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Not I, but the city teaches. Socrates, Philosopher When I am asked which member of the Harvard faculty has the most influence on my education in medicine I no longer grope for a name on that distinguished roster. What I remember is the influence of my classmates. Lewis Thomas, Author Typical academic activities in college are notoriously "arid" when it comes to experience, and students are quick to notice it. Peter Ewell, "Organizing for Learning: A Point of Entry," 1997 An important caution at all levels, though, is to avoid treating "experience" as an add-on pedagogy. Peter Ewell, "Organizing for Learning: A Point of Entry," 1997 |
Learning itself is an active verb and, as a faculty colleague noted, the descriptor "active learning" is redundant. But truly understanding the active nature of learning leads us to an exploration of the actions and interactions that occur within the learning process. Research predicts that deep and lasting learning occurs as a learner proceeds through a series of stages. While this progression may not be sequential, each stage is characterized by an action taken by the learner which, if successfully negotiated, leads to learning. If one action is omitted from the process, or if the learner's activity within a stage is truncated, learning may not occur or it may be diminished. The stages leading to learning include exposure to new information, thinking about it, evaluating it, connecting it, storing it, activating it, applying it, understanding it and reflecting on it. While these are actions taken by the learner, faculty and others who support learning are generally partners in the process. A faculty colleague's description captures the cooperative nature of learning: "the power of learning is in the student and the act of teaching is designed to activate this power in the student" (Sullivan, 1996, p 4). In the 7 Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education (Chickering and Gamson, 1987) the authors suggest that "good practice encourages active learning" (p. 1). This principle, anchored in decades of research about teaching and learning, calls on us to consider methods to expand the terms of engagement between student and teacher. It suggests that we think about and act on what we know about how student participation in the learning process leads to higher levels of deep and lasting learning. That learning is also interactive connotes that the learner is actively engaged with others. It suggests the development of four central relationships, each of which can be viewed in terms of its quality and frequency of occurrence. These relationships are:
The degree to which learners view faculty as partners in the learning process and not merely as "dispensers of knowledge," is a reliable indicator of the quality and depth of the relationship. A learner-faculty relationship in which the learner experiences the faculty member as mentor, coach, and facilitator signals a depth of relationship beyond that suggested by the stereotypical "sage on the stage" metaphor. Another level of interaction between learner and faculty is one in which the faculty member regularly models what it means to be a learner. Such modeling creates a particularly powerful learning environment and higher levels of learning. Next, consider the relationship between learner and others who support the learning process. Compelling evidence indicates that relationships between learners and others who support the learning process have become increasingly more important. For example, as we reach a broader understanding of the "diversity" of learners, the added value of their interacting with others who support learning becomes far more explicit. Today, in the context of a college setting, diversity now refers to a learner's:
Clearly, faculty and others who support the learning process serve in facilitating roles relative to learning. The degree to which learners connect to a range of high quality support services has a direct influence on both learner and faculty success. Interaction between learners themselves also provides significant opportunities to enrich learning. Collaboration among peers and various forms of active apprenticeship and initiation are among the most prominent of these traditional forms. Faculty often include learning communities, study teams, peer evaluation, and group projects as a means of facilitating such learning. Current collaborative learning models are based primarily on two theories (D. Johnson and R. Johnson, 1992):
The value of collaborative learning extends beyond the college setting. The ability of individuals to work in teams and to contribute to organizational learning have become increasingly valued skills in today's workplace. Considering the benefits of collaborative learning and learning communities, we are again challenged to think systemically about how to extend and support their use. For example, at the most pragmatic level we can consider if rooms are arranged to accommodate collaborative learning. At a higher level, collaborative learning and the development of learning communities can be enriched by instructional technology and new forms of student access that facilitate learner interaction irrespective of time and location. At both levels, the relationships and practices that exist across the organization largely determine our ability to encourage interaction between students. Finally, interactions between learners and those outside of the college environment represent a unique and rich opportunity to foster learning. Internships, service learning experiences, cooperative education and student engagement with real-world issues are all opportunities for interaction. Each opportunity facilitates the learner's ability to apply and test what they have learned in the academic setting. Since such experiences frequently involve "meaning making" and "connecting" they lead to deep and lasting learning. |