Learning Progressions:
A Discussion
Ravit Golan Duncan
Rutgers University
Learning Progressions
 What are they (nature of LP)
 Why we need them (motivation)
 How do we build them
Commonalities
 Progression over larger time units
 Deepening of ideas and level of
sophistication (conceptual framework)
 Change in terms of what kids can do
over time (performances)
 Based on research on student learning
Contrast to standards
 Propositional
 Performance
 Limited research base
 More extensive research
based
 Organization based on big
ideas/practices
 Organization is
problematic, and too many
ideas
 Not conducive to design of
assessments that track
student learning over time.
 Leads to development of
assessments that can
evaluate progression
 Older content
 Strives for cutting edge
Differences
 Motivation- what was the driving force to
develop the progression
 Nature of progression- what does it mean to
move along the progression
 The “stuff” of progressions- what are the big
ideas?
 How do we know what we know? Building
progressions
 Questions that remain
Motivation
 Environmental literacy- informed and active
citizenry
Environmental literacy
Theoretical Framework-Key Practices for Literacy
 (1) Scientific inquiry: developing and evaluating
scientific arguments from evidence,
 (2) Scientific accounts: using scientific accounts of the
material world,
 (3) Application: using scientific accounts as tools to
predict and explain, and
 (4) Citizenship: using scientific reasoning for responsibl
citizenship.
Motivation
 Environmental literacy- informed and
active citizenry
 Students superficial understanding of
current school science content
(standards-based)
Motivation
Students who can write this equation for combustion:
CH4 + 2O2
CO2 + 2H2O
often cannot answer:
"When a house burns to the ground and only
a few pieces of charred wood and ashes are left,
what happens to the rest of the mass of the house?”
(AAAS Project 2061 conference 2001)
Motivation
 Environmental literacy- informed and active
citizenry
 Students superficial understanding of current
school science content (standards-based)
 Integrate cutting edge science into
curriculum; Discrepancy between Atlas
progressions and understandings students
need for nano-scale science (as well as
science education research on student
learning, learning not linear)
Motivation
Based on Benchmarks, AAAS developed a progression of
concepts for several aspects of the ‘Structure of Matter’
Atoms &
Molecules
States of
Matter
Conservatio
n of Matter
Chemical
Reactions
Propertie
s of
Matter
Rather linear and ordered progression
Forces &
Interaction
s
Nature of Progression
 Developing practices of environmental literacyunderstanding and using environmental science to
make decisions at different levels (apply principles
to different systems)
 Progress along model from novice to expertnotions- recognition - formulation- construction -generation
 Making connections- developing web of
interconnected ideas
The “Stuff” of Progressions
 Interdisciplinary- coupled human and natural
systems
 life, physical and earth science ideas
 Tightly woven with inquiry and practices of
responsible citizenship
 From observations to models and theories
 Applying fundamental principles to processes in
systems (carbon and water cycles; systems)
 Democratic participation and reconciling values
and consequences
The “Stuff” of Progressions
Progress variables linked to curriculum
expert
5 Generation: Research
4 Construction: Examining assumptions,
relating models
3 Formulation: Relating ideas and concepts,
simple models
2 Recognition: Language, definitions, symbols
algorithms
novice
1 Notions: Everyday experience, logical
reasoning
The “Stuff” of Progressions
Matter
Student levels of
understanding
number
III. Formulation
II. Recognition
I. Notions
mole
mass
Change
particulate
macro
conservation
Atomic symbols,
octet rule
Chemical equations,
conservation of mass
Solid, liquid, gas
Stuff happens
(atoms/stuff/grams)
The “Stuff” of Progressions
States of
Matter
Atoms &
Molecules
Forces &
Interactions
Multidimensional
Conservation
of Matter
Properties of
Matter
Chemical
Reactions
An intricate web of
interconnected concepts
How do we know?
 Prior research literature
 Pre-post tests across multiple grades
(traditional instruction)
 Short intervention experiments
 Developing carefully designed assessments
to gauge learning performances
 Tracking individual student progress over
time
 Interviews with individuals of varying levels of
expertise
Common Students Difficulties
 Connecting across levels/
contexts/representations (atom vs. electron
diagram, dry ice vs.. match, hierarchical)
 Reasoning about invisible stuff (ground water)
 Mechanisms and processes (ground water
transport)
 Vernacular interference / leverage (match vs.
fat)
 Model and theory-based reasoning
Questions
 Nature of progression:
 Path/ paths/ landscapes?
 Nature of movement -cycles, multiple states
 Context dependence
 Nature of learning performances:
 Integrate big ideas and practices
 Quantifiable variables that measure learning outcomes
 Nature of evidence:
 Can we really rely on short terms studies, will we (and if
so when) need to actually follow student learning over
grades?
 Wont instruction fundamentally change what students can
do , and therefore the progression
 Challenges for teaching
Questions you had
 What are essential attributes (nature & stuff)
 How do we track student learning (tomorrow)
 Language to describe LPs- What are they
exactly? (what sort of framework)
 Link between LPs and instruction
 LPs impact of teaching and PD
 How does an LP deal with external (prior)
knowledge