What is Mastery Learning?

You may have heard the phrase Mastery Learning being used more frequently in relation to learning and education recently but what exactly does it mean?

An intriguing term, Mastery is actually quite a simple concept that relies on teaching children about a particular topic one section at a time and not moving on to the next section until the child has fully grasped it. In a classroom setting, all children are taught the same thing in the same way with increasingly more difficult problems being solved to ensure that the children have a deep understanding of the topic before they move on. Each subject matter is broken up into individual pieces that have to be understood and this is usually demonstrated by the child receiving a pre-determined percentage on a test before they can move on from that subject matter.

Inspired by techniques from Asian countries such as China and Singapore, Mastery is not a new teaching and learning technique by any means. However, its recent introduction into everyday learning at UK schools means that we’ll be hearing more about this style of learning in the near future. In fact, the method is so popular that the government has announced that it is providing £41 million of funding over the next four years to help schools adopt a Mastery approach to teaching maths.

The technique is in contrast to more traditional learning styles where pupils are expected to understand a particular concept within a certain amount of time, before automatically moving on to the next concept whether they fully comprehend it or not. For example, when learning times tables in maths, the class may work on this topic for two months before moving on regardless of the children’s individual progress. Mastery works in a way that means each child develops a definitive understanding of a topic such as times tables before they are required to move on to the next topic, and those who don’t catch on as quickly will receive homework, group work, support and additional tuition to help them along the way. This approach not only helps each student’s understanding of the topic, but it has also been proven to be a much more enjoyable form of learning for the student.

As far as the effectiveness of Mastery goes, only time will tell but, for now, this technique seems to be one that reflects both common sense and really good, intuitive teaching and, with that combination, you can’t go far wrong.

By Laura Caldwell

The Advantages & Disadvantages Of 'Mastery Teaching'

Mastery is a concept through which children are all taught the same syllabus or skills simultaneously, but are only moved on individually once they have become secure with the subject matter through support and guidance. This type of teaching exists to encourage learners to attain a greater level of appreciation and understanding of the teaching material as they cannot progress until they can demonstrate their learning and understanding. On paper, it is the perfect way for people of all ages to learn at their own pace and through the methods and modes that facilitate them best – however, the way in which mastery is conducted can impact upon how effective it is in practice. Here are a few ways in which the concept can be broken down into advantages and disadvantages.

The Advantages of Mastery

• As Rachel Jackson discusses, the main benefits of Mastery lie in its innate ability to enable learners to gain greater appreciation of their subject material by looking at it from different angles, as opposed to rushing through modules – it is a misconception that children who are quicker at subjects such as mathematics are necessarily more skilled than those who take their time.
• Mastery focuses on allowing all pupils and students to progress at their own pace and to take their time to focus on problem solving and various outcomes of a scenario, thus avoiding hurried glossing-over of skills and knowledge. Hurrying learning along can impact negatively upon individual skillsets and knowledge recall in later life, making Mastery all the more appealing.
• Mastery ensures that everyone receives the same level and scope of teaching without the risk of pupils being left behind – it exists to enable all children on one particular syllabus to receive equal knowledge.

The Disadvantages of Mastery

• Managing Mastery in large groups can be complex – Bill Bennett discusses that, as learners all progress at different rates, there will be a necessity for more advanced students to be kept occupied while slower learners reach the same level of appreciation. This may lead to more advanced pupils having to be held back from progressing until their peers all reach the same level.
• Lowell Horton discusses that mastery is a fairly optimistic model for learning which will require wide-scale agreement upon what specific goals should be attained – after all, how does one define a ‘master’ within a subject unless such goals are clearly defined? This, Horton argues, will require the profession to come together to agree to such specificity if the model is to work in practice.
• Horton further establishes that employing mastery may be particularly difficult in practice from a teacher’s perspective – indicating that a tutor will need to be invested in the concept wholly in order for such a method to work. This is due to an increase in time and effort on the part of an educator that mastery can take to implement effectively.

The divisions are clear – Mastery may work well in practice as well as in theory, but it will require extensive effort and time on the part of a school or educator in order for it to be particularly effective. If a school or organisation is interested in employing mastery as a learning method, thorough planning must be employed in order for both the education board and any teachers involved to be prepared to exercise it.

The launch of 'Success In Exams' – a new book that helps students!

Hexis Plus is publishing the brilliant new eBook, ‘Success In Exams’ by Dr Indira Ghatak and it is being made freely available for pupils and parents alike!

Dr Ghatak noticed that those pupils who are C/D borderline, those who benefit from pupil premium or those who are generally of a lower than average ability often feel overwhelmed by the transition from Year 9 to GCSE and from GCSE to A-Level. She believes that this struggle comes down to a lack of understanding of revision strategies and exam technique. Subsequently, this book helps underperforming students in Years 10-13 learn how to revise effectively by teaching students the following:

• ·         revision strategies
• ·         how to develop study time tables and tactics to break up the learning throughout the year.
• ·         techniques to work with teachers.
• ·         how to alleviate stress and establish a decent work-life balance
• ·         how to effectively identify and change habits.

She addresses these issues in a conversational, relatable manner that is easy to understand for both parents and teenagers alike.

What really sets 'Success In Exams' apart is that it’s a multi-media book which has revolutionary interactivity including bespoke quizzes and videos that can be viewed via QR codes embedded in the book. This provides a holistic skills development program for those who need it. Some of these codes are permanent links and others are regularly updated for new content to ensure that students keep using the book as a study aid.

Testimonials:

[Success In Exams] captured the essence […] of the subject matter and then built upon those to not only enable the student to gain knowledge and understanding but also the relevant practicalities of having to perform highly in examinations.

Rahul S. – Parent

Dr Ghatak combines her immense experience in teaching at top schools with her insight as a mother whose children have been through the process. [Success In Exams] has a holistic all round approach which maximises a child's ability and hard work with a healthy mental attitude and positive self-esteem to produce happy, motivated successful children.

Isaac P. – Parent

[Success In Exams] helped me organise my time more efficiently […] I optimised my speed of learning and clarity of thought […] I strongly advise all to follow her methods which are expertly set out in this book.

Sienna A. – Student

If you would like a free copy of the 'Success In Exams' eBook in any popular format, please click here or email: contact@hexisplus.com.

We here at Hexis Plus are delighted to have helped publish this book using our extensive editing, social media marketing, website designing and branding knowledge. We’re looking forward to our next projects with Dr Ghatak and the various different tutoring and training companies we support.

Blended Vs Flipped Learning

The terms Blended and Flipped Learning are often used interchangeably by educators but, despite having similar connotations, they are actually two very different types of eLearning.

Before we can discuss the benefits and drawbacks of each type of learning, it’s important to differentiate between them. Blended Learning utilises both online and face-to-face instruction in order to provide a broader learning experience whilst Flipped Learning requires the learner to study an online element before coming to class and then using their class time to delve deeper into what they’ve learned.

A typical example of a Blended Learning exercise might be an online quiz - such as those found on Kahoot! or Socrative - where the students answer questions virtually and then discuss the outcome in class, building upon their knowledge by taking into account each student’s thoughts. This type of learning is beneficial because it helps maintain student interest and allows them to discuss their own opinions and thoughts with each other.

The major drawback of Blended Learning is that it can hamper and alienate students that get overwhelmed by the use of technology which could also give some students the opportunity to pretend to be working harder than they actually are. In a recent paper investigating the impact of Blended Learning by Hernández-Nanclares and Pérez-Rodríguez on The Journal Of Interactive Media In Education, the conclusion was that students generally had a positive attitude towards a Blended design and found using technology in the classroom to be motivational.

In contrast, an example of Flipped Learning would be watching a video before class at home and then discussing the results as a group. This type of learning means that a student can watch the video in the comfort of their own home, taking in the information in their own time and space and this allows for class time that is focused on detail and discussion, rather than just outlining basics. In 1998, Richard Hake tested 2084 students using Flipped Learning and discovered that those taught using a Flipped method exhibited learning gains almost two standard deviations higher than those who were taught in a more traditional method.

Aside from the many benefits of Flipped Learning, there are some drawbacks which include the fact that all students learn at different paces making it difficult to test them. This type of learning also gives some students the chance to relax at home by not doing the work in the first place.

When it comes to answering the question: ‘Which of these two learning styles is better?’ there really is no black and white answer. Depending on what the desired outcome is, the two learning styles offer two very different solutions. In a classroom scenario, the best option is to use both styles at different times for different lessons and then analyse how the class responds. Some students favour learning everything in a classroom setting, others like to concentrate on the material at home. It’s up to the teacher or tutor to determine the style that best suits their students and whether one learning style might be better for a particular subject or lesson.

How To Keep The Human Touch In eLearning

For many years, learning in schools was all done in the classroom, where one leader would impart/pass on their knowledge to the whole room. However, thanks to recent advancements in technology, we are now seeing the growth of a different type of learning - electronic learning or ‘eLearning’.

eLearning allows students and employees to learn or train using the internet as guidance. Different companies, like Hexis Plus for example, offer extensive training courses online where employees from around the world can log in and train.

However, with so many different options available it can be hard to know exactly what the most effective method is and how technology should best be utilised. It also raises an important question - how can training seem less robotic and maintain a more personal touch?

Today there are two main methods being used: ‘Blended Learning’ and ‘Flipped Learning,’ both of which enable businesses to benefit from the cost-effective models of eLearning whilst still benefiting from the human touch. No matter how far technology develops, we will always have a need for personal learning and these two methods take advantage of this. Blended Learning - This form of learning is very much a ‘best of both worlds’ method in that employees will take part in eLearning but also attend classrooms or face-to-face meetings. Blended Learning takes the benefits of each and compiles them all into one program. Whilst employees will have a chance to learn at their own pace online, they will also have a support network offline to push their learning even further.

The added benefit of Blended Learning for all involved parties is that it gives employees a chance to learn independently from a system. It also allows employers to benefit because they are trusting their workers to research online as well as continuing to provide a teacher, ensuring that they know all the important factors of the training. Many workers say that they learn better in a blended learning environment created by companies like Hexis Plus. Flipped Learning - This a type of learning that takes the traditional educating method and literally turns it on its head. For example, normally employees will learn all the basics face-to-face and then receive resources to explore the topics that were covered further in their own time. However, sometimes this isn't the most efficient method as remote workers do not have help at home. In response, Flipped Learning gives employees the ‘basics’ to undertake research  before a session and  then expand their knowledge base in class.

When implemented correctly, this method of learning can work extremely well as all the basics can be covered online, meaning that the valuable time spent face-to-face can be used more wisely. Since employees already know the basics, they can delve into more detail with a teacher by their side. This form of learning allows the business to make the most of their money with teaching in a room and allows for a personalised learning experience for their employees to benefit from. One of the problems with regular learning is that the classroom only covers the basics which leaves employees on their own for the more tricky topics but flipped learning removes this.

eLearning is becoming ever-more popular which makes sense as it is cost-effective and proven to work; though this doesn't mean that human contact has to be completely lost. It is all too easy to leave your employees in front of a computer but this can lead to a ‘recall mentality’ rather than a ‘recognise mentality’. Hexis Plus enables you to maximise the relationship between technology and the personal touch, meaning that your employee’s learning would increase quicker than ever.