The 'Science of Learning' needs a strong profession

The Minister of Education’s Ministerial Advisory Group report, released this month, highlights ‘The Science of Learning’ as a valuable tool to guide teaching practice. 

A lot of the focus to date has been about what neuroscience and other disciplines can tell us about cognition–the thinking processes that underpin the way people learn.  

This is important, and, carefully translated into evidence-based implications for instruction, can provide teachers with some practical and actionable insights. This can help teachers to help all learners and can be especially valuable in helping you to support neurodiverse learners. That is what researchers and practitioners are looking to do with structured literacy. 

The Teaching Council agrees that setting some expectations about pedagogical approaches in specific areas can be helpful in our otherwise highly flexible system. At the same time, however, no one pedagogical strategy will ever fully meet the needs of all learners–the skill of the teacher is still the most critical component in the success of learning for all students. 

Some concerns have been expressed about the risk of the teaching profession being de-professionalised into simply acting out scientifically prescribed lesson plans. We would strongly resist this tendency if it was to surface.   

But, in any case, an education system genuinely guided by the learning and development sciences is one that values and reinforces teacher professionalism. 

For one thing, the Ministerial Advisory Group report clearly states that cognition is only a part of the picture:  

Another source of evidence contributing to the science of learning is literature on human development. Cognition, affect and motivation all develop and change during the process of human maturation. Choice of teaching approach should be shaped by knowledge of relevant developmental tendencies. (p. 6) 

Internationally, the learning and development sciences are highlighting the individual importance, and integrated nature, of cognition, motivation, identity, and individual variability, as characteristics that teachers need to understand and work with. 

In other words, yes, science can help inform a knowledge-based curriculum, but it also points to the importance of: 

• the learner’s identity, language and culture as both as source of motivation and a reference point for taking on board new knowledge and ideas – this underpins the cultural relationships for responsive pedagogy conceptualised by researchers like Mere Berryman, and reflected in our Tātaiako and Tapasā frameworks 
• social and emotional learning such as teaching in a way that integrates emotional skills such as emotion recognition, empathy, emotion regulation, and social skills like cooperation and helping, communication with cognitive skills (problem-solving, responsible decision making, perspective taking). It helps foster mindsets that are conducive to educational success 
• helping children to become self-reflective learners, including developing metacognition (thinking about how you think) and strategic learning skills. 

For teachers, all of this requires a continuous process of making decisions, which take account of the individual learners, and are guided by knowledge, judgment, and values. Professor Graeme Aitken, who is now on the Curriculum writing group on the science of learning, illustrated this interplay a few years ago in a framework he did for us for applying Ngā Paerewa | Standards. 

This is a timely reminder of the range of knowledge, skills, and dispositions that we need to foster in Initial Teacher Education and beyond. A grounding in the teaching practices recommended by the latest evidence is an important part of that, but evidence also reinforces that developing adaptive expertise and emotional intelligence are, too. 

Further reading:  

Mere Berryman et al. (2023). Rongohia te Hau: Better understanding the theories underpinning cultural relationships for responsive pedagogy. Set: Research Information for Teachers, 1, 8–15, https://www.nzcer.org.nz/nzcerpress/set/articles/rongohia-te-hau-better-understanding-theories-underpinning-cultural 

Claire Chuter (2020). An introduction to social emotional learning, The Education Hub, https://theeducationhub.org.nz/social-emotional-learning/  

Linda Darling-Hammond et al. (2021). Educator learning to enact the science of learning and development, https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/educator-learning-sold-report