Blind Spots: Why Students Fail and the Science That Can Save Them by Kimberly Nix BerensMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
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Dr. Berens has been educated in behavioral assessments and for many years has been helping students using a novel approach of finding small and measurable actions and then applying behavioral scientific techniques to change these actions. She and her husband have created a system that is used in multiple institutions to apply the techniques to struggling students. This book is an attempt to state the case for this approach doing a better job than our traditional educational system.
The book is not written as an engaging and fun read but more as a treatise on the American educational establishment and almost as a dissertation arguing for behavioral scientific approaches being superior to every other educational approach. My background is as a psychology major in college and now working in the medical profession with the most challenging cases of developmental disabilities or mental health issues in an institutional setting. I have a similar background to the author but I am on the medical side of the picture. We work closely with our behavior specialists to help eliminate or promote specific behaviors. I have seen the techniques used and how effective they are. It is reasonable that these same techniques should also be able to affect change on our struggling students who have learned habits that interfere with their learning.
Overall, I found the premise of this book to be intriguing and fascinating. It would be fantastic to apply "behavioral support plans" that are individualized to each learner. I would agree that this should show measurable success in most or all cases. I agree with many of the author's points regarding what ails our educational system. I would love for there to be a universally applicable system that we could use across the board and problem solved. I don't think its that easy. I too, as a clinician and mother, have had my share of grievances with education. I would have liked to see more actual case plans and how these data were used to improve a student's experience. The few data involving individual students shown struck me as the sort of programmatic approach to learning that is quite dull if that's what you had to do all day.
I loved the ideas. I loved the simplicity of a group response (choral responding) in the classroom so that everyone is engaged and involved and receiving real time feedback. I agree with her statements of immediate feedback, and I would suggest, full feedback, to students on assignments can be a great teaching tool. Instead our students turn assignments into the teacher and don't see a response for weeks and even then it does nothing more than grade their performance rather than show them what they still need to master. I love the teaching to mastery approach rather than moving on with "a passing grade". The current method only encourages teachers to pass children without mastery and then creates a roadblock to learning more complex ideas. This is the same approach that drives "Khan Academy". Meet the student where they are, fill in the gaps with instruction and practice and then move on with instruction of complex topics.
Some of my critiques are:
1) Too much of what ails the system and the argument that its almost a century of failure. How did we produce some of the best in their fields during this time if all is bad with the system? Just through the good fortune of their learning techniques? I would like to see a plan to implement the Fit Teaching on a broader scale, with real results and examples.
2) While I definitely depend on behavior specialists and respect their different expertise from my own, I think overstating the issues in behavioral terms would equate to me overstating someone's actions in medical terms only. It is too simplistic of an approach. There is also zero reason to belittle any of our differently trained colleagues. I don't find this helpful. She stated that it is "unethical" for a physician to treat with medication based on a history and physical rather than gathering scientific data. I would argue that while I have not been trained in behavioral analysis and leave it to the experts, the same should be true for the author stating how or why physicians are choosing a treatment plan. She wasn't trained in the medical field but opines about how they should do their jobs.
3) For as many behavior plans as I have utilized in my own work, I would point out that in patients, these behavioral approaches are requested by physicians and then studied, often for weeks to months before a plan is in place. Then it requires the buy-in from every single person interacting with the individual. How is this efficient? It maybe necessary but it is not efficient. Can we expect that a behavioral, scientific approach to all learners would be equally slow to happen? It could make all the difference or not depending upon adherence to the plan. Maybe a discussion of the learners who failed to show progress would strengthen the argument for this approach.
4) I would like to know more about what is actually in place at the learning facilities already running. Even on the website the data are scant. There are overall descriptions but no concrete information. I feel like an overview of what they provide now would show the successes and weaknesses they have encountered and be helpful to understanding the usefulness of this approach.
In conclusion, overall I found that there are many great ideas and criticisms throughout this work. Many of the criticisms are examples that I have seen as well. If this is written for parents, it needs more ideas as to what they can do for their struggling learners. Many Americans do not live near a center, so another way to access the information is needed. If the book is written for educators or policy makers, it is likely to be found as somewhat insulting and too technical for the purpose it could serve. While I see the point in the historical recounting of psychological theories, it brought me back to the part of my first psychology class that I hated.
I think that if these ideas can be validated as useful throughout a school system or the educational system in total, then wouldn't it be great to include our behavioral specialists in the education policy process. Bring in these experts and allow them to take part in the discussion. This can only improve our system.
The book is not written as an engaging and fun read but more as a treatise on the American educational establishment and almost as a dissertation arguing for behavioral scientific approaches being superior to every other educational approach. My background is as a psychology major in college and now working in the medical profession with the most challenging cases of developmental disabilities or mental health issues in an institutional setting. I have a similar background to the author but I am on the medical side of the picture. We work closely with our behavior specialists to help eliminate or promote specific behaviors. I have seen the techniques used and how effective they are. It is reasonable that these same techniques should also be able to affect change on our struggling students who have learned habits that interfere with their learning.
Overall, I found the premise of this book to be intriguing and fascinating. It would be fantastic to apply "behavioral support plans" that are individualized to each learner. I would agree that this should show measurable success in most or all cases. I agree with many of the author's points regarding what ails our educational system. I would love for there to be a universally applicable system that we could use across the board and problem solved. I don't think its that easy. I too, as a clinician and mother, have had my share of grievances with education. I would have liked to see more actual case plans and how these data were used to improve a student's experience. The few data involving individual students shown struck me as the sort of programmatic approach to learning that is quite dull if that's what you had to do all day.
I loved the ideas. I loved the simplicity of a group response (choral responding) in the classroom so that everyone is engaged and involved and receiving real time feedback. I agree with her statements of immediate feedback, and I would suggest, full feedback, to students on assignments can be a great teaching tool. Instead our students turn assignments into the teacher and don't see a response for weeks and even then it does nothing more than grade their performance rather than show them what they still need to master. I love the teaching to mastery approach rather than moving on with "a passing grade". The current method only encourages teachers to pass children without mastery and then creates a roadblock to learning more complex ideas. This is the same approach that drives "Khan Academy". Meet the student where they are, fill in the gaps with instruction and practice and then move on with instruction of complex topics.
Some of my critiques are:
1) Too much of what ails the system and the argument that its almost a century of failure. How did we produce some of the best in their fields during this time if all is bad with the system? Just through the good fortune of their learning techniques? I would like to see a plan to implement the Fit Teaching on a broader scale, with real results and examples.
2) While I definitely depend on behavior specialists and respect their different expertise from my own, I think overstating the issues in behavioral terms would equate to me overstating someone's actions in medical terms only. It is too simplistic of an approach. There is also zero reason to belittle any of our differently trained colleagues. I don't find this helpful. She stated that it is "unethical" for a physician to treat with medication based on a history and physical rather than gathering scientific data. I would argue that while I have not been trained in behavioral analysis and leave it to the experts, the same should be true for the author stating how or why physicians are choosing a treatment plan. She wasn't trained in the medical field but opines about how they should do their jobs.
3) For as many behavior plans as I have utilized in my own work, I would point out that in patients, these behavioral approaches are requested by physicians and then studied, often for weeks to months before a plan is in place. Then it requires the buy-in from every single person interacting with the individual. How is this efficient? It maybe necessary but it is not efficient. Can we expect that a behavioral, scientific approach to all learners would be equally slow to happen? It could make all the difference or not depending upon adherence to the plan. Maybe a discussion of the learners who failed to show progress would strengthen the argument for this approach.
4) I would like to know more about what is actually in place at the learning facilities already running. Even on the website the data are scant. There are overall descriptions but no concrete information. I feel like an overview of what they provide now would show the successes and weaknesses they have encountered and be helpful to understanding the usefulness of this approach.
In conclusion, overall I found that there are many great ideas and criticisms throughout this work. Many of the criticisms are examples that I have seen as well. If this is written for parents, it needs more ideas as to what they can do for their struggling learners. Many Americans do not live near a center, so another way to access the information is needed. If the book is written for educators or policy makers, it is likely to be found as somewhat insulting and too technical for the purpose it could serve. While I see the point in the historical recounting of psychological theories, it brought me back to the part of my first psychology class that I hated.
I think that if these ideas can be validated as useful throughout a school system or the educational system in total, then wouldn't it be great to include our behavioral specialists in the education policy process. Bring in these experts and allow them to take part in the discussion. This can only improve our system.
