What is the Quantum Learning (QL) model? Quantum Learning is a comprehensive model that covers both educational theory and immediate classroom implementation. It integrates research-based best practices in education into a unified whole, making content more meaningful and relevant to students' lives.Quantum learning is about bringing joy to teaching and learning with ever-increasing ÔAhaÕ moments of discovery. It helps teachers to present their content a way that engages and energizes students. This model also integrates learning and life skills, resulting in students who become effective lifelong learners Ð responsible for their own education.
The FADE modelÑFoundation, Atmosphere, Design, EnvironmentÑcreates the context of Quantum Learning. We know when the context is strong, it ÔfadesÕ into the background and creates the structure for learning to occur.
Quantum Learning begins with a strong foundation built on the principles of the 8 Keys of Excellence. It holds the beliefs that: All people can learn, people learn differently, and learning is effective when it is joyful, engaging and challenging. The 8 Keys of Excellence include: Integrity, Commitment, Failure Leads to Success, Ownership, Speak with Good Purpose, Flexibility, This Is It!, and Balance. The 8 Keys of Excellence can be integrated into all subjects and grade levels. The 8 Keys are best implemented when parents and community leaders support and reinforce the Keys.
The Quantum Learning framework for student learning is expressed in 5 Tenets of Learning: Everything Speaks: Everything, from surroundings and tone of voice to distribution of materials, conveys an important message about learning. Everything is On Purpose: Everything we do has an intended purpose. Experience Before Label: Students make meaning and transfer new content into long-term memory by connecting to existing schema. Learning is best facilitated when students experience the information in some aspect before they acquire labels for what is being learned. Acknowledge Every Effort: Acknowledgment of each studentÕs effort encourages learning and experimentation. If ItÕs Worth Learning, ItÕs Worth Celebrating!: Celebration provides feedback regarding progress and increases positive emotional associations with the learning.
Quantum Learning creates an empowering atmosphere of trust, safety and a sense of belonging. Establishing engaging, focused traditions creates a sense of belonging and safety and is an effective strategy for classroom management, focusing attention and motivating students to increase participation in learning. Each school day begins with a morning routine and purposeful first statement. These routines are designed to immediately focus students and create resourceful learning states.
Quantum Learning Design Frame The QL Design Frame that drives the presentation and facilitation of content was formulated from many years of research on effective delivery methods and is the structural frame upon which content is designed to ensure student mastery. The elements (that are aligned with Dr. Georgi LozanovÕs learning cycle) are:
EnrollÑUse teacher moves that capture the interest, curiosity and attention of the students. ExperienceÑCreate or elicit a common experience, or tap into common knowledge to which all learners can relate. Experience before Label creates schema on which to build new content. Learn & LabelÑPresent, sequence and define the main content. Students learn labels, thinking skills and academic strategies. Students add new content to their existing schema. DemonstrateÑGive students an opportunity to demonstrate and apply their new learning. Review and ReflectÑUse a variety of effective, multi-sensory review strategies and empower students to process their new content through reflection. CelebrationÑAcknowledge the learning. It cements the content and adds a sense of completion.
Quantum Learning creates a supportive physical environment that enhances and reinforces learning. Ideal learning environments include proper lighting, purposeful color, positive affirmation posters, plants, props and music. These elements are easy to include in oneÕs classroom, and students enjoy learning more in a comfortable setting.
The key is to create empowering school environments that build engaging and dynamic communities of learning. The results are enhanced teacher capacity and increased student achievement.
Many of our teachers have been trained in Quantum Learning techniques to help guide instruction and enable students to learn productively and effectively. Perhaps you have notice many of our classrooms have eight large keys posted on the walls. The 8 keys of excellence spotlight characteristics that help promote learning such as: learning to align personal values to behavior to produce integrity learning to succeed by turning failure into success learning to communicate in a positive, direct, responsible manner learning to focus on the task at hand learning to follow and keeping true to one's vision learning to take ownership learning to be flexible by changing plans that do not work to plans that do learning to keep personal balance through adjustments in thoughts, feelings, and behavior
NW Laboratory Home Center for Comprehensive School Reform and Improvement
Catalog of School Reform Models
Quantum Learning (K - 12)
Accepted for Inclusion 11/1/2003
Description Updated 1/1/2004
Type of Model entire-school
Founder Quantum Learning, Bobbi DePorter, President;
Atlas Curriculum Mapping, Rosa Davis, Partner
Current Service Provider same as founder
Year Established 1981 Ð Quantum Learning
1989 Ð Atlas Curriculum Mapping
# of Schools Served (1/1/2004) 80
Level K - 12
Primary Goal creating an optimum schoolwide environment for learning
# Main Features integrating best practices into a unified whole
# learning and life skills curriculum
# planning and collaborative software
Impact on Instruction teachers capture studentsÕ attention by making content more relevant and engaging
Impact on Organization/Staffing leadership team includes lead teacher trained as site facilitator
Impact on Schedule designated lead teacher and one or more site facilitators spend allocated time on training, coaching, and facilitating
Subject-Area Programs Provided by Developer school staff with coach create collaborative lesson designs in core content areas, as well as student learning/life skills courses focused on literacy
Parental Involvement parents invited to observe portion of student program and to attend parent meeting; schools have option to open Curriculum Maps to parents and broader school community
Technology for Atlas Curriculum Mapping, schools require a computer with browser to gain access to the Internet
Materials Quantum Learning for Teachers participant manuals; facilitator scripts; Learning and Life Skills lesson scripts and handouts; Learning and Life Skills CDs; classroom signs; evaluation forms; Atlas software
Origin/Scope
Quantum Learning originated in 1982 when Learning Forum started an academic and life skills youth program called SuperCamp. SuperCampÕs instructional methodology serves as the foundation for the Quantum Learning schoolwide model. The first Quantum Learning program began in 1991, and now more than 80 schools in 11 states have adopted the model schoolwide. Over 12,000 teachers have been trained in Quantum Learning through schoolwide, districtwide, regional, and public trainings.
General Approach
Quantum Learning is an integrated school model designed to initiate change, enhance teacher capacity, and increase student achievement. A primary goal of the model is to create school environments that are engaging and dynamic. Components of the model focus on leadership, researched-based teaching methods, cognitive psychology, learning and life skills, parent and community involvement, and school improvement through evaluation. The model seeks to make content more meaningful and relevant to studentsÕ lives. Quantum Learning is based on three core beliefs: (1) all people can learn; (2) people learn differently; and (3) learning is effective when it is engaging and challenging.
Quantum Learning is based on Eight Keys of Excellence and the Tenets of Learning. The Tenets include: Everything Speaks, Everything is On Purpose, Experience Before Label, Acknowledge Every Effort, and If ItÕs Worth Learning, ItÕs Worth Celebrating. A set of policies, agreements, procedures, and rules guide school governance and support QL practice.
QL for Teachers includes 40 hours of training, delivered as a five-day summer program or spread throughout the year. These initial sessions are followed by approximately 40 hours of training including reinforcement sessions, lesson design, facilitated collaborations, and classroom coaching. QL trains teachers in effective presentation and facilitation that supports classroom management. QL facilitators at the school provide classroom coachingÑclassroom observations, coaching Òin the moment,Ó modeling QL methodologies, and providing end-of-day debriefing.
Learning Forum created an alliance with Rubicon, creators of Atlas, a curriculum mapping Web application. Schools implementing Quantum Learning take part in the mapping process. This process is designed to help teachers and administrators align curriculum with school and state standards, track and implement educational goals, highlight best practices, facilitate benchmark assessment planning and testing, and evaluate test results as they relate to curriculum plans.
Results
Note: The research summarized in this model description includes only research that was submitted with the model developer's most recent application (indicated by the acceptance or reacceptance date in the upper left-hand corner of the description). More recent research on the model may exist. You may wish to search The School Reform and Improvement Literature Database at http://www.csrclearinghouse.org/index.cgi?l=library_literature_db.
In 2003, an independent evaluator (Benn and Associates) contracted by the developer studied Quantum LearningÕs impact in 18 schools in four states: three schools in California, six in Illinois, six in Wyoming, and three in Texas. Evaluators compared student achievement scores to schools with similar data on state performance indexes, other matched comparison schools, or statewide averages. The number of years of implementation varied from two to four years.The study found that students who attended schools with teachers trained in Quantum Learning demonstrated greater gains in achievement than comparison sample students not participating in the model.
At New Lexington Elementary School, for example, students showed greater gains on SAT-9 Reading exams during the 2001-2002 school year compared with similar schools in the district. These gains were statistically significant. At three high schools in Illinois, students made statistically significant improvements on the Prairie State Achievement Examination (PSAE) reading and writing assessments from 2001 and 2002 compared with a statewide comparison sample. During the same period, mathematics scores on the PSAE showed a decline compared with the same sample. In Sheridan District #1 in Wyoming, where Quantum Learning was implemented districtwide, students from six schools demonstrated statistically significant improvements on the WyCAS reading and writing assessment from 2001 to 2002 compared with a neighboring comparison district. Mathematics achievement gains on the WyCAS were not statistically significant.
Implementation Assistance
* Project Capacity: Quantum LearningÕs national headquarters is in Oceanside, California. Regional centers are located in Colorado and Illinois, with contracted trainers around the country. Learning Forum employs 23 full-time staff members, of which 11 members work directly with schools. Quantum Learning also employs 53 part-time trainers, including retired and current teachers and administrators.
* Faculty Buy-In: Initial awareness workshops introduce staff to the program and help them understand it. A substantial majority of the school faculty is required to be in favor of the program prior to adoption.
* Initial Training: All teachers and administrators attend a five-day workshop, held during the summer before implementation, or interspersed throughout the first year. The site facilitator attends an additional two days of training.
* Follow-Up Coaching: Quantum Learning offers five days of initial coaching in the fall. Monthly coaching sessions are available throughout the remainder of the school year. Coaching may include in-class observations, one-on-one feedback, or group sessions for sharing feedback. In years two and three, teachers attend a three-day reinforcement workshop.
* Networking: The continuous support program includes an online Quantum Learning Club Bulletin Board providing a site where teachers share ideas and post questions and challenges for response. Quantum Learning trainers are available for phone and e-mail consultations. Quantum Learning programs are accredited by the Commission on International and Trans-Regional Accreditation (CITA) and the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Graduate credit is offered by sponsoring universities.
* Implementation Review: Schools agree to complete an evaluation study as a baseline assessment prior to implementing Quantum Learning and to provide the same data each subsequent year. An independent evaluator completes the analysis and writes the evaluation. Teachers assess their skill levels prior to training, at the end of the semester, and at year-end. The administrator completes a similar survey about the teachersÕ performance.
Costs
Note: Information may have changed since January 1, 2004. Check with provider for updated costs.
Year One: A Quantum Learning annual fee of $2,000 is required when signing the Site License agreements and Expectations Contract. The initial awareness workshops are $2,000 per day. Participation in school leadership/planning is $2,000 per day (estimate three days).
The five-day Quantum Learning for Teachers workshop fee is $12,500 plus travel expenses and $100 per teacher for participant manuals and books. Ten days of coaching and reinforcement is $2,000 per day ($20,000). Four follow-up sessions are $2,500 per day ($10,000). Teachers receive a two-day training program to prepare them to deliver QLÕs Òlearning and life skillsÓ curriculum ($2,500 per day, plus $30 per teacher for scripts). Learning Forum staff facilitate an initial Quantum Learning for Students at $110 a student per day. (Five days for 100 students is $55,000.)
Teachers selected as potential site facilitators participate in six days of Òtrain-the-trainerÓ coaching, usually held in two-day sequences ($2,500 for six days is $15,000). Quantum Learning for Teachers facilitator scripts are $1,500 per site facilitator. These teachers receive additional coaching during reinforcement and follow-up sessions at $500 per day.
The Atlas annual site license is $100 per teacher, with a minimum of $3,000. Faculty training and consulting sessions are $2,000 a day per trainer.
The year one total is estimated at $159,565.
The year two total is estimated at $70,000.
The year three total is estimated at $38,000.
Travel expenses are additional in all trainings. (Estimated at $20,000 for year one.)
State Standards and Accountability
Using Atlas Curriculum Mapping, teachers and administrators align curriculum with school and state standards, and evaluate test results as they relate to curriculum plans.
Special Considerations
Selected Evaluations
Developer/Implementer
Benn, W. (2003). New evaluation study of Quantum LearningÕs impact on achievement in multiple settings. Laguna Hills, CA: Quantum Learning.
Barlas, L., Campbell, A., & Weeks, H. (2002). How Quantum teaching strategies affect learners. Aurora, IL: Aurora University.
Independent Researchers
Sample Sites
School/Contact Size Locale
Race/Ethnicity
Free Lunch ELL Stud. with Dis.
Afr. Amer. Am. Indian Asian Amer. Hisp. White
New Lexington Elementary (K-6)
10410 E Bodger St.
El Monte, CA 91733
626-575-2320
Contact: Karin Smith
476 mid-size city 0% 1% 25% 70% 5% 87% 60% M%
Big Horn Elementary School (K-5)
333 Hwy 335
Big Horn, WY 82833
307-672-3497
Contact: Brent Caldwell
150 rural 0% 0% 0% 2% 98% 17% 0% 13%
Kenneth E. Neubert School (K-5)
1100 Huntington Dr.
Algonquin, IL 60102
847-658-2540
Contact: Darlene Warner
682 mid-size city 2% 1% 3% 5% 89% 13% 9% 34%
Clifford D. Murray Elementary School (K-5)
505 E. Renwick Road
Azusa, CA 91702
626-815-5100
Contact: Corey James
773 urban fringe of large city 1% 0% 1% 94% 4% 89% 71% 5%
Data are provided by model developer.
List of all sample sites for this model
For more information, contact
Bobbi DePorter, President
Quantum Learning
1725 South Coast Highway
Oceanside, CA 92054
Phone: .285.3276 or 760.722.0072 (ext. 115)
Fax: 760.722.3507
E-mail: info@quantumlearning.com
Web site: http://www.quantumlearning.com
Northwest Regional
Educational Laboratory
101 SW Main, Suite 500
Portland, OR 97204-3297
Telephone: 503-275-9500
The Center for Comprehensive
School Reform and Improvement
1825 Connecticut Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20009-5721
Telephone: 877-277-2744
© 2005 Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory
Quantum Learning: Unleashing the Genius in You
Bobbi DePorter with Mike Hernacki
Publisher: Dell Publishing (Bantam Doubleday)
Year Published: 1992
ISBN: 0440504279 Browse/Buy
Contents
* Relearning How to Learn
* The Limitless Power of your Mind
* The Power of WIIFM - What's in it for me?
* Setting the Stage: The Right Learning Environment
* Cultivating a Winning Attitude:
* Discovering Your Personal Learning Style
* Techniques of High-Tech Note-Taking
* Write with Confidence
* Work your own Memory Miracles!
* Blast off with Power Reading
* Thinking Logically, Thinking Creatively
* Making that Quantum Learning Leap
Updated: Thursday, 19 April 2001
Index of Book Titles
The 7 Keys to Success offer a valuable framework for thinking about distance education design and for designing the actual experience. It is important to note that while the keys are numbered 1-7 they are not linear elements, but are, rather, dynamic components of a whole. The keys have been developed through research and years of experience. Each key area includes planning, instructional design, and management of the instruction: 1. Understanding the Learner Ñ finding out about learner needs and expectations and personalizing for this understanding, as well as considering any special needs 2. Knowing the Environment Ñ feeling comfortable in the distance education environment, learning how to use the equipment and media that interface with videoconferencing, and feeling comfortable working with remote sites 3. Being a Team Player Ñ working with administrative and policy personnel, technology experts, instructional and graphics designers, site coordinators, and resource personnel 4. Developing Formats and Strategies Ñ discovering what the differences are between face-to-face instruction and distance education, looking at scope and sequence, modularizing for effectiveness, developing a timeline, implementing, managing the session or course, and creating contingency plans 5. Creating Interaction Activities, Visuals and Print Materials Ñ creating and integrating appropriate interaction activities for sessions or courses to facilitate learner involvement and developing clear and concise visuals and print materials 6. Integrating Support Ñ considering the various areas of support - registration support, library and resources support, technical and site support, learner feedback support, and special needs support 7. Monitoring for Quality Ñ integrating feedback and expanding the assessment tool to include assessment of the instructor, materials, site coordinator, site accommodations, and technology
topWhat do you do with it? Apply knowledge to designed and natural world Mastery of core knowledge
- Students will continue development of Eight Keys of Excellence: Integrity, viewing and using failures as opportunities for growth, Speak with Good Purpose, This is It!, Commitment, Ownership, Flexibility, and Balance.
- Nature of technology Students will develop characteristics and scope of technology core concepts of technology relationships among technologies and other fields of study
- Technology and Society understanding of the cultural, social, economic and poliltical effects of technology understanding the effects of technology on environment role of society in the development and use of technology influence of technology in history
- design attributes of design engineering design role of troubleshooting, research and development, invention and innovation and experimentation in problem solving
- abilities in a technological world abilities to apply the design process use and maintain technological products and systems access the impact of products and systems
- the designed world medical technologies agricultural and related biotechnologies energy and power technologies information and communication technologies transportation technologies manufacturing technologies construction technologies
- basis for decision making and career planning whether it be academic or vocational ..........