Beyond conventional instruction Conventional instruction often relies on telling the learner what to do.

Modelling takes us into new territory. In modelling, the expert models the skill or process to be learned. The learner is encouraged to observe carefully, perhaps also listening to the expert thinking aloud, expressing their thought processes. The learner analyses what is happening in order to attempt to reproduce the competent performance of the expert.

Differentiation A modelling approach focuses on creating bridges between what the learner can do at present and what they will be able to do in the future. Constructing such bridges requires an analysis of the learners current skills and knowledge, so that the modelling process can start from the correct point.

Quick start guide Modelling

Step-by-step to independence Modelling involves providing a progressive, step-by-step approach to learning a new skill or tackling a task. Cue cards or prompts may provide scaffolding while the learner attempts the task. The support provided by the teacher is gradually faded as the learner progresses towards independence.

Modelling language Part of becoming a professional in any field includes being able to talk (and write) like an engineer, a nurse, and so on. Teachers play an important role in modelling the appropriate use of professional language. This modelling may be both implicit and explicit. Modelling behaviour Teachers often consciously model a behaviour that they want their learners to adopt. For instance, the teacher might make a mistake and demonstrate how to learn from it, rather than regarding it as a disaster. Such positive behaviours are made explicit and opened up for discussion by the teacher.

Tips and tricks Modelling makes the nature of expert practice explicit. Tips, rules of thumb and tricks of the trade are demonstrated and shared. For example, in peer observation or during continuing professional development (CPD), teachers often model their practices for each other. Learners are encouraged to think critically about these strategies, so that they know when and how to apply them. Learners should always know why they are doing something.

Peer-to-peer modelling Modelling is not the sole preserve of the expert. There are many situations where learners can model a skill or process. Feedback from peers can then open up a learning conversation about the features of a successful performance.

Extending the learning Learning is reinforced through practice and then extended. The acid test, showing that learning has taken root, occurs when the learner is able to transfer the newly acquired skills and knowledge into a new, more demanding situation. Teachers need to plan these opportunities carefully, not leave them to chance.

The Quality Improvement Agency for Lifelong Learning (QIA) 2008

Modelling The term modelling has several meanings, including simulation, three-dimensional representation, and a teaching method. Modelling in the latter sense is a teaching and learning approach that places the learner in a situation where they experience a learning process that exposes them to a) subject content and b) the underpinning learning process or cognitive thinking that underpins the activity. This process makes the thinking and learning visible. Learners work under the guidance of an expert who first models the skill or process to be learned, as in a traditional apprenticeship. The expert might be a specialist in a particular topic or skill, or a continuing professional development (CPD) resource serving as a virtual expert. This allows others to see exactly how to use the materials, and how to reflect and learn from experiencing the process themselves. Resources do this by modelling activities using video clips and instructional guidance. In some Teaching and Learning Programme CPD activities, teachers* were invited to experience the learner activities for themselves and to reflect on the thinking and learning processes they were experiencing. * We use 'teaching and learning' and 'teacher' as generic terms to include: teaching, training and learning teachers, tutors, trainers, lecturers and instructors in the further education (FE) system.

The term cognitive apprenticeship (Collins et al 1991) has been coined for this approach. It is based on Vygotskys (1978) theory of the Zone of Proximal Development, referring to the zone of development located between what the learner can do successfully on their own and what the learner will be able to do in the future. The experts role is to provide a bridge of learning between the two by: walking learners through the processes that our minds automatically go through as experts, modelling the process and making thinking explicit diagnosing accurately the current skill level and task difficulty for learners, breaking down the task into intermediate steps if required, so that learners can gradually take over and become increasingly independent providing extra support, or scaffolding, as necessary; such as cue cards, prompts and so on, that encourage the learner to move with confidence from dependence to independence fading, or gradually removing the support as independence is achieved stimulating reflection on the process that the learner has experienced.

Effective modelling: increasingly involves the learner in the learning process supports learning with scaffolding and prompts provides opportunities to practise new skills.

The Quality Improvement Agency for Lifelong Learning (QIA) 2008

Teachers are also accustomed to behavioural modelling for their learners in other contexts and for other purposes. This may involve, for example: modelling appropriate language for particular situations or audiences making mistakes and learning from them, making the learning process explicit for their learners modelling an argument aloud or rehearsing an interview or audition.

References Collins, A., Brown, J. S. and Newman, S. E. (1989) Cognitive apprenticeship: teaching the crafts of reading, writing, and mathematics In: L. B. Resnick (ed.) Knowing learning and instruction: essays in honour of Robert Glaser, NJ: Eribaum. Vygotsky, L. S. (1978) Mind and society: The development of higher mental processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

You will find links that exemplify modelling in the Teaching and Learning Programme resources.

The Quality Improvement Agency for Lifelong Learning (QIA) 2008