There are many ways to facilitate deep processing (i.e. effective storage of information in long-term memory) in the classroom. Some of the most evidenced ways to promote deep learning include the following: (1) engaging students in active processing, (2) making information meaningful, and (3) organizing content so that it can be effectively integrated into long-term memory structures and easily retrieved. Before any of these approaches are enacted, however, students must pay attention to the lesson or task at hand; learning cannot take place without students’ attention. Specific teaching strategies can be used to address each of these overarching approaches.
Attention:
Attention is the first step to learning. In several studies by Craik et al. (1996), subjects learned lists of words under conditions of full attention or divided attention. The studies found that divided attention at the point of encoding (i.e. initial learning) significantly reduced memory, as measured by free recall, paired-associate learning (a form of cued recall), and recognition memory tasks. These studies support the extensive base of literature indicating the importance of attention during encoding for deep processing.
There are many strategies to get students’ attention when introducing a new topic or reviewing previous material. Willingham (2009, p. 22) argues that change is one of the best ways to get students’ attention. Teachers should plan lessons to include frequent shifts and monitor whether shifts should be made more or less frequently to maintain students’ attention. Some other strategies to get students’ attention during a lesson include using cues to indicate when you are about to begin, moving about the classroom, and changing voice inflections (Huitt, 2003, p. 6). Teachers should also indicate which information is most important by writing notes on the board, reviewing previous information, pausing, and using voice inflection. Finally, teachers should seek to remove any avoidable distractions, such as those caused by noise or lighting (Slate & Charlesworth, 1989, p. 4).
Suggested Teaching Strategies:
- Offer cues or signals when beginning a lesson or new activity
- Accentuate critical information
- Use change and contrast
- Move around the classroom
- Create emotion
- Establish a purpose for learning
- Provide a context for information by teaching the whole picture before teaching the parts
- Remove distractions
Engagement:
In order to promote deep processing and long-term retention of information, teachers should seek to engage students in active learning. It has been evidenced that students learn best when they are engaged in the learning process rather than passively taking in material. Bloom (1987) found that learners typically retain: “10% of what they read, 20% of what they hear, 30% of what they see, 50% of what they see and hear, 70% of what they say, and 90% of what they say and do” (Banikowski, 1999, p. 10) In other words, the more students are directly involved in a task, the more they will remember what they learned. It is widely accepted that students must exert cognitive effort for deep learning to occur. A study by Hake found that university students in classes that promoted active learning scored twice as high on tests of conceptual understanding than students in traditional classes (Prince, 2004, p. 4).
To encourage active learning, teachers should spend significant instructional time on student-centered activities, such as discussion, activities, and projects. Particularly, students should be given opportunities to engage in cooperative learning. Also, students can be encouraged to take notes, outline, or summarize lecture or reading material (Slate & Charlesworth, 1989, p. 5). As Prince (2004, p. 4) points out, however, “simply introducing activity into the classroom fails to capture an important component of active learning”. Activities that promote active learning effectively should be designed around learning objectives and should promote thoughtfulness.
Suggested Teaching Strategies:
- Incorporate every pupil response strategies
- Provide opportunities for cooperative learning
- Allow students to engage in reciprocal teaching
- Encourage real-life experiences, such as simulations, role playing, and debates
- Engage students in hands-on learning using models or manipulatives
- Encourage students to take notes, outline, and summarize material
Meaningfulness:
Perhaps the most evidenced method for promoting deep learning is encouraging students to make meaningful connections. In a study by Kuhara-Kojima and Hatano (1991), university students were taught new information about baseball and music. Findings indicated that previous knowledge about one of these topics significantly facilitated learning new information about that topic area but not about the other topic area. For example, students with significant knowledge about baseball and little knowledge about music learned much more new information about baseball than they did about music (Kuhara-Kojima & Hatano, 1991, p. 261). In other words, the more students knew about a topic, the more effectively they learned new information about that topic. Promoting meaningful learning is best achieved by activating prior knowledge and encouraging students to connect new information to their knowledge base. Activating prior knowledge before a lesson offers students a context within which they can integrate new information.
Teachers can help activate students’ prior knowledge about a topic by asking questions about that topic and providing cues indicating what a lesson is about. Further, teachers can review previous lessons or incorporate discussions over previous material. Students should also be encouraged to link new learning to previous knowledge. This process can be guided by providing specific examples of concepts and ideas, indicating relationships between aspects of the content, and having students compare and contrast concepts (Huitt, 2003, p. 6). When students lack prior knowledge about a topic, teachers can promote meaningful learning by providing some foundational information about that topic or tying the new information to a separate but related topic.
Suggested Teaching Strategies:
- Encourage brainstorming and sharing
- Use KWL (What I know, What I want to know, and What I learned) organizers
- Encourage students to predict or anticipate answers
- Incorporate pre-reading activities
- Provide metaphors, analogies, and imagery
- Use graphic organizers
- Provide opportunities for writing and drawing activities
- Familiarize students with text structure during reading activities
- Review previous learning
- Encourage compare and contrast activities
Organization:
Helping students organize information is another effective method for promoting deep learning. Information that is organized is much easier to learn and recall; when material is logically organized, it is more meaningful to the learner. In a classic study by Bower, Clark, Lesgold, and Winzenz (1969), students were taught 112 words related to minerals. One group was taught the words in random order, while the other group was taught the same words in a logical order. The group of students that learned the words in a definite order remembered significantly more words than the group that learned the words in random order (Bower et al, 1969). Recent research has shown that organizing information in a hierarchical fashion is especially helpful (Slavin, 2009, p. 175).
In order to help students understand the organization and structure of a topic, teachers should point out the most important information by offering handouts or writing notes on the board. Teachers can also show organization and relationships among sub-topics by teaching material in a specific order, such as in sequence or from simple to complex. Also, students may benefit from organizing information by categories (Huitt, 2003, p. 6). Outlines, concept maps, and other graphic organizers may also be very helpful for students to understand the major components and relationships within a topic area. Finally, students can be taught organizational skills such as outlining material and taking notes.
Suggested Teaching Strategies:
- Use graphic organizers
- Provide contextual and relational clues about information
- Offer visual resources, such as charts and graphs
- Encourage students to distinguish main ideas from details
- Encourage outlining as a study technique
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