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Better Learning Through Structured Teaching: A Framework for the Gradual Release of Responsibility 2nd Edition
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A newer version of this book is available.
In this updated 2nd edition of the ASCD best-seller, Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey dig deeper into the hows and whys of the gradual release of responsibility instructional framework. To gradually release responsibility is to equip students with what they need to be engaged and self-directed learners. On a day-to-day level, it means delivering lessons purposefully planned to incorporate four essential and interrelated instructional phases:
- Focused Instruction: Preparing students for learning by establishing lesson purpose, modeling strategies and skills, thinking aloud, and noticing how students respond.
- Guided Instruction: Strategically using prompts, cues, and questions to lead students to new understanding.
- Collaborative Learning: Allowing students to consolidate their understanding through exploration, problem-solving, discussion, and thinking with their peers.
- Independent Learning: Requiring students to use the skills and knowledge they've acquired to create authentic products and ask new questions.
The authors explore each phase, using real-life examples from a variety of disciplines. You'll find tips and tools for classroom implementation, including checklists for planning and assessment; advice on feedback, homework, group work, differentiated instruction, and blended learning; answers to frequently asked questions; and examples that align to Common Core State Standards. No matter what grade level or subject you teach, Better Learning Through Structured Teaching is your essential guide to helping students expand their capacity for successful and long-lasting learning.
- ISBN-101416616292
- ISBN-13978-1416616290
- Edition2nd
- PublisherASCD
- Publication dateDecember 2, 2013
- LanguageEnglish
- Dimensions5.94 x 0.47 x 8.98 inches
- Print length158 pages
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About the Author
Nancy Frey is a professor of educational leadership at San Diego State University and a teacher leader at Health Sciences High & Middle College. Before joining the university faculty, Nancy was a special education teacher in the Broward County (Florida) Public Schools, where she taught students at the elementary and middle school levels. She later worked for the Florida Department of Education on a statewide project for supporting students with disabilities in a general education curriculum. Nancy is a recipient of the Christa McAuliffe Award for Excellence in Teacher Education from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities and the Early Career Award from the Literacy Research Association. Her research interests include reading and literacy, assessment, intervention, and curriculum design. She has published many articles and a number of books on literacy and instruction, including Productive Group Work: How to Engage Students, Build Teamwork, and Promote Understanding; The Formative Assessment Action Plan: Practical Steps to More Successful Teaching and Learning, and Guided Instruction: How to Develop Confident and Successful Learners. She can be reached at nfrey@mail.sdsu.edu.
Product details
- Publisher : ASCD
- Publication date : December 2, 2013
- Edition : 2nd
- Language : English
- Print length : 158 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1416616292
- ISBN-13 : 978-1416616290
- Item Weight : 8.3 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.94 x 0.47 x 8.98 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #887,988 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #5,741 in Education (Books)
- #28,329 in Schools & Teaching (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the authors
I am a Professor of Educational Leadership at San Diego State University (www.sdsu.edu) and a teacher-leader at Health Sciences High & Middle College. (www.hshsmc.org). I focus my work on improving students' learning and impacting professional learning communities. I write to clarify my own thinking and to share what I have learned from my experiences with teachers and educators around the world.
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I am a professor of literacy in Educational Leadership at San Diego State University. I believe it's critical to be a deeply embedded in the life of a school, so I am also a teacher-leader at Health Sciences High and Middle College in San Diego. I get to learn every day from amazing teachers, administrators, students, and families!
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Thank you for visiting my page. Be sure to "Follow" my author page for important updates. And thank you for your reviews!
Customer reviews
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Customers find the book to be a must-read for all educators, with one noting it serves as a great introduction to personalized learning systems. The book is easy to read and well-written, with one customer highlighting how it provides structure for instruction.
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Customers find the book informative and consider it a must-read for all educators, with one customer noting how it helps keep lesson plans focused and provides great insights into teaching dynamics.
"...This book put logic and much better strucure in my teaching. I checked out Doug Fisher...." Read more
"A good balance between the philosophical and the practical, I really like this approach to helping students understand material...." Read more
"...I love how clear and concise this book is. It's a very great introduction on how to scaffold lessons in the classroom!" Read more
"A seemingly little book but packed with fundamental information" Read more
Customers find the book easy to read and very well written, with one customer noting it provides structure for instruction.
"...I love how clear and concise this book is. It's a very great introduction on how to scaffold lessons in the classroom!" Read more
"Better Learning is a brilliant text. It provides structure for instruction that ensures student learning through the gradual release model...." Read more
"...Easy to read with great examples!" Read more
"...It is written in an accessible manner, and the authors have several other related books that I like as well." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2013I attempt to teach in this way. I never had the structure that is logically explained in this book. This book put logic and much better strucure in my teaching. I checked out Doug Fisher. His awards and publishing are a small part of a teacher/author credibility. From what I can find, Doug Fisher has the experience in the classroom to make him very credible in my views. I am promoting this book to my math department and all my peers throughout my district.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2014A good balance between the philosophical and the practical, I really like this approach to helping students understand material. It makes a great deal of sense to work them gradually into independence rather than just throw them in almost immediately with both feet, and yet, our traditional school system is structured toward the latter. I am already working on next year's plans and trying to take what Fisher and Frey say to heart.
- Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2021This is a great tool during common core and now in the world of teaching in a pandemic.
- Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2012This is the first book I read about scaffolding. I have a lot of teacher resource books, and there are many books that I give away, but this is a book I am holding onto. I love how clear and concise this book is. It's a very great introduction on how to scaffold lessons in the classroom!
- Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2018Format: PaperbackVerified PurchaseA seemingly little book but packed with fundamental information
- Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2014Better Learning is a brilliant text. It provides structure for instruction that ensures student learning through the gradual release model. This text is easy to read and the concepts are simple to implement. Better Learning is a must read for all educators.
- Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2015Format: PaperbackVerified PurchaseFisher & Frey's model for effective instruction makes sense and helps teachers when selecting "ready made" lessons to make the necessary modifications to address potential gaps in learning. Easy to read with great examples!
- Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2014Format: PaperbackVerified PurchaseThis book is very short and serves well as a handbook. For those seeking to implement intentional instruction. It is written in an accessible manner, and the authors have several other related books that I like as well.
Top reviews from other countries
- Keith CappsReviewed in Australia on August 1, 2014
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow.
This book is a gem. Since discovering it my friends and I have referred to it and referenced it (in uni education assignments) many times. It may be the best book related to teaching I have ever come across.