Efficient Learning for the Poor Insights from the Frontier of Cognitive Neuroscience
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
DIRECTIONSDIRECTIONS ININ DEVELOPMENTDEVELOPMENT 36619 THE WORLD BANK Efficient Learning Public Disclosure Authorized for the Poor Insights from the Frontier of Cognitive Neuroscience HELEN ABADZI Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized DIRECTIONS IN DEVELOPMENT Efficient Learning for the Poor Insights from the Frontier of Cognitive Neuroscience THE WORLD BANK © 2006 The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank 1818 H Street, NW Washington, DC 20433 USA Telephone 202-473-1000 Internet www.worldbank.org E-mail [email protected] All rights reserved 1 2 3 4 5 09 08 07 06 This volume is a product of the staff of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this volume do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of The World Bank or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. Rights and Permissions The material in this publication is copyrighted. Copying and/or transmitting portions or all of this work without permission may be a violation of applicable law. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank encourages dissemination of its work and will normally grant permission to reproduce portions of the work promptly. For permission to photocopy or reprint any part of this work, please send a request with complete information to the Copyright Clearance Center Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; telephone: 978-750-8400; fax: 978-750-4470; Internet: www.copyright.com. All other queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to the Office of the Publisher, The World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax: 202-522-2422; e-mail: [email protected]. Cover design: Helen Abadzi. Cover photo: Arthur C. Brown of Foundation Nubia, a school in Banguio, the Gambia that operated without textbooks. ISBN-10: 0-8213-6688-2 ISBN-13: 978-0-8213-6688-2 e-ISBN: 0-8213-6689-0 DOI: 10.1596/978-0-8213-6688-2 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for. Contents Acknowledgements vii Overview viii Acronyms xiv PART I. COGNITIVE REESEARCH ON BASIC SKILLS 1. The Pedagogy of Poverty 3 Neurocognitive Research: The Key to the Black Box 8 2. Health, Nutrition, and Cognitive Processing 11 Health and Nutritional Obstacles to Learning 12 Developmental Delays and the Importance of Preschool 15 Policy Implications 18 3. Nervous System Linkages with School Performance 21 Policy Implications 23 4. Memory and Basic Skills Acquisition 24 Knowledge Intake: Attention Span and Prospects for Improving It 25 The Peculiarities of Memory: Eternal as Well as Fleeting 25 Working Memory: A Concept Critical for Effective Education 27 Why Is Working Memory So Important for School Work? 28 How Information Learned in School Is Consolidated 30 Policy Implications 35 Research Needs 35 5. Literacy Acquisition and the Biology of Reading 36 Reading Benchmarks and Norms 41 Reading Issues Affecting the Poor 42 Phonics Versus “Whole Word” Methods 44 Policy Implications 47 Research Needs 49 6. Why Mother-Tongue Instruction Improves Achievement 50 The Benefits of Bilingual Education 53 Policy Implications 57 Research Needs 57 7. The Development and Teaching of Numeracy 58 The Effects of Language Switching in Math 60 Policy Implications 61 Research Needs 61 8. The Cognitive Effects of Classroom Events 62 “Chalk and Talk” Lecturing (Very Effective for Brief Periods) 64 Practice, Questions, Feedback, Discussion (Very Effective) 65 Individual Seatwork (Limited Effectiveness) 66 Projects (Limited Effectiveness for Basic Skills) 67 Noninstructional Activities (Ineffective) 67 iii iv EFFICIENT LEARNING FOR THE POOR Policy Implications 70 Research Needs 70 PART II. RESOURCES FOR EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTION 9. Which Instructional Methods Are Most Efficient? 73 The Pros and Cons of Constructivism and Discovery Learning 75 The Pros and Cons of “Direct Instruction” 77 Policy Implications 79 10. Use and Wastage of Instructional Time 80 Schools Open fewer than the Official Number of Days 80 Teacher Absenteeism 82 Student Absenteeism 84 Wastage of Class Time 84 Policy Implications 87 Research Needs 88 11. A Textbook for Every Student to Take Home 89 Policy Implications 92 12. Improving Instructional Support 93 Classroom “Climate” and Student Achievement 93 The Case of the Missing Homework 94 Curricular Effects on Student Achievement 95 Effects and Interpretation Difficulties of Achievement Tests 97 Effects of School Facilities on Achievement and Attendance 99 Policy Implications 101 13. Student Grouping and Class Size Effects 102 Formation of Student Groups: Learning Potential and Issues 104 Student Performance in Multigrade Classes 108 Policy Implications 111 PART III. PERFORMANCE OF TEACHERS AND EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS 14. Teacher Incentives and Motivation 115 Motivation and Incentives—Extrinsic and Intrinsic 115 Self-Efficacy and the Challenge of Never-Ending Tasks 119 Increasing Accountability 120 Policy Implications 122 15. Performance and Training of Educators 123 Social Status and Attitudes toward Students 123 Attitudes toward Teaching 124 Teacher Training Institutions May Not Teach Effectively 126 Improving the Effectiveness of Teaching Behaviors 127 Improving the Effectiveness of Training Events 128 Policy Implications 130 16. The Seven Pillars of Basic Skills for All 132 Benchmarks and Monitoring Indicators 134 Invest More in the Lower Grades 136 Efficient Access Goal 137 Disseminating Lessons from Research 137 ANNEX: COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE BASICS FOR EDUCATION 141 I. Neuropsychology Essentials 141 A. Neural Development in Young Organisms 141 B. Nerve Wiring and Survival of the Fittest Memories 143 CONTENTS v C. Brain Architecture and Learning Functions 145 D. Memory Systems 150 E. Nature, Culture, and Circumstances 152 F. Cultural Differences in Students’ Cognition 155 G. Gender-Related Issues in Cognition 157 II. The Lens of Cognitive Science 159 A. Attention 159 B. Storage of Information in Cognitive Networks 161 C. The Uses and Abuses of Memorization 182 D. Copying From the Blackboard and Note-Taking 185 E. Transfer of Learning to Other Skills 186 F. How, What, and Why Learners Forget 187 G. Higher Cognitive Functions 189 H. Learning Styles: Do They Exist? 190 I. Expertise and Its Implications 190 J. Ability to Act on “Lessons Learned” by Donors and Governments 192 K. Age-Related Memory Changes and Their Implications for Learners 193 L. Training Implications for Middle-Aged Educators 194 Notes 203 References 237 Index 282 Boxes 1.1. The “Education for All” Goals 4 2.1. Health and School Attendance 12 2.2. Full-Time Schools: Special Attention for Low-Income Students 19 4.1. How Much Attention Do Students Pay in Class? 26 4.2. Chewing Gum Increases Recall of Words 32 4.3. Poor Students Forget More During End-of-Year Vacations 34 5.1. Sixty Words per Minute for All 47 5.2. With Efficient Instruction, Children Can Learn Multiple Scripts 48 6.1. How Many Years Are Needed to Teach Sufficient Language? 56 8.1. Activities and Achievement in Jamaican Schools 68 9.1. Constructivist Curricula, Illiterate Artists? 76 12.1. Youth Orchestras for the Poor in Venezuela 97 13.1. “Hole-in-the-Wall Experiment” 109 14.1. Extrinsic Teacher Incentives and “Cramming” for Exams 116 14.2. How Do Teachers Use School Grants? 118 16.1. An “Indicative Framework” for Educational Quality 135 16.2. How Well Do Schools in Niger Improve Human Capital? 140 A-1. The Sociology of Competition 166 A-2. Levels of Processing 176 A-3. The Brief Window of Opportunity for Learning 179 A-4. Useful Knowledge Tends to Be Remembered 183 A-5. Visualizing Tasks Could Improve Training Outcomes 195 Figures 1.1. Burkina Faso, a Poor Country with Large Enrollment Increases 5 1.2. Fulani-Speaking Girls in Rural Niger 8 2.1. Cumulative Number of Words Addressed to Children 16 2.2. Biological Needs for Learning 20 vi EFFICIENT LEARNING FOR THE POOR 3.1. Learning Skills by Automizing Small Units 23 4.1. Structure and Types of Human Memory 27 4.2. Memory Capacity 28 4.3. Best-Fit Relationship Between Working Memory and Age 29 5.1. Slow and Skilled Reading Areas 38 5.2(a) and (b): Performance at the End of Grade 1 in Common Words 40 6.1. Grade 4 Students Still Learning the Names of Clothes in French 52 6.2. Poor Children Studying in Official Languages 54 6.3. Non-Native Speakers Need Several Years to Catch Up 55 9.1. Different Dimensions and Methods of Teaching 74 10.1. Instructional Time Indicators in Basic Education 81 10.2. A Teacher’s Class Book in Honduras 83 10.3. Instructional Time Loss Model 87 12.1. Dark Classroom in Rural Niger 100 13.1. Cooperative Learning Techniques in Tanzania 106 15.1. Primary-School Teachers Meeting Qualification Standards 125 15.2. Notes Dictated in a Teacher Training Institute 127 16.1. Relatively Few Students Meet Mastery Criteria 133 16.2. The Seven Pillars of Basic Skills for All 134 A-1. Brain Potential of Younger and Older People 142 A-2. Neuron Assemblies 144 A-3. fMRI Equipment 145 A-4. Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging 146 A-5. Brain Areas that Are Important for Learning 148 A-6. Stimulation Facilitates Connections among Nerve Cells 154 A-7. Illustrations of a Simple Cognitive Network 162 A-8. Accumulation of Nodes to Create Complex Concepts 163 A-9. Connected Knowledge and Probability of High Test Scores 164 A-10(a). Items Linked in Series, Like a Poem 168 A-10(b).