Double Loop learning

A very interesting concept I recently came across, was the notion of double loop learning and thinking. Further research into the concept revealed the following: The term was initially coined by Chrys Argyris, Professor of Psychology and Organizational Development, and is as pictured:

It is common to analyze our actions, what we do, and correlate that to consequences or results. When we take a step further and analyze WHY we do what we do, based on what framework and what is the historical relevance to the construction of that framework, then we engage in double loop thinking.

Espoused theories of action refer to what is consciously accepted and believed in, however, these theories do not govern our behaviour and thus consequences. The theories-in-use however, do govern our behaviour yet we are seldom aware of them.

When action is intended for a purpose, feedback and adjustments in terms of action strategies related to this feedback related to single loop learning. It can lead to first order change and innovation. However, double loop learning leads to second order change and transformation. It transforms the governing values, beliefs and conceptual framework, which then has an effect on actions and strategies which in turn effects consequences and results.

This has implications in education as well, pertaining to feedback, do we utilize it for improvement or for accountability and is there tension between the two. To what extend can we transform institutional accountability to result in improved student learning and experiences.

The other implication is on a personal level, analyzing the existing framework, the historical influence and whether this framework needs more fluidity or exhaustive reconstruction. The end result being a transformational experience!

My encouragement to you is to take the time to reflect, analyze and ultimately question everything!! Have fun!!

Classroom Management

It is interesting to note how classroom management has evolved over the last few decades. I believe a great foundation for classroom management is as follows:

1. Create positive learning environment

2. State expectations clearly

3. Motivate your students

4. Make learning fun!

The major evolution, in my opinion, is the shift towards a positive student/teacher relationship and classroom dynamic that incorporates intrinsic motivational strategies and strives to make learning fun and engaging, keeping in close relation to the “Flow” theory. Thus, how do we address the gap between theory and practice? What Instructional Strategies can we use as educators to address various concerns.

1. The chatty corner – How to effectively and respectfully regain the classroom.

• Make eye contact with the talkers
• Ask the talker if they would like to share their ideas
• Casually move towards the group of talkers
• Stand near by, ask a near-by student a questions
• Stop and wait

2. Introverts – How to respectfully include them in classroom activities. 

• Ensure a positive environment free of sarcasm and avoid embarrassing them publicly.
• Avoid putting the introvert on the spot via direct questioning, they need time to process and craft an appropriate answer that will provide them with intellectual safety. If you will be using direct questioning, tell them at the start of class and use the questioning towards the end of class.
• Be respectful, do not interrupt them. Introverts are extremely self-critical and a perceived disrespectful response can lead into a downward spiral of depression.
• Use technology such as the clicker system, so they can participate that way, or use a supplemental online-discussion forum for participation marks.
• Use written guided reflections to research your practice, to better understand your students and how that will impact their involvement in class.

3. Classroom policies – How to effectively reinforce classroom rules. 

• Have an in class out loud reading of the rules and policies
• Allow for class discussion and clarification if needed
• Ask for feedback to ensure everyone has a correct understanding

4. Bring them back – How to effectively regain attention after group work. 

• Project the timer on the screen (BIG)
• Give a fellow student the timekeeping responsibility and he can choose in advance a method to give the 2 minute signal.
• Echo clapping, various rhythms.
• Call & response (” ready to rock?” – “ready to roll!”)
• Humour (talk to the whiteboard – tell it is has 2 minutes left) smile)
• Distinct sounds (animal noises on phone, get the students to pick a favourite, use that consistently).

5. Motivation – How to effectively motivate students. 

• Make learning fun and engaging
• Make it relevant
• Show passion for the concepts
• Foster a sense of belonging and learning community
• Foster a sense of respect and positivity
• Use PBL, TCL, and case studies to get “hands-on” experiential learning

I hope these strategies prove useful in the classroom, with individual customizing by the educator to fit the needs of their students!!

The Power of Introverts

The TED Talk by Susan Cain on the power of introverts has certainly illuminated the absolute necessity to respect and encourage introverts not only in society but especially in the classroom. Introverts need to be accepted, respected, valued and encouraged, particularly in our Western society that prizes extroverts. As a result, what is an introvert?

Introverts process sensory data more deeply and thoroughly because of a biological difference in the nervous system as they are overly-sensitive to dopamine, having fewer receptors, and can thus easily become overstimulated in large social gatherings. Introverts also have an increased blood flow in the frontal lobes and anterior thalamus, examined by tracing the clearance of an inert radioisotope from an array of detectors positioned around the head (Stenberg et al, 1990), which results in increased problem-solving skills and is linked to higher intelligence and academic success. They are very self-aware, thoughtful, detail oriented and observant (Scott, 2015). As a result, it is not surprising that introverts comprise one-third of the population and include mathematicians, writers, philosophers and scientists such as Albert Einstein. Their presence in society is beyond crucial and the “fix it” mentality due to common misconceptions must certainly come to a screeching halt. As a result, how do we adapt the teaching environment to encourage introverts?

There are numerous strategies to effectively make introverts feel respected, valued and encouraged. When placed in large group activities, there can be an introductory period prior to the task so the individuals can have the opportunity to slightly get to know each other, establishing mutual trust and respect. Introverts can also be assigned a role, such as that of an observant or writer in a group activity as opposed to the talkative leader. Time can be increased to allow for breadth and depth as opposed to surface knowledge in group activities or discussions. The introvert should be given an opportunity to voice his opinion without interruption, sarcasm or in a perceived negative environment. Furthermore, although introverts may not be as talkative in face-to-face discussions, an alternative online discussion may yield surprising results. In the virtual environment, introverts can easily express their opinions and thoughts in a calculated manner and their contributions to discussions in this mode can be substantial. It also continues to encourage the introvert to voice his opinion via positive peer and educator feedback, thus this alternate means of participation can be included when rewarding participation marks. Moreover, alternative examination strategies can be applied to presentations, whether students choose to present in front of a class, or whether they can display a video presentation. The video presentation is preferred by the introvert as they can invest more time, thought and effort into a presentation that can provide intellectual safety where they feel they can convey their knowledge without being put on the spot.

These “alternative examination strategies”, a term I just coined myself, should be incorporated into the universal course design. A few examples of such strategies are: visual demonstrations such as digital projects, videos, blogs, and online discussion forums. As I am writing this, I am noticing this course in particular, PIDP 3250 has made excellent use of these strategies! Alternative feedback strategies can also be given to the introvert such as private audio files, which are essential when the feedback includes criticism, as introverts can be very self-critical, particularly when their intellect is addressed. All of the above methods are intended to allow introverts to demonstrate their learning in ways which reflect their individual strengths without feeling the need to transcend into the overly-stimulant extrovert environment resulting in the negative feeling of exhaustion!

Visible Learning

PIDP 3250

The video on Visible Learning, presented by John Hattie, who has done the most research I am aware of to date in Education, was highly illuminating into aspects that have a significant effect on achievement and those that do not. The video regarding effective methods can be viewed here:

An image visual of the most effective methods can aid in discussing them as well as Instructional Strategies that foster and promote these methods.

It is interesting to note that Teacher Subject Matter Knowledge is merely 0.09, not having a significant effect on student achievement. A few of the reasons can be that although the teacher is very knowledgeable about the subject, they may lack the Instructional Strategies that foster a positive learning community, self-directed learning, meta-cognition and Feedback, which is why the PID Program is highly recommended to educators with all educational backgrounds and from all disciplines.

One other interesting aspect is to note the importance of Feedback, that it may be prompt and act as a guide to significantly improve student achievement. Feedback is a tool for further improvement and clarification for the student, yet it also plays a significant role for the educator, allowing the opportunity for teaching adjustments to better meet the needs of the learners.

Another important aspect is the Teacher-Student relationship which has a significant impact of 0.72. To foster this relationship, I would like in my future practice to create an atmosphere that is student-centered, to allow myself to be seen as a facilitator and certainly more approachable. I also recommend student-feedback to allow the introverts to communicate with me online, if they are too shy to voice their opinions in class. I would also like to place emphasis on the diversity of the class and how beneficial that it, diminishing fear-based barriers to collaboration and communication. It is also important to acknowledge the demands on the students outside of class, specifically within adult education, that way students can feel the teacher “understands” their commitments and roles outside of the classroom and treats them as persons and not numbers. The one aspect I struggled with during my undergraduate degree was the notion of being a number, in the 300+ students Science courses. To address this, I found myself taking courses such as German, Philosophy, Family Studies, French, Spanish, Linguistics and even Religion because of their class size (25 or less) and the interaction aspect, and I have learned numerous invaluable lessons from these courses and have actually made significant lasting relationships with the teachers (numerous were my references). This teacher/student relationship was only present in a handful of Science courses, mostly biology, ecology and immunology, whereas in chemistry, mathematics and physics the educator made no attempted effort to even try to communicate with the students (that is what the TA’s were there for). Instructional Strategies or Techniques that foster this are:

1. Team concept maps – allows the educator to asses student understanding and create a connection appropriate to their level of understanding. It can impact the choice of communication.

2. Think Again – promotes critical thinking and interaction with the educator, collaborative communication and dissection of topics.

3. Icebreakers – Climate setting – establishing that caring connection, the respect and roles of both educator and learner

4. Learning logs – this really helps the educator understand how the teaching is perceived and analyze whether that is in accordance to his/her perceptions. It provides an opportunity for individualized learning.

5. Feedback – Prompt feedback is essential, reveals the student is important, respected and helps them evaluate their learning.

Furthermore the last aspect I would like to focus on is Metacognition, with an impact of 0.69. Thus it is significantly important to make students aware of their thinking about thinking, of how they can assess their learning, improve their strategies and modify based on their individual needs. For more information on metacognition please see my previous posts.

In conclusion, I think it were very valuable if all educators were aware of these implications. The extreme pressure and focus on marks, tests, small class size and high educator content knowledge is unfounded when these impacts are negligible when contrasted to the importance of a teacher-student relationship, feedback, meta-cognitive strategies and classroom discussions.

Case Studies as an Instructional Strategy

PIDP 3250

The creation of the Digital Presentation on Case Studies as an Instructional Strategy has been quite challenging, as I am not the technologically inclined individual I perceived myself to be. Nevertheless, it was a great learning experience, entirely self-directed and I am very thankful for clear youtube videos or google directions that explain, step by step, how to create, fade, add sound and many other aspects required in a digital presentation.

I must have recorded my voice over forty five times, until I arrived at a somewhat reasonable pitch and speed. Although I do find there to be a perceived discrepancy between how I sound in the presentation as opposed to real life, I am interested to know how others feel about hearing themselves in a recording. It was actually a very fun experience and I do hope to improve in this area.

I have read numerous articles pertaining to the topic, and I found them of particular interest to Science academia, as behaviouristic teacher-centered methods are still prevalent and passive student learning is a key problem to roadblocks in not only theoretical and conceptual understanding yet also in making interdisciplinary connections.

Undergraduate Science students can rely heavily on memorization perhaps the first year or second, however, as courses become more challenging and occasionally more tedious, case studies become essential as an instructional strategy. This strategy can be implemented to numerous disciplines and I highly encourage its use within all post-secondary instruction.

I hope you enjoy the presentation and I look forward to your feedback! The following information on the four types of case studies was not in the presentation as time was a concern. They are as follows:

The Illustrative Case Studies are primarily descriptive. The Exploratory (Pilot) Case Studies are condensed studies prior to the implementation of a large scale investigation. The primary pitfall is that initial findings can be released prematurely as conclusions. The Cumulative Case Studies build upon a collection of past studies minimizing cost and time by eliminating the reproduction of redundant studies. The Critical Instance Case Studies present a situation of unique interest and can incorporate cause and effect questions. The results cannot be generalized as they are highly context specific.

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