1 Bruce Pridham – PRI091333 La Trobe University Faculty of Education Bendigo Course-Coordinator Graduate Diploma Technology Education Vocational Education and Training and Applied Learning [email protected]Ph 03 54447262 Sometimes your best partners can be right next door! 1. Introduction The paper is an evaluation of a Middle Years Program; the program’s conceptualisation, its implementation and its impact on participants. It explores the learning outcomes, attitudes, knowledge gains and teacher perspectives. This paper will explore the key concepts of Applied Learning described in the literature and identify the gains or benefits in attitudes, motivation and performance of participants. This paper reports on the experiences of the group of participants in a middle years’ curriculum initiative. It describes the selection of a suitable program partner for the “Applied Learning” project and explores the impact of this collaborative partnership on the participants. A partnership was established with a local Primary School involving Year 8 students participating in an Applied Learning Pilot Program. Students conducted a modified Health and Physical Education Program for Prep and Grade 1 students. 2. Context for this research In Australia various researchers have analysed the causes of disengagement with secondary schooling and the traditional curriculum in the middle years.(Barratt, 1998; Pendergast et al., 2005; Smyth, McInerney, & Hattam, 2003; Tadich, Deed, Campbell, & Prain, 2007) The period described as
Transcript
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Bruce Pridham – PRI091333
La Trobe University Faculty of Education Bendigo Course-Coordinator Graduate Diploma Technology Education Vocational Education and Training and Applied Learning
Sometimes your best partners can be right next door!
1. Introduction
The paper is an evaluation of a Middle Years Program; the program’s conceptualisation, its implementation and its impact on participants. It explores the learning outcomes, attitudes, knowledge gains and teacher perspectives. This paper will explore the key concepts of Applied Learning described in the literature and identify the gains or benefits in attitudes, motivation and performance of participants.
This paper reports on the experiences of the group of participants in a middle years’ curriculum initiative. It describes the selection of a suitable program partner for the “Applied Learning” project and explores the impact of this collaborative partnership on the participants. A partnership was established with a local Primary School involving Year 8 students participating in an Applied Learning Pilot Program. Students conducted a modified Health and Physical Education Program for Prep and Grade 1 students.
2. Context for this research In Australia various researchers have analysed the causes of disengagement with secondary schooling and the traditional curriculum in the middle years.(Barratt, 1998; Pendergast et al., 2005; Smyth, McInerney, & Hattam, 2003; Tadich, Deed, Campbell, & Prain, 2007) The period described as
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adolescence is a challenge for those living through it and for those living with it. It is a time where young people experience enormous physical, social emotional and cognitive change. Chadbourne (2001) acknowledges that young adolescents have unique needs and would benefit from a more cohesive education structure and experience; however this applies to all ages and stages and not just students in the middle years.
Barratt's (1998, p. 30) suggests “an approach which took account of the generic features of early adolescence while still being flexible enough to recognise individual differences in development and contexts.” He has found that many teachers have come to realise that the middle years student requires a more demanding version of the curriculum than what is offered in the earlier years of primary school yet not a watered down rendering of post-compulsory requirements. He along with other researchers, Chadbourne (2001) and Eyers, Cormack, & Barratt (1992) have identified the need for schools to meet a range of developmental needs of the adolescent including success and confidence building. The review also mentioned the need for greater student care and advocacy through increased teacher contact to address the risk of early school leaving.
3. Program and Research Method
This curriculum innovation was developed and implemented based on a broad interpretation of the 8 Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) Principles of Applied Learning. This paper is focusing mainly on the community partnership and the student gains although other dimensions are covered. The pilot group made applications to be involved in a group with a curriculum focus on Sport, Recreation and the Environment. The class followed a number of middle school principles namely, fewer teachers, integrated curriculum, the development of life long learning skills and to foster student connectedness with a holistic Year 8 program, and most importantly it was structured around the eight VCAL Principles of Applied Learning.
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Curriculum as much as possible was designed with an applied learning focus with particular attention being made to connections with the community.
The research was conducted in 2006. 28 Year 8 students were involved in the “Applied Learning” program. At the conclusion of the first year in 2006 when this research was undertaken, the students had one key teacher for homeroom he also taught them for three other subjects, English, Humanities, and Physical Education. 20 students and the homeroom teacher participated in the research. The study uses qualitative data collected from interviews and open-ended questions of participant students and teachers from three student focus group interviews that were conducted at the end of the first year of the program. There were six students in each group with a total of 20 students being interviewed by two researchers. These focus group interviews went for approximately 20 minutes each. In preparation for the focus group interviews, and as an additional investigative activity designed to help focus the discussions with the small groups, all 20 students who participated in the study also completed a questionnaire regarding their experiences in the class throughout the past year. The students appeared eager to write about their experiences and were willing to share their stories. The questionnaire had 12 open ended questions, allowing for the students to record their experiences. The class homeroom teacher was interviewed as part of the data collection process. The qualitative data was analysed using grounded theory with key themes and trends being identified and coded.
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Applied Learning Creating the Framework: Community Partnerships, Integrated Curriculum and Connectedness
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4.1 Applied learning Applied learning connects the mechanism of real world engagement with the student’s context. A popular understanding of the term “applied learning” is captured in the recent definition offered by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (2006). It is described as an ‘approach’ to teaching and learning pedagogy that is applicable to all education levels and content areas. This approach emphasises the importance of relevance to the learner in making connections to the ‘real world’, it is a holistic approach to education
Applied Learning
Integrated Curriculum
Connectedness Community Partnerships
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that takes account of the individual in the learning process. This account draws on notions of pedagogical effectiveness starting with learner knowledge base and developed through an exploration of adult learning principles such as those described by Malcolm S. Knowles (Knowles, 1973) highlight adults preference for self direction and engagement in a process of enquiry, analysis and decision making. Adults’ experiences are a rich source of learning and it is through experience, reflection and problem solving and connections to work and real life adults learn and retain information more easily. Knowles also highlights adults are aware of specific learning needs generated by real life events, adults are also competency–based learners which means they like to gain skills they can use immediately in pragmatic, real life and work related scenarios. There a range of teaching and learning theories that exist which underpin current understandings of applied learning. Dalton (2004) believes that applied learning is a merger of several educational concepts such as: experiential learning, constructivist learning, situated learning, vocational learning, enterprise learning and learning for work. Various researchers have developed a richer account of the origins and emergence of the principles of this approach. An applied learning approach focuses through a learning activity involving problem solving, meaningful activity and a process that involves learner reflection. Harrison (2006) suggests that applied learning had its genesis in the focus on ‘child centred’ learning that can be traced back to the early 19th Century and one of the strongest arguments for the effectiveness of applied learning is in the benefits for the learner in the connection between ‘thinking and doing’. John Dewey and later Jerome Bruner both described the impact that participatory learning has on the learner’s cognitive process. Bruner (1966) states ‘knowing is a process, not a product’ which highlights that there are complex meta-cognitive processes involved in effective learning and the construction of knowledge. Dewey believed that interaction, reflection and experience combined with an interest in community and democracy creates a powerful educative experience and education must engage and enhance experience and allow thinking to be explored. (Dewey, 1916). Learners construct knowledge Jonassen states that “knowledge is individually constructed and socially co-constructed by learners based on their
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experiences of the world Jonassen (1999) and Killen (2007) argue that ‘…knowledge is obtained and expanded through active construction and reconstruction of theory and practice – learning is not a passive process. For authentic learning there needs to be a connection between the student and an interesting, engaging and meaningful problem. (Jonassen, 1999, p. 219). Eraut’s research extends on this notion by acknowledging that group work and a collaborative approach to problem solving promotes learning. (Eraut, 2004, p. 20). The current research into applied learning pedagogy have emphasised the broader program, historical and economic theoretical influences. However, these are loosely conceptualised and the component parts are not connected/integrated effectively. There has been limited consideration of the ‘micro’ particularly the connection of ‘mind and body’ in the applied learning process. Current theories and commentaries on the embodied approaches to cognitive science provide very powerful arguments to support the value of applied learning for individuals. There is a very strong connection between the brain and the body in the acquisition of deep learning. (Barsalou, 2005; Domasio, 1999; Wilson, 2008). With Wilson describing the two processes of online experiential hands-on learning and offline learning (not direct experience) in terms of what is applied to what in applied learning? Applied learning can occur in both online, hands on direct action and offline contexts such as in reflection and mental visualisation contexts. The 8 Principles of the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) upon which this Middle Years initiative has been developed enables students to build their own knowledge and connect theory and practice.
The program was established using these 8 principles of applied learning:
1. Start where the learners are at 2. Negotiate the curriculum – engage in a dialogue with learners
about their curriculum. 3. Share knowledge. Recognise the knowledge learners bring to
the learning environment. 4. Connect with communities and real life experiences. 5. Build Resilience, confidence and self worth - consider the whole
person!
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6. Integrate learning – the whole task and the whole person. In completing real life problems we use a range of skills and knowledge. Learning should reflect the integration that occurs in real life tasks.
7. Promote Diversity of Learning Styles and Methods 8. Assess appropriately. Use the assessment method that best ‘fits’
the learning content and context. (Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority, 2006)
4.2 Connectedness
The strong connection between Vocational Education and training and the post-compulsory years of schooling impacts on the Middle Years. There is a powerful Government push to increase school participation rates to 90% with the development of appropriate attitudes and skills in the middle years to equip students with the academic skills and social dispositions to survive in this new context becomes even more important. It is acknowledged that education is increasingly important to life-chances and mobility. Qualifications are a passport to work, social networks, cultural capital and status, (Bentley, 2000). The nature and importance of school education has changed with school completion a strong indicator of life and social success.(Teese & Polesel, 2003) Students are now exposed to a wide range of technologies in all their forms and the demand for labour market skills has altered the way we view schooling The OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2002) and McGaw (McGaw, 2004) both highlight Australia’s ‘low equity’ education system, Teese & Polesel (2003) describe education policy as having had little impact on school’s abilities to address this decline.
The notion of connectedness is a further predictor of student success. Connectedness itself is a term that needs exploration and is meaningful in individual contexts. For the purpose of this paper I would like to focus on school connectedness in which Hattam (2006) uses the following quote to highlight its importance.
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“School connectedness refers to the extent to which youth perceive positive support or caring from individual adults in their school setting. Overall a school connectedness revolves around the idea that when young people consistently receive empathy, attention and praise at school they feel a sense of belonging and support that is a springboard for healthy growth and development.” (Hattam, 2006)
To improve students’ feelings of alienation a key strategy has been to strengthen student relationships with teachers and the school community. The concept is not new and beyond the scope of this paper, for it to be considered fully one would need to discuss it within a much broader socio cultural context. Hattam (2003) also notes that to tackle this issue we need to challenge the frame in which teachers have a lack of knowledge of their communities and a lack that unfortunately informs their curriculum design and pedagogical practice and one that results in negative experiences for many students. Another notion of ‘connectedness’ he argues is that school learning should connect to the lives of students in meaningful and challenging ways. The ‘productive pedagogies’ approach embraced by the Queensland Department Education Training and the Arts (2006) and similarly the Victorian Essential Learning Standards - Principles of Learning and Teaching (Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, 2004) proposes that students engage with real world practical and hypothetical problems which connect to the world beyond the classroom, which are not restricted by subjects and domains. Hattam suggests that this authentic learning takes place when it is “ taken seriously by teachers and students are given opportunities to make connections between their linguistic, cultural, world knowledge and experience and the topics , skills and competencies at hand , local knowledge, personal experience . Recently there has been significant interest in ‘place based’ education that argues for curriculum that enables ‘students to connect with what they learn to their own communities and regions.(2006, p. 5)
Engagement in them middle years has been a long standing problem in western education systems, Australia is no different. With declining interest and willingness to engage with the curriculum being reported by Rowe, Holmes-Smith & Hill (1993) and more recent studies by Eccles and Templeton
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(2002) the issue is far from resolved. Tadich, Deed, Campbell & Prain (2007)offer two broad explanatory frameworks to explore student lack of engagement in schooling the first draws predominately on curriculum development and pedagogical theories to explain the decline which is highlighted by Luke et al (2003) and Pendergast and Barr (2005) who propose that the problem is inappropriate curricular content for these learners and the need for students to engage in rich tasks and meaningful content and activities that focus on big ideas, in an integrated curriculum that is important . Researchers have proposed for altered pedagogical practices, with arguments for integrated curriculum. (Beane J, 1993) many also advocate group learning through project work, and more student oriented choices in teaching and learning methods. (Hunter, 2007; Tadich et al., 2007; Wallace, Sheffield, Rennie, & Venville, 2007)
The second framework offers socio cultural and psychological factors as explanations for student disengagement. Munns & Martin (2005) explain it by combining both factors and suggest that motivation to succeed at school relates to how they perceive themselves, school and school work, whereas engagement was defined as behaviours arising from these perceptions. Tadich et al (2007, p. 5)) suggest students may be motivated to value school and be effective learners through the development of such behaviours as persistence, planning and student management or they may dislike school, be anxious and avoid failure through disengagement and self handicapping.
4.3 Curriculum integration
Research conducted by Munns & Martain & Beane (J Beane, 2006; Munns & Martain, 2005) has shown that schools implementing a middle school philosophy and more especially integrative curricula programmes offers much to educators who want early adolescence to engage in their learning. The research is further supported by Dowden & Nolen (2006) who have declared “that while early adolescents in Australian and New Zealand Schools experience teacher – centred and teacher designed subject curricula, student centred integrative curricular are the preferred form of school curricular that
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these students need and deserve now” . The purpose of the concept curriculum integration is to resituate subject matter into relevant and meaningful contexts which is consistent with the Dewey philosophy of education. The Integrative model of curriculum that has been offered by Beane (1991; 1997) and summarised by Dowden & Nolen (2006) has the following design characteristics and ethical and political aspects:
• Collaborative teacher student planning
• Holistic, site specific
• Integration carried out by the student
• Assumes all students have individual needs
• Responds to the developmental needs of early adolescents
• Attuned to socio-economic, cultural and ethical differences
• Susceptible to political pressure
The model supports constructivist and co-constructivist pedagogy but is certainly not limited to the boundaries of subjects, domains and the disciplines of knowledge. Students are able to take their knowledge and processes of the disciplines and learn them by applying them in enquiries, projects and investigations which they carry out as an integral part of their school education. For teachers to function within this type of framework they will require a broad repertoire of pedagogical content knowledge and strategies.
The integrated curriculum approach can be described as democratic in its orientation because teachers share the power with the students and their requirement for co-operation and collaborative planning. As (Dowden & Nolan, 2006) and Dewey (1916) explain when young people actively engage in the subject matter of thematic units, they develop the capacity to actively participate in democratic citizenship. Dewey (1916) urged educators to “deepen and broaden the range of social contact and intercourse of cooperative living” so that students learn by experience. The learning by doing and being involved in integrated curriculum projects outside the formal class room setting often has elements of unpredictability however when done well a
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rich learning environment is created which can be messy; yet more often than not results in highly productive learning outcomes.
4.4 Community Partnerships (Service Learning)
Hedley Beare (2006) describes schooling of the 21st Century where teachers will metamorphose into educators, becoming less like instructors and more like mentors to groups of learners, directing them into projects, modules and activities and keeping track of their progress and outcomes. Learners of today do not always follow the hierarchical linear progression that educators and systems have subscribed to in the past. The linear image of learning is being overtaken with a realisation that learning is chunky, can be ‘messy’ has peaks and troughs. It is accepted that learners can negotiate material in a variety of ways handling complex matters before the simple emerges. The subject divisions encountered by students are problematic and may act as barriers to deep learning. Beare (2006) illustrates that from within these highly structured contexts schools are making progress and the 4 strategies identified are:
1. Make connections 2. Deliberately Plan Connections 3. Make cross discipline projects regular 4. The prime mover
Networking is a critical dimension to this vision of education and connections to communities beyond the classroom. Students today are global citizens preparing for a life post - school in a global economy. Making connections through; and utilising technology is advocated by a number of researchers(Bentley, 2000; Butin, 2003; Gardner, 1999; Gee, 2004) For the purpose of this paper I will explore the establishment of a community partnership in the described applied learning program. I will explore the relationship through a ‘service learning lens.’ The definition of service learning is the one cited by Butin (2003) and Bringle & Hatcher (1995, p. 112) that “service learning is a course – based, credit bearing, educational experience
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in which students (a) participate in organised service activity in such a way that meets identified community needs and (b) reflect on the service activity in such a way that as to gain further understanding of course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, and an enhanced sense of civic responsibility”. There is also considered to be a spectrum of service learning programs that has an emphasis on the service component and the served which would suggest at one end you would have volunteer activities and community service and at the other end programs that focus on the learning and the provider of the service such as internships and field- based education at the other end. Butin (2003) lists a range of service learning activities under the following titles, academic service learning, community-based service learning, field-based community service learning, as an attempt to differentiate the programs. Regardless of the name, service learning advocates have a set of criteria for service learning to be legitimate and they can be covered by the four R’s – respect, reciprocity, relevance and reflection. One major positive attribute of service learning is in the potential for students to become engaged in activities with individuals that they would otherwise not have any contact with. This gives the server ‘learner’ the opportunity to become immersed in a reality that previously may not be known to them. It is often quoted that service learning benefits the community being served. According to Butin (2003) although this may be the case there has been little research measuring the impact of the service learning upon the community and the outcomes of any such service. There are a number of structural constraints for any course based service – learning. Highlighted by limited time that students can be involved in a program and that service learning is often tied up with a particular individual. Service learning as a classroom based practice privileges the students involved, they gain knowledge and insight they feel good about themselves, they gain peer and institutional approval and recognition and they gain ‘real-world’ experience. Bentley (2000) identifies a number of barriers to student success and their capacity to engage with current models of education. Students need to learn not in a place that is removed from the adult world but in the contexts and
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communities where knowledge is employed to create value. He believes that schools need to be opened up to become community assets whereby they can act as hubs for a wide range of activities and become networked, not just with ICT’s but with overlapping , mutual networks of community and economic life. Schools need to open up and draw in the knowledge and commitment which surround them to enable them to achieve their core purpose. Learning is a social process,(Bentley, 2000; Billett, 2001, 2003; Eraut, 2004; Stevenson, 1993) which implies that there needs to be an involvement with others extending beyond the formal school settings and class room to the wider community. For meaningful and real learning to take place we require partnerships with parents, community groups, clubs, volunteer organisations, employers and workplaces. Through these networks we will overcome the one way transmission of information and knowledge; it will facilitate a genuine shared understanding of what is required for learners to be successful in a complex world. Billett (2003, p. 14) highlights the importance of the learners capacity to adapt what has been learned to different situations as a key benchmark of rich learning. It is learning through participation and practice that knowledge is sourced and through greater alignment of the goals and content of curriculum and instruction that the learner could benefit significantly through enhanced community partnerships. The four “R’s”- respect, reciprocity, relevance and reflection elements of service learning were evident. Students were respectful of their younger audience and the need to be prepared for them; they were engaged in the learning as were the younger students. The curriculum was relevant and was negotiated with the participants. They were able to identify the importance of learning the activities in order to be to teach it and pass on their knowledge and skills. Students reflected on their involvement in English classes and as an opportunity to plan and improve performance in following sessions.
5 Results & Discussion
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The conceptual framework of using an applied learning pilot to build student connectedness and engagement through a community partnership can be described in this pilot as an overwhelming success. At the beginning of 2006 thet project was established to accommodate the needs of an increasing number of students with learning difficulties who were identified as being disengaged or at risk of disengaging. The engagement of the students and their participation in the pilot indicated a high level of motivation and preparedness to engage with the curriculum and the broader aims of the pilot. Consistently, the students reported that they had enjoyed the applied learning aspects of their program. One student said “we don’t just like sitting down, writing out stuff. We learn more if we are active and doing things.” Another stated it like this:
“It’s better than just sitting there from basically working from a book and then getting in trouble for mucking around. Better than just all bookwork you get something out of it, enjoy your school a bit more”.
The participants felt ‘special’ about their involvement in the pilot and felt a strong sense of responsibility to the group and the ongoing possibility of the program, Students were selected into the program based on their interest in sport and a targeted group whom staff believed would benefit from a more ‘applied ‘ approach to the curriculum. Students noted that being the first group to be involved in the pilot placed additional pressure on them to do the ‘right thing’ for the program to be repeated the following year. Many students also noted that being in a class with students with similar interests made the experience more enjoyable. A connection to the teacher and the strong role modelling provided by him was evident in student responses and through the written feedback. “The best thing about 8S was “being in a class with Mr S”. The teacher also noted that without students being in this class they may have been “lost in the system” he also commented that students tended to work better for him because they had formed a stronger relationship and had similar interests. He also noted that one particular student who was very ‘weak’ had missed a lot of school the previous year and although she was dealing with a number of complex issues “she has been happy to come to
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school, while she complains about it she still comes along”. His role can not be underestimated when evaluating the success of this program. The connection to community is recognised as very important characteristic of middle school integrated practice. (Rennie, Sheffield, Venville, & Wallace, 2005) The staff member responsible for the pilot program integrated a number of subject learning outcomes and associated assessment tasks. Through collaborative planning with students they learnt the activities and lessons at school in their Physical Education classes before they presented them at the primary school. Students were able to integrate their knowledge and understandings from their Physical Education subject with the learning outcomes for English. He was able to assess student’s oral communication on site when they presented their activities to the Primary School students; written tasks were also assessed as part of their ongoing reflective journals, reports in the school newsletter and evidenced in their own written plans for the activities delivered. The teacher commented that “I had to be flexible, I worked with them on topics that they chose but covering the same outcomes………the students got a lot out of it at both ends, working with the kids from the other school and staff has exposed them to a lot more people than just their teachers here, it has given them a bit more confidence to talk to other people and relate to other people.” Students commented that they appreciated “getting out of school to help other people and I have met a lot of new people and learned things in a different way. I loved all the things we did like working with the primary school.” Many noted that relating the curriculum and assessment to the tasks was positive, valuable and meaningful. This resulted in a higher level of engagement and satisfaction. The participants would not typically have the opportunity to engage with Primary aged students within the constraints of the timetabled school framework. The flexibility of the primary school programming accommodated the timetable constraints imposed by the secondary school and as commented by one staff member involved “sometimes your best partners are right next door, all you have to do is ask”.
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As part of the pilot program the connection to the local primary school was a mutually beneficial arrangement, the primary school students felt ‘special” with the visiting secondary students and the smaller group sizes ensured that all students received individual attention and instruction. The secondary student’s connection with the activities and learning were enhanced, as one student commented “the kids relied on us, so we had to be organised and prepared and know what we were talking about”. Students acknowledged that through involvement in this partnership activity their self confidence and learning outcomes were improved. It contributed to an engaging, valuable and active learning experience for the group and begs the question; if it such a valuable experience as Butin (2003) argues; service learning as a classroom based practice privileges the students involved, they gain knowledge and insight they feel good about themselves, they gain peer and institutional approval and recognition and they gain ‘real-world’ experience. The connection of students to the program and the pressure some felt to ‘perform’ to ensure the pilot continued the following year supports the Tadich et al (2007) The project was established with minimal cost. Relationships with the local primary school were strengthened through the mutually beneficial arrangement and the outcomes for both groups of students were positive. The program enabled the students to connect with the curriculum and provided meaningful learning opportunities at an age and stage appropriate level. Bentley (2000) describes how learning through participation and practice that knowledge is sourced, and through greater alignment of the goals and content of curriculum and instruction that the learner could benefit significantly through enhanced community partnerships. The integrated approach to curriculum planning and assessment was valued by participants and was respectful of the aims of the program contributing to its overall success. Also highlighted by Bentley (2000) is the enormous value of connecting with the world beyond the classroom. The primary students and secondary participants valued each others input and participation. There was strong concurrence with the ideas put forward by Hattam (2006) and Beane (1993) highlighting the unpredictable nature of working outside the classroom yet it is
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acknowledged that there were significant rewards in the creation of a rich learning environment enhanced by an integrated curriculum.
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