Our group, Piaget, decided to teach about positivity in teaching, especially in connection to using A.I., or Appreciative Inquiry. A.I. is a tool developed by David Cooperrider, and is "a method for studying and changing social systems (groups, organizations, communities) that advocates collective inquiry into the best of what is in order to imagine what could be..." to quote the Wikipedia entry, which you can see in full here.
So, we began with a story:
Once upon a time, there were two kingdoms: a Happy Kindom, where everything worked well and everyone was content, and an Unhappy Kingdom, where nothing worked and everyone was miserable.
One day, the King of the Unhappy Kingdom called for his Special Adviser and asked her to go on a mission, to the Happy Kingdom, to find out what has going so right there. The Special Adviser duly accepted the quest and set off for the Happy Kingdom straight away.
Upon arrival, the Adviser decided to go straight to the top and seek out the King of the Happy Kingdom, to find out what he was doing right, so that everything worked and everyone was happy.
- Oh, it's not because of me that everything goes right here, the King laughed. It's my wife, the Queen! She's the one who does all the good work. She has everything in such good order and organises the most amazing banquettes that the people all love so much!
So the Adviser set off in search of the Queen to find our her secret.
- Aha, no, your are mistaken, said the Queen. It's not me who is the cause of all the happiness. Yes, I organise these banquettes, but it's my Chef who's the real genius. He makes the most amazing food! It's really fantastic. Go speak to him.
Again, the Adviser set off in search of answer, this time from the palace kitchen...
- Hehe, how funny! said the Chef. Of course, I make amazing food, but that's because of the amazing produce that I get. It's the farmers and the fishermen, all those who bring me the ingredients who are to be thanked for this, not me!
Giving up on her quest to find out the secret of the Happy Kingdom, the Adviser set off back to the Unhappy Kingdom to report her findings.
- I'm sorry, Sire, she said to the King. I spoke to lots of people, but I never got close to finding out what the secret of the Happy Kingdon was.
The End.
Then, we asked the group to work in pairs and come up with their own theory about what the secret was. Of course, it was a combination of things, including a willingness to appreciate others, value the contributions of others around you, be positive about those around you and not try to take credit for yourself, but be willing to share the success with your workmates, as a team.
Then, we asked the group to divide into pairs and think for one minute about one example of success in learning from their own experience and tell their partner about it. Then we reported, as a whole group, what we had found.
Then, in slightly larger groups, of three or four, we asked people to try to find out the reasons for the success in those cases. Again, we reported back as a whole class. The reasons were, for example, being motivated to learn, having a strict deadline, having a good incentive, among other things, it being fun, having immediate feedback, among other things.
Then we discussed how in A.I. one of the key ideas is that you will always take things from your past into your future with you. So, why not take positive things form your past? Take the good examples of things working well and learn from those what the best practice is for you and how to achieve results, rather than failures or bad experiences.
That was our short workshop on Positivity in teaching.
VOC 1 sessions
Here I aim to report about my experiences during the VOC I sessions,
looking back at what I have done personally, what my group has done, what the
other groups contributed to the sessions as well as general points about the
usefulness of each session.
My own group:
In general, I would say that our group, Piaget, were lucky to find a good
working method from the start. What works best, in my opinion, is a blend of efficiency/focus
with flexibility and a relaxed nature that means people can achieve goals
without stressing too much. It should be productive, but also enjoyable and
working with my team was both of those things.
There was also a balance to the group as even though there were only three
of us (some other groups had five), there was no clash of style. Everyone
pulled their weight and we were able to get things done well and on time.
Session 1, 17.9.2013
For the first session, we acted as the Chair Group, which simply meant that
we had to supervise the other groups in terms of timekeeping and making sure
that things flowed technically. For me, it wasn’t difficult and I even found it
enjoyable as there was no heavy burden to present anything, so in that sense it
was an easy start. At the same time, I was able to follow and participate in
the other groups’ presentations.
Team Dewey: What is learning?
This proved to be a wide-ranging look at many different theories and
theorists. We learned about Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences, David A.
Kolb’s Experimental Learning, Maslow’s Heirarchy of Needs, Behaviourism &
Cognitivism and Humanism & Constructivism. To cover so much in such a short
session was ambitious, but there was still space to discuss and digest these
ideas. A lot of things at this stage fall into the category of being at the
same time new and familiar, because they are grounded in common sense, so we
can immediately understand what is being discussed and why it is relevant.
Multiple Intelligences is one subject we covered during the contact session
and that’s also something that I have some to appreciate in my own teaching. I
think I am keeping it more firmly at the front of my mind that students just do
have different ways of learning and that there’s real empirical value in
tailoring the studies to best fit different styles. For me, the significance of
this cannot be overstated.
References:
http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks3/ict/multiple_int/index.htm
(an interesting site where you can take a test to see what your own style of
intelligence is)
Team Freire: The role of learning styles in teaching/tutoring
After covering some basics of education/learning theory, Team Freire
concentrated on developing an understanding of McCarthy’s 4mat Theory of
learning styles.
To summarize, this involves four basic styles of learning as follows:
Imaginative Learning–Feeling and watching, seeking personal associations, meaning, involvement.
Making connections. Key question: Why?
Type Two
Analytic Learning–Listening to and thinking about information; seeking facts, thinking through ideas; learning what the experts think. Formulating ideas. Key question: What?
Type Three
Common Sense Learning–Thinking and doing. Experimenting, building, creating usability. Tinkering.
Applying ideas. Key question: How?
Type Four
Dynamic Learning–Doing and feeling. Seeking hidden possibilities, exploring, learning by trial and error, self-discovery. Creating original adaptations. Key question: If?
Again, for me this is something I can accept without friction. If I had to
bracket myself into one of these styles, I think I would go along with either
Two or Three. I always want to know what the smart folks have thought about
the issues before, so I want to be quite academic in my reseach and read lots of
books. Then, I find real value in playing with subject, experimenting,
tinkering with ideas and testing things in (sometimes very tight) frames, to
see how they work under pressure and if I can really get my head around them.
One real challenge in here is finding out what makes the students tick and
that can often be a case of trial and error. I think it’s important, especially
when you don’t know the learners well enough, to present a wide variety of
different styles and then pay close attention to what they seem to respond best
to.
References:
Team Vygotsky: What is progressive learning?
The last session, from Team Vygotsky was just as interesting and
informative as the other two. To tackle this issue, we looked at Kai
Hakkarainen’s model of Progressive Inquiry and compared it to Kolb’s
Experiential Learning.
Below you can see roughly what it looks like and how it seeks to mirror the
same methods employed in the scientific community. This is especially useful in
learning when it takes place within a
group and the target is problem solving and knowledge building. In my
own experience, I have employed something similar when working with groups of
students in game design project and it’s much better (and I feel much more
confident with it) if I have a concrete theory to fall back on and a good
working plan.
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_inquiry
For me, these are all good tips and every single one is important. If I had
to pick out a couple that for me and really significant, I’d say those would be
the set-up of the room, the positivity for contribution and the enthusiasm for
the subject. I find that when I am teaching in any kind of unfamiliar space, I
always want to be there early, so that the room is organized in the optimal
way. If I turn up and it’s not, in my opinion, conducive to good learning, I
will ask the student to help me rearrange the tables and chairs before we begin.
Spending five minutes of a class getting the set up right is far better than spending a whole class time with a disjointed environment that can a hindrance to the flow of knowledge or a distraction for anybody.
Team Piaget: What is a curriculum?
Session 2: 1.10.2013
For the second session of the VOC I course, my own group, Piaget, and two
others, Freire and Vygotsky, contributed to the working session, whilst the
forth group, Dewey, acted as Chair Group.
Team Freire: What is learning through discussion?
In terms of valuing and preparing well for discussion as a tool for
education at vocational level, were provided an interesting and comprehensive
list of tips and checklists for the method.
There were tips about how to help create productive discussion, such as:
- Create a safe environment
- Have clear objectives
- Inform about expectations
- Don’t fear silence
- Organise the room appropriately
- Give positive feedback for participation
- Show enthusiasm for the subject
- Manage the process and the content
- Listen, learn and adapt
Spending five minutes of a class getting the set up right is far better than spending a whole class time with a disjointed environment that can a hindrance to the flow of knowledge or a distraction for anybody.
We also looked at the benefits of discussion as an educational tool. Freire
pointed out that it can help students learn for various reasons:
- It encourages them to engage with the subject
- It forces them to evaluate their own logic and the positions of others
- Students become aware of and formulate problems around the subject
- The students have the opportunity to apply their own principles
- It uses the resources of those in the room
For me, this last point is really relevant. When one considers that every
student has their own areas of knowledge and expertise, we can really benefit
as a group when we come together in this kind of exercise, as long as the
discussion has been set up properly in the first place.
References:
The second reference is significant for me as it provides further tips
about best practice in classroom discussions. One that I find particularly
useful is to do with clarification:
“Some students have great ideas, but they experience difficulty expressing those ideas clearly. (Adults may have this problem as well!) If understanding is elusive, how can a teacher respond productively? One option is to call for clarification. For example,Can you help me out here, William? I'm not sure I've understood you.Frances, I'm going to try to say that back to you, and you tell me whether I've understood you correctly.In these examples, the teacher assumes responsibility for not understanding. Such questions do not penalize students or make them feel stupid; they simply give students another opportunity to help the teacher understand. In addition, such questions give students practice framing their ideas into comprehensible statements.Once the teacher fully grasps what the student is trying to say, that teacher can formulate an appropriate response so that the dialogue can continue on a productive course.”
Team Vygotsky: Virtual teaching
The subject here was very relevant, given the way we are all learning on
this course: virtually! Haha, I made a joke; that we are virtually learning. :)
One of the things that we discussed was the idea of simulation games in
education. In this area, progress is being made all the time and research is
showing how we can use technology to help student to learn in a more active
way, rather than passively learning in the classroom.
Other good points were made about abilities in using technology in
education and, closely connected to that, attitudes. Learners will take a cue
from the educator, so they themselves should be competently aware and
enthusiastic about virtual learning environments.
On the issue of games in education, I am reminded of one very interesting book
I read a few years ago, What Video GamesHave To Teach Us About Learning And Literacy by James Paul Gee. I would thoroughly
recommend this book for anyone interested in video games and education or even
just one of those topics.
References:
http://www.jamespaulgee.com/publications
(lots of interesting articles around the subject of video games and learning)
Team Piaget: What is a curriculum?
Finally, my own group had the opportunity to hold a workshop during the
session and from my perspective, it was really quite exciting and fun. I
thoroughly enjoyed it and I think that comes largely from having prepared well
in our group beforehand, so I knew what I was talking about.
Our jumping off point was to canvass for views on what came into people’s
minds when they hear the word “curriculum”. Words that came up were “plan,
advice, content, direction, map…”, which seems like a good way to start.
We showed the following video as part of our session, looking at new ideas
around curriculum:
What came up during the discussion was that many people had not really given
much thought to the idea of curriculum before, so it was refreshing to present
some ideas about it. In our discussions we asked questions about how much influence
a teacher can have on curriculum, should there be variations between regions
and do you like the idea of variety in the curriculum?
We examined three different ways of thinking about it, as can be seen in
the following image:
All in all, it was a very nice and fruitful discussion and you can find the
whole presentation as well as all the relevant resources in PowerPoint form
here.
References:
Session 3: 16.10.2013
For the third session, the Chair Group was Team Freire and the other three
groups, mine included, had presentations to make on various interesting
subjects. by this stage, I would say that the whole virtual session flow had
settled down as everyone now knew how things went and everyone’s own
presentations were developing and adapting according to what appeared to have
worked in the previous two sessions. Also, we had all begun to know each other
better now, so that helped make a nice, productive session.
Team Piaget: Portfolios and everything about them!
Our presentation was divided into three subsections: What is a portfolio,
what is a good portfolio process and lastly, what is a digital portfolio.
Our jumping off point was to see how and how much others have used
portfolios. We found that it is actually something that most people are aware
of, but haven’t for whatever reason been active with and are keen to know more
about, which is great for us.
For me, during the researching phase and in hosting the session, maybe the
most useful tool was concerned with what was a good process. It includes being
selective about what you put it your portfolio, putting your own personality in
there, being sure to put projects and work into context in terms of what you’ve
learnt and constantly refreshing the whole portfolio based on new developments
or the current purpose of it.
I have in the past taught portfolio classes to students about to graduate
and there’s some real gold tips in there that I will use in future.
In the end were able to give a hint about one digital portfolio website,
Wix, which allows you set up your own easily customizable portfolio, with many
templates to choose from, with a freemium level entry, which is something that
I got the impression many people were genuinely excited about.
References:
Our whole presentations and the
references can be found here: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0ByzDy4uXDKauOHpTYVNHamRuNkE/edit
Team Dewey: How to evaluate and asses learning
We started by discussing our own experiences of evaluation methods and then
went on to think about the comparison between peer and self evaluation.
One of the really interesting things to come out of this session was the
model by John Biggs: Structure of the Observed Learning Outcome (SOLO), which
you can see below:
What I think this is telling us simply to aim for a much more nuanced and
ambitious way of evaluating, beyond something as simple as (can the student do
one simple task) towards something much more holistic and involving the student
actively engaging in the subject. That, for me, is the key thing, the student
involvement.
References:
http://www.pontydysgu.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/eva_europe_vol2_prefinal.pdf
(a guide to the evaluation of e-learning, by Attwell)
Team Vygotsky: The student’s role in self-evaluation
In this presentation we covered such issues as what is self-evaluation, why
it can be useful and how it works best. I must say that I remain yet to be
convinced about the role and benefits of self-evaluation beyond the obvious
idea that one ought to have a decent enough idea if one is learning or not, but
then isn’t that automatically folded into the very concept of learning?
Well, maybe it isn’t. Maybe it is possible for people to blindly go through
a learning process without giving much thought to whether they are developing in
the right way and at the right speed. And the benefit of becoming aware of this
as a learner is that it can take some of the burden off the teacher, so that
there’s more than one party involved in evaluating the process.
And this seems to be the real key benefit to self-evaluation: independence!
References:
Session 4:
29.10.2013
For the fourth and final virtual session of VOC I, the Chair Group was
Vygotsky, meaning ourselves and the two other groups presented during the
55-minute long sessions. I will begin by reporting on our own group…
Team Piaget –
Group Dynamics
For me, this was arguably the most interesting subject to deal with during
the whole of the VOC I virtual session course. I have for a long time been interested
in this subject and have had some experience working with a consultancy firm in
Oslo, dealing with such matters as how teams can best work together.
During the research phase for our presentation, I was able to lean on my
Norwegian counterparts for some tips about which thinkers they are using and
they suggested I go back to Belbin and his models of teamwork, which I was
happy to do.
We also looked at Tuckman’s model of the stages of team development, which
was another eye-opening experience for those taking part.
The discussions were fruitful and insightful. Everyone has experience of
working in a team and people instinctively understand the challenges that came
come from that, so there’s real gratitude when tools for dealing with teamwork
are presented. For me, this is such a key component to successful classroom
productivity that I want to work on this more and more in my own time, too.
References:
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0ByzDy4uXDKaubUhHOGRBSGZCanc/edit
(Where you can find the whole presentation PowerPoint as well as all of the
sources)
Team Dewey –
The role of vocational education in the whole of Finnish education
The subject matter for Team Dewey was a complicated one, but they dealt
with it well. They had one interview with one project manager, Leena Happonen,
who was able to lay out the significance of vocational education in the bigger
picture, with specific reference to the use of having those close ties to the
working community.
Looking at the challenges that face vocational education brought about
through maximizing the working-life connection, there appear to many and all of
them significant. For my part, it was interesting to listen to this kind of
thing as I have personally found many challenges in my own work in trying to
foster good, working relationships with work practice places.
The greatest challenge for me has been a lack of resources, meaning that
there just hasn’t been enough time to go to all the places and strike up a
solid working relationship with the people there. It’s good to know I’m not
alone and others also feel that this challenge needs attention.
And we watched this video:
Team Freire –
What is expected of a vocational teacher?
The kicking off point for this discussion was the core competences for the
vocational teacher, as laid out by our own school.
This is something that we have covered before, but it’s really useful, I
find, to go back and look at things again and see that the meanings have
changed or become clearer over time and also that what you focused on a few
months ago might be different to now. This is a sign of good progress, I think,
when understanding is developing and changing due to studies.
Some other topics which came up in this discussion were equality and
sustainability, which is important for everyone in all walks of life, not just
teachers. This is something that gets covered later on in greater detail, too.
References:
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