One of Harvard Project Zero projects “Cultures of Thinking” focuses on the eight cultural forces present in every group learning situation which act as shapers of the group’s cultural dynamic and consist of language, time, environment, opportunities, routines, modeling, interactions, and expectations.
Paying attention to how these eight forces send messages about what learning is, what kind of thinking is valued, and what it means to be smart, reshape learning environments in which students can achieve at the highest levels.
CoT’s messages on thinking as part the learning process are:
- Learning is a product of thinking.
- Learning and thinking are as much a collective enterprise as they are an individual endeavor.
- Learning occurs at the point of challenge.
- Our learning is often provisional and frequently changes with time.
- Learning is an active process and involves
getting personally involved. - Questions not only drive learning but also are outcomes of learning as well.
The CoT initiative considers education to be a social and cultural endeavor whose goal is the development of both the individual and the group as effective learners and thinkers able to engage with and adapt to a changing world.
