QED for the Students
QED pedagogy creates a space where students can self-actualize in the context of a classroom. Whether they are learning mathematics, science, history, language arts, or any other subject, students deserve the chance to reach their highest level of self in an environment where learning, collaboration, and problem solving become part of who they are as a person.
Below you will find the four cornerstones of how QED works for students. Our intent is to share with parents and other educators how we create courses for children, to provide our teachers with the right structure from which to create, and to guide all of the processes we train for and employ in implementing our vision for students.
Contextualization Contextualization creates the relevance and excitement that helps students discover meaning and reason in their quest for knowledge. The way we implement this idea offers the student tangible ways to understand and relate to knowledge.
Hands-on Activities quickly create strong contextualizations for students as they learn new information. Even in scenarios where the activity is merely demonstrative of the idea/concept, the activity acts as a link between the brain's conceptualization center and the physical memory of the activity. The more an idea can be connected to our whole person, the more strongly that idea will embed and persist over time. We think of the activities as the implementation of Concept Stringing. Activity Linking™ is a QED technique in which one activity leads to the next, leads to the next, leads to the next, and so on. Students learn better when their brains are introduced to information a little bit at a time over extended periods of time. Activity Linking is a simple method that uses repeated process, experience, and knowledge in order to introduce new information that is in context with previous information. This allows teachers to engineer activities such that students' brains can focus on the specific information that the teacher needs them to learn at that moment, and ensures that the student will not become distracted by information that is not relevant. History provides critical context for students while they are studying any subject. We use history contextualization to answer simple questions such as "who, what, when, where, and why." When these questions are not answered in a teacher's lesson, this produces anxiety in the brains of the students, which reduces their ability to absorb new information. A little bit of history helps a student place new information into a context that bridges that knowledge to the whole of humanity. Story Arc™ is the QED element that engages a student's imagination. As soon as the imagination is engaged, the student is engaged. Story Arc is built across and over a Concept String and not only engages imagination, but also creates an anchor for memory, dramatically improving a student's capability to recall that information at a later point in time. Immersion helps students who have difficulty focusing to get the information out of a classroom environment that they need. Studies show that students typically require somewhere between 45-60 minutes of patient time with information before they begin to reach high levels of understanding and conceptualization. QED engineers courses such that they involve activities that require long periods of calm focus and participation in learning. During this time, students discover that they are able to create their own learning space and the important ideas and information start to sink in.
Conceptual Flow™ Conceptual Flow is unique to QED curriculum and each step was carefully developed by Finnegan and Nurmela well before they created even their first course. It involves precisely sequencing ideas and concepts so that they are optimally absorbed by the student.
Historical Development is the first step in creating a Conceptual Flow. It is critical that teachers understand the natural evolution of ideas and concepts throughout history. This evolution quite closely matches the order in which that information should be presented to students. And while this sequence may be changed in the content delivery phase, knowing it ensures that the expert is aware of the ideas that existed in between the big ideas and that those ideas are presented to students for a fuller picture and understanding. Concept Tree™ is step two in creating a Conceptual Flow. Creating a concept map is as easy as brainstorming, but with key differences. Concept maps do not focus on knowledge standards, information groupings, or any other simplified set of facts. Rather, we build them from one to three simple ideas that embody a feeling or set of notions that students should leave the class with. We then begin a conceptual drill down that takes these feelings or notions and translates them to specific pieces of information, skills, and standards. It is very important to understand that standards are the end result of our development instead of the primary motivation. Concept maps ensure that teachers do not lose sight of what students need either emotionally or conceptually. See Concept Stringing below to understand how we translate these into a logical flow. Collaboration is a recurring process throughout the development of a Conceptual Flow. Collaboration occurs specifically between an expert and a non-expert. The role of the non-expert is to find the holes in every stage of course development to ensure that the story, set of ideas, and logic are all capable of conveying what the expert is thinking. QED abides by the belief that teachers are not developers on a pedestal, but rather developers in a team that when working together can produce magnificent results. Expertise is the bedrock upon which a Conceptual Flow is even possible. It is not possible to produce a Conceptual Flow without expertise. Expertise ensures that the story being told is the right story, that the set of ideas are the right set of ideas, and that the logic makes sense today and tomorrow. Experts know where to look for information and they know how to deliver that information to others. Concept Stringing™ is the third and final step in the development of a Conceptual Flow. In this final process the teacher takes the specific pieces of information, skills, and standards from the Concept Map, and places them into a beautiful sequence that flows logically from and through the historical development of these ideas. There is not a single way to Concept String. A Concept String is an art form that teachers learn to perfect over time.
Moment of Discovery™ The Moment of Discovery is another aspect unique to the QED pedagogy, and was developed by Finnegan and Nurmela to place the student in the shoes of the scientist by giving them the opportunity to learn problem solving while getting their hands on real equipment.
Challenge/Puzzle creates the question, an unknown, in the student's mind. And those unknowns, when well timed and well structured, drive students toward understanding. Questions, once asked, require answers, and if through activity the answer can be revealed, then the activity gains a purpose that drives students toward understanding. Challenges and puzzles are the inspiration for a great deal of science. High Quality Equipment helps to structure a student's mind to high quality interpretations. Often times the limit to understanding is merely the limit of the experimental equipment. It is critical to ensure that equipment is at least one level beyond the level of the student. It helps make a student feel that they are being taken seriously and that what they are doing is advanced and important. Activity Validation is a simple process that ensures that the activity a student is about to spend an hour on is a worthwhile activity. Activities can be validated by other teachers and students. Activity validation is critical to guaranteeing that learning outcomes are achievable and reproducible. Arisen Knowledge™ is a unique QED process that dictates how students learn and is practiced extensively in all of our courses. Arisen Knowledge means that learning should come primarily through the student's experience rather than being delivered through the medium of the teacher. It ensures that the student becomes responsible for their learning, that they see learning as a process, and that the teacher spends their class time with students helping to codify and synthesize information at levels higher than those typically found in top-down instructional methods. It helps students to understand how information and knowledge are created, thus giving them the capability of creating new knowledge in related fields later on. Concept Synthesis is the final piece of the discovery method that solidifies the ideas and processes that students are learning. Concept Synthesis is a simple process where teachers walk students through their own understandings and observations of the activity that they just finished. It is the role of the teacher to act as a mere facilitator in this process, rather than the source of information. Synthesis occurs only after a critical mass of prior knowledge is compiled and relies heavily on the success of many of our other methods.
Application Application is where students take the knowledge they have discovered and put it into practice so that stronger conceptual structures are built for that knowledge to exist within. The use of all or some of these techniques can take any student's knowledge to the next level.
Practice Sets help students attain a level of proficiency within the subject matter they are learning, and are simple applications of knowledge. Students who have been sufficiently prepared for success on an application of knowledge actually find practice sets enjoyable. Practice sets help a student to take what they believe to be true and to test that knowledge, thus reducing the anxiety of unproven knowledge. Practice sets should not be excessive, nor should they be too easy or simplistic. It is in the practice set that understandings can be verified and misunderstandings rectified. The Book communicates an important QED principle: that knowledge is derived and synthesized by the student, not the teacher or a textbook. By having students write their own book they become the literal authors of their knowledge. Knowledge becomes something they learn to create for themselves rather than be merely recipients of that knowledge. As students write their own account of knowledge, the account helps to anchor that knowledge in the student's mind. Lab Practicums/Review are used at the end of our courses and help not only the student but also the teacher. It is a way to wrap up all of the ideas presented to students earlier in the course and to have the students place all of those ideas into a single cohesive package of knowledge. Such a cohesive picture in a student's mind helps students to more easily retain the main idea for longer periods of time and also to more easily retain supporting ideas. Extension™ is a key QED element that a student needs to attain mastery of concepts and method. Often times information is presented in a single format, medium, and/or practice, which is insufficient for getting students to the next level of understanding. Extension is the practice of teaching students information in at least two different ways. When the mind is forced to apply an idea from one realm to another it strengthens the understanding of the idea. Communication is where students simply re-express learned information to others using various formats and media. Re-expression combined with social sharing not only builds confidence but gives a student experience with effectively sharing ideas to others.
| QED for the Teachers
QED pedagogy was founded on the principle that teachers should be able to self-actualize in the context of a classroom and a school. Like our students, teachers deserve an environment where learning, collaboration, and problem solving are part of what they do.
Below are the three cornerstones of how we structure a school so that teachers have the best chance to grow as a person. It provides an overview of the QED principles that guide the day to day processes we train for and employ in implementing our vision for teachers.
Deep Respect Teaching is one of the most important endeavors in the world, and quite simply, it should be treated as such. QED represents a fundamental change in the way that teachers are perceived by parents, students, other teachers, and other professionals.
Multi-Faceted Professionals. QED embodies the belief that teachers are capable of a great variety of tasks. While teachers may hold a degree in a specific field and have many years of teaching experience, rarely do these two attributes define who that teacher is as a person. A school should encourage teachers to do and be more than just a teacher. When teachers can more fully express their potential within the context of a school environment, not only does that benefit the teacher, but it creates a deep subconscious effect on the students, by showing the fuller potential of a human being. Experts in Their Field. Holding teachers to a higher standard engenders a reciprocal sense of respect for the place that they work. Great teachers and experts want to work with other great teachers and experts. It creates a rich environment filled with dynamic thought and change. This higher level of quality and work pushes teachers to grow, to become more, while in the work space. Created by Teachers, Run by Teachers™. All QED schools are run by teachers, much as one would find for any other set of professionals in any other field. Quite simply, teachers must be treated as the professionals that they are. This is accomplished by the mitigation of any centralized governance structures that would seek to control/inhibit/restrict decisions made by a teacher; well-trained teachers are precisely that: well-trained. To this end, teachers work in collaborative/specialized teams that effectuate their own school environment. Large Classroom Budgets. When a teacher’s expertise is combined with high-quality equipment, that teacher experiences a synergy of thought, volition, and ability. Large classroom budgets help teachers develop their strongest curriculum ideas. The QED belief is that simply enabling this not only benefits students but the teachers as well. In this way, teachers can realize the full potential of their ability to share amazing ideas with students. Ideal Classroom Environment. QED classrooms have far smaller “effective” teacher to student ratios than are normally observed throughout the world. QED classrooms are safe for students and teachers, and are a place that is sacrosanct for the teacher. Teachers are treated with dignity by both parents and students, and retain the right of removal of individuals that are detracting from the learning environment. Furthermore, teachers are given the necessary classroom tools and information so that they can excel.
Creative Freedom Teachers require the freedom to be creative. It is the ability to innovate, evolve, and transform curricula that makes a great teacher even greater. QED returns the creative process back into the hands of the teacher, thus more fully engaging the teacher in the act of teaching.
Design Amazing New Courses. QED represents a belief that the best courses have yet to be envisioned. It is a belief that inside each multi-faceted teacher is a source of amazing ideas that should be shared, need to be shared, and when shared will expand the minds of parents, students, and teachers alike. Creativity is what allows a teacher to more fully understand their self, all within the context of teaching. Student Assistantships. Teachers are encouraged to select students for work that furthers both the student and the teacher. QED wants teaching to occur on multiple levels, ranging from the classroom to the individual. In the context of student assistantships, teachers can create learning experiences for the assistant and other students that are not possible in standard learning environments. Diverse Responsibilities. Diversity of activity helps to keep teachers fresh and provides strong outlets for their creativity. In a QED school, experienced teachers take on the responsibilities of management, marketing, etc., helping to create a non-static experiential environment for the teacher. Human beings, teachers, find higher levels of fulfillment when they have more control and input over the environment they work in. Localized Decision Making. QED promotes environments where teachers remain in control of their work experience and classroom outcomes. Such a structure helps teachers to continually practice new ideas and new curriculum in the classroom. Additionally, this ensures that teachers can conceive and implement creative solutions to local problems at their school. Freedom From Standards. When the restriction of standards are lifted from curriculum development, teachers can create unbelievably rich and thoughtful courses that engage both the student and the teacher. QED provides a content development environment that helps to ensure that strong learning outcomes are achievable without necessarily over focusing on sets of standards. Large Classroom Budgets. It is not hard to imagine how large classroom budgets can affect the creativity of a teacher. When the teacher has access to higher levels of equipment, they can more assuredly deliver amazing content to their students. Teachers see this freedom of creativity as a truly liberating experience.
Professional Improvement Teachers are professionals and they come with amazing sets of life skills that prepare them for high levels of growth in the workplace if they are given the opportunity. QED understands this and wants teachers to grow professionally and emotionally.
Collaborative Atmosphere. Collaboration is a fundamental need when establishing environments where individual improvement is highly desired. When teachers work together, the skills, information, and principles of each individual are exchanged between them. This exchange forms the kernel for professional improvement. Teachers, when surrounded by great teachers, become great teachers. Development Time. It is critical that teachers have copious amounts of development time when creating new courses. QED establishes a truly radical approach to this end and gives about three hours of development time per one hour of course instruction, which is a complete reversal relative to the standard public/private school teaching position. Teachers, when given enough time, can learn to create amazing content that will change students’ lives. This environment lets teachers truly begin to create rich curriculum. Teacher Training. QED represents a wholly new philosophy of teaching. For the first time, education looks not only at the student but asks how can teachers excel as well. Teachers require time to learn these methods of QED for students, and they need time to understand how QED is structured for them. The right kind of training ensures that teachers are able to understand these ideas and how to implement them in their day to day experience. Diverse Responsibilities. For many teachers, teaching need not be the end goal, but rather the mode for their personal improvement as a human being. QED wants teachers to learn new skills, outside of teaching, so that their professional skill sets expand rather than wither, as too often occurs in standard school environments. Providing a place to learn and take on these kinds of responsibilities is a primary goal of every QED school. Internships. QED provides teacher development opportunities for new teachers not quite ready to take on a full-time teaching position. During this time frame, interns receive extensive training in the QED pedagogy, while the current faculty benefit greatly from the interchange of new ideas, practices, and technology. These kinds of programs keep a freshness to the learning environment.
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