One important principle of the learner-active classroom is that students learn best when they have a felt need for that learning. Whereas in more traditional classrooms, teachers first introduce skills and then provide students with application problems; in learner-active classrooms, teachers design higher-order, authentic tasks that create a felt need to learn lower-order skills.

The student who is creating a floor plan of a school in order to recommend new uses of physical space must learn measurement, angles, and scale. Students who are writing letters to support an environmental cause must learn letter format, writing mechanics, and persuasive writing. Once the student is faced with the higher-order task, mastering the lower-order skills necessary to complete the task makes sense. This approach is a challenge for teachers in that most textbooks present skills, then practice, and finally application; but it's worth the trouble. Students need to have a reason to learn skills and "trust me, you'll use this in the future" just doesn't suffice.

In his book, Restructuring Schools: Capturing and Assessing the Phenomena, Joseph Murphy describes the need to rethink the order in which we approach these skills:

The restructured [curriculum] differs from the traditional curriculum in the prominence given to higher order thinking skills. In addition, it emphasizes critical thinking skills for all students, not simply for those in high ability groups. Finally, thinking skills are presented concomitantly with basic skills rather than after the more basic skills are mastered. The goal of reformers is the development of a curriculum that helps all students learn how to learn, that "empowers learners now and for the rest of their lives" (Harvey & Crandall, 1988, p. 31.) Consequently, there is "less emphasis on memorization and rote drill and more emphasis on problem solving" (Rothman, May 17, 1989, p. 8), "critical reasoning and higher order thinking" (Carnegie Council, 1989, p. 42.)

Mike Schmoker, in Results: The Key to Continuous School Improvement, adds:

We labor under the incorrect notion that students must master basic skills before they can learn higher-order skills or engage in complex activities. Studies in math, reading, and writing clearly demonstrate that the opposite is true: students learn best when basic skills are taught in a vital, challenging context that makes the skills meaningful. ... Schools and effective programs have demonstrated that standardized test scores can improve significantly when challenging tasks and activities are used (Resnick, Bill, Lesgold, and Leer 1991; Schmoker and Wilson 1993; Livingston, Castle, and Nations 1989; Pogrow 1988, 1990)

The next time you're about to teach a lesson in a basic skill, ask yourself, "in what real-life situations will students need this skill?" Then present students with a meaningful, challenging problem to solve. Finally, if necessary, teach the skill. You might be surprised to find how many students will figure it out or learn from one another. You might end up working with a much smaller group of students who are having a more difficult time.