Endorsements & Impact
“Powerful Teaching is an incredible book with a very powerful message. I love the fusion of educational research with real-life practical classroom examples”
Kate Jones / Author of Love to Teach: Research and Resources for Every Classroom
100,000+
Teachers reached
Through keynotes, workshops, webinars, features in popular press, email updates, and more, strategies in Powerful Teaching have reached more than 100,000 teachers around the world.
15+
years of CLASSROOM RESEARCH
Research featured in Powerful Teaching has been highlighted by The New York Times, Education Week, NOVA, Scientific American, and numerous books and podcasts.
C to A
INCREASE IN STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
Research demonstrates that the four Power Tools found in Powerful Teaching boost student achievement from a C to an A level.
Endorsements From Leaders in Education & Cognitive Science
Read book reviews by Edutopia, Learning How to Learn MOOC, Learning & the Brain, Teachers College at Columbia University, Ditch That Textbook, and Adult Learning Journal.
Doug Lemov, Author of Teach Like a Champion 2.0, Practice Perfect and Reading Reconsidered
We’ve arguably learned more about the brain—how it works and more pressingly how it learns—in the last 20 years than we did in all of human history up to that point. Yet many educators have done precious little to adjust their teaching to what we now know. Fortunately, Powerful Teaching provides a golden opportunity to do that. ‘Golden’ because the authors have taken the science and distilled it into its most powerful form: a limited number of simple but powerful ideas with guidance on how to use them with insight and fidelity. They’ve made it easy to be smarter about how you—and your students—learn. Who doesn’t want that?
Jennifer Gonzalez, Educator and Director of Cult of Pedagogy
In recent years, educators' understanding of how people learn has shifted in some big ways, but we haven't had a go-to manual for applying that research in the classroom. Powerful Teaching is that manual and so much more. With specific examples, actionable strategies, and tips for realistic implementation, Agarwal and Bain bridge the gap between cognitive science and education, showing us exactly how to put four key strategies into practice in any subject area and any grade level. Teachers who want to see dramatic improvement in student learning must read this book!
>> Listen to the Cult of Pedagogy podcast featuring Powerful Teaching
Henry L. Roediger, III, Author of Make it Stick: The Science of Successful Learning
The authors have combined years of scientific expertise and practical experience to create a marvelous book about understanding and applying the science of learning in the classroom. Powerful Teaching is highly readable and a boon to all teachers who want to improve their students’ learning.
James M. Lang, Author of Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning
In Powerful Teaching, educators at every level will find a treasure trove of new techniques they can put to use in their classrooms, all of which are grounded in the latest research on how students learn. Accessible prose, practical strategies, and solid scientific support—these elements combine to make this a book that will benefit all teachers and, more importantly, their students.
Mandy Manning, 2018 National Teacher of the Year
Powerful Teaching shines a spotlight on the partnership between teachers and students in learning, by emphasizing student responsibility in the classroom. Using a set of clearly defined Power Tools, this book equips educators to empower students to take charge of their own learning.
Barbara Oakley, Author of Learning How to Learn and A Mind for Numbers
If we had to select a single book to recommend to instructors of any kind, it would be this masterpiece—Powerful Teaching is the best book on teaching that we’ve ever read. Agarwal and Bain provide a tour de force of practical ideas and explanations involving retrieval practice, explaining how this vital topic is related to concepts such as interleaving, deliberate practice, and formative assessments.
Annie Murphy Paul, Science Writer and Author of Origins
Other books about learning draw on academic research or on experience in the classroom. In Powerful Teaching, Agarwal and Bain combine the best of both to offer teachers, parents, and others concerned with education the most accurate and most useful information on how students learn.
Kate Jones, Author of Love to Teach: Research and Resources for Every Classroom
Powerful Teaching is an incredible book with a very powerful message for teachers as to how we can transform education. A practical read, explained clearly and explicitly, this book will impact and improve teaching and learning. I love the fusion of educational research with real-life practical classroom examples.
Benjamin Riley, Founder of Deans for Impact
This easy-to-read book makes the phrase "science of learning" real for anyone responsible for teaching students. Powerful Teaching is chock full of practical tips (not fads) and, mercifully, devoid of academic mumbo jumbo. If you want to unlock the full power of students' minds, please read this!
Oscar Ramírez, Adult Education Principal, The Next Step Public Charter School
Out of the vast universe of resources for educators, Powerful Teaching is a great one that brings research-based strategies to a comprehensible and pragmatic level. This book is an excellent choice for staff book clubs. School administrators should include a copy of this book in the welcoming package for teachers and instructional coaches. Powerful, indeed!
Blake Harvard, Blogger and AP Psychology Teacher, James Clemens High School
Teachers need this book. Students need this book. It’s as simple as that. This book will create a more efficient and effective classroom and improve learning. Powerful Teaching should be required reading for all teachers. If this book isn’t in your school’s professional development library, you’re missing out. Our classrooms are in dire need of this information and I cannot wait to lead a book study on Powerful Teaching.
Megan Nellis, Program Director of Imagine Scholar, South Africa
Powerful Teaching brings cognitive science and education together in one book! It's a digestible, evidence-based resource for educators (of all subject matter and age groups), parents, and students alike to easily implement for tremendous impact. I've already shared multiple ideas and activities with co-workers and I’ll be asking all our staff to read it!
Lisa A. Pulley, District Instructional & Technology Coach and Social Studies Teacher
I have been anxiously awaiting Powerful Teaching and I am especially excited to put Chapter 4 on Spacing and Interleaving to work in my school. The data behind the science are visually presented so that teachers can instantly see why they should be using these strategies. The authors provide multiple practical applications that can be adapted to any educational setting—a book that will truly create powerful teachers and learners!
Andrew Watson, President of Translate the Brain
By including so many teachers’ experiences and suggestions in Powerful Teaching, Agarwal and Bain put teacherly insight at the center of their thinking. They don’t need to argue that teachers should have a role; they simply show us that it’s true.
Matt Miller, Author of Ditch That Textbook
There are two types of teachers: those that teach how they think they should and those who teach how they know they should. Powerful Teaching moves teachers from the "think" camp to the "know" camp with science, research, and best practices.
Bonni Stachowiak, Host of the Teaching in Higher Ed Podcast
Powerful Teaching offers us the perfect combination of theory and practice. We can trust that the approaches being suggested are based in the research on effective teaching practices and cognitive psychology. We can also have the confidence that comes from having a plan to turn that knowledge into action. This easily-digestible resource is perfect for teachers in all sorts of contexts. It astounds me how the authors were able to meet so many different audiences’ needs. Lots of practical strategies, but so well grounded in the research. I highly recommend it.