Two Pint PLC

This month we reflect on our year of reading scholarship and growing as humans. First we’ll return to the segments we felt had the greatest impact on our practice and our thinking from the research we read.

Later, we’ll reflect specifically on our praxis. We share some of the changes we’re making in our classroom and in our study that is moving us toward our goals as education practitioners.

Finally, we’ll share a bit about how our lives are changing outside of school… and mark the 2022 recipients of the Mug of Honor.

As the summer of 2022 wanes, we will spend some time looking at the bigger picture of how education has been affected by COVID-19 these past few years. We read reviews of the current research on COVID impacts on mental health and academic outcomes, with thoughts on how it may impact our prep for the coming year.

Later, we react to a review of research on visual displays and the importance of intentionally developing visual literacy. How can we help students learn to decode visual language?

Why are people so influenced by false information, even when they know better? We are joined by researcher Nikita Antonia Salovich to discuss her recent work on evaluative mindsets, and how we can apply on-going work to how we handle information in the classroom.

Later, we discuss Culturally Responsive Science Teaching - and how teachers can better cultivate sociopolitical consciousness with students.

When professional development programs conflict with overemphasis on test scores, teachers face a precarious tension between their growth and the ever present threat of dubious evaluations. We read about an effort to sustain professional development in writing instruction amid a high-stakes testing environment.

Later, we look at the correlation between increasing cultural socialization and reductions in suspensions for Black students. These findings illustrate the need for a culturally competent teaching workforce.

The routines, rewards, and incentives we use in the classroom can help students build productive habits they use throughout their lives. We read about a series of studies that found how rewarding cognitive effort can lead to greater intrinsic motivation for participants… even after the rewards. We think about how this could apply in classrooms.

Later, we discuss a recent report promoting research on the positive impacts of professional learning. How can we get the most from our time and energy in PD?

Retrieval practice has a ton of research support, but we’re still figuring out the when and how of its effective use in instruction. We read a series of studies comparing the impacts of post-testing and pre-testing on measures of learning, with the results showing tremendous power in pre-tests.

Later, we read a study showing how local poems and songs provide viable material for reading instruction. The added benefits of local connections for student appreciation offer a powerful tool for facilitating student learning.

Technology has taken a prominent position in many schools as we have taught these past few years, yet we need to look at who is using what technological tools… and why? We read how technology manifests and reproduces categorical inequalities in education, with some lessons on how to disrupt those means of sorting students.

Later, we read an article critiquing the prominent savior narrative used in education to avoid important conversations about classroom power dynamics and the treatment of teachers in society.

Universal Design for Learning is an exciting framework to improve accessibility of instruction. However, Dr. Guy Boysen joins us to discuss his critiques of the existing research to support UDL and how future work could improve confidence among scholars.

Later, Lali DeRosier returns to the show to share a paper on science discourse in urban classrooms. We explore why science talk matters, and how to facilitate just & effective discourse among students.

All learning is brain-based, which means taking care of our brain is part of a good education. We read a scoping review to look at some examples of how healthy habits can impact learning, motivation, and mental wellness.

Later, we read a study that compared the efficacy of student argumentation when approached collaboratively or adversarially. The results suggest there are specific benefits to helping students argue in parallel.

NOTE: equipment problems have caused some issues with sound quality. Our apologies, and we are making changes for future tapings.

Students need feedback on their work in order to improve, but what is the impact of different approaches to giving that feedback? We read a study of how students perceive the feedback they get, and how it impacts their motivation and vitality. We see the applications for helping students boost their sense of competency.

Later, we read a teacher-written journal paper on applications of Cognitive Load Theory. We find implications for helping students manage their cognitive resources, especially when applying IEPs and 504 plans.