John Hattie is an education expert who has studied the factors that help students learn. His new book, Visible Learning: The Sequel, is based on 2,100 meta-analyses and 130,000 studies into the impact that various factors have on student learning. The book focuses on the importance of high-impact teaching and reveals findings into new factors which negatively affect student learning and steps that should be taken to improve education outcomes.
Hattie’s research reveals that technology, like computer tutoring and flipped learning, can greatly improve student achievement levels if used correctly and emphasizes the role of teachers in setting high expectations for all students. Additionally, the book highlights the importance of talking about learning with parents, creating an inviting environment for students to learn, and giving students challenging tasks.
The University of Melbourne is a founding partner of the Conversation AU and has been involved in 10,000 schools worldwide in implementing the “visible learning” approach. This is to make student learning as visible as possible, enabling students to see how their efforts and strategies are contributing to their learning and teachers to see the impact of their teaching.
John Hattie’s approach, which emphasizes the shared responsibility between students, teacher, parents, and school in upholding successful learning, is crucial in making classrooms and schools safe, fair, and inviting places to learn and grow.
Having over 400 million students, mostly from developed countries, involved in the study for the book, the impact of Visible Learning: The Sequel will be felt by many. It encourages embracing a model of “intentional alignment” when teaching, understanding that it is not a matter of either knowledge-rich content or problem-based discovery learning, but of wanting both. This aligns with the book’s message that education is about learning and not just about teaching.
