Misconception: Learning-Focused is a program.
Learning-Focused is a planning model, not a program. Teachers, schools, and districts should adapt the Learning-Focused model by implementing what best fits with their curriculum, styles, and goals. Learning-Focused does not dictate instruction. Instead, Learning-Focused helps teachers implement a balanced plan and focus instruction based on what we know works best for learning (research based). One of just a few strong suggestions of Learning-Focused is to adapt, not adopt. Do not blindly implement anything in your school or classroom. Having too many initiatives without focus and purpose is just as harmful for learning as having none. The Learning-Focused model provides teachers with the connections between practices, so that strategies are not randomly chosen, but instead selected to support the purpose of instruction and the other strategies. Learning-Focused is a continuous model for planning – teachers plan and provide, students do.

Misconception: Learning-Focused doesn’t work for me.
The model incorporates the strategies proven by brain and educational researchers to most impact learning in all grade levels and content areas. All research proves that these strategies and practices work better than any others. You can choose not to implement in your classroom, but you cannot say it does not work. This is the case for thousands of teachers across the country. Adapt it to make it work for you. Teachers who walk into a Learning-Focused workshop with a negative mindset (being forced to change) do not open their minds and make the connections. If they think Learning-Focused workshops are just about strategies, then they did not listen and learn. It is about teachers determining purpose and making connections. If teachers are not making connections for students between a learning strategy and content, they are choosing not to implement or adapt what our country’s best teachers are doing. These teachers assume all students know how to learn. Big mistake! It is not the workshop or Learning-Focused that creates improvement; it is what teachers and administrators do with it that makes a difference.

Misconception: Learning-Focused isn't research based.
Not only is Learning-Focused based on educational and brain research (click here to see some of the reseach base), but independent studies have shown the effectiveness that Learning-Focused has with increasing achievement by connecting strategies and research in a framework for learning. Just speak to school and district administrators and teachers that implement Learning-Focused solutions and their response is typically, "I may or may not like it, but this stuff works!!". Here is a short list of researchers and research institutes that have had tremendous impact on the Learning-Focused model: Art Costa, MCREL, Dougla Reeves, Michael Schmoker, Richard Stiggins, Robert Marzano, Larry Ainsworth, US Dept. of Education, and many others.

Misconception: Learning-Focused is “selling” strategies as its own.
At no point does Learning-Focused claim to have “created” exemplary practices and strategies. Almost all exemplary practice strategies have been created by very good teachers. They are called exemplary practice strategies because they were created by and used by the country’s best teachers. Learning-Focused has not even named most of the strategies. Researchers and teachers have! Learning-Focused provides the connections between the strategies and a plan for implementing them the best way, which most teachers do not have. The strategies are most often chosen at random or not chosen at all. Learning-Focused guides teachers in how to make these strategies work. Are we able to show teachers strategies or adaptations that they may not have seen before? Absolutely!

Misconception: Learning-Focused is only for Title 1 or low performing schools.
Learning-Focused is for all learners. Doesn't every school want and need to increase achievement?

Misconception: Learning-Focused forces teachers to teach to the test.
Learning-Focused does not “force” teachers to do anything. Learning-Focused is a standards driven model. Instead of teaching from a text book, a scripted program, or “favorite” things, teachers learn to identify what students are to know, understand, and do from state standards. The standards are provided by the state and required by law to be used as a guide for instruction. Most states have not provided teachers with information on how to translate the standards into lessons. Learning-Focused provides this through a model that teachers can use and adapt for transforming standards into learning. Teaching from the set of standards prepares students for the test because what they have learned is tested.

Misconception: Learning-Focused promotes memorization.
Learning-Focused promotes long term understanding. Using brain research we now know how students best learn and retain (store) information in order to use it throughout their lives. Graphic organizers and other learning tools are not fill-in-the-blank charts. Learning-Focused teaches how they are appropriately used. There is no viable argument that the strategies Learning-Focused promotes (such as graphic organizers) require memorization and do not help students learn. It would be in the face of our giants of educational and brain-based research to conclude they don’t work. As for graphic organizers, the simplest way to understand how they work is an old saying: "A picture is worth a thousand words."

Misconception: Essential questions, graphic organizers, etc… will never be used in college or the real world.
To say that students will not encounter “essential questions” throughout their lives is like saying they will never eat. Examples: What are the consquences of not attending class today? How does _____ work? How will I pay my bills? Which job should I choose? What is the meaning of life? Should I marry him/her? What if I don't read this? How can I help? Why does ______ happen? What would ______ do? Why am I afraid of change? Why do I need this change? As for graphic organizers, an example of a real world use is if we decided to create a flow chart. It would be... yes.... a graphic organizer! Graphic organizers guide thinking and by doing so they develop thinking routines. In K-12 schools, our goal is to ensure that students have thinking routines in place for success in college and the real world in order to help them navigate, store, and retrieve all new learning.

Misconception: Learning-Focused does not prepare students to think critically, learn independently, make inferences, draw conclusions, etc..
Anyone who listens in a Learning-Focused workshop or reads a Learning-Focused book couldn’t draw this conclusion. The concept of a planning model is to ensure that specific things happen. More than any other model, Learning-Focused helps teachers ensure time to extend student thinking. We strive for teachers to get past just teaching acquisition (new knowledge) lessons to teach extending thinking lessons for all important standards. Teachers instruct students in higher level thinking (thinking critically and drawing conclusions) and using these skills to do something with the knowledge. Because of the breadth of most state standards, teachers have a difficult time moving getting students to “know” something and actually having them “apply” their knowledge for a purpose. This is extending thinking, a major component of Learning-Focused. If extending thinking isn’t happening in a classroom after a teacher has been trained in Learning-Focused, this is the teacher's choice.

Misconception: "Consistent and Pervasive" mandates we all teach the same way.
Schools identified as “exemplary” choose three or four strategies, and all teachers use these strategies all of the time. How a strategy is implemented is up to the teacher (Some ways are better than others.), as long as it is being used. An example is previewing vocabulary and then teaching vocabulary in context. If all teachers in a school do this, based on thousands of school’s results and research, students will learn and retain more. When a school chooses to do something consistently and pervasively, it is typically monitored by administrators to ensure it is being done and to support teachers as they are learning how to best implement the strategies.

Misconception: There is not enough time to do Learning-Focused.
Learning-Focused is not an "add on", but an "instead of" model. Therefore, as long as you are prepared to do things a little differently, you will have the time. In fact, because students are doing more work in a Learning-Focused classroom, teachers find they have more time with students. Implementing Learning-Focused with quality requires planning - which takes time. Learning-Focused is designed and coordinated for team collaboration which expedites the planning process. Additional tools for helping with planning time include: rotating substitute teachers, staff development time, scheduled team planning time, and using time after school and during the summer to plan. Most of this takes quality leadership to implement and provide teachers with the resources and time necessary.

Misconception: Learning-Focused is new or a fad.
Learning-Focused has been working with teachers and leaders for over twenty-five years. Once a school has determined to plan a certain way or to do something consistently and pervasively it usually becomes a part of the school culture. Learning-Focused is not based on any other model. It is based on what works for exemplary schools and is continuously updated as research and practices evolve. Most recently, brain research has had a tremendous impact on the model and classroom instruction.

Misconception: Learning-Focused ignores ESOL students, culture, and parent involvement.
Learning-Focused aligns perfectly with nationally accepted practices for teaching students whose primary language is not English. Learning-Focused actually goes a step further by providing Scaffolding for these students in order to increase understanding. A key component of Learning-Focused is to activate student thinking before learning something new. This step ensures that all students are able to bring their culture, experiences, and background into their education by building from what they already know. If there are gaps, part of activating thinking is to help students build background knowledge as well. A great deal of the research basis for Learning-Focused is based on what works best for at-risk, minority, and ESOL students!

Many of the strategies in the Learning-Focused training are those that we find in the ELL literature - using graphic representation for vocabulary instruction, using graphic organizers, teaching explicitly, etc. Other strategies that are included in our Scaffolding training are also found in the ELL literature - the various ways to provide access to curriculum, scaffolding organizers, additional vocabulary strategies, review strategies, etc.

For beginning readers whose first language is other than English, we know that it is important to provide not only a strong early reading program but to also work on second language acquisition. A combination of our early reading training and a new workshop for general education teachers that address the specific needs of ELL students is how we are hopefully meeting the needs of this group of students. The new ESOL/ELL training will be available in spring 2009.

Specialized training for the ESOL/ELL licensure is not likely to become a part of our training but feel that we can significantly improve the skills of general education teachers in meeting the needs of these students in the regular classroom.

As for parent involvement, most schools already have plans, procedures and goals for parent involvement. Hopefully, schools make Learning-Focused a part of these activities. Learning-Focused provides the ability for schools to easily share learning maps (what is being studied), vocabulary, lessons, strategies, and more with parents. In addition, Learning-Focused has an overview presentation which encourages schools to demonstrate with parents how different learning strategies work. As for addressing the 'culture of poverty', Learning-Focused is about engaging the learner and typically kids in this group are labeled as "kids who don't care" which is an expectation problem, not by them, but by us, as educators. Learning-Focused works for all students, including and especially at-risk students. You will experience success, and you will encrease expectations.

How do administrators sometimes impede the success of Learning-Focused?

1. Too many arbitrary mandates that do not have a purpose.
2. Lack of collaboration and teacher input.
3. Failure to follow through and support.
4. Lack of planning and not providing time for teacher planning.
5. Lack of providing conferencing for teachers (with other teachers and consultants).
6. Not allowing teachers the time to learn new strategies and experiment with them.

How do teachers sometimes impede the success of Learning-Focused?

1. Pretend to do something because it is mandated. If you are going to do something, do it with quality! Students deserve nothing less.
2. Avoid doing something altogether. Either because they don’t want to, or because they are upset by weak implementation by administrators.
3. Do not continue growing as a professional.
4. Interfere with other teachers trying to implement or grow.
5. Allow pressures to overwhelm and interfere.
6. Do not think critically - Always ask: Does it make sense? What is the purpose?
7. Just do something instead of adapting and differentiating for their students.
8. Waste energy on things they cannot change.

Does Learning-Focused increase achievement?
Absolutely! If implemented with quality, schools will see a significant difference in classroom and test performance. Learning-Focused is successful in K-12 schools with many variations of population, culture, environment, and location. All schools want to get better. Learning-Focused can help all types of schools – and has! Just ask us for a referral. There are hundreds of schools that would like to share their successes with you. Learning-Focused is from research about what works in schools and has been around a long time. Learning-Focused makes connections where previously there were none. By linking what works we are able to create the greatest possible gains. Although most of the strategies used in the model are not new, the research-based implementation, connections, and framework (what, when, and how) are what make Learning-Focused powerful and unique. Click here for some data collected in two different states. Learning-Focused also has a Preferred School Program that recognizes schools for their efforts and successes implementing Learning-Focused. Beginning August 2008, these schools will be listed on our website with the criteria for which they were chosen.