1

Knowing the Adult LearnerGuidance & Instruction

Strategies

Jones, M., Shelton, M. (2011). Developing Your Portfolio--Enhancing Your Learning and Showing Your Stuff: A Guide for the Early Childhood Student or Professional, Second Edition. Routledge.

The only person who is educated is the one who has learned how to learn…and change.

Carl Rogers

Consider Your Philosophy: The Basis for Practice

Human development

theories

Teaching/learning theories

Practice

Strategies, tools, methods

Our Initial Assumptions and Observations about Adult Learners

What we thought and what we’ve learned.

5

Assumption Observation Adults prefer

active, rather than passive learning

Many adults enter the learning environment expecting to be treated as passive learners

6

Assumption Observations

Many adults consistently operate at higher levels of thinking

Many adults operate at the concrete level and require guidance in developing higher level thinking skills. Formal thinking is situational.

7

Assumption Observation

Adults continue to construct their own knowledge

Adults continue to construct their own knowledge, but the process is often complicated by assumptions, beliefs, expectations and locus of control

8

Assumptions Observations Adults want

choice, flexibility, and autonomy just as we do

Adults differ in their desire for autonomy and locus of control. Some adult learners are highly dependent upon instructor approval.

Insights about Adult Learners

A developmental continuum exists for adult learners

Developmental characteristics reflect maturity, experience, and education

Developmental level is situational Developmental levels must inform

guidance and instruction strategies Adults often need scaffolding in

constructing new knowledge

Developmental ContinuumIn

stru

ctio

n

Dev

elo

pm

enta

lC

har

acte

rist

ics

Direct

Highest degree of specificity

Explicit direction in process & product

Instruction in reflection & reflective writing

Needs specific instructions, models & examples

Anxious, teacher pleasing, frustrated w/ ambiguity

Sees goal as completing the task

Limited reflection skills (summary of events)

Facilitate

General guidelines and parameters

Instruction as needed to clarify process & product

Scaffold higher level thinking through dialogue

More comfortable with ambiguity

Wants general guidelines, parameters, and expectations

Understands application

More insightful reflection

Mentor

Sounding board – responsive to initiative; feedback

Provide open-ended parameters, guidelines & expectations

Monitor, help clarify, prompt & explore ideas

High degree of independence as learners

Ability to see multiple applications

Broadening of perspective & perspective-taking

Sophisticated, multi-level reflection

Concrete thinking Formal thinking

© Jones and Shelton, 2004

11

Product Purpose, audience, content, evidence & reflection

Process Collect, select, reflect, connect, & project (Barrett, 2000)

Concrete operations Formal operations

Post-formal operations

Guidance and Instruction

Teaching/Learning Transformation

Concrete Transitional Formal

Direct Facilitate Mentor

Meaning-m

aking

Bloom’s Taxonomy

Cognitive Knowledge Comprehension Application Analysis Synthesis Evaluation

Affective Receiving Responding Valuing Organization Characterization

concrete

transitional

formal

Concrete

Cognitive: Provide & clarify explicit instructions and selectively use models and samples

Affective: Acknowledge anxiety and fears & address openly without prejudice

Reflective: Co-construct definition; provide models or formulas (P-P-F; A-A-A); guided practice & feedback

Transitional

Cognitive: Explore their rationales, logic, understanding of part/whole relationships

Affective: Confront their quiet theories about teaching and learning & help them puzzle it out

Reflective: Pose questions to clarify, make explicit and deepen connections; identify areas for improvement

Formal

Cognitive: Engage in collegial dialogue; compare viewpoints; challenge & stimulate deeper thought

Affective: Validate & convey our belief in them; help them recognize & appreciate their strengths & gifts

Reflective: Listen; provide feedback; use their work to scaffold others

17

Constructivist Model for Instruction

Best practice applied to adults

Recognizes individual differences

Values process as well as product

18

End thoughts: Constructivist model

INSTRUCTOR

Assumptions

Observation

Insights

Revision of guidance and instruction

Guidance & Instruction

Cognitive Learning

Affective Learning

Reflective Learning

20

Guidance and Instruction: Product

Purpose: Audience: Structure: Evidence: Reflection:

developmental, evaluation, interview

clearly specified

reflects the purpose

carefully selected; suited to purpose

connects theory to practice –

past, present, and future

21

Guidance and Instruction Steps

1. Define “portfolio” product

2. Content (re: standards or guidelines)

3. Process – how to get there

4. Packaging (print or electronic)

Product

the completed portfolio

22

Guidance and Instruction: Structure Examples of frameworks that guide content

State standards for teacher credentialing

Learning outcomes established by a program

Objectives established for a course

Recommended checklist or outline

23

Guidance and Instruction: Process

Collect: Select:

Connect:

Reflect: Project:

guidance on what to collect

exemplifies competence relative to

standards/guidelines

articulates connection between

artifact and standard or guideline

indicator of cognitive movement

the completed work

24

Guidance and Instruction

Levels of Reflection

1Summary of facts limited reflection skills

TREES FOREST ECOSYSTEM

2More insightful reflection

3Sophisticated, multi-level reflection

25

Guidance and Instruction

Level 1 Reflection Strategies(Summary of facts limited reflection skills)

TREES

• Group process to define “reflection”

• Framework with samples and discussion

• Guided practice and feedback

26

Guidance and Instruction

Level 2 Reflection Strategies(More insightful reflection)

• Scaffolding by posing questions and probing for deeper insights

• Helping them identify areas needing improvement

FOREST

27

Guidance and Instruction

Level 3 Reflection Strategies(Sophisticated, multi-level reflection)

•Listen

•Provide feedback

•Use their work to scaffold others

ECOSYSTEM

28

Concrete operations Formal operations Post-formal operations

Guidance and Instruction

Reflection

Summary of facts to limited

reflection skills

More insightful reflection

Sophisticated, multi-level

reflection

29

Guidance & Instruction: Packaging

Internal refers to the organization of the document – print or electronic

Table of Contents is a common feature of print and electronic versions that provides the map of the document

30

Guidance & Instruction: Packaging

External refers to the container for the document – print or electronic

The mechanics for navigating print and electronic versions differ:

PrintDividers

Tabs

ElectronicScrolling

Links

31

Guidance & Instruction: Packaging

Format

Internal

External

Print

Electronic

TOC

32

Progression of Technological Skill

Level 1: Word processing (charts, diagrams, clipart)

Level 2: Word processing, PowerPoint (digital images, navigational links)

Level 3: Scanning, PDF files, editing digital images

Level 4: Multimedia (MovieMaker,

iMovie), www. links