Let's build dynamic learning communities that engage students, promote deep understanding, and sustain a lifetime of inquiry.
Once again we are in the throes of curriculum reforms designed to transform education. However, these efforts generally neglect the vital role classroom and school culture play in promoting learning. Any curriculum, good or bad, will sink or float on the culture of the classroom in which it is enacted. Culture matters not only to realize curricular goals, but also as a shaper of students' development as powerful thinkers and learners.
Creating Cultures of Thinking, written by leading Harvard University researcher Ron Ritchhart, builds the case for "enculturation" as the key to deep learning and the development of the habits of mind and dispositions needed in a changing world. He demystifies the process of creating dynamic learning communities by first identifying and then walking us through the eight forces we must marshal to build strong group culture. Case studies, practical guidelines, self-assessments, and inquiry projects enable teachers and administrators—as well as anyone interested in fostering group learning—to understand and shape powerful learning communities.
Praise for Creating Cultures of Thinking
"Ron Ritchhart makes a powerful argument that building a 'thinking culture' within our schools is the key to better learning, greater student engagement, and more happiness all around. This book includes not only a thorough discussion of the elements of a successful school culture, but also activities to elicit contributions from students and teachers. And who knows? If the lessons in this book are put into practice, a culture of thinking might escape the classroom walls and spread to the wider world. Wouldn't that be something?"
—Daniel H. Pink, author of Drive and To Sell Is Human
"This book builds on the excellence of Making Thinking Visible and gets to the heart of the eight forces that truly make a difference to learning—and in particular, to the mind frames of the teachers, leaders, and students that allow a sustained, contemplative, and powerful impact on learning. . . . If your aim is to go beyond the surface, this is the perfect book. You can 'hear' Ritchhart thinking as you read this tour de force."
—John Hattie, director, Melbourne Education Research Institute; author of Visible Learning
"Books in education tend to be either presentations of a few big ideas, scholarly reviews of relevant literature, or guidebooks to effective practice. Creating Cultures of Thinking is a rarity—a seamless blend of all three genres. Whether you teach kindergarteners or graduate students, you will learn much from this book."
—Howard Gardner, author of Truth, Beauty, and Goodness Reframed
