I really likegetting to know each of my students I believe this makes them realize that I care about them as indivudials and want them to suceed.
Judy
by Judy McDonogh
I agree,but sometimes the students ,of course think they know more than we do, so I include myself in all my lessons with my real life experiences.
I sometimes have the same problem, but I include myself as one of the students an let them know that once I was in their same position and also put my real life experience into each lesson. I haven't been teaching very long an am still learning.
Hi Joel,
Right you are and something all instructors need to keep in mind.
Gary
Hi George,
Good question. What I do is to reform groups throughout the course so that the students get to know other students as well as have the opportunity to work with others. This way I get to even out the groups so if I have a stalling group it will soon be resolved and a new one created. I do wait until a specific assignment is completed so the students can anticipate the groups being changed rather than seeing the new groups being formed as a result of poor performance.
Gary
Hi Richard,
Good point. This creates a great opportunity for developing rapport with students which leads to enhanced learning and retention.
Gary
Having an understanding of the learner characteristics helps me group some of the stronger students with ones that would benifit from peer assistance. This includes language barriers
I have a very wellmixed class with almost all the charateritics you have covered. I have to plan work shop that will capture the experience of an older student who has patients with the task at hand and the enthusiasim of the younger students that want get it apart and move on. I see now that planning of the student groups will greatly affect the needs of both groups. Question If a group is sucessful and learning the material and another group is stalling would you break up the sucessful group and mix with the stalling group?
learning between student and teacher requires a partnership and open communication. If you understand this, proper expectations can be set to accommodate the instructional planning process
Thank you, sir.
I enjoyed writing the reply.
Learning preferences are such a valuable insight and a key means to making each course unique and accessible.
Best,
Rockford
Hi Jennifer,
Right you are. Students become engaged as a result of having opportunities to use their different learning preferences.
Gary
I agree... adressing different learning stlyes can be the key to retention and college success.
Hi Dr. Sansom,
Thank you for sharing your insight into how you approach a group of students and identifying their learning preferences. You have given readers of these forums a lot of valuable information from which they can learn and benefit.
Gary
I am a new instructor. I try to see the students as individuals and watch their reactions/expressions to the lectures. I try to get the class to interact in conversation regarding presenting the material so I can assess their understanding of the material. I try to relate the situation to an everyday situation that they might find themselves in. I use as much information that I can to bring clarity to the subject material. I love to see the lightbulbs go on!
How does an understanding of learner characteristics help in the instructional planning process?
“The only source of knowledge is experience”—Albert Einstein (1954, p. 91).
Understanding learner characteristics makes a direct impact in instructional planning. Knowledge of an adult learner filters the educational philosophy in which I work. Ultimately, I support the change from instructor-centered teaching to student-centered learning, which has come to prominence in higher education in recent years. This philosophy takes away the image of the “sage on the stage.” Students no longer accept nor should they accept a talking head as the sole means of education. Under more antiquated paradigms of higher learning instructors are considered subject matter experts that deliver knowledge to learners; this method has traditionally been provided through lecture. In turn, a learner’s role is to passively absorb this knowledge. Often viewed as a “banking system,” instructors in this paradigm deposit knowledge that learners absorb that may then be retrieved and used (Elias & Merriam, 1995). These older philosophy is no longer valid in many higher learning contexts because of the nature of non-traditional learners, particularly in the online delivery with which I work. Instructors must acknowledge the specific learners in the class room and their specific needs, allowing for flexibility and the student’s needs to drive the course.
The recent student-centered trends in higher education are actually a renaissance of progressive education from the early twentieth century; however, the current trends have implications for both traditional and nontraditional deliver platforms including distance education. The purpose of a progressive education is to meet a student’s needs at the current point of instruction (Ohmann et al., 2004); this idea implies that needs change based on personal development and social constructs. To this end, most progressive education underlines John Dewey’s (1938) beliefs in life-long learning—education for education’s sake that promotes exploration and interaction with an environment. The role of the educator becomes one of facilitator. Rejecting formalized instruction, the progressive educator prompts and guides learning that students initiate (Dale, 1979). “Learning by doing” became a mantra-like ideal to early progressive educators since this saying encapsulates the role of the learner who actively experiences and constructs knowledge rather than passively allowing knowledge to be delivered to them, which in turn implies that the learner’s role is to engage learning as the prime constructor (Ohmann et al.). This perspective also implies that all learners are unique with specific needs and goals that are experienced differently. Ultimately, the primary lens of this philosophical orientation is experience or rather a pragmatist experience; learners must experience their individualized world in order to gain and construct knowledge.
The implications of this educational theory and jargon translate very simply: student-centered learning takes the spotlight from the lecturing professor and places it on the learner. Students are no longer passive. Students can and should take active roles in their learning journey, constructing their opportunities and their roads to knowledge. This educational philosophy aptly and wholly applies to online and distance education. As opposed to lecture-based instruction, I (as facilitator) allow learners to construct knowledge as I facilitate their learning needs. As a student, I found my education the most fruitful when learning came from a host of different sources instead of just one. I learned from my professor, but my instructor was not my sole source of knowledge. I learned from colleagues, and I learned from an inward examination of myself, exploring my reflections and assimilation of information and ideas into new and personalized knowledge. As an instructor, I try to initiate this kind of learning experience to my students through prompts and guidance, not through the static lecture-based delivery. Like seminars, online learning unites the opinions and experiences of all participants.
As preparation for class, I utilize this educational sensibility. I evaluate the pool of learners with I work, and I evaluate myself. Then I tailor discussions and communications to meet these needs. I encourage project-based learning and activates that allow students to draw from experiences and to gain new insight based on their ideas and goals and on the experiences and knowledge of others.. Moreover, I encourage students to make their learning experiences tangible to career goals and situations. None of these educational goals could be reached without understanding the specific attributes of the learners.
- Dr. Rockford Sansom
References
Dale, R. (1979). From endorsement to disintegration: Progressive education from the golden age to the green paper. British Journal of Educational Studies, 27(3), 191-209.
Dewey J. (1938). Experience and education. New York: Collier Books.
Einstein, A. (1954). Ideas and opinions. New York: Random House.
Elias, J., & Merriam, S. B. (1995). Philosophical foundations of adult education. Malabar, FL: Krieger.
Ohmann, R., Feld, M., Kampf, L., Maher, F., Perlstein, D., & Weiler, K. (2004). Progressive education. Radical Teacher, 69, 2-13.
I try to teach the most basic learning style in my classes for all my student. Then I will add extra assgnments in for the students with other learning styles and it seems to be doing well for my students.
One way to do this is to have the students take an assessment test that will categorize them into a particular (or in most cases, more than one) learning style category. Then each students individual needs can be met more readliy.
Hi Paul,
Good ideas for how you are going to offer variety in your class. Keep soliciting student feedback. It is so valuable as you know in helping you to target your instructional delivery.
Gary
Dr. Meers,
I always like to invite students' feedback. That helps me to understande what motivates their interests, and the best way to keep their attention in class. I plan to move from one type of activity to another; for example from lecture time to hands-on time or to discussion time or to group study time..etc.
I like to learn about my students' backgrounds and which learning styles work best for them. Knowing these things allows me to incorporate their experiences into the class discussions and to vary my teaching style and activities to keep them interested and to make sure they get the most out of the class.
