Learning Power Approach

by Guy Claxton

In 'The Learning Power Teaching learners to teach themselves' Guy Claxton sets out the design principles of a way of teaching that aims to strengthen students learning muscles and develop their independence, initiative, determination, and love of learning. Foreword by Carol S. Dweck. Learning is learnable! Educators can explicitly teach not just content, knowledge, and skills, but also the positive habits of mind that will better prepare students to flourish both in school and in later life. And as traditionalists fight for rigour and knowledge, and progressives defend the increasing focus on character and well-being, Guy Claxton's 'Learning Power Approach' (LPA) brings resolution to this phoney and unnecessary war by offering teachers a win-win teaching formula that delivers good academic results while simultaneously turbocharging students independence, initiative, and love of learning. In this groundbreaking book Guy distils fifteen years experience with his influential Building Learning Power method to provide a set of design principles for strengthening students learning muscles, and together with a wealth of practical strategies and the supporting evidence that underpins them details the small tweaks to daily practice that will help teachers attend more closely to the ways in which they can shape their students learning dispositions and attitudes. Complemented by engaging and informative classroom examples of the LPA in action and drawing from research into the fields of mindset, metacognition, grit, and collaborative learning 'The Learning Power Approach' describes in detail the suite of beliefs, values, attitudes, and habits of mind that go in to making up learning power, and offers a thorough explanation of what its intentions and guiding principles are. Furthermore, in order to help those who are just setting out on their LPA journey, Guy presents teachers with an attractive menu of customisable strategies and activities to choose from as they begin to embed the LPA principles into their own classroom culture, and also includes at the end of each chapter a Wondering section that serves to prompt reflection, conversation, and action among teachers. Suitable for teachers and leaders in all educational settings, 'The Learning Power Approach' carefully lays the groundwork for a series of books to follow that are specifically tailored to primary teaching, secondary teaching, and school leadership. Chapters 1. The Origins of the Learning Power Approach 2. What Is Learning? 3. What Exactly Is the Aim of the Learning Power Approach? 4. How Do I Get Started? Some Quick Wins 5. Why Does Learning Power Matter? Ten Good Reasons for Pumping Those Learning Muscles 6. What Is Learning Power Made of? 7. Learning Power in Some Classroom Illustrations 8. Design Principles of the LPA Classroom 9. What Is the Evidence for the Learning Power Approach? 10. Distinctions and Misconceptions 11. Joining the Culture Club

Genres: Education, Teaching

248 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2018

About the author

Guy Claxton is Emeritus Professor of the Learning Sciences at the University of Winchester. His many publications include Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind: Why Intelligence Increases When You Think Less. He lives in the UK.

Reviews

[Michelle Mayfield]

I loved the way this book focused on teaching kids how to be successful in life, which also will improve test scores, rather than just focusing only on improving test scores. We really don't want a society full of compliant people who can't think for themselves, but can manage to get good scores on tests...

[Luke Fitzpatrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very ideological, but an interesting read.

[Charlotte Wastell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Refreshing outlook on education

[June O'Sullivan]

Useful, practical and easy to read, a winning combination.