CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

As the teacher-researcher and the classroom teacher, of great importance was the

connection between my case study and the related literature. My search of the related literature

highlighted three groups of individuals: (a) the teacher with his or her roles in the classroom, (b)

the students and their roles as learners, and (c) the community of scholars who conducted

research on learning contracts. In this chapter, I connect my case study with each of the three

groups.

The Teacher’s Roles in the Learning Process

The classroom teacher has a variety of roles and responsibilities that change according to

the students he or she instructs. Teaching the life science curriculum encompasses a broad

spectrum of choices with respect to delivery strategies and hands-on activities that enhance

instruction. In this next section, the teacher’s roles include individualizing and differentiating

instruction, selecting age-appropriate teaching strategies, and acting as the facilitator of learning.

Individualized Instruction

According to Dunn and Dunn (1972), a student contract “should be a part of every

dynamic educational program,” and as a powerful teaching tool it should stimulate

individualized learning (p. 31). They also stated that “individualized instruction is the one-onone
relationship between a student and what he learns” (Dunn & Dunn, 1975, p. 5).

One of my reasons for selecting the Dunn and Dunn model for the learning contract used

in my case study was their idea of individualized instruction. This instructional tool gave the

students more opportunities to be actively involved in the educational process, and it enabled the

teacher to offer a variety of learning opportunities for the mixed-ability students. The learning

opportunities changed with the types of assignments, the availability of resources for hands-on

activities, enrichment activities, and review activities for reinforcing curriculum concepts.

Differentiating Instruction

The challenge for the middle school teacher is to differentiate or to adapt instruction to

respond to the diverse student needs found in inclusive, mixed-ability classrooms (Tomlinson,

1995c). A differentiated classroom offers a variety of learning options designed to tap into
different readiness levels, interests, and learning profiles. According to Tomlinson (1995c), Teachers
utilize (a) a variety of ways for students to explore curriculum content, (b) a variety of

sense-making activities or processes through which students can come to understand and ‘own’

information and ideas, and (c) a variety of options through which students can demonstrate or

exhibit what they have learned” (p. 1).

After I read the different articles by Dr. Carol Tomlinson, I went back to the lessons that

had already occurred to check and see if I had utilized variety in my daily instruction. As the

classroom teacher, I did use several different instructional strategies in the learning contract to

promote learning and an understanding of the material being taught in the seventh-grade life

science classroom. I introduced and reinforced curricular content using a computer with CDROM,
filmstrips, laser disc, and videos. “Sense-making activities” included hands-on activities,

lab exercises, Power Point exercises in the computer lab, and group projects, for example

building a cell using candy as inclusion bodies or organelles. Students had a variety of options to

demonstrate what they had learned through class discussions, tests, lab exercises, projects, and

additional activities. Because of the mixed-ability students in my classroom and their need to

understand the science concepts being taught, differentiating instruction became important to me.

The teacher uses four strategies to shape teaching and learning in an effective,

differentiated classroom (Tomlinson, 1995a): (1) “Instruction is concept focused and principle

driven.” All students come to understand the key principles. Such instruction enables struggling

learners to grasp and use powerful ideas and at the same time, encourages advanced learners to

expand their understanding and application of the key concepts and principles. This type of

instruction stresses understanding rather than retention of fragmented bits of information. (2)

“On-going assessment of student readiness and growth are built into the curriculum.” Teachers

do not assume that all students need the same segment of study, but continuously assess student

interest and provide assistance when needed. (3) “Flexible grouping is consistently used.” It

encourages students to work in many patterns, whether in-groups or individually, or as one large

group. (4) “Students are active explorers,” and “teachers guide the exploration.” (p. 1) In the

differentiated classroom the teacher works as a guide or facilitator of learning. Students learn to

be responsible for their work and develop ownership of their learning (p. 1). The students’
learning contract is one of many strategies that offers the foundation necessary for the learners to

assume the responsibility for their individual learning journeyThe learning contract used for my case
study contained activities that promoted flexible

grouping for daily seating and lab activities. Students participated in self-evaluation at the end

of each grading period, and they were actively engaged as they searched through the reference

materials in the life science classroom or in the computer lab. The students assumed

responsibility for their learning by completing assignments listed in the learning contract.

According to Tomlinson (1995b), there must be a reason to differentiate instruction. To

be successful, the teacher must draw on classroom management and routines, prepare both

students and parents for a differentiated approach to learning, and work with other faculty

members to coordinate a team approach to learning. These considerations move the students

toward student-centered learning, or self-directed learning, and help prepare them as they start

their journey as life-long learners.

Strategies for Learning

Teachers plan strategies to differentiate instruction to help students find a good learning

plan. The following list of strategies help: “(a) multiple texts and supplementary materials; (b)

computer programs; (c) interest centers; (d) compacting; (e) tiered sense-making activities and

tiered products; (f) tasks and products designed with a multiple intelligence orientation; (g)

independent learning contracts; (h) complex group investigation; (i) product criteria negotiated

jointly by students and teachers; (j) graduated task and product rubrics; and (k) learning

contracts” (Tomlinson, 1995c, p. 2).

At the University of Connecticut, Joe Renzulli developed curriculum compacting as a

strategy to help advanced learners maximize their time for learning. The process contains three

stages. In stage 1, the teacher identifies the students and assesses their knowledge about a

particular topic. With stage 2, the teacher notes those concepts that the students did not show

mastery, and he or she develops a plan for the students to learn those concepts. In stage 3, the

students and teacher design a project that the students can work on while the other students work

with general studies. According to Tomlinson (1995a) “advanced learners gain little by

continuing to relearn the known, but they gain much from the expectation that they will
continually engage in challenging and productive learning in school. Compacting helps

eliminate the former and facilitate the latter” (p. 49Tiered lessons are a way of “taking the same
concepts and essential understanding of a

lesson and adapting them to the various ability levels, interests, and learning profiles of students”

(C. A. Tomlinson, personal communication, September 8, 2000). Both of these strategies,

compacting and tiered-sense-making activities, while new to me as the teacher-researcher, could

be used within the guidelines of a learning contract in the future.

Thompson and Poppen (1972) stated that learning contracts allow the teacher to initiate a

number of learning strategies. These learning strategies focus on the students as the individuals

responsible for: “(a) making choices about meeting learning objectives; (b) making

commitments to complete personal learning goals; (c) learning through independent learning

activities; (d) using learning styles to develop alternatives to learning; (e) working cooperatively

with peers; (f) sensing a freedom from threat of failure; (g) identifying the area where the task is

challenging; (h) finding the opportunity for stimulating learning experiences; (i) completing

course objectives; and (k) connecting the learning process to real-life encounters” (p. 118).

Thompson and Poppen’s strategy list helped in planning activities for curriculum

development and concept mastery using a learning contract. These strategies added more variety

to instructional methods, and they allowed students to use what they learned in the classroom

and then apply it to real-life situations. Students made choices about which additional activities

they wanted to complete, and they worked cooperatively with their classmates. There was a

sense of freedom from the threat of failure because the students worked cooperatively within

their teams as they completed course objectives. When the students signed up for a grade, they

identified personal learning goals. The opportunities for stimulating learning experiences

occurred with class discussions, lab activities, modeling, computer lab exercises, and group

projects.

Facilitators of Learning

The traditional instructor accepts the responsibility for what and how students learn. To

achieve the goal of teaching students how to learn, instructors should become facilitators of

learning (Cristiano, 1993). “Knowing how to learn is the most basic of all skills because it is the
key that unlocks future success. Individuals who know how to learn can more easily acquire

other skills. Without this essential skill however, one’s learning is not as rapid or as

comprehensive and long lasting” (Carnevale, Gainer, & Meltzer, 1990, p. 37). Carl Rogers (1983) wrote
about the role of the teacher as facilitator, and he suggested

that the instructor ask the following questions:

Now how can I help him or her find the resources-the people, the experiences, the

learning facilities, the books, the knowledge in myself-which will help them in ways that

will provide answers to the things that concern them, the things they are eager to learn?

And, then later, how can I help them evaluate their own progress and set future learning

goals based on this self-evaluation? (p. 136)

Instructors feel a sense of accomplishment by helping students achieve course

competencies by serving as motivators, coaches, and resource persons. Students achieve course

competencies by developing, implementing, and evaluating their own learning plans (Cristiano,

1993).

Malcolm Knowles (1986) summarized these feelings when he said:

Faculty members must change their psychic reward system from valuing the

extent to which the learners conform to their direction to valuing the extent to which the

learners take the initiative in directing their own learning. Traditional teachers tend to get

satisfaction from controlling the energy of learners; facilitators get their satisfaction from

releasing the energy of learners. (p. 246)

Perhaps a better way of saying this is that “creative leadership is that form of

leadership that releases the creative energy of the people being led” (Knowles, 1990, p.

183).

The learning contract used for my research enabled me to become the facilitator of

learning with my students. By planning activities that engaged the students, by providing a

variety of choices through the additional activities, and by rotating the students through

cooperative learning teams, I better facilitated their learning. Through the pages of the learning

contract, the instructional concepts allowed the students to take charge of their learning plan.

As the facilitator of learning, I witnessed the students’ energy at its highest each time I
distributed a new learning contract. Rogers (1969) stated that the critical element in performing

the role as facilitator is “the personal relationship between the facilitator and the learner, which

in turn depends on the facilitator’s possessing three attitudinal qualities: (1) realness or