Anchored Instruction

Anchored instruction is an educational practice that involves using concrete “anchors” such as brief videos to create a learning environment that requires students to draw on facts revealed in the anchor (e.g., a scene) to answer questions and solve problems. The concept of anchored instruction arose from the work of the Cognition and Technology Group at Vanderbilt (CTGV). This group was a multidisciplinary team that was working on ways to enhance student learning by helping to situate that [Page 71]learning in authentic contexts. This entry discusses the development of anchored instruction, how it takes place, and its applications “for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities”.

Many works by CTGV discuss Alfred North Whitehead’s concept of inert knowledge and the ways schools focus on building this knowledge ...