The effects of the models of teaching on student learning

This study sought to explore the degree to which students' interactions with the models of teaching influence learning. The purposefully sampled population consisted of gifted and non-gifted students in grades 2-5 from an urban school district in Southern California who were participants in a research project awarded to the University of Southern California and funded through the U.S. Department of Education's Jacob K. Javits Grant (PR The data indicated that gifted and non-gifted students chose to learn specified content areas through a specific model of teaching, and that the perceived interest offered by the models was the primary influence related to their choices. Statistically significant findings were found related to gifted and non-gifted students' preferences for learning in the social science discipline. Previous learning with the models of teaching equipped both gifted and non-gifted students with the ability to recognize the procedural knowledge of learning-to-learn as it related to the selected models of teaching. The comparative analysis of gifted and non-gifted students revealed patterns related to their ability to transfer previous learning with the models of teaching to new contexts. The findings revealed that both 4th and 5th grade gifted students could more readily transfer their learning from the models of teaching to self-directed independent study when compared to their non-gifted peers and 3rd grade gifted students. Most students who were able to transfer their knowledge to new contexts selected to conduct the process of independent study using the group investigation model of teaching.Many of the study's findings were supported by the theoretical purposes of the models of teaching and were aligned with the theorists' perspectives on learning and motivation. Implications were offered regarding educational policy and teacher education. Through this study, it is recommended that the models of teaching be integrated into classroom instruction, as well as into pre-service and in-service teacher education programs. Although this type of pedagogy will increase the effectiveness of learning for all students, it is deemed to be necessary for gifted learners in order to assist in developing their potential.