Who's Doing The Talking?

If you listened to classrooms in your district over the course of a week, what would you discover? How much time would be dedicated to teacher talk and how much time for learner-led talk? We know that teachers should generally limit their speaking to 20% to 30% of the class time, with the remainder around 80% dedicated to learners doing the talking. Yet evidence from several studies indicate teachers dominate nearly 88% of classroom talk time. Read more

Mind the Gap: Actions for Theory into Practice

How many times have we, as educators, been confronted with critical decisions about our learners without really being sure what to do? All too often we improvise. In the day-to-day rush of school sites, theory can seem disconnected. Yet consciously, or not, we all make use of learning theories when we make choices for our learners. Putting theory into practice isn’t always easy – but turning to quick fixes has serious consequences-especially for Multilingual learners (MLLs). Understanding how theory informs practice will help bridge the gap between knowing theory and practicing it. Read more