Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning

I recently picked up James M. Lang's new book: Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning, and it is amazing. It contains a number of ready-to-go lessons and activities that can be included in every class on every day, and--more importantly--he articulates the science and pedagogy behind the exercises, how to connect the exercises to promote cumulative learning, and (yes!) how to make the transition from gaining knowledge to critical and creative problem solving. It is the best higher education pedagogy text I've read (and it uses one of my favorites--Bloom's Taxonomy). Lang himself is an English professor and writes for the Chronicle and particularly understands the challenges that we face in our introductory and non-major courses, and, as the title suggests, he demonstrates small steps and advocates for meaningful changes to accumulate (rather than a massive and dramatic overhaul). A quote: "a simple way of understanding how to build comprehension in our students would be that it consists of helping them forge rich, interconnected networks of knowledge--ones that enable each existing piece of information in our content area to connect with lots of other information, concepts, and ideas." Responding to scientific explanations of "learning" as the creation of new neural network paths, he shares strategies for forming and retaining the new pathways. He also addresses common binary thinking, the rigid "mindset," and concludes with some popular BIG teaching innovations. (I think I have made notes on every single page). This book will not only change the way we teach, but it will also teach us the foundations for those changes.

I work as an instructional designer in a graduate school, and this is the book that I'm going to be handing to all the faculty I work with to give them ideas about how to improve their courses. Lang writes in an easy-to-read but insightful way, drawing on his experience as a teacher to highlight small changes that can have a huge impact on students' learning. He talks about changes not only for traditional face-to-face classes but also changes for online classes and hybrid classes. Having read a number of the books he cites throughout his book, I can say that his research base is solid. He's drawing off some of the best recent research that's come out in cognitive psychology while showing practical steps to implement those ideas into an actual class. If you teach in higher education settings (or any setting for that matter), this is a must-have book for your bookshelf. If you're an instructional designer, instructional technologist, or curriculum designer, this book will help you translate important learning concepts into practical applications for your constituents. This is one of the best books to come out on the practical applications of cognitive science in recent years, and it's definitely worth your time and money. A wonderful book.

This book is directed at post-secondary educators, but all of the info and most of the classroom activities apply or could be adapted for lower grades. Some of the strategies were things I had already learned to do in my teacher education program, although Lang explains the WHY, and that made all the difference for me. I love that these strategies are little things you can begin doing right away without making any big curricular changes. I wish this had been assigned reading in college!

James Lang has assembled a lot of information on college learning of students to help instructors focus on how to improve their teaching. The most important aspects of the book were to set the learning environment for students to rethink their class room experiences. Learning is about growing not about talent.

Those education specialists know a thing or two, it turns out. But I like it even better that this guy isn't one--he does what I do (he teaches college literature) and he has digested some of the new cognitive )science, boiled it down to principles, and organized them very pragmatically. He suggests that one read the book all the way through between semesters so you can get the lay of the land--but also says, truly, that one can also dip into it for a quick blast of useful practical suggestions one can implement at any time in order to increase student engagement and learning. He also writes clearly and succinctly, without eduspeak jargon. (The only jargon I have any stomach for is that of my own specialty, thank you very much.) There are lots of tips here about little things one can do at the beginnings and ends of classes, or things hat one encourage (or require) students to do between classes, in order to take advantage of the way the brain learns. (I'm inclined to think that these things are more about the way the mind works than about physiological processes in the brain, but I won't quibble.) My book is in my office and I'm not, or I might be tempted to list some of them and STILL encourage you to buy the book to get the bigger picture. The point is that these are *little* things--hence "small teaching"--that can make a big difference. I haven't had enough time yet to see how things go after the bloom of a new semester is off the rose. If I have anything to add when we get to the dread midpoint of the term, I'll let you know.

James Lang provides in this small book a number of mostly small (and some not so small) practices that if adopted will transform the experience and heighten the competency of students and faculty members. This is a must read, and do something with, book for college professors of every career phase. I'm currently using it as a required reading in a new faculty orientation seminar. Despite having taught for over twenty years and either used or attempted a number of the activities in this book over those years, I now realize having read Lang's connection of activity to the ed research background why they worked, or how I missed the mark with them. Several will return to my course plan in better form next semester.

During a professional development seminar this summer faculty participants read Flower Darby with James Lang’s book SMALL TEACHING ONLINE, an immensely helpful book for the transference of traditional courses to an online format. Darby recommends early on that readers also get some familiarity with Lang’s SMALL TEACHING because his principles inspired her. Lang isolates key findings from educational research on learning that inform his suggests on how to teach content and interact with students. Discussions induce active learning; however, without quizzes and exams, students’ memories won’t get activated, and opportunities to achieve mastery could fade. Making connections, regular, repeated practice, and self-explanation (when guided and double-checked) enhance learning, build confidence, and steer students toward mastery. Lang’s chapters on Motivating, Growing, and Expanding illuminate critical do’s and don’t s that either stimulate learning such as the instillation of a “growth” mindset or inhibit learning such as a exclusive emphasis on “fixed” ability or skills. Lang’s concentration on practical skills and references to research findings on student behaviors and attitudes that generate substantive progress in learning make this book invaluable for teachers.

This book is a good read, and has sufficient references to the teaching literature, and short exposition of the theory behind each technique, and a list of practical steps that can be taken to achieve each technique. Very accessible. The picture is an example of the Quick Tips section that accompanies each chapter.