Reflecting on my Learning

As I continue to learn about the Characteristics of Effective Instruction, I find that they make more and more sense to me.  I feel as though I “get” the concepts behind each and with continued study, I’ll get better and better at articulating the concepts, as well as incorporating them into my teaching.

I’m feeling good about my learning when it comes to the Web 2.0 tools as well!  Again, I know that I’ll never “get there” when it comes to mastery of the tools, as new ones are being developed much more quickly than I can learn the ones I know about!  But… I know that is the nature of the game, and I'm adjusting to it!  When I think about what I’m doing now, that I wasn’t doing just 6 months ago, I feel pretty good!  I'm fairly comfortable with Adobe  Connect Pro, as we have been using it as our primary mode of Iowa Core PD this year.  I also have created and currently use four separate Wikis this year-  one for my Nashua-Plainfield group, one for my Grinnell Middle School Group, one for my Archdiocese Brain-Based Learning group, and one for our SPIN leadership teams.  While it has been a struggle to get my participants to use the Wikis as much as I would like (without imposing rigid expectations on them), they are coming around, and are using them more and more.  Within all of the Wikis, I have used the discussion forum to extend our face to face discussions.

I have also created two blogs and am using them regularly.  One of these is for maintaining a connection between myself and my BBL participants during the winter months when we are not meeting face to face.  It is a way to keep them thinking about the content of the class, even when we’re not together for long periods of time.  I also created a blog that is linked to my personal website.  I use this to make regular posts about whatever I’m hearing, reading, or learning about the brain--- for whoever might be interested. 

Perhaps my greatest ‘aha’ (which really shouldn’t have been an aha) has been that whatever I blog about, sticks with me!  Rather than just reading an article about a particular research study or finding, I find that when I write about it- and try to articulate it in writing to anyone who might be reading my blog, I develop such a clearer understanding of the concept myself!  While this is certainly not a new concept- the idea that when you engage in WRITTEN REFLECTION on a topic, it is a form of elaborative rehearsal, and actually deepens the learning-  it’s been a good reminder for me about the power of writing!  This makes blogging (regardless of whether anyone is actually reading my posts) a great tool for deepening my own learning!    

Student-Centered Classrooms

Each time I read one of the CEI briefs- and talk with others about it- I gain a better picture of what that particular characteristic would  look like, sound like, and feel like in a classroom.  While we can ALL read the words on the pages of the briefs- as can all of the teachers in our schools- the words mean so much more when there is good discussion around the concepts behind the words.  As I continually learn about how the brain actually learns a new concept, I'm more convinced than ever that a key component of ANY learning, is the opportunity to talk with others.  One of my favorite quotes regarding this "talking to learn" comes from Alfie Kohn, in his book "Punished by Rewards."  He says that "learning, at its best, is a result of sharing information and ideas, challenging someone else's interpretation, having to rethink your own, and working on problems in a climate of social support."  He goes on to say that "understanding and intellectual growth are derived not only from the relationship between student and teacher or between student and text, but also from the relationship between one student and another." 

While the concept of Student-Centered Classrooms is broader than this, it seems to me that this "talking to learn" piece is huge.  Sharing thoughts, understandings, and opinions- and listening to others share theirs- is a critical part of "constructing your own knowledge".  Orchestrating a learning environment that not only allows for this type of discourse, but encourages it- aligns with each of the attributes of a Student-Centered Classroom.  Construction of learning, Collaboration, Metacognition, Meaningful assessment, and a Partnership between educator and students. 

The concept of a Student-Centered Classroom is something that I need to understand deeply- so that I can help teachers to understand, and so that I can effectively provide that type of "classroom" for my adult learners.  In MY teaching, I must never underestimate the power of "talking to learn".  It is often tempting to just give participants information, without taking the time for them to work with the information.  It follows the well-known adage that "less is more".  Less information given, but more time to grapple with the information- through structured conversations- results in MORE learning, DEEPER learning, and LONG-TERM RETENTION of the learning.  This is one of the many concepts of the CEI that overlap-  a student-centered classroom is a place where teaching for understanding is the norm.