Resilient and Enduring Pedagogies

Gary Poole

Institute for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

UBC

Deakin University

February 16, 2007

Some Definitions en·dure v

to last or survive over a period of time, especially when faced with difficulties

• Encarta® World English Dictionary © 1999 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

re·sil·ience n “a dynamic process encompassing positive

adaptation within the context of significant adversity”

• Luthar, Cicchetti & Becker, 2000, p. 543

One More Definition

ped·a·go·gy n The strategies, techniques, and approaches

that teachers can use to facilitate learning• The Ohio State University, Faculty and TA Development,

ftad.osu.edu/CSP/glossary.html

An educational approach characterized by authority and directed learning; pedagogy as “arrogance”

• Fenwick, 2006

One More Definition

ped·a·go·gy n The strategies, techniques, and approaches

that teachers can use to facilitate learning• The Ohio State University, Faculty and TA Development,

ftad.osu.edu/CSP/glossary.html

An educational approach characterized by authority and directed learning; pedagogy as “arrogance”

• Fenwick, 2006

One More Definition

ped·a·go·gy n The strategies, techniques, and approaches

that teachers can use to facilitate learning• The Ohio State University, Faculty and TA Development,

ftad.osu.edu/CSP/glossary.html

An educational approach characterized by authority and directed learning; pedagogy as “arrogance”

• Fenwick, 2006

The Responsive Approach:Pedagogy should change as

ways of learning change

Pedagogies should be no more or less resilient or enduring than are people’s ways of learning

From How People Learn(Bransford et al., 2000)

Learning is facilitated by connections between the new and the familiar

Learning is facilitated by “deliberate practice” — salient feedback that draws learner’ focus

Deep learning (understanding) facilitates transfer

Deep learning is time consuming Motivation matters

Motivation Matters Social impact and perceived usefulness

Social comparison and social construction facilitate deep learning

• The arithmetic of social construction• Wikipedia had 917,000 visits per day in October, 2004

• http://stats.wikimedia.org/EN/TablesUsageVisits.htm

Zones of proximal development the distance between the actual developmental level and the

level of potential development (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 86)

Challenge and Support (Mezirow, 1991)

ChallengeLo High

LoSupport

High

Challenge and Support (Mezirow, 1991)

ChallengeLo High

LoSupport

High

Stagnation

Challenge and Support (Mezirow, 1991)

ChallengeLo High

LoSupport

High

Stagnation Anxiety

Challenge and Support (Mezirow, 1991)

ChallengeLo High

LoSupport

High

Stagnation Anxiety

Dependency

Challenge and Support (Mezirow, 1991)

ChallengeLo High

LoSupport

High

Stagnation Anxiety

Dependency Growth

The ways of learning identified by Bransford, Vgotsky, Mesirow

and others are enduring

Brain-Compatible Learning (Pinker, 1997)

The brain is a parallel processor Much of that parallel processing combines

conscious and “out-of-conscious” learning The brain encodes context with information

Learning requires active processing

Pedagogies that should endure Linking the new with the familiar

Mnemonic devices and memorization Prior Learning Assessment

Salient feedback Web-based self-tests Personal Response Systems

Communication with others Social comparison Social construction Impact as motivation

Perceived usefulness and motivation Problem-based learning Inquiry-based learning

Balancing challenge and support Managing “instructor presence” online

Pedagogies that should endure Teaching/learning facilitation strategies should allow

learners to uncover out-of-conscious lessons Context should be made salient as often as possible

Where and when did you first learn this? Can you pinpoint the moment in an online discussion? Bus

ride? Class? All presentations of information should be

accompanied by active processing opportunities “Take this home and learn it” isn’t enough “Click on the rock to read about its attributes” isn’t much

better

But Isn’t Technology Affecting the Nature of Cognitive Processing?

Multitasking and “bottlenecks” Law, Logie & Pearson, 2006 Lien, Ruthruff & Johnston, 2006

Using a cell phone while driving: A classic “dual task” challenge

Motorists who use cell phones while driving are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves, according to a study of drivers in Perth, conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Motorists who talked on hands-free cell phones were 18 percent slower in braking and were twice as likely to have a rear-end collision.

A September 2004 study from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (US) found that drivers using hands-free cell phones had to redial calls 40 percent of the time, compared with 18 percent for drivers using hand-held sets.

But Isn’t Technology Affecting the Nature of Cognitive Processing?

Multitasking and “bottlenecks” Law, Logie & Pearson, 2006 Lien, Ruthruff & Johnston, 2006

Video games and resistance to “distractors” Green & Bavelier, 2006

But Isn’t Technology Affecting the Nature of Cognitive Processing?

Multitasking and “bottlenecks” Law, Logie & Pearson, 2006 Lien, Ruthruff & Johnston, 2006

Video games and resistance to “distractors” Green & Bavelier, 2006

Changes in speed of processing?

Conclusions

The look may change over time, but many forms of pedagogy endure

Pedagogies endure because ways of learning are resilient and enduring

Technology is enabling new levels of social construction and this will spawn new pedagogies