ATA recognizes prof

October 30, 2009

U of C professor wins ATA research award

Study shows classroom structures critical to encourage students to seek help when needed

What does a student do when they encounter difficulty, need help or simply doesn’t know where to begin when assigned a task in the classroom? They ask for help. And while that may seem simple and obvious, U of C Faculty of Education Professor Bonnie Shapiro’s award winning research shows that the process involved is far more complex.

Winner of the Alberta Teachers’ Association’s 2009 Educational Research Award, Shapiro was keen to find out why some students readily engage in the challenge of getting help to grasp ideas in science when needed, while others hesitate. She set out to research the complex nature of help-seeking, help-giving and the kinds of social support networks that encourage students to play a more active role in their own learning.

Shapiro asked questions that would represent the strategies students use to facilitate their own learning, as well as the ways educators respond. The questions included: How do learners learn how to ask for assistance when needed? What is at stake in making it known that they do not understand? Who do they approach when asking for help? Why do some students avoid seeking help? And by looking at the whole school as a source of getting and giving help, Shapiro extended her research to consider the ways that teachers seek assistance and provide help for one another as well.

“The research shows that students who are successful learners often possess skills, traits, and complex ideas about how to seek assistance that allows them to take greater responsibility for their own learning,” says Shapiro. “One of the most important outcomes of this work is the way it provides insight and information for educators interesting in building stronger support structures for help-giving in classroom and school settings. It is my hope that this will make a significant contribution to the creation of healthy and vibrant learning environments for children and teachers.”

The ATA presents the Educational Research Award, valued at $5,000, to a faculty member or sessional lecturer at an Alberta university, whose research is deemed to be of exceptional practical benefit to classroom teachers.

“What is so exciting about this research is that, instead of focusing on improving scores on standardized tests or other superficial measures of knowledge acquisition, Shapiro is concerned about finding practical ways to help students learn at the deepest possible level,” said Dr. Joan Jeary, chair of the ATA selection panel that reviewed the research projects considered for this year’s award. “It is this kind of rich learning that will equip students to face the complexities and challenges of today’s knowledge-based society.”

Dennis Sumara, Dean of the U of C’s Faculty of Education, said Shapiro’s work is helping to find new ways of encouraging learning in the classroom. “We’re extremely proud that her research is being honored by the ATA. Bonnie has focused on a fundamental key to education—providing an environment that supports all students when they need it most.”