Outcome, engaging in the Learning Process, producing the Learning Demonstration, and implementing the Learning Application. We also discussed the sequence of “backwards” planning a focused lesson and provided examples.

Now we will take an in-depth look at the last phase in the “backwards” planning sequence, the Learning Process.

Engaging in the Learning Process

This is the phase of the lesson during which students are actively engaged in learning the skills stated in Learning Outcome. At the end of this phase, students will be able to successfully complete the Learning Demonstration. Teachers determine which instructional strategy or methodology will most effectively and efficiently teach students the outcome of the lesson. Students must understand these choices if they are to build metacognition and answer the question, “How will I learn this?”

While engaging in the Learning Process, the teacher gives students ample opportunities to learn, whether independently, in a small group, or during whole group instruction. The teacher also explains their role in the learning—either as a model, as a direct facilitator, or as a monitor that provides feedback and keeps the learning on track. Instruction should feel flexible and fluid. The decision of how to engage students in the Learning Process is based on the skill that’s being learned and the students who are learning it.

For example, if students are learning a higher-order thinking skill (e.g. how to cite evidence to make an inference) the delivery method can be much more open-ended. If students are learning a more discrete skill (e.g. mathematical computations or blending words) the delivery method can be more tightly structured.

In either case, the teacher must determine which method best teaches the skills stated in the Learning Outcome  phase so students can successfully produce mastery during the Learning Demonstration.

The Value to Students

If students know how they are learning they are more able to…

• Understand and articulate how the selected learning strategy will support them in the learning outcome and demonstration.
• Understand which learning strategies better support their specific learning needs and styles of learning.
• Connect how learning strategies vary based on the learning outcome, as well as the learner’s needs and style of learning.

The Value to Teachers

Teachers who have a classroom full of students who can articulate how they are learning will have students that….

• Make connections to how the learning strategies vary based on the learning outcome and demonstration.
• Take ownership of where they are in the learning process, how the learning strategies are supporting them to meet the lesson outcome and articulate what differentiated or additional supports they may need.
• Are more motivated to learn as they see value in understanding how a variety of purposely selected learning strategies support them in achieving the learning outcome and demonstration.

In other words, the value to you is to have a classroom of learners who understand their role in the learning and will help you with the task of teaching. Instead of just one person monitoring all of the learning, you will have a roomful of people.

To help you make stronger student-centered decisions, consider these questions as you plan:

• What strategy will you select to teach the skill?
• How will this strategy support the learning outcome?
• How will this strategy support the learning demonstration?
• How will you structure student-to-student communications?
• How will you address the differing needs of your students?
• How will you check for understanding?
• What is the student’s role in the Learning Process?
• How will you share this information with your students before, during, and after a lesson?

In turn, students who own their learning can articulate before, during, and after a lesson:

• How will learn this?
• How am I am learning this?
• How did I learn this?

Click here to download a lesson planning template to use as you determine the Learning Process for your next lesson.

What’s Next in Learnership?

As we’ve said before, teachers play a crucial role in ensuring that students own their learning. The teacher is the key decision-maker for establishing effective learning designs before, during, and after instruction in the classroom. Because the teacher is the person who knows the most about the students, it is important that the teacher’s ownership in making these decisions is cultivated.

That’s why we provide 5 articles that take in-depth looks at the each of the phases of the Learning Model, their value to students, and their value to teachers. In each article, you will get the planning questions and tools you need to implement focused Learning Models for each and every lesson.

Remember, the decision-making sequence for designing a lesson is “backwards.” Therefore, the following sequence for reading is recommended as you plan with a focused Learning Model.

• First, make sure you’ve read the articles, “How to Set Out for Your Students Why This Learning Is Important” and “How to Ensure Your Students Apply What They Have Learned” so you know how to determine the Learning Context and the Learning Application. In other words, read these 2 articles to get the planning questions and tools you need to determine why students are learning a skill right now and how they will use it in the future.
• Next, make sure you’ve read the articles “How to Support Your Students to Know What They Are Learning” and “How to Empower Your Students to Demonstrate Their Learning” so you know how to determine the Learning Outcome and the Learning Demonstration. In other words, read these 2 articles to get the planning questions and tools you need to determine the specific skills students are learning and what a demonstration of mastery will look and sound like.
• Finally, read this current article to learn how to determine the Learning Process. In other words, read this article to get the planning questions and tools you need to determine the instructional strategy or strategies that will allow for students to most effectively and efficiently demonstrate mastery of the targeted skill.

Then you’ll be ready to backwards plan a lesson and forward instruct through that lesson with the end in mind as you move through the five student-centered phases: setting the Learning Context, stating the Learning Outcome, engaging in the Learning Process, producing the Learning Demonstration, and implementing the Learning Application.