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Research

Using ‘big ideas’ to enhance teaching and learning

Ian Mitchell, Stephen Keast, Debra Panizzon & Judie Mitchell

Research Summary

The aim of organising learning around ‘big ideas’ has been around for a very long time, but the practical issues of doing it are under-researched. The researchers focus on curriculum and pedagogy development projects in science and cross-curricular teaching in Australia. They describe how the use of ‘big ideas’ is to enhance teaching and learning is more complex than it might at first appear, but also how their enquiries revealed ways to do it that result in real learning gains (e.g. pupils become more able to deal with high level content or questions, become more able to link different parts of their learning together and become more able to link what they learn to their own experience of the world). In brief, ‘big ideas’ have to be phrased in a sentence containing a verb and have to be made ‘generative’ – that is, central to subjects, richly linked to other ideas, accessible to students and offering teachers ways into topics and learning activities. The article suggests ways to develop big RE ideas, which will be outlined below in Relevance to RE.

Researchers

Ian Mitchell, Stephen Keast, Debra Panizzon & Judie Mitchell

Research Institution

Monash University, Australia

What is this about?

  • What does it mean to organise learning around ‘big ideas’?
  • What are the best ways to develop, phrase and present a ‘big idea’?
  • How might organising teaching around ‘big ideas’ enhance learning?
  • The research is on science education in Australian schools (but the findings are transferable to RE in the UK or elsewhere).

What was done?

This is secondary analysis of data from two previous projects, organised so as to present and evaluate the use of ‘big ideas’ to teachers. One project was about science teaching, the other about cross-curricular teaching; both sought to investigate ways to extend pupils’ learning.

Main findings and outputs

  • ‘Big ideas’ are not concepts or themes. They are ‘full standalone statements, which give a sense of enduring understandings that students need to develop, rather than simply noting down headings, phrases or questions’ . For example, instead of ‘Geological Forces’, one teacher found the following ‘big idea’ to be powerful in generating learning: ‘there are geological forces that destroy physical features and forces that create them’. Big ideas are ‘patterns that connect the dots of otherwise fragmented knowledge’. They need to be phrased as a sentence with a verb.
  • The force of the geology example was to link different ideas and help pupils to look at the environment. It ‘organises a number of smaller ideas or concepts and multiple experiences’.
  • A ‘big idea’ has to be ‘generative’ (of learning). This means enabling teachers to rethink teaching, being central to a subject, linking richly to different ideas or points, and being accessible to pupils. ‘Big ideas’ should also give teachers ways in to topics and suggest learning activities.
  • ‘Big ideas’ have to be developed by teachers, through reflection and in practice. Phrasing them in sentences allows them to be part of a teaching and learning story and to bring concepts together. It isn’t simple. Teachers can work together to do it – it helps teams to teach more consistently and demands very good subject knowledge.
  • Teachers should also have ‘big ideas’ about learning to guide their teaching – and should make these clear to pupils.

Relevance to RE

There seems to be a natural fit between ‘big ideas’ and RE pedagogy. RE teachers often think about planning learning around ‘big questions’, and ‘big ideas’ might be seen as an evidence-based extension of the approach. We could try re-thinking some well-known topic headings. So, for example: key Buddhist beliefs and practices becomes Buddhism is unique amongst the world’s religions because of the absence of belief in a creator God (key stage 3/4); festivals and celebrations in Christianity becomes remembering events in the life of Jesus is the most important part of a Christian’s life (key stage 2/3); different religions and ways of life becomes religion is important to people in different ways (key stage 1/2) . Note that these ‘big ideas’ offer plenty of scope for pupils to research, link to previous learning, reflect and evaluate; pupils might end up agreeing, disagreeing, partly agreeing, or whatever, towards the close of a series of lessons – what is important is to give reasons, developing and demonstrating understanding. More philosophically or sociologically critical ‘big ideas’ could be trialled with older or more able pupils: ‘there is as much evidence for God’s non-existence as for God’s existence’ or ‘religion does an equal amount of harm and good to the world’.

Generalisability and potential limitations

The findings are based on extensive research. An element in the findings is that truly generative ‘big ideas’ tend to be shaped by teachers through practice, in the light of which it is up to interested individual RE teachers, or groups of RE teachers, to work on and develop the approach – the suggestions in the Relevance to RE section are for discussion, experiment and modification; and, naturally, colleagues will be able to put many other suggestions.

Find out more

Using ‘big ideas’ to enhance teaching and student learning, Teachers and Teaching: theory and practice 23.5 pages 121-160 (published online 19 August 2016), 10.1080/13540602.2016.1218328

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13540602.2016.1218328

 

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