Doctoral Student University of Connecticut, Connecticut
Short description: Productive struggle involves wrestling with ideas, thinking deeply about problems, and working toward answers without predetermined paths. Gifted students who have faced limited academic challenge may not have much practice with this, and teachers may have limited tools for supporting them. We share guidelines for collaborative professional learning in which teachers refine their efforts to challenge and support advanced learners.
Learning Outcomes: Participants will:
Learn strategies for facilitating professional understanding of productive struggle
Collaborate to analyze approaches to supporting learners through struggle without reducing cognitive demand
Develop a plan for guiding ongoing professional learning around facilitating productive struggle