The Art and Science of Teaching Robert J. Marzano I | | | Representing Knowledge Nonlinguistically tudents have plenty of opportunities story. We have identified five important char- to process information linguistically acteristics of nonlinguistic representations that | They listen to teachers explain content, teachers should consider. | and they read and write about content. They ! hhave fewer opportunities in school, however, _1, Nonlinguistic representations come in many to process information nonlinguistcaly, even forms. There are many ways to represent infor- ‘though educators have mown for mation nonlinguistically. These include graphic some time that the human mind organizers, sketches, pict processes incoming information in these two primary modes (Paivio, 1990). Because the lingaistic A ee rode doesnot aesarly move Creating nonlinguistic formal rales of language, ths é ; kkind of processing istechnicaly Yepresentations requires referred to as serant. . ‘The second mode of processing Students to think about involves constructing images of A incoming information. images can the content in new ways. refer not only to mental pict but algo to smells, tastes, nd kin- esthetic sensations, such as how graphs (stick figures i i ‘hot or cold something feels. Because this mode ‘computerized simulations, to | of processing goes beyond visual imagery,we name few. The type of representation selected I refer to it more broadly as nonlingustc isa function of the type of content addressed Nonlinguistic strategies require students to and the amount of time available. generate a representation of new information For example, a teacher might decide that it that does not rely on language. In the hundreds makes more sense for students to design a flow- of action research projects that we have con- _chart to describe the process of balancing an cted with teachers throughout the years, this equation than to make a graphic organizer ofthe roach is one ofthe most commonly studied, process or physically ac the process out. On the Specifically, across 129 studies in which teachers other hand, a graphic organizer probably makes used nonlinguistc stategies—such as graphic more sense for a concept with several defining organizers, sketches, and pictographs—with one characteristics. For example, to represent the but not with another class studying 0 erm anarchy, a student might draw a circle con- | same content, the average effect was a17 per- taining the term anarchy and add spokes ema- I centile point gain in student achievernent (Hay- nating from this hub that e or she labels with i stead & Marzano, 2008), diferent defining characteristics. i Five Points to Keep in Mind 2. Nonlinguistic representations must identify i As with all strategies, the overall effect on crucial information, Nonlinguisticrepresenta- fl student achievement does not tell the whole tons that fail to focus on crucial information 84 Epucatiowat Leavensuie / Mav 2010can have little or o positive effect on student leaming, For example, to highlight important information in a story the class is reading, an elementary teacher might ask students to draw a pictograph that illustrates the action, However, ifa student draws a picto- ‘raph that represents the main chat acters—but not the central actions that ‘occurred among those characters—the representation will not add much to that student's understanding ofthe plot. ‘A social studies teacher might ask students to dramatize significent events of Picketts Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg. However, if students’ dra- rhatizations don’ include important {nformation—such as the fact that this encounter was a turning point in the US. Civil War—the representation will not have advanced their learning, inc 3, Students should explain their non- linguistic representations. Creating a monlinguistc representation helps students deepen their understanding because it requires them to think about the content in new ways. Asking stu- dents to explain their representations promotes even greater understanding For example, the teacher might ask students in a middle school science class to create a nonlinguistic represen- tation of their current understanding of the concept of percolation —the movement and filtering of fluids through porous material. One student right draw a picture, another might create a pictograpla, and a third might generate a flowchart. Each of these rep- resentations will add to their creator's understanding, her would then ask students ude resources for supporting educators ina unified classroom Introducing include’— Online training and tools that will help teachers: eee E18 LeeLee ee to display their nonlinguistc represen- tations and explain them to the class. Smdents would need to clarify any symbols or images they included. For example, if student uses the symbol of skeleton in a pictographic repre- sentation of Napoleon's advance on Russia in 1812, the student would need to explain thatthe skeleton represents the fact that many French soldiers died of malnutrition along the Russian front because they could not get supplies quickly enough. Interactions like these sometimes help disclose errors or missing cle- sents in students’ understanding. ‘When the student explains the lack of plies across the Russian front, for instance, it might become clear that he or she is unaware of how hi dey oo c NiESSea Shel ed| ASCD / www .asco.ons » 88important factor in the demise of Napo- leon’s troops. 4. Nonlinguistic representations can take a lot of time. One ofthe bigge Grawbacks to nonlinguistic repre tions is that they commonly require a great deal of time to construct and even more time to explain and defend. Consequentiy, when teachers plan for students to use nonlinguistc represen tations, they should time to get the full effect. Because these representations are time-consumin teachers should limit their use to crucial content. 5. Students should revise their rep- resentations when necessary. D linguistic representations are a form of note taking in that they represent 2 notebooks or posted them on the bul- letin board, they should for accuracy at a later date and alter them if needed, For example, the science teacher focusing on percolation might post students’ nonlinguistic representations, A few days later, the teacher might: A Fresh Approach Nonlinguistic representations are one of many powerful techniques available to classroom teache wel, chey can have @ postive effec: on student achievement and provide Earn Your Master’s or Doctoral Degree from CeO eA Grand Canyon University has been preparing future leaders forthe challenges and opportunities of an increasingly complex world with our master’s and doctoral Gegrees. We have a large variety of educational programs to meet the needs of K-42 teachers, administrators, and principals. To ensure the quality of your leering experience, our course content is rigorous, purposeful, and focused 877.420.3819 | gcu.edu/EdLeadership diversity in the way that students process new information. SY References no, RJ. Research Laboratory on i tional strazeles. Englewood, Research Laboratory ). Mental representations: A University Press Robert J. Marzano is Cofounder and CEO of Marzano Research Laboratory in Denver, Colorado. He is the au ience of Teaching 1d coauthor, with Mark W. Haystead, of Making Stender Useful in the Classroom (ASCD, 2008) To contact Marzano or participate in @ study regarding a sp: strategy, visit www. mn: FIND YOUR PURPOSE GRAND CANYON Cas eee ee eae foe