Success stories from around the world
/By Pooja K. Agarwal, Ph.D.
I am humbled and inspired by emails from teachers around the world who share their success stories with me. And I want to share their stories with you.
Join me in recognizing trailblazers who are transforming teaching, and keep reading to gain inspiration on how you can contribute to this collective effort. (I’ve included my favorite end-of-year classroom activities below, too.)
I want to thank you for all you do empower teachers, schools, and most importantly, students.
P.S. Do you have a success story with the science of learning? Email me at ask@retrievalpractice.org or let me know via social media to be featured in an upcoming newsletter. Here are all my social media handles!
Success stories from around the world
Teachers from St. Vrain Valley Shool District
Every email I receive from teachers makes my day and the interactions I have with schools gives me the energy to continue my journey to share the science of learning with you.
Here are some 2024 highlights from educators and scientists around the world. How are you unleashing the science of learning? Let me know!
👏 Fleur, a middle school teacher in Latvia, conducted retrieval practice research in her classroom and just published her first journal article.
👏 Liza, a high school teacher in Pennsylvania, completed the Powerful Teaching bingo challenge. She also shares the science of learning with pre-service teachers at a local university and she has developed a course on the science of learning for students at her high school.
👏 Andrew and Justin, educators at The Episcopal Academy, implemented Retrieve-Taking in the classroom and boosted students’ test scores by 13 points.
👏 Meg Lee, director of organizational development at Frederick County Public Schools, led an initiative to integrate the science of learning in 69 schools with nearly 50,000 students.
👏 Julia Maurer, associate head of school at Mercersburg Academy, spearheaded a year-long intensive professional development program on the science of learning, which she shares in her Meaning & Mastery Musings newsletter (and stay tuned for the upcoming Mercersburg Summer Institute).
👏 My colleagues Dr. Faria Sana and Dr. Bridgid Finn had their classroom research publications designated as the most significant education studies in 2024.
👏 Jinhui, a teacher in China, applies spacing in the classroom by taking her 45-minute period and breaking it into three 15-minute chunks with retrieval practice, which has boosted students’ energy for learning.
👏 Thousands of educators at the St. Vrain Valley School District are continuing their district-wide multi-year initiative to infuse the science of learning across all grade levels and subject areas.
Join communities around the world
Photo Credit: Mika Baumeister via Unsplash
Do you want to find like-minded educators who are unleashing the science of learning? Here are some ideas:
💻 Ditch Summit: a free interactive online conference from December 16, 2024 – January 10, 2025, full of teaching ideas, including AI and tech tools.
📖 Powerful Classrooms: a book by Patrice Bain with even more success stories from educators who are implementing the science of learning.
✏️ Substack: subscribe for 10+ Substack newsletters on the science of learning. Here’s a list via Google.
✈️ Upcoming events: I’ll be speaking around the world in 2025. Introduce yourself and form collaborations with really cool people.
🦋 Bluesky: I recently joined Bluesky! Follow me @RetrieveLearn and the hashtag #EduSky. If you’re new to Bluesky, here are three handy “starter packs” of people in cognitive psychology you should follow: this one, this one, and this one.
👍 Facebook group: We have more than 3,000 educators in our Powerful Teaching Facebook group. Join us for announcements, discussion, tips, and more. Click here for a list of all my social media handles.
And make sure to check out Evergreen Education, Arkansas State University, Duchesne Academy, Mercersburg Academy, Transfr, The Episcopal Academy, and the Virginia Association of Independent Schools. I am grateful for each of these organizations’ support of my research and resources on the science of learning. If you would like to connect with these organizations, email me at ask@retrievalpractice.org and it would be my pleasure to introduce you. Thank you again for making a difference in the world of education!
