10 Mindframes for Visible Learning: Teaching for Success

by John Hattie, Klaus Zierer

The original Visible Learning research concluded that one of the most important influencers of student achievement is how teachers think about learning and their own role. In Ten Mindframes for Visible Learning, John Hattie and Klaus Zierer define the ten behaviors or mindframes that teachers need to adopt in order to maximize student success. These include:

thinking of and evaluating your impact on students' learning;

the importance of assessment and feedback for teachers;

working collaboratively and the sense of community;

the notion that learning needs to be challenging;

engaging in dialogue and the correct balance between talking and listening;

conveying the success criteria to learners;

building positive relationships.

These powerful mindframes, which should underpin every action in schools, are founded on the principle that teachers are evaluators, change agents, learning experts, and seekers of feedback who are constantly engaged with dialogue and challenge.

This practical guide, which includes questionnaires, scenarios, checklists, and exercises, will show any school exactly how to implement Hattie's mindframes to maximize success.

Genres: Education, Teaching, Nonfiction, Reference

236 pages, Paperback

First published December 6, 2017

About the author

John Allan Clinton Hattie ONZM (born 1950) was born in Timaru, New Zealand, and has been a professor of education and director of the Melbourne Education Research Institute at the University of Melbourne, Australia, since March 2011. He was previously professor of education at the University of Auckland.

Source: Wikipedia

Reviews

[Jo-elle Perkins · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bleh. Don't read it unless you get paid to participate in a book study. Had a few interesting tidbits, but is as dry as dry can be.

[Ken · Rating 5 out of 5]

If the point of Visible Learning was, "Know thy Impact," the main take away from this book was, "[Successful teaching] is based not only on competencies but more on mindframes; less on what we do and more on how we think about what we do."

I can't stress how much I got out of reading this book. It gave perspective on my own teaching, both places where I was succeeding and areas I was failing. It is also guiding a majority of the conversations I have with fellow educators now. That includes a lot of simple mantras that I am sure people are sick of me saying; "Assessments are feedback for you and about you" "Clear learning intentions and success criteria" "Know Thy Impact" "It all works, the question is what works best."

This should be mandatory reading for teachers in their first few years in the field or someone going through the many existential crises I went through while in the classroom.

[Alex Valencic · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The purpose of education should never be to meet the needs of children; what a lowly aspiration this is that help keep kids in their place - the rich man in the castle, the poor boy and girl at the gate. The purpose of education should not be to help students reach their potential, as again this lowers the aspirations for many and defeats the purpose of schooling. The *prime* purpose of education is to help students exceed what they think is their potential. To see in students something they may not see in themselves and to imbue them with our passion for learning."

While this line is at the conclusion of this book, I feel it perfectly captures everything I want to say about "10Mindframes for Visible Learning." We as educators must shift our view of the world and our view of what it means to be a teacher. We need teachers passionate about helping students do much more than reach their potential. We need teachers who are going to help their students achieve personal greatness, even when, or perhaps especially when, they do not see it in themselves.

[Adam Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the idea of this book. As a teacher, I found it interesting to know the effectiveness of all the tools I can use in my class. I found it not very practical though... like it talked about mind frames and tools but it didn’t spend a lot of time on how these things would look in a classroom

[Erin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Flavorless and unmemorable, but worse, this book makes little sense; that is, the text rarely follows to where it initially led. As one of many examples, it’s incomprehensible to me that Hattie and Zierer provide a section called, “Novice–advanced learner–expert: the role of achievement level [in gaining from feedback],” that does not acknowledge Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. This work, it just lacks concert. While reading the 10 Mindframes, I scratched my head, continuously asking if I had missed something important...but no, I’m convinced it wasn’t me. Finally [drumroll], I’m fairly of the opinion this work did not reveal anything to any halfway decent educator; we already knew study skills, metacognitive thinking, and formative evaluation contribute to learning [eye roll].

[Chrissy Shea Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only skimmed. This was assigned to all teachers at my middle school and discussed during staff meetings. From my own research background it seems like something written from educational psychology research with good intent but not practical. One colleague called it “teaching 101.” But in my opinion most information is a best practice approach that is not entirely, if at all, feasible for every day, standard classrooms (or anything that isn’t a lab school).

[Gillian]

Full disclosure: teacher books just kill me. I have the hardest time reading them and staying focused, no matter how interested I am in improving myself or learning more. I finally got this on Audible so I could get through it. What I appreciated most about this book was the book study discourse with my colleagues.

[Maria Gerardy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like the way it is written giving each mindframe a chapter. However, the mathematical analyses connected to each was confusing. I was hoping for more definitive sin terms of actual classroom procedure. The main take away I DID get was to challenge every student where they are.

[Meghan Palmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why is this book getting so much credit when the National Boards Certification Program has already been doing this? We already have National (US) teaching standards. As a NB certified teacher this was not a good use of my time.

[Ann Warren · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think there is a lot to say about good teaching, most importantly “Know Thy Impact.” But most of this is intuitive to good teachers and I’m not sure those who aren’t will leave will concrete takeaways to affect their teaching.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this book. As someone who has been teaching and teaching teachers for over a decade this was a great reminder of what really matters in teaching.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book actually had some tangible ideas that I can use for PE, usually these type of books are only for classroom teachers. A great general education book.

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some interesting points, but mostly a slog fest. It was required reading for a professional development course.

[Karen Kauo · Rating 4 out of 5]

For any educator, looking to learn more about effective teaching practices, this book is 5 stars. I find incredible value in John Hattie‘s research. As an MTSS specialist, I use his findings and the data from my own school to guide instruction. The reason this book was given 4 stars is because of it’s readability. The everyday teacher looking to improve on their teaching methods might find this book difficult to get through. It’s very cerebral and uses lots of tier 3 vocabulary :) Keep that in mind.

[Erica Warren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this concise dive into mindframes that ensure success in the classroom. The authors talk about things assuming you've read Visible Learning, so there are parts that get confusing or muddled if you havent read their prior works. But by chapter 4 it really picks up speed. I read it in about 2 days with many interruptions.

[Dana Petrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not an exciting read per se, but interesting content. Love the emphasis on research, inspiration, and focus on why & how. Love Hattie's mindset: "What works best - rather than what works." Too many schools settle for 'what works.' I am driven by 'what works best.'

[Annie Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good information, but overall, a dry, boring read. Read it for a book study.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gives a pretty thorough overview of Hattie’s 10 Mind Frames and how they relate to the principles of Visible Learning. Clearly laid out and mostly easy to follow.

[Haley Busniewski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting lens for teaching. Some very helpful information about feedback and knowing your impact.

[Rebecca Yockey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This takes a lot of the essential information from Visible Learning and presents it in a simple, usable form. Must read for teachers.

[Woods Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Taking time to reflect on the practice of teaching and learning.

[Sortal · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you care deeply about raising test scores, this is the book for you. Unfortunately, bookending dry chapters with a sugar-coating of Simon Sinek and Michael Jordan quotes does not make a book inspiring. Bring your own inspiration with you and this is still very useful.

[Phillip Nash · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent Hattie and co work on the essence of good learning. This is a very useful handbook for teachers and schools leaders to show them how to think and act in the best interests of the learner rather than the teacher.
I like their emphasis on teachers being teachers and not just facilitators or guides although those things may be useful strategies at times for teachers. This is a great guide for schools wanting to move their teachers forwards into a renewed way of thinking about their teaching and their students learning.

Read this again in 2021 and even more impressed. “Know thy Impact”, Hattie’s mantra, needs to be that of every teacher.

[Nicholas French · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you care about the art and science of teaching and desire to improve you profession to meet the needs of today's students, this is your book.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

From teachers to trainers. This book has a interesting approach to help us to improve the teaching techniques and understand the current issues in education. The book is very well documented. .