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Building Thinking Classrooms with Peter Liljedahl
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Math educators and curriculum developers interested in research-based strategies to foster student thinking and engagement in the classroom.
TL;DR
Peter Liljedahl shares his research revealing that 80% of students are not thinking during math lessons, often engaging in 'slacking' or 'stalling' behaviors. He emphasizes the need for 'thinking classrooms' where students are actively engaged in productive, rather than reproductive, work.
Key Takeaways
- Many classrooms prioritize performance over genuine learning, leading students to engage in reproductive rather than productive thinking.
- A significant majority of students (around 80%) are not actively thinking during lessons, hindering their actual learning process.
- Students who are not thinking are often busy with tasks that don't require cognitive engagement, such as note-taking or worksheets.
- Students exhibit different off-task behaviors, including 'slacking' (indifference to being caught) and 'stalling' (seeking legitimate excuses to disengage).
- The 'faker' behavior, similar to stalling, involves students caring about teacher perception but masking their lack of engagement with seemingly legitimate actions.
- Effective teaching requires understanding the hidden dynamics of student engagement and moving beyond surface-level busyness to foster deep thinking.
- The research highlights a disconnect between teacher perception of student activity and the actual cognitive engagement occurring in the classroom.
In This Video
- 00:00Meeting and Shared Vision
Peter Liljedahl recounts meeting Laura and their shared views on math education, focusing on thinking over performance.
- 01:35Introduction to Building Thinking Classrooms
Liljedahl introduces the concept of Building Thinking Classrooms (BTC), noting its importance for all educators.
- 02:14Background as a Teacher
He shares his history as a high school math teacher in Vancouver, also teaching physics and English.
- 03:07Pursuing a PhD and Classroom Observation
Liljedahl left the classroom for a PhD, wanting to observe students in their natural learning environment.
- 04:36Gaining Access to Classrooms
Initially denied access, he used flattery and recommendations to visit 40 diverse classrooms across Canada.
- 06:03Observation: Students Not Thinking
Across all classrooms, he observed a consistent lack of student thinking, which he links directly to a lack of learning.
- 06:50Researching Student Behavior
He conducted further research to document if students were truly not thinking and what they were doing instead.
- 07:47Findings: 80% Not Thinking
Data revealed 80% of students were not thinking productively, engaging in reproductive work instead.
- 09:25Student Behaviors: Slacking and Stalling
He identified 'slackers' (off-task without care) and 'stallers' (off-task with a facade of legitimacy).
Questions & Answers
What is the main focus of Building Thinking Classrooms?
Building Thinking Classrooms focuses on fostering student thinking and learning, contrasting with a prevalent US focus on performance in math education.
What did Peter Liljedahl observe in classrooms?
Peter Liljedahl observed that a significant majority of students were not thinking and were instead engaged in reproductive work rather than productive work.
What are the two main categories of student behavior when not thinking?
When students are not thinking, they are either slacking (visibly off-task) or stalling (hiding behind a facade of legitimate off-task behavior).
What is the difference between slackers and stallers?
Slackers don't care if they are seen as off-task, while stallers care and use legitimate-seeming off-task behaviors to hide their lack of engagement.
Why did Peter Liljedahl want to observe classrooms?
He wanted to observe students in their natural habitat to understand what was really going on and get behind the facade students often hide behind.
What was the result of Peter Liljedahl's research on student thinking?
His research revealed that 80% of students were doing no significant thinking, and of the 20% who were thinking, it was only for 20% of the time.
Key Terms
- Building Thinking Classrooms (BTC) — An approach to education that prioritizes student thinking and active learning over passive reception of information.
- Reproductive Work — Tasks that involve repeating or recalling information without deep understanding or application.
- Productive Work — Tasks that require students to think critically, solve problems, and apply knowledge in new ways.
- Slacking — Visibly off-task behavior where students do not care if their lack of engagement is noticed.
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