Author: Marzano, R.
Publisher: Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL)
Publication Date: 2000
Full text available online at: http://www.mcrel.org/topics/productDetail.asp?productID=81
Abstract (written by WestEd)
Marzano summarizes 35 years of research about effective practices that realistically can be implemented if there is the concerted will to change at the school level with district support.
Leadership is an overarching factor that impacts the three factors listed below. The subfactors within each factor are listed in order of importance or impact on student achievement, based on Marzano's meta-analysis of research on student achievement.
School-Level Factors:
Guaranteed and viable curriculum (time and focus on learning skills). Viability means ample instructional time to address the content standards. Schools or districts should identify content (standards) essential for all students, arrange in a sequence and by topic ("big idea"), and ensure time for ample opportunity to learn such content, versus that which is supplemental or necessary only for those seeking postsecondary education.
Challenging goals, monitoring progress, and effective feedback. Goals must challenge all students and support closing the achievement gap for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Feedback must be timely during the learning process (formative as opposed to summative assessment), and assessments must measure the curriculum actually taught. The school should have only one or two goals at a time for improvement and every student should have personal goals.
Parent and community involvement. There should be two-way communication and various ways to involve parents in day-to-day activities and governance.
Safe and orderly environment. Clear, schoolwide rules and procedures, enforced with appropriate consequences for violations, lessen disruptions and violence. Students should be taught self-discipline and responsibility, and they should also be involved in the design of the disciplinary program.
Collegiality and professionalism. Colleagues share their mistakes, respect each other, and constructively criticize practices and procedures. Shared responsibility for common goals is more important than friendships in establishing collegiality in a school. Teachers should be involved in school decisions and policies, as well as engage in meaningful, coherent staff development activities.
Teacher-Level Factors:
Effective teachers can have a profound influence on students of all achievement levels, regardless of the levels of heterogeneity in their classes. Some studies show a 50-percentile point difference between three years of effective versus ineffective teachers. Mastery of the three factors listed below should be at least average.
Instructional strategies. Categories of instructional strategies that affect student achievement are, in order of influence: identifying similarities and differences, summarizing and note taking, reinforcing effort and providing recognition, homework and practice, nonlinguistic representations, cooperative learning, setting objectives and providing feedback, generating and testing hypotheses, and questions, cues, and advance organizers. The elements of good lesson design are: anticipatory set, objective and purpose, input, modeling, checking for understanding, guided practice, and independent practice.
Classroom management. A system of both punishment and reinforcement has the strongest influence on student achievement, and teachers should articulate and consistently enforce a comprehensive set of classroom rules and procedures that is backed by a schoolwide approach. Teachers must be aware of the needs of different types of students and show students they care, while maintaining a healthy emotional objectivity.
Classroom curriculum design. Effective teachers identify important concepts and skills to be learned and assessed, use a variety of input modes to present new content multiple times, group content by similar features, and engage students in complex tasks that address content in unique ways. Student argumentation is most effective in dispelling misconceptions, followed by student discussion.
Student-Level Factors:
Home atmosphere. Home atmosphere that fosters learning (reading to children, helping with homework, encouraging them to go to college, taking them to the library and cultural events, etc.) matters much more to student achievement than parent income or education level. The school can provide training and communication about school, parenting styles, and expectations.
Learned intelligence and background knowledge. There are two types of learned intelligence: intelligence as knowledge of facts, generalizations, and principles; and intelligence as cognitive processes of mental procedures, abstract reasoning, and working memory capacity and efficiency. Background knowledge has a dramatic influence on achievement; programs should involve students in many, varied life experiences. Wide reading and direct instruction help students to develop ample vocabulary.
Motivation. To improve student achievement, provide feedback on students' knowledge gain; engage them with interesting learning activities and long-term projects that require constructing knowledge and applying skills; and teach them about the dynamics of motivation.
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From WestEd.org
Education That Works: Ideas for Sacramento
As part of the California Mayors Education Roundtable Initiative, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson held a March 2009 summit that brought together nationally renowned educators to discuss their work, successes, and lessons learned. This white paper, developed from the ideas and discussions emanating from the gathering, is the continuation of a dynamic citywide discussion about how to ensure academic success for all Sacramento students.
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