Principles For Learning May 2010

May 2010
Principles for Learning

A Foundation for Transforming K–12 Education
As six organizations representing 1. Being literate is at the heart of

250,000 content-area teachers, learning in every subject area.
administrators, educational technology
Being literate is necessary for learning. As students progress through
specialists and other educators, we are
school and engage with subject areas more deeply, concepts become
united and committed to transforming more challenging. Students use a greater variety of learning resources
K-12 education—and, more than anyone with more and more complex language and structure and increasingly
else, our members are responsible sophisticated graphical and numerical representations. Students learn
for achieving this goal. We take this writing and reading strategies, using evidence and reasoning pertinent to
responsibility seriously. each subject area, to comprehend and represent knowledge using tradi-
tional and emerging media.
These Principles recognize that learning Teacher training, professional development, and scholarly reading and
in all disciplines is complex and writing enable teachers to help students read and write in their subject
individualized. Educators must know the area. Teachers in each content area know and are able to teach the
core concepts of their discipline if they structure and substance of knowledge in their field.
are to help students grasp new ideas,
solve problems, collaborate, and use their 2. Learning is a social act.
imaginations to pursue challenging The social nature of learning requires building relationships and engag-
questions. Therefore understanding ing with people of many abilities and beliefs. Students actively engage in
core knowledge in a discipline—how to learning with and from each other through dialogue and reflection. Stu-
apply these concepts within and outside dents work collaboratively, developing an essential skill for participation
in the workplace and in civic life. They establish the habit of interacting
of a discipline, and how to teach these
with others in order to continue to learn and to solve problems in their
concepts effectively—is integral to the own lives and in the lives of others. New tools support active connections
Principles outlined here. among learners.
We are the pivotal connection between Teachers in every subject area learn together about how to support stu-
the outcomes envisioned for an innovative dent learning. Professional development embedded in their work lives
places them together for planning and implementing their own continu-
education system and the on-the-ground,
ing learning on behalf of students. Their collaborative learning provides
every day practices that channel every a model for students of how adults and professionals learn.
effort, by every teacher and every student,
toward rigorous and relevant learning. 3. Learning about learning establishes
We have a vital interest and a vital role to a habit of inquiry important in
play at the heart of teaching and learning. life-long learning.
With a unified voice, we have developed
Because research indicates that people learn differently across domains,
Principles for Learning that are right for students become knowledgeable about how they learn in each subject
the educational challenges of our time. area. Learning-how-to-learn classrooms provide access to cross-border
We are committed to putting these ideas and strategies, experts, highly effective teachers, and other inquir-
principles into practice in learning ing students.
settings all over the country.
Teachers in every subject area keep current with their discipline through
active participation in professional associations, interactions with other
teachers, and reading and writing in their subject areas. Like students,
teachers develop the habit of mind that keeps them both knowl- 6. Learning occurs in
edgeable and curious about how novices and experts learn
within their fields.
a global context.
Greater accessibility via technology enables students to inter-
4. Assessing progress is act with diverse students and people in their local settings and
part of learning. around the world. Students learn to recognize the ways that
others present evidence and build arguments in different
Mastering self-direction and reflection is critical for students to societies. Dealing with real world problems expands students’
learn to self assess and to set goals for future learning. Students thinking beyond their local context to begin their participation
need multiple opportunities to monitor, interpret, and assess as world citizens.
their own progress toward learning goals. They also need direc-
tive feedback as they progress. Formative assessment contributes Teachers necessarily expand their knowledge about people
to students’ awareness of their own progress and enhances their and societies around the world, adopting pedagogies that ensure
ability to continue to improve. participation by themselves and their students in global aware-
ness and interaction. They seek cross-cultural experiences to
Teachers use formative assessment of student progress that is ensure their own development as world citizens.
continuous, in real time, and useful to guide pedagogical deci-
sions. They also use formative assessment to track their own To support the application of these principles, educational
progress toward instructional goals. Although formative assess- systems must create a culture of inquiry and collaboration that
ment influences summative assessment through improving in- enables all students and teachers to learn for their own sake and
struction and learning, it resides with students and teachers for the good of a culturally diverse democratic society in an in-
for use in improving learning. terdependent world.
5. Learning includes turning

information into knowledge
using multiple media.
Learning to make sense of information transforms it to knowl-
edge and learners into critical thinkers who produce their own We commit to supporting these principles as they
information and knowledge. Students use and evaluate appropri- support the learning of students and teachers. We
ate digital tools and resources for the work they are doing in and will use these principles as the foundation of advo-
across subject areas. They find relevant and reliable sources, use
digital tools and resources efficiently and ethically, analyze and cacy on behalf of practices and policies that ensure
interpret information, and evaluate conflicting sources. As stu- the best education for all learners.
dents use technology for communication, research, and creation
of new ideas, the process of knowledge generation establishes
students as learners and creative problem solvers. • Association for Career and Technical Education
• Consortium for School Networking
Teachers keep current about digital tools and applications
• National Council for the Social Studies
useful to their own learning and to the learning of their stu-
dents. They understand and apply the tools and applications • National Council of Teachers of English
that students employ in their out-of-school and in-school lives. • National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
They incorporate into instruction those tools and applications
• National Science Teachers Association
best suited for their subject area and continue their own learning
as new technologies open access to multiple ways of knowing
and learning.
Association for Career Consortium for National Council for National Council of National Council of National Science
and Technical Education School Networking the Social Studies Teachers of English Teachers of Mathematics Teachers Association

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May 2010

Principles for Learning

As six organizations representing 1. Being literate is at the heart of

5. Learning includes turning

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