Authentic learning engages students and makes them more connected to what they are learning. This is especially pertinent with gifted students who are more likely to become bored with what is going on in the classroom and shutting down as a result.

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Authentic Learning – Teaching Methods
that Engage Students
 Todd Stanley
 Gifted Coordinator
 @the_gifted_guy
 www.thegiftedguy.com

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Takeaways from today
 This will just be a basic overview of how you can use authentic
learning in the classroom
 If you want more details of how to use it in your class, contact
me and I’ll provide a PDF copy of my book “Authentic Learning”
which will give more detail of how to use it in your class. All I ask
for in return is an honest review on Amazon.

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You might be a sage from the stage if…
 …you find yourself spending a majority of class time in front of the
students
 …instruction is based mostly on correct answers
 …you are making most of the choices
 …desks are all pointed in one direction
 …you are talking more than the students
 ...student success is based on memorization and recall
 …you are the source of most information
 …there is only one voice heard at a time

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Inquiry Learning
Project-Based Learning Problem-Based Learning Case-Based Learning
Collaborative Learning

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Characteristics of Inquiry-Based
Learning

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Inquiry-Based Learning
 The other three fall under this umbrella

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Advantages of IBL
 Nurtures student passion and talents
 Empower student voice and honor student choice
 Foster curiosity and a love of learning
 Solves real-world problems
 Teaches grit, perseverance, and self-direction
 Develops strong research skills
 Trains student to ask questions in seeking to understand
(MacKenzie, 2017)

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Characteristics of project-based learning
 Students are given an extended amount of time to complete a
product that demonstrates mastery of the learning outcomes
 Choice is given in the product used
 Resources are either provided by the teacher or discovered by
the students
 Final product can be performance based

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What does PBL look like?
 Usually work in groups where each student has a specific role

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Advantages to PBL
 Allows for more creativity
 Differentiation of varying ability levels
 Creates a passion for learning
 Provides authentic opportunities for learning (Stanley, 2011)

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Characteristics of problem-based
learning
 Key Knowledge, Understanding, and Success Skills
 Challenging Problem or Question
 Sustained Inquiry
 Authenticity
 Student Voice & Choice
 Reflection
 Critique & Revision
 Public Product (Why, 2016).

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What does PrBL look like?
It’s all about process

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Advantages to PrBL
 Develop your diagnostic reasoning and analytical problem-solving skills
 Determine what knowledge you need to acquire to understand the problem
and others like it
 Discover the best resources for acquiring that information
 Carry out your own personalized study using a wide range of resources
 Apply the information you have learned back to the problem
 Integrate this newly acquired knowledge with your existing understanding
(Cordovilla)

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 Problem: The student council of the school has decided to raise money to
offer relief to people recovering from an earthquake in Mexico. In order to do
this, they have asked each homeroom to create and sell a product at the
school’s meet-the-teacher night. There will be hundreds of parents in
attendance so it might be a good opportunity to have some customers. The
class needs to decide what product they are going to make as well as how
to advertise and market the product so that people are aware they can buy
it. The proceeds from the sales will then be given to disaster relief efforts in
Mexico.

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How it is different than traditional
teaching methods

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Characteristics of Case-Based Learning
 Case-Based Learning is often defined as a teaching method which requires
students to actively participate in real or hypothetical problem situations,
reflecting the kinds of experiences naturally encountered in the discipline under
study (Ertmer & Russell, 1995)
 Case is established
 Case is analyzed by the student or group
 Brainstorm solutions
 Formulate learning objectives
 Dissemination of new findings
 Share results
 Reflect (Williams, 2004).

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What does CBL look like?
Involves learning from
cases people have
done in the past,
present, or future

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Advantages of CBL
 Students sort out factual data, apply analytic tools, articulate issues, reflect on their
relevant experiences, and draw conclusions they can relate to new situations.
 Cases add meaning by providing students with the opportunity to see theory in
practice.
 Use of self-study to consolidate learning that occurred in groups
 Integration of prior and newly acquired knowledge.
 Allows scientific inquiry and the development of support provision for their
conclusions
 Students seem more engaged, interested, and involved in the class.
 Since many cases are based on contemporary or realistic problems, the use of
cases in the classroom makes subject matter more relevant.
 Development of learning skills (Mullins, Barrows).

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 Chernobyl Disaster: to illustrate how science both caused the accident and could have prevented it.
 This case study examines the issues surrounding the Chernobyl nuclear accident that occurred in Pripyat
in the Ukraine on April 25-26. Students need to consider the two causes of the nuclear accident and what
could have been done to have either stopped or prevented these from happening.
 Cause #1: During the testing of a turbine generator, the workers disconnected the technical protection
systems, specifically the Emergency Core Cooling System. It is believed a combination of a lack of
nuclear reactor physics as well as engineering led to this mistake. As a result, the reactor was being run
with its key safety systems turned off. Might these have prevented the accident from occurring and why
would it?
 Cause #2: In addition to this human error, there were flaws in the reactor itself that might have led to the
accident. The reactor had a large positive void coefficient of reactivity, which is very dangerous. A void
coefficient is a measurement of the reactor and how it is affected by an increase in steam formation in
the water coolant. Because Chernobyl used solid graphite to slow the neutrons down, it actually began to
absorb the neutrons causing the reactor to become unstable even at low power levels.
 There was also a problem with the control rods. These are typically inserted in the water to slow down
the reaction. These particular rods were 1.3 meters shorted than should have been. This space created
between the rods caused the reactors power to actually increase when the desired effect is to reduce the
power.
 Students should investigate both of these causes to first see if they are viable, and then to determine
what could have been done differently in order to avoid the disaster. This will involve research to find out
further information. From this the students will role play what actions the workers specifically might have
taken in order to avert the problem.

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Advantages to guiding from the side
 Can have individual conversations
 Easier to differentiate and challenge
 Teaches valuable 21st century skills
 Students become self-sufficient learners
 Get to know the students better
 There is more chance for enduring understanding
 STUDENTS ARE MORE ENGAGED

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Learning for the sake of learning
 Imagine that schools were a place where
students want to go because they can learn
 What would that place look like?
 Is what you currently seeing in the classroom
authentic learning?
 How do you best learn?

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10 strategies you can immediately use in your
classroom in order to make it more authentic
 Strategy #1 – Guest speakers
 Strategy #2 – Student-created museums
 Strategy #3 – VR Goggles/virtual fieldtrips
 Strategy #4 – Authentic audiences
 Strategy #5 – Academic competitions
 Strategy #6 – Role playing
 Strategy #7 – Simulations
 Strategy #8 – Mentors
 Strategy #9 – Interviews
 Strategy #10 – Solve real world problems

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Reflection questions
 What is preventing you from using one of these
teaching strategies in your classroom?
 How many of these can you control?

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Reflection protocol
Connections
What is Connections?
Connections is a way for people to build a bridge from where they are or have been (mentally, physically, etc.) to where they will be going and what they will be doing. It is a time
for individuals to react — within the context of a group — upon a thought, a story, an insight, a question, or a feeling that they are carrying with them into the session, and then
connect it to the work they are about to do. Most people engage in Connections at the beginning of a meeting, class, or gathering.
There are a few things to emphasize about Connections for it to go well...
- It is about connecting people’s thoughts to the work they are doing or are about to do.
- Silence is OK, as is using the time to write, or to just sit and think. Assure people that they will spend a specic amount of time in Connections, whether or not anyone speaks out
loud. Some groups — and people within groups — value the quiet, reflective time above all else.
- If an issue the group clearly wants to respond to comes up in Connections, the group can decide to make time for a discussion about the issue after Connections is over.
The “rules” for Connections are quite simple
- Speak if you want to.
- Don’t speak if you don’t want to.
- Speak only once until everyone who wants to has had a chance to speak.
- Listen and note what people say, but do not respond. Connections is not the time to engage in a discussion.
Facilitating the process is also straightforward. Begin by saying “Connections is open,” and let people know how long it will last. A few minutes before the time is up, let people
know that there are a few minutes remaining, so that anyone who hasn’t yet spoken might speak. With a minute or so to go, let the group know that you will be drawing
Connections to a close, and again ask if anyone who hasn’t spoken would like to speak. Before ending, ask if anyone who has spoken would like to speak again. Then end.

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Any questions?

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Contact for further questions or if you would
like a PDF version of the book in exchange
for a review on Amazon.
 thegiftedguy@yahoo.com
 www.thegiftedguy.com
 Twitter: @the_gifted_guy