The Learning Power Approach

Guy Claxton is Professor of the Learning Sciences at the University of Bristol Graduate School of Education, where he directs the research initiative on Culture, Learning, Identity and Organisations (CLIO). His books include The Wayward Mind: An Intimate History of the Unconscious (2005), Learning for Life in the 21st Century: Sociocultural Perspectives on the Future of Education (2002, co-edited with Gordon Wells), Wise Up: Learning to Live the Learning Life (1999) and the best-selling Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind: Why Intelligence Increases When You Think Less (1997). His current work focuses on the development of infused approaches to the cultivation of positive lifelong learning dispositions in schools. The resulting ′Building Learning Power′ approach has influenced practice in schools throughout the UK, Australia and New Zealand.

"This book helps to validate a belief that the subjective goal of education should be about the liberation of the self, freeing us to choose our own essence in life.  Thus, in developing the skills to become more aware of our own actions and their consequences for which we are responsible, we must study our own creativity and creations (knowledge and how that knowledge is gained and used…or not used).  This search for self-empowerment, self-knowledge and self-awareness is our most challenging life endeavor.  It allows us to study patterns in our lives.  In so doing, we are better able to make corrections and improvements to our life’s goals.  Education should provide an awakening into actuality the potentials that lie within us.  Education does not merely give us knowledge, but teaches us how to think and use that knowledge, which helps us place an elevated emphasis on understanding and appreciating what was; actively participating in the chaos that is; and, vividly imagining and influencing what will be."

• ForewordAcknowledgmentsAbout the AuthorChapter 1. The Origins of the Learning Power ApproachNuclear FamilyGodparentsFriends and NeighborsNear MissesA Socket SetChapter 2. What Is Learning?Why Do We Learn?When Do We Learn?What Is the Launchpad for Learning?What Do Learners Actually Do?The Beginnings of Learning PowerSo Can You Get Better at Learning?What Kinds of Learning Are Going On in Classrooms?Chapter 3. What Exactly Is the Aim of the Learning Power Approach?Diving In: The Aim of the Learning Power ApproachSome Flesh on the BonesChapter 4. How Do I Get Started? Some Quick WinsThe LPA Menu du JourCurious, Adventurous, Determined, Collaborative: A Starter Kit of Learning DispositionsA Reflective ExerciseChapter 5. Why Does Learning Power Matter? 10 Good Reasons for Pumping Those Learning Muscles1. Because Life Is Complicated2. Because Learning Power Makes the World a Safer Place3. Because We Won’t Always Be There4. Because Good Learners Are More Successful in Life5. Because Employers Want to Hire Powerful Learners6. Because Powerful Learners Do Better in School7. Because Powerful Learners Do Better in College8. Because It Makes Teaching Easier and More Rewarding9. Because People Are Happier When They Are Learning10. Because Young People’s Mental Health Depends Upon Their Learning PowerChapter 6. What Is Learning Power Made Of?The Elements of Learning PowerChapter 7. Learning Power in Action: Some Classroom IllustrationsChapter 8. Design Principles of the LPA Classroom1. Create a Feeling of Safety2. Distinguish Between Learning Mode and Performance Mode3. Organize Compelling Things to Learn4. Make Ample Time for Collaboration and Conversation5. Create Challenge6. Make Difficulty Adjustable7. Show the Innards of Learning8. Make Use of Protocols, Templates, and Routines9. Use the Environment10. Develop Craftsmanship11. Allow Increasing Amounts of Independence12. Give Students More Responsibility13. Focus on Improvement, Not Achievement14. Lead by ExampleChapter 9. What Is the Evidence for the Learning Power Approach?Does Curiosity Affect Learning?What About Concentration?Can Learners’ Resilience Be Deliberately Increased?Does Resilience Contribute to Raising Achievement in School?Does Imagination Improve Learning and Creativity, and Can People Get Better at Imagining?Do Deliberate Attempts to Teach Students to Think Clearly Work? And Do They Improve School Performance?What About Collaboration?Does the Same Apply to Empathy?Does Reflection Aid Learning?Does Learning Power Developed in One Context Transfer to Other Contexts?Chapter 10. Distinctions and MisconceptionsFocus on Learning Power, Not Just LearningLearning, Not ThinkingLearning Dispositions Are Malleable, Not FixedIs the LPA “Traditional” or “Progressive”?Evidence, Not MeasurementPrecision About LanguageLearning Muscles and the Mind GymPedagogy RulesIt’s Not Just Classrooms; It’s the Ethos of the Whole SchoolProvisional and Growing, Not Set in StoneChapter 11. Joining the Culture ClubBibliography and ReferencesResources and Further ReadingIndex