The Edu-Renaissance: Harnessing the Science of Learning in Schools

The Edu-Renaissance

It was fabulous to welcome Dr. Nathaniel Swain to our Implementing Evidence Aligned Practice in Education webinar series last week. Dr Swain described a major shift underway in education as teachers, policymakers, and researchers have increasingly turned to the science of learning - a growing body of research informed particularly by cognitive science - to inform and transform teaching practices and student outcomes.

Dr Swain described the current state of education as an "edu-renaissance," characterized by:

• A resurgence of interest in teaching and instruction
• Policymakers rethinking teacher support and training
• A growing movement excited about the science of learning and its practical applications

This renaissance isn't limited to classrooms—at the policy level, in teacher training programs, and across various educational organizations, there has been a collective push towards evidence-based practices aligned with the science of learning.

Churchill Primary School's Transformation

To illustrate the power of various stakeholders coming together to affect meaningful change for learners, Dr Swain shared the story of Churchill Primary School. Located about two hours drive from Melbourne, Churchill faced significant challenges with student behavior and academic performance.

The turning point came when principal, Jacqui Burrows, learned that many commonplace literacy practices, like running records, weren't aligned with reading science. This revelation, coupled with a visit by the leadership team to Bentleigh West Primary school - an early adopter of the science of learning - in Melbourne's southeast, sparked a comprehensive reevaluation of Churchill's instructional approach.

The results speak for themselves. Churchill has gone from being an underperforming school to leading its area in literacy and numeracy performance. Perhaps most importantly, students have become more engaged, calm, and focused—demonstrating the profound link between effective teaching, behavior, and academic achievement.

Dr Swain's case study, drawn from his soon to be released book, powerfully illustrates the change that is possible through a whole school approach to implementing the science of learning.

Wicked Challenges

However, while the edu-renaissance offers immense promise, as witnessed at Churchill Primary, it also faces what Dr Swain dubs "wicked challenges":

1. The Teacher Knowledge Gap
2. Beliefs and Enactment Challenge
3. The Curricular Challenge
4. The Leadership and Change Challenge

1. The Teacher Knowledge Gap

Dr Swain notes that many teachers still lack a solid understanding of how learning works at a cognitive level. To help address this, Dr Swain, along with his colleague Dr. Zachary Greco, has developed an introduction to the science of learning, outlining its core concepts:

• The information processing model: This model explains how learning happens in the brain.
• Working memory limitations: Unlike long-term memory, working memory is limited and can only hold a few items at a time.
• The role of attention: If students aren't focusing or attending, they can't learn from their experiences.
• The distinction between biologically primary and secondary knowledge: Biologically primary knowledge is universally acquired, while secondary knowledge requires deliberate instruction and explicit learning.
• Cognitive load theory: This theory explains why learning can be difficult and how to organize new information to reduce cognitive load.

As teachers, these concepts are crucial for understanding how to most efficiently transfer what we are teaching into our students' long term memory - remembering that change in long term memory is the leading indicator that something has been learnt.

2. Beliefs and Enactment Challenge

Changing long-held beliefs about teaching and learning can be difficult. Dr Swain stressed the need to invest in professional practice coaching and assessment to help teachers, colleagues, and students adjust to a different way of teaching and learning.

This challenge involves not just understanding new concepts but putting them into practice. Teachers need support to:

• Shift towards more explicit instruction, especially for biologically secondary knowledge
• Organize new learning to reduce cognitive load
• Implement teaching practices that help move information from working memory to long-term memory

3. The Curricular Challenge

Adopting new teaching methods often requires updating curriculum resources—a significant undertaking. Dr Swain acknowledged this as a "big job" but pointed out that many organizations are stepping up to share resources often freely or at very little cost to make this transition more manageable. Some prominent examples offered by Dr Swain include:

• Think Forward Educators, which offers free resources for teaching reading and writing
• Ochre Education, an Australian group that provides free information and resources for math, English, and other subjects
• Another excellent free resource is the primary reading and spelling curriculum offered by PhOrMes

4. The Leadership and Change Challenge

School leaders play a crucial role in facilitating this educational transformation. Dr Swain discussed this challenge with reference to Bentleigh West's principal, Stephen Capp. Key aspects of this challenge include:

• Protecting the attention of teachers and students: Leaders need to create an environment conducive to change and learning.
• Providing time, space, and resources: Teachers need support to plan new learning, break it down into manageable chunks, and think about curriculum differently.
• Reshaping school structures: This includes implementing solid professional learning, investing in coaching and good assessment practices, and adopting multi-tiered systems of support for behavior and academic skills.
• Focusing on essentials: Leaders need to reduce extraneous noise and demands on teachers and prioritize the improvement of teaching and learning, especially during periods of significant change.

Dr Swain emphasized the importance of "going a bit slower on other fronts to make space to grow faster on the main front." This approach helps avoid the pitfall of trying to do too much at once, which can lead to mediocre results across the board.

Moving Forward: Embracing the Edu-Renaissance

The edu-renaissance offers a tremendous opportunity to transform our schools and improve outcomes for all students. By understanding the science of learning and tackling these wicked challenges, we can create more effective, engaging, and equitable learning environments across our schools.

Explore the transformative power of the science of learning in Dr Swain's upcoming book, Harnessing the Science of Learning: Success Stories to Help Kickstart Your School Improvement.