338 ACTIVITY 1: Building Learning Communities

WHY:

Most of the work done in this course will be done in teams. This activity will help you become familiar with others in the class, many of whom you will work and learn with in the future. Working in teams is an important skill, in great demand by future employers.

PREREQUISITES:

1. Willingness to learn.
2. Commitment to working with your teammates and other students.
3. Commitment to learning how to learn.
4. Willingness to trust your teacher to lead you through the learning process.

VOCABULARY:

Activity

A structure based on the Learning Process Methodology that helps clarify steps needed to obtain knowledge.

Affective Domain

The area of educational theory that is concerned with emotional growth and development.

Assessment

A measurement of a performance or use of process. A good assessment should identify strengths, improvement areas, and insights (SII) about a performance against a given set of criteria.

Cognitive Domain

The area of education theory that is concerned with the growth and development of thinking and reasoning skills.

Cooperative Learning

Learning in teams involving both interdependence (all members must cooperate to complete the task) and individual accountability (each member is accountable for the final outcome).

Concept

An idea that represents a set of relationships.

Concept Model

Any model that illustrates a concept. You can form these using language, diagrams, graphs, simulations, mathematical models, physical models, analogies and experiences.

Critical Thinking

Exploring ideas by identifying important issues.

Criteria

Defining characteristics used to assess something.

Discovery Learning

Learning through exploration. Guided discovery learning is the directed exploration of new concepts.

Education

The formalized process of teaching and learning of knowledge, processes, tools and skills, within a context.

Insight

Something important you discover for the first time.

Journal Writing

Collecting written observations and insights about your experiences so that you can analyze, use, or refine them at a future time.

Knowledge

Familiarity, awareness, or understanding gained through experience of study.

Knowledge Base

The body of knowledge and skills associated with your current level of understanding.

Learning

The process of using learning skills and applying previously learned concepts to obtain new knowledge.

Learning Skills

Aptitudes, attitudes, abilities, and techniques concerning the mind, body, emotions, spirit, and social environment used to acquire new knowledge and new skills. (C.f.: Taxonomy of Process Education)

Life-long Learning

Applying your learning skills to new situations throughout your life.

Methodology

A system of steps that guide your use of a process.

Model

An example to be imitated or compared. A model is an abstract simplification used to help create new knowledge.

Prerequisites (Base Concepts)

The set of concepts that need to be mastered before you begin to build a new body of knowledge.

Problem

A discrepancy between your expectations and your experiences surrounding an important issue.

Problem Solving

The process of finding a way to resolve the difficulties posed by a particular problem. Following the methodology for problem solving increases the likelihood of finding a good solution.

Process

A series of actions, steps, or changes that bring about a result.

Process Education

The form of active learning that is student centered, engaged in thinking, problem solving, communicating, assessing, and working in teams.

Psychomotor Domain

The area of educational theory concerned with movement or muscular activity associated with mental processes.

Self-assessment

Measuring your own progress in the use of process for the sake of learning.

Social Domain

The area of educational theory that is concerned with social activity and development.

Teamwork

A group of people actively cooperating in an organized way to achieve a goal.

DISCUSSION

Learning is not about money, or jobs, or self-esteem, or your family, or your outlook on life but all of those things can have a major impact on what and how you learn. Being a good learner, able to quickly learn subject matter, can have an impact on what king of job you have, how much you earn, and your own self- image. Being a good learner does not mean you will get rich, but being a slow learner will make keeping a good job hard.

For many students, learning quickly equals cramming for tests at the last moment. In some courses you can receive a good grade if, at the last moment, you stuff your head with facts that can then be spilled back out on a test. Process education asks a great deal more than a jumble of facts. This course asks you to learn how to learn, not just who, what, and where. This course will always ask why.

Why is it important to learn well and quickly? How quickly can you adapt to change and teach another student a concept you just learned yourself? How well will they learn it? These questions, and the answers you offer, will tell you more about yourself than all the cramming in a semester can.

Learning is not always easy. Learning quickly, in an environment of change and challenge can frustrate even good learners. Frustration is not a bad thing it is a warning. Usually it means you need more time to process information, more help with a concept or model. As you are pushed more and more to learn and assess your progress, you will come to realize that you are in charge of your own progress. The speed at which you learn material is not carved in stone, or embedded in some computer chip in your head. Your instructor, the structure of your textbook, and your own desire to improve your performance will all drive you to excel.

If you feel frustrated, raise a hand. Talk to your teammates and your teacher often. If you work with others, you should quickly realize that they too have questions and concerns.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

1. Get to know other people and their goals so that you can work with them more effectively.
2. Share your career and educational goals with others.

CRITERIA:

1. Completeness of your interview notes.
2. Thoughtfulness of your personal goals for this course.

RESOURCES:

1. 20 minutes

PLAN:

1. Take a few minutes to individually fill out the "Establishing Personal Goals" sheet and show it to the teacher when done.
2. Interview the teammate on your left using the Critical Thinking Questions below and document her answers in the space provided.
3. Introduce your partner to the rest of the team.

CRITICAL THINKING QUESTIONS:

Partner's Name __________________________________________

1. What best describes your partner's learning style? Some suggestions:
   1. Concrete experiencer -- Learns best by verbalizing in small groups
      
      
   2. Reflective Observer -- Learns best by listening and reflecting and then verbalizing (likes lectures).
      
      
   3. Abstract Conceptualizer -- Likes learning for its own sake -- Learns best through homework or trying things on one's own
      
      
   4. Active experimenter -- Likes "Just in Time" learning when needed to accomplish a real world task. Likes projects, as realistic as possible.
      
      
   5. Other
      
      
      
      
2. What are the top three educational goals for your partner?
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. What are the top three career goals of your partner?
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Why is your partner in this course and what benefits would she like to obtain from the course?
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
5. What are two things you have in common with your partner outside of academics?
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

SKILL EXERCISES:

1. Design an activity that your team will do outside of class to get to know each other better. Be prepared to share your activity with the rest of the class.
2. As a class decide on the information you would like to have in a class directory. Compile the required information for your team. Elect someone from the class to organize this information using a word processor.

   Establishing Personal Goals

   Purpose: To identify your personal goals for this course and measurable outcomes related to these goals.

   NAME: _____________________________________

   Goal 1:
   
   
   
   
   
   

   Goal 2:
   
   
   
   
   
   

   Goal 3:
   
   
   
   
   
   

   Measurable outcomes related to these goals:

   Outcome 1:
   
   
   
   
   
   

   Outcome 2:
   
   
   
   
   
   

   Outcome 3:
   
   
   
   
   
   

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   338 Activity 1 -- revised 8/4/98