Integrative Model
Designed to help students develop a deep
understanding of organized bodies of
knowledge while simultaneously
developing critical thinking skills
 Closely related to the Inductive Model
 Based on work of Hilda Taba (1965-67)
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Overview
Uses organized bodies of knowledge that
combine facts, concepts, generalizations,
and the relationships among them
 Teacher begin lesson by displaying
information gathered and compiled in a
matrix
 With teacher guidance, students analyze
the information in the matrix
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Theoretical Foundations
Students develop schemas, forms of
understanding that exist in memory
 Concepts are simple schemas
 When learners link concepts to facts,
other concepts, principles, generalizations
and academic rules, schemas become
much more complex
 Result is a deeper understanding
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Learning Objectives for the
Integrative Model
Two objectives: (1) deep and thorough
understanding of organized bodies of
knowledge and (2) use of critical thinking
skills
 Much of what we teach in schools is
organized bodies of knowledge
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Example: Comparing two countries using
variables such as climate, culture, economy
Learning Obj. Cont.
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Developing critical thinking skills requires
practice in finding patterns, forming
explanations, hypothesizing, generalizing, and
documenting the findings with evidence
Teachers help make this practice conscious and
systematic by identifying topics, specifying
objectives, and preparing the data
representations (matrix)
Planning Lessons with the
Integrative Model
Teacher begins with a topic
 Topics may come from textbooks,
curriculum guides, and other sources,
including the interests of teachers or
students
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Planning Cont.
Teacher decides on content objectives
 Teacher must ask: What exactly do I want
the students to understand about the
topic?
 Teacher must plan for critical thinking by
guiding the students to form patterns,
form explanations and develop
hypotheses based on the evidence
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Planning Cont.
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Teacher must prepare data representation by
organizing a matrix
Teachers often direct students to gather data
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Individual cells of matrix assigned to individuals or
groups
Teacher can add data
• Teacher could prepare entire matrix, but students may be
less interested in the topic as a result
Planning Cont.
Displaying data: two guidelines
 (1) display the information in as factual a
form as possible
 (2) Provide sufficient information so that
students can use data from one part of
the matrix as evidence for a conclusion
about another part
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Using Technology
Use databases, which are computer
programs that allow users to store,
organize, and manipulate information
 Databases can use both text and
numerical data
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Implementing Lessons with the
Integrative Model
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Phase 1: The open-ended phase. Learners
describe, compare, and search for patterns in
data
Promotes involvement
Ensures success
Teacher starts with one cell of information and
moves to other cells
Teacher records students’ observations or
comparisons on the board, overhead, or on
chart paper
Implementing Cont.
Phase 2: The causal phase
 Students explain similarities and
differences using data in chart to justify
conclusions (documenting assertions)
 Schema production begins
 Students develop perceptions of
competence
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Implementing Cont.
Phase 3: The hypothetical phase
 Learners hypothesize outcomes for
different conditions (suggested by
teacher)
 Advances schema production
 Facilitates transfer
 Students’ self-efficacy increases as they
learn to respond successfully
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Implementing Cont.
Phase 4: Closure and application phase
 Students generalize to form broad
relationships which summarizes the
content
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Increasing Student Motivation
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Characteristics of Integrative Model
Involvement
 Success
 Challenge
 Perceptions of increasing competence
 Emphasizes cooperation
 Emphasizes personalization (students must
come up with their own generalizations)
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Modifications of the Integrative
Model
Present information in matrix in picture
form for students who lack reading skills
 Emphasize phase 1 (observation and
comparison) with young children)
 Use existing materials (charts, maps,
graphs) to simplify planning time
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Assessment
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Teacher needs to measure content
objectives
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Test items on generalizations
Teacher needs to measure critical thinking
objectives
Test items that require students to apply
generalizations to new information
 Test items that require students to make and
defend an argument with evidence
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