Cultivating critical thinkers in your classroom, starring Mitchell Brookins, Ph.D.
Transcripts and additional resources:
Meet Our Guest(s):
Mitchell Brookins, Ph.D.
Mitchell Brookins, Ph.D., has over 20 years of experience in K–12 as a teacher, coach, administrator, district leader, and thought leader. As a school administrator, he achieved impressive gains, including raising DIBELS® scores from 43% to 72%. He has spoken at top literacy events, including Amplify’s symposia, the Black Literacy Matters Conference, the Dyslexia Alliance for Black Children annual conference, and others. He leads a citywide fellowship supporting 25 literacy leaders in New Orleans, and serves as Managing Director of Leading Educators. He also serves on the Board of Directors for The Reading League. He holds a B.A. in elementary education, an M.A. in teacher leadership, and a Ph.D. in educational administration.
Meet our host, Susan Lambert
Susan Lambert is chief academic officer of literacy at Amplify and host of Science of Reading: The Podcast. Throughout her career, she has focused on creating high-quality learning environments using evidence-based practices. Lambert is a mom of four, a grandma of four, a world traveler, and a collector of stories.
As the host of Science of Reading: The Podcast, Lambert explores the increasing body of scientific research around how reading is best taught. A former classroom teacher, administrator, and curriculum developer, she’s dedicated to turning theory into best practices that educators can put right to use in the classroom, and to showcasing national models of reading instruction excellence.
Quotes
“When you are a school administrator, you can't be confused as to what your identity is. People expect you to step in with voice, with passion, with vision, and direct the path.”
“When we talk about knowledge building, when we talk about knowledge acquisition, it's actually predicated on critical thinking. That critical thinking thinking is not just a higher-level task that we have kids do. It's deep thinking.”
“[Critical thinking] is actually cognitive support. It's a mental act of process in which you acquire knowledge and understanding.”
“During academic discussion, I'm not expecting the teacher to be quiet. I'm expecting the teacher to orchestrate thinking, to hold the pacing of the discussion. You know when to slow the class down, and let them think about this critical idea. You know when to ask that probing question that makes kids think, ‘Hmm.’ I'm looking for those discourse moves that teachers make.”
“When I see questioning that really probes, that's how I know I'm in a classroom where a teacher honors students' thinking. It is an honor to hear what children have to think.”
“That's how you know you're in a classroom with critical thinking: We're not rushing the conversation. We're enjoying it.”
“There's an art and science to teaching, and I think that they're two different things.”
“The importance of modeling can’t be overstated.”
“If we want to get to these higher levels of rigor or higher levels of thinking, that has to be built on a foundation. And when we connect that to something meaningful, the knowledge and the learning get deeper.”
“If you're engaged emotionally, that's going to help you be engaged cognitively.”