Learning anything this summer?
sandy_island_caribbean-normal
Summer is in full effect. Swimming, family trips, and other leisure activities are also in full effect. As a result, I am sure that professional learning is not ranked very high on the summer fun list for most teachers. The funny thing is the summer presents the most optimal time for exploring very meaningful professional development ideas. I have come to understand the value of the of a well-timed summer professional learning task, and I would like to solicit other educators for their ideas for teachers of various levels of experience. Please comment below with a professional learning idea that you have benefited from and would like to share with others.
Working with adults, no problem!
2012-03-02 09.33.04
So you have to work with an adult learner, and you have some concerns. Below is a comparison of the learning characteristics of adult learners and youth learners adapted from Rochester Institute of Technology. Of course, these are generalizations with exceptions occurring in each group of learners, but you may want to keep these differences in mind as you consider the learner population you will be working with.
Adult Learners
Youth Learners
Problem-centered; seek educational solutions to where they are compared to where they want to be in life
Subject-oriented; seek to successfully complete each learning task, regardless of how the task relates to their own goals
Results-oriented; have specific results in mind for education - will drop out if education does not lead to those results because their participation is usually voluntary
Future-oriented; youth education is often a mandatory or an expected activity in a youth's life and designed for the youth's future
Self-directed; typically not dependent on others for direction
Often depend on adults for direction
Often skeptical about new information; prefer to try it out before accepting it
Likely to accept new information without trying it out or seriously questioning it
Seek education that relates or applies directly to their perceived needs that is timely and appropriate for their current lives
Seek education that prepares them for an often unclear future; accept the postponed application of what is being learned
Accept responsibility for their own learning if learning is perceived as timely and appropriate
Depend on others to design their learning; reluctant to accept responsibility for their own learning
In summary, adult learners usually approach learning differently than younger learners:
They are more self-guided in their learning.
They bring more, and expect to bring more, to a learning situation because of their wider experience - and can take more away.
They require learning "to make sense" - they will not perform a learning activity just because you said to do it.
The Art of Reflective Feedback
feedback chart
I have come to learn that reflective feedback plays a major role in learning. The key to opening up more opportunities for learning for teachers is to utilize the appropriate form of reflective feedback. According to a study done by Costa & Garmston, feedback usually is given in the following forms:
Options for reflective feedback
Clarifying questions or statements for better understanding
Feedback statements that identify value or value potential
Feedback to mediate thinking through the use of reflective questions for possibilities
Another necessary part of providing reflective feedback questions should be to presume positive intent. Whenever you presume reflective thinking on the part of educators you run the risk of causing a teacher to withdraw. Once the language of positive presupposition is a part of one’s natural way of speaking and thinking, the use of reflective questions is as natural and easy as finding a word dictionary.
Questioning with Positive Presupposition
Action Items
Try these strategies next time you work with teachers as you refine your art of reflective feedback.
Use positive presuppositions that presume a person has capacity, positive intention, desire, and prior and ongoing consideration.
Honor the speaker by demonstrating belief or trust in the speaker.
Model acceptance and respect