The responsibility for setting objectives lies on the shoulders of both the teacher and the students. The teacher's job is to select and refine learning goals, to communicate them clearly to his students, and to establish a well-defined direction for learning. After this, students must understand the parameters, recall what they already know and pinpoint what they still need to learn.
Studies on the goal-setting process show that a too-narrow focus minimizes learning, in that students disregard anything external to these objectives as unimportant, regardless of whether or not the topics are related to the subject. Setting objectives becomes an exercise in effective communication, and it is important that students learn to discern the line between relevant and irrelevant information.
Teaching techniques that encourage students to summarize lectures and write personalized notes can be effective. Summarizing is a higher order thinking skill that promotes analysis of the subject matter, leading to deeper, clearer comprehension. Note taking, whether in verbal, visual or in combined form, enhances the transfer and retention of knowledge.
The twofold process allows students to synthesize the information they gleaned and to organize it in a way that they will easily comprehend upon review. Teachers can illustrate the summarizing and note taking process by providing teacher-prepared notes; by asking specific guide questions; and by allowing students to make their own lecture notes.
Cooperative grouping promotes learning, as well as the development of interpersonal skills, provided that the correct support structures are established. Group learning must not be overused for the sake of the teacher's convenience. Also, each student in the group must have a defined role or purpose -- either teacher-assigned or voluntary.
Cooperative grouping teaches the principles of accountability and positive interdependence, which includes: decision making, conflict resolution, mutual goals, time management, joint rewards, as well as resource and role interdependence. Emphasis is placed on heterogeneous groups; that is, groups of students comprised of different skill and learning levels have a greater chance of success than homogeneous groups.
Effective feedback satisfies these minimum criteria: it is specific, timely and regular. By providing feedback, a teacher trains his students to respond positively to it, this improving the learning process. Feedback targets multiple competencies in students. Specific feedback develops focus. Timely feedback corrects learning direction. Regular feedback also encourages students to strive for higher goals; however, teachers must take care to place emphasis more on effort than on achievement.