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This is an essential guide for educators, administrators, policymakers, and the media. Glossaries are dynamic expressions of current language usage. Education has changed dramatically in recent years, and so must also the language used to describe and define them. We believe this glossary is useful for a wider field of educators promoting student success. This glossary provides precise language and definitions to use when communicating with peers and more effectively influencing administrators, legislators, and the media.
Teaching and Learning Process
This general collection of teaching and learning processes encompasses all glossary terms that were not easily assigned into the other eight categories of this glossary. Check the other eight topical glossaries for relevant terms that apply to your work. A comprehensive glossary is The Greenwood Dictionary of Education (Collins & O’Brien, 2011). A sample of specialty glossaries are available online:
● disabilities (https://www.washington.edu/doit/glossary-disability-related-terms)
● literacy (https://www.literacyworldwide.org/get-resources/literacy-glossary)
● reading (https://iowareadingresearch.org/reading-glossary), and
● writing (https://www.unl.edu/writing/glossary)
academic advising
1. Definitions: (a) Conversation between a student and a faculty or staff member regarding progress towards completing a program of study aligned with the student’s life goals; and (b) In some advising models, students talk with a trained student for some issues regarding advising such as scheduling options or sometimes on issues before the students meet with a staff or faculty member.
2. Examples: Career aspirations, selection of an academic program of study, course enrollment selection, identification of life goals, and developing education action plans.
3: Compare with ACADEMIC COACHING, MENTORING, and PEER EDUCATOR.
academic coaching
1. Definitions: (a) Students implement more effective strategies through guidance by an advanced peer or professional. The relationship is designed to model successful learning behaviors and create accountability of the student to their coach for higher academic results. This coaching occurs through a series of meetings during the academic term; and (b) ACADEMIC COACHING may be provided by a faculty member, staff member, or a trained student.
2. Examples: Identify learning preferences, habits of working, and difficulties or barriers to success.
3. Compare with ACADEMIC ADVISING, MENTORING and PEER EDUCATOR.
academic literacies
1. Definition: (a) Understanding, writing, listening, speaking, critical thinking, and habits of mind that foster academic achievement expected of college students; (b) Understanding a range of academic vocabulary in context; (c) Making meaning beyond the level of a sentence; and (d) Evaluating information to determine if it is fact or opinion and knowing what counts as evidence (Weideman, 2014).
2. Compare with DISCIPLINARY LITERACIES.
academic skills
See BASIC ACADEMIC SKILLS
academic survival skills
See BASIC ACADEMIC SKILLS and STUDY SKILLS
academic tenacity
1. Definition: “Non-cognitive factors that promote long-term learning and achievement can be brought together under the label ACADEMIC TENACITY. At its most basic level, it is about working hard, and working smart, for a long time. More specifically, it is about the mindsets and skills that allow students to look beyond short-term concerns to longer-term or higher-order goals, and withstand challenges and setbacks to persevere toward these goals (Dweck et al., 2014, p. 4).
2. Examples: “(a) Belong academically and socially, (b) See school as relevant to their future, (c) Work hard and can postpone immediate pleasures, (d) Not derailed by intellectual or social difficulties, (e) Seek out challenges, and (f) Remain engaged over the long haul” (Dweck et al., 2014, p. 4).
3. Compare with FIXED MINDSET, GRIT, GROWTH MINDSET, and SELF-REGULATED LEARNER.
achievement gap
1. Definitions: (a) Disparity of educational performance among the general student population, especially groups defined by socioeconomic status (SES), race/ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, (dis)ability, immigration status, and other demographic measures; and (b) Difference in standardized test score gaps may result in long-term gaps such as persistence towards graduation and workforce employment.
2. Some educators argue that the ACHIEVEMENT GAP is inaccurate since it often relies upon college entry standardized-exam scores and measures of student achievement that are heavily dependent upon exams employing multi-choice questions. These educators argue that these questions are culturally biased due to the format of the questions and the academic content, often based on Western cultural content by White authors. Based on the ongoing scholarly debate before the next edition of this glossary, the term ACHIEVEMENT GAP may be moved to the Less Acceptable Term category. More scholars are using the term OPPORTUNITY GAP instead since it emphasizes the structural reasons for the gap rather than implying that there might be something wrong with the students on the wrong side of the ACHIEVEMENT GAP.
3. Compare with OPPORTUNITY GAP.
active learning
1. Definition: Strategies that engage students actively with their learning through what they do and think rather than passively listening to the instructor.
2: Examples: Small group discussions, role-plays, reflective writing, searching for information, and creating a curriculum.
3. Compare with BANKING CONCEPT OF LEARNING and TRANSMISSION MODEL OF EDUCATION.
active listening
1. Definition: “Attending to the speech, body language, facial expressions, and implied meaning of a person’s communications” (Collins & O’Brien, 2011, p. 7).
adult basic skills
1. Definition: “Basic skills are foundational proficiencies in mathematics, reading, writing, and language. Programs, such as Adult Basic Education (ABE), Adult Secondary Education, English for Speakers of Other Languages, and other state, federal and private programs, assist undereducated and/or disadvantaged adults in raising their basic proficiencies” (Florida Department of Education, n.d., para. 3).
advance organizer
1. Definition: “Short introductory text or graphic material presented to students prior to a learning experience that enables students to structure the knowledge, put it in perspective, and increase receptivity to new information” (Collins & O’Brien, 2011, p. 12).
affective strategies
1. Definition: Student behaviors to manage their emotions. A positive environment helps the student to learn.
2. Compare with COGNITIVE STRATEGIES.
assistive technology
1. Definition: “Technology that can be used by people with a wide range of abilities and disabilities based on the principles of UNIVERSAL DESIGN. Users can interact with the technology in ways that work best for them. Accessible technology includes any equipment, product or system that is used to improve the functional capacities of people with disabilities” (University of Central Florida, n.d., para. 1).
2. Compare with INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY.
attribution
1. Definition: “The individual’s perception of the causes of their success or failure” (Dembo, 1994, p. G-1).
basic academic skills
1. Definition: “Activities such as calculating, reading, reasoning, speaking, and writing that enable people to communicate and learn that are not directly taught in the traditional postsecondary academic curriculum but are essential to learning across the curriculum. These skills are often defined by law as competency levels in secondary schools” (Collins & O’Brien, 2011, p. 46).
best practice
1. Definition: “A phrase used to refer to a method, approach, or program that is thought to represent a widely accepted and exemplary approach to enacting work within a functional area. The term can also indicate an aspirational level of achievement” (Council for the Advancement of Standards, 2020, para. 5).
2. Examples include basic arithmetic, reading, public speaking, and basic writing skills.
career technical education (CTE)
1. Definition: Courses and programs that focus on occupation preparation.
2. Examples: nursing, welding, agriculture, automotive repair, and engineering.
cognitive strategies
1. Definitions: (a) “Behaviors and thoughts that influence the learning process so that information can be retrieved more effectively from memory” (Dembo, 1994, p. G-2); and (b) demonstrated explicitly, such as a concept map, and can also be internal activities within the learner, such as self-monitoring while reading.
2. Examples: Creating a concept map, memorization of facts, reflecting on previous class lectures, repeating the problem-solving process, self-monitoring of their choice of learning strategies, and summarizing an assigned reading selection.
3. Compare with AFFECTIVE STRATEGIES.
college and career readiness
1. Definitions: (a) Level of preparation at which a student possesses the content knowledge, strategies, skills, and techniques necessary to be successful in any of a range of postsecondary settings (Collins, 2007; Conley, 2012); and (b) COLLEGE READINESS and CAREER READINESS are relative terms because they are dependent upon a particular institution, specific degree program within that institution, and a particular instructor teaching a course within a degree program.
2. Compare with COLLEGE-LEVEL, DEVELOPMENTAL, and DEVELOPMENTAL-LEVEL COURSE.
college-level
1. Definitions: (a) Level of skill attainment, knowledge, and reasoning ability associated with or required by courses of study leading to a certificate, associate degree, or baccalaureate degree; (b) Any of a wide range of skills levels, because COLLEGE-LEVEL and COLLEGE-READINESS determinations are defined by the academic standards of an individual postsecondary institution. Standards vary among institutions of different types or within types; and (c) COLLEGE-LEVEL and COLLEGE READINESS are relative terms because they are dependent upon a particular institution, specific degree program within that institution, and a particular instructor teaching a course within a degree program.
2. Compare with COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS, DEVELOPMENTAL, and DEVELOPMENTAL-LEVEL COURSE.
college-level mathematics skills
1. Definition: Mathematics competencies needed to meet expectations of the student’s academic program of study at a specific college. Some academic programs require different and higher skills than others.
2. Compare with COLLEGE-LEVEL, COLLEGE AND CARER READINESS, DEVELOPMENTAL-LEVEL MATHEMATICS COURSE, and REMEDIAL-LEVEL MATHEMATICS COURSE.
college-level reading skills
1. Definition: A student with COLLEGE-LEVEL READING SKILLS possesses the reading competency necessary for successful enrollment in a college-level curriculum course at a specific institution within a particular degree program.
2. Compare with COLLEGE-LEVEL, COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS, DEVELOPMENTAL-LEVEL READING COURSE, and REMEDIAL-LEVEL READING COURSE.
college-level writing skills
1. Definitions: (a) Skills required to convey information in writing at the college level at a specific institution within a particular degree program including skills in grammar, sentence structure, organization, voice, and a broad vocabulary to demonstrate understanding and articulate meaning; and (b) Competencies necessary for successful enrollment in a college-level composition course.
2. Compare with COLLEGE-LEVEL, COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS, DEVELOPMENTAL-LEVEL WRITING COURSE, REMEDIAL-LEVEL ENGLISH COURSE, and WRITING PROCESS.
college students
1. Definition: Individuals matriculated into postsecondary institutions including online learners, traditional on-campus students, dual enrollment students, and other post-traditional student cohorts as well as traditional on-campus students.
community agencies
1. Definition: Publicly and privately sponsored organizations that can serve as resources for the institution and its students.
2. Examples: Counseling, employment agencies, and social services.
comprehension
1. Definition: “The ability to perceive, process, and understand information. The ability to move from one level of abstraction to another. This term is frequently associated with READING.
2. Compare with METACOGNITION, METACOMPREHENSION, and READING.
comprehension monitoring
1. Definition: A METACOGNITIVE skill that results in the learner regulating learning activities while they are engaged in READING, viewing videos, and listening to lectures.
2. Examples: identify difficulties, internal dialogue, look back through the text just read, ongoing inquiry, self-talk, and visualizing.
concentration
1. Definition: Intentional attention to an object, task, or problem.
critical literacy
1. Definitions: (a) Reading to actively analyze texts and using strategies for what proponents describe as uncovering underlying messages (Lankshear & McLaren, 1993); and (b) “Active reading of texts in a manner that promotes a deeper understanding of socially constructed concepts such as power, inequality, and injustice” (International Literacy Association, n.d., Section C, para. 26).
critical reader
1. Definitions: (a) A reader who comprehends, questions, clarifies, and analyzes in order to reach a judgment; (b) One who is willing and able to evaluate what one reads; and (c) A reader who can reach reasoned judgments based on the evidence presented rather than accepting or rejecting information based on emotion or anecdote (McGrath, 2005).
cultural competence
1. Definition: Skill at communicating in a cross-cultural or multicultural learning environment.
2. Compare with CULTURAL SENSITIVITY and CULTURALLY RELEVANT PEDAGOGY.
cultural differences
1. Definition: Beliefs, behaviors, languages, practices, and expressions unique to members of a specific ethnicity, race, or national origin.
2. Compare with LITERACY and SOCIAL JUSTICE.
developmental
1. Definitions: (a) Characterized by the expected sequence of development of learning, a term derived from psychology, physiology, and medicine; (b) Needing further development to bridge a gap between one level of skill or knowledge such as high school) and another (such as postsecondary studies); and (c) Insufficiently developed, as a synonym of or euphemism for REMEDIAL commonly used by the U.S. Government.
2. Compare with COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS, COLLEGE-LEVEL, and REMEDIAL EDUCATION PROGRAM.
developmental education
1. Definition: “Courses or services provided for the purpose of helping underprepared college students attain their academic goals. These courses and services are guided by the principles of adult learning and development” (Boylan, 2002, p. 3).
2. Compare with DEVELOPMENTAL EDUCATOR, REMEDIAL EDUCATION, and MULTICULTURAL DEVELOPMENTAL EDUCATION.
developmental educator
1. Definitions: (a) “Educational professional who works in a program designed to enhance the academic and personal growth of students; and (b) Educational professional who employs the principles of cognitive and affective development in designing and delivering instruction” (Arendale et al., 2007. p. 18).
2. Compare with DEVELOPMENTAL EDUCATION.
digital divide
1. Definition: “The gap created by inequities in access to technology and the information it provides” (Collins & O’Brien, 2011, p. 141).
(dis)ability
1. Definitions: (a) Recognition of the many different abilities (e.g., physical, mental, intellectual, and emotional) of students; and (b) Recognize each person has differing levels of ability and avoids DEFICIT LANGUAGE identifying the person as being disabled or less abled in all aspects of their life.
2. Compare with LEARNING DIFFERENCES and NEURODIVERSITY.
disability services
1. Definition: Access services provided by a postsecondary institution or other agency to enable students with (dis)abilities to have an equitable learning experience. Equitable learning experiences can be facilitated through UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING, accommodations, and other services.
2. Compare with DISABILITY (SOCIAL MODEL), (DIS)ABILITY, NEURODIVERSITY, UNIVERSAL DESIGN, AND UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING.
disciplinary literacies
1. Definitions: (a) “The specialized information and organizational patterns, language, vocabulary, syntax, text features, and ways of interpreting, evaluating, and conveying evidence and information within a particular discipline” (International Literacy Association, n.d., Section D, para. 14); (b) “Specialized activities (such as ways of reading, writing, speaking, listening, and thinking) that differ across academic disciplines and professional fields as a result of the epistemological differences inherent in each field” (Shanahan & Shanahan, 2011. p. 142); and (c) A confluence of content knowledge, experiences, and skills merged with the ability to read, write, listen, speak, think critically, and perform in a way that is meaningful within the context of a given field. These skills, experiences, and knowledge are important in all courses and subjects.
2. Compare with ACADEMIC LITERACIES and CONTEXTUALIZED LEARNING.
diversity
1: Definition: “Individual differences (e.g., personality, prior knowledge, and life experiences) and group/social differences (e.g., age, race/ethnicity, class, gender identification, sexual orientation, country of origin, and ability as well as cultural, political, religious, or other affiliations)” (Texas A&M System, n.d., para. 2).
2. Compare with (DIS)ABILITY and INCLUSION.
elaboration
1. Definitions: (a) Taking a simple idea and expanding upon it to generate more information of a complex nature; and (b) “Integration of meaningful declarative knowledge into long-term memory through adding details, creating examples, making associations with other ideas, and drawing inferences” (Dembo, 1994, p. G-4).
executive processes
1. Definition: “The part of the information-processing system, based on METACOGNITION, that controls the flow of information and employs COGNITIVE STRATEGIES to reach a learning goal” (Dembo, 1994, p. G-4).
2. Compare with COGNITIVE STRATEGIES and METACOGNITION.
fixed mindset
1. Definition: A student believes that their skills and intelligence are unchangeable. The student attributes academic failure due to this fixed set of skills that was unable to respond to a new situation with different skills and abilities to solve the problem and academic challenges.
2. Example: Student is unable to select new learning strategies for study academic content or preparing for an upcoming exam. Rather than developing new strategies, they reply upon the limited skills that worked in high school to pass the class with a C grade.
3. Compare with ACADEMIC TENACITY, EXECUTIVE PROCESSES, GRIT, GROWTH MINDSET, and METACOMPREHENSION
flexible reading
1. Definition: Strategies for varying reading rates based on the type of reading.
2. Examples: skimming, scanning, studying), the purpose of reading, and the reader’s familiarity with the content.
3. Compare with SPEED READING.
general education
1. Definitions: (a) Group or series of core courses across the major disciplinary areas required for most degrees following a liberal arts tradition; and (b) Synonymous with core curriculum.
2. Examples: Humanities, natural sciences, behavioral sciences, and social sciences.
3. Compare with GATEWAY COURSE and GUIDED PATHWAYS.
graphic organizer
1. Definition: Visually representing the ideas contained in a document, oral presentation, or video.
grit
1. Definition: “A personality trait characterized by perseverance and passion for achieving long-term goals. GRIT entails working strenuously to overcome challenges and maintaining effort and interest over time despite failures, adversities, and plateaus in progress. Recent studies suggest this trait may be more relevant than intelligence in determining a person’s high achievement” (APA, 2023, para. 1).
2. Example: “GRIT may be particularly important to accomplishing an especially complex task when there is a strong temptation to give up altogether” (APA, 2023, para. 1).
2. Compare with ACADEMIC TENACITY, FIXED MINDSET, GROWTH MINDSET, and SELF-REGULATED LEARNER.
growth mindset
1. Definition: Students believe their skills and intelligence are changeable and can adapt to new learning demands and environments. The student attributes academic success due to their ability of acquiring skills to respond to a new situation with different skills and abilities to solve the problem and academic challenges.
2. Examples: Student selects new learning strategies for studying academic content or preparing for an upcoming exam such as new examination preparation strategies, new reading strategies, and lecture note-taking strategies.
3. Compare with ACADEMIC TENACITY, FIXED MINDSET, EXECUTIVE PROCESSES, GRIT, METACOMPREHENSION, and SELF-REGULAGED LEARNER.
higher order reading skills
1. Definitions: (a) Strategies needed for processing written text at the cognitive levels of analysis, synthesis (or creation), or evaluation; and (b) Ability to extract and construct high-level thinking from written text.
higher order thinking skills
1. Definition: Competencies required to process material at the cognitive levels of analysis, synthesis (or creation), evaluation, and conceptualization (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001; Gershon, 2018).
2. Compare with LOWER ORDER THINKING SKILLS.
historically underrepresented
1. Definition: Applied to a group of students who have not been appropriately represented in postsecondary educational institutions.
2. Example: In some academic degree programs, students remain HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED by gender or race/ethnicity.
3. Suggested usage of the term: “Blacks are often HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED in most academic degree programs”. “Women are often HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED in most STEM academic degree programs”. Following APA (2020) admonition to use person-first language, the student comes first and the condition comes second. The focus is placed upon asking why the condition exists rather than implying that there could be something DEFICIT about the student.
4. Compare with DEFICIT LANGUAGE, MARGINALIZED, STEREOTYPE THREAT,
historically marginalized communities
1. Definition: This emerging term is an umbrella for several other terms such as HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED and MARGINALIZED. A variety of characteristics place people in this community: historically excluded, HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED, historically underserved, lacked social capital, lived in poverty, and excluded due to institutional racism,
2. Examples: persons in the first generation of their family that is attending college, persons who are homeless, persons who identify as LGBTQ, persons with cognitive impairments, persons living in poverty, persons who are physically challenged, persons who identify as belonging to non-majority racial and/or cultural groups not a part of the majority in society, senior citizens, and persons with serious and persistent mental illness,
3. Compare with DEFICIT LANGUAGE, HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED, MARGINALIZED, STEREOTYPE THREAT, and STIGMA.