Theory Name: Caring Community of Learners

Authors (Last, First): Lewis, Catherine; Watson, Marilyn; Schaps Eric.

Associate Learning Theory:
Social learning focusing on building a caring community of learners: The essential goals of schooling are children's social and ethical development as well as intellectual development. The children's social, ethical, and intellectual development can be built within a caring community of learners.

Model Description:
This theory focuses on fostering social and ethical, as well as content knowledge development. The theory is intended for K-6 schools. To develop a caring community of learners, the theory offers as a set of instructional strategies including 1) literature-based reading to evoke student’s awareness f social and ethical theme; 2) addressing disciplinary problem; 3) cooperate learning to build understanding and practice; and 4) using schoolwide activities.

Specification of Theory
(a) Goals and preconditions
The primary goal of the theory is to foster social and ethical, as well as intellectual development by building caring relationships, ownership, reflection, internal motivation, understanding of prosocial values, and academic development.
(b) Principles
1) Provide a caring community of learners in which all children feel valued and emotionally attached; 2) Provide a curriculum to foster bonds among fellow students and interest in learning (intrinsic motivation); 3) Practices and promotes prosocial values for social and ethical learning
(c) Condition of learning
This theory targets the learners in K-6 schools. Learning domains include social and ethical development as well as intellectual knowledge gaining.
(d) Required media
Books that raise social and ethical issues such as honesty, courage, and compassion
(e) Role of facilitator
Facilitator can be instructor. Instructor should promote the learners to build the shared norm for their CCL, diagnose why misbehavior is occurring, and help children develop the skills, understanding, and human bonds
(f) Instructional strategies
1) Literature-based reading (read-aloud the social and ethical themes to construct understanding);
2) Developmental discipline (address disciplinary problems with a problem-solving approach);
3) Cooperative learning (group work to promote children’s understanding and practice);
4) Use schoolwide activities (to extend values of respect, fairness, and kindness)
(g) Assessment method: Not specified

Formative Research & Application
(a) Tested context: K-12 (Lewis, Schaps, & Watson, 1996)
(b) Research method

(c) Research description: Lewis, Schaps and Watson (1996) argue that the creation of a "caring community of learners" is vital to children's learning and citizenship. The CDP approach involves using research data on how children learn and develop and translating them into a complete, practical program consisting of a classroom initiative that focuses on literature-based reading instruction, cooperative learning, and a problem-solving approach to discipline; a schoolwide program of community building and service activities; and a family involvement program. CDP schools become caring communities of learners by adhering to five interrelated principles that endeavor to create warm, supportive, stable relationships; constructive learning; an important, challenging curriculum; intrinsic motivation; and activities that promote the social and ethical dimensions of learning

(d) Resources
Lewis, C., Watson, M., & Schaps, E. (1999). Recapturing education’s full mission: Educating for social, ethical, and intellectual development. In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (pp. 511-536). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
Lewis, C., Schaps, E. & Watson, M. (1996). The caring classroom’s academic edge. Educational Leadership, 53, 16-21.