module 6 learning experiences using contextual learning 1st 2nd 3rd
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MODULE 6
Learning Experiences using Contextual Learning
1st
2nd
3rd
Learning Objectives
• What is the purpose of using Contextual Learning?
• How to use Contextual Learning in a course?
• How to create and use:
• Service Learning Activities
• Place-Based Learning Experiences
• Lab-Based Learning Experiences
• Work-Based Learning Experiences
LCT Approaches
LCT strategies were grouped into three approaches:
Building:
Integrates:
Contextual Learning
Creating a learning space in a place!
Classroom instruction
Real-life situation
Reflection
Human Capital
Social Capital
Cultural Capital
Professional Capital
Why it is important?
Research shows that not all people learn best abstractly. In fact, most
people learn best through informal, contextual experiences (Caine and Caine,
1991, Gardner, 1983, Kolb, 1984).
The best way to learn abstract concepts!
It makes reality relative to self!
Contextual Learning
Learning in real-life situations!
outside-of-the-classroomReality-based experience
Done within a specific context:
Context serves as a catalyst for students to utilize their disciplinary knowledge
Context presents a forum for further formation of their personal values, and professional development.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contextual_learning
Contextual Learning is:
Why it is important?
"According to contextual learning theory, learning occurs only when
students process new information or knowledge in such a way that it makes
sense to them in their frame of reference (their own inner world of
memory, experience, and response). (Hull, 1993)
Contextual Learning assumes that the mind naturally seeks meaning in
context--that is, in the environment where the person is located--and that
it does so through searching for relationships that make sense and
appear useful." (Hull, 1993)
Why it is important?
- Help teacher to communicate effectively the reason for, the meaning of, and the
relevance of what it is being studied
http://www.texascollaborative.org/WhatIsCTL.htm
It is the best way to:
- Help students to make sense of what is being taught by converting abstract
knowledge into real understanding
- Make individual lessons be understood as interconnected pieces that build upon
each other
How to use Contextual Learning?
Engaging students in a real situation!
Place-Based LearningService Learning
Lab-Based Learning Work-Based Learning
How to use Contextual Learning?
People and Community
Part of course curriculum
Service Learning Place-Based Learning
Physical Locality and Local Experts
Learning is constructed by having a relationship with:
Build human, social, cultural and physical
capital through volunteer community service
Build deeper technical and understanding of a
specific locality
Learning as a Group
Two-way benefit:Students & Others
Mostly one-way benefit:Students will learn from
the place
How to use Contextual Learning?
On-Campus Lab-Based Learning
Work-Based Learning
Physical Locality and Local Experts(Apprenticeship + Mentoring)
Learning is constructed by having a relationship with:
Build Academic Expertise (develop ability to study
and research)
Build Professional Expertise (develop
application skills and interpersonal relationships)
Out of course curriculum
Learning as an Individual
Examples of Contextual Learning:
On-Campus Lab-Based Learning
Work-Based Learning
Service Learning Place-Based Learning
• Science class about pollution complemented with an activity of collecting trash in an urban area
• Growing corn: from planting the seeds until harvesting
• Study-abroad programs• Field study trips: learn history,
nature and environment
• Internships or Co-ops• Job Shadowing
• School-Based Enterprise
• Research Assistant• Individual Research Projects
• Lab Assistant
SERVICE LEARNING
What is it?
It applies knowledge in real-world ,
addressing community needs and
turning students into responsible
citizens
Service learning is a teaching approach that engages students to learn and
develop through thoughtfully organized community service (Brown, 1998;
Swick, 2001).
Community Service + Curriculum
How it works?
Class
Instruction
Application at Community
Collecting trash
Building community gardens
Repairing and painting damage areas
Organizing charity events
Teaching basic professional skills to community
Performing your professional work to community
CONCLUSIONS
REFLECTION
How to create one?Ten Steps for Bringing Service to Your Classroom !
Define Specific Learning Objectives for your course1
Assess the Needs and Resources of Your Community and School
Form Community Partnerships
Select a Project and Begin Preliminary Planning
2
3
4
Learning Objectives
Community Need
PROJECT
Identify your needs to implement the project:
Resources? People? Time?...
How to create one?Ten Steps for Bringing Service to Your Classroom !
Plan Your Project in Detail
Acquire Necessary Funding and Resources
Implement and Manage Project
Organize Reflection Activities
Assess and Evaluate Your Service Program. Use Rubrics!
Achievements
http://www.studentsinservicetoamerica.org/guidebook/classroom.html
5
6
7
8
9
10
Timeline and schedules, budget, roles, assessment tools etc.
How to create one?
Some tips!
Plan for a minimum of 40 hours activity over a school year
Work with students in order to draw the connections between what the students are
doing and what they should be learning
Give time to reflect on their service. That may involve asking students to keep a journal, or having teachers and organizers lead discussions or coordinate activities that get participants to analyze and think critically about their service.
Give students leadership roles in all phases of the project. Students should have a role not only in executing the service project, but also in making decisions about its development.
Grade students based on what they learned.
http://www.studentsinservicetoamerica.org/guidebook/classroom.html
PLACE-BASED LEARNING
What is it?
It assumes that learning is rooted in the uniqueness of a place - history,
environment, culture, economy, literature, art etc. Students learn through real
interaction by investigating, exploring and taking action in their local area.
Students will
be there, see it,
touch it, feel it
and internalize it!
It is a concrete way of learning abstract concepts!
How it works?
The real context brings learning to life! (Yeager, 2003)
Class
Instruction
Application at a place CONCLUSIONS
REFLECTION
Exploring a watershed
Visiting a museum to learn about a specific
historical issue
Learn about the implications of different soil
types by visiting different geographical locations
and exploring the differences among them
How to create one?
Select the objectives that:
- Are based on abstract concepts
- Would be better achieved by having a closer contact with the subject
(students would understand better by seeing, feeling, touching ….)
Define Specific Learning Objectives for your course1
2
Search for places that would help achieve the learning objectives 3
Develop learning activities to be done at such place4
Plan and execute the trip5
Discuss and summarize conclusions6
Celebrate Achievements!7
How to get started with
Service Learning and
Place-Based Learning?
Opportunities can already exist or be created!
There are identified communities’ needs or places of interest!
Start with the desired outcomes
Next Slide
Analyze what students will gain through this activity and see if it applies to the course curriculum
Nature of the
Content
Learning experiences
LESSON PLAN
Objectives & Learning
Goals
Communicate with community
Communication needs interaction
Service LearningStudents will teach elderly to use internet
How to get started with
Service Learning and
Place-Based Learning?
Start with the end in mind!
Explain the implications of soil erosion
Soil erosion is one form of soil degradation
Place-Based Learning
Students will visit natural and eroded areas and observe the impacts of erosion
On-Campus Lab-Based Learning
What is it?
Students will learn to be a researcher by developing their own experiments or
assisting a professor
It is an opportunity to practice science much in the way professionals do
http://www.queensu.ca/ctl/goodpractice/lab/why.html
It is provides a clear idea of the academic career!
How it works?
It is a learning experience outside of the course curriculum!
Can be done in the summer or during the semester
Student can be member of a research group
Student can be assisting a professor (assistantship)
Student can be developing an independent project (Honors project)
How it works?
Define the problem and formulate hypothesis / theories
Execute the
experiments
Make observations,
measure results &
analyze data
Discuss results &
make conclusions
Confirm conclusions
by repeating the
experiments or
designing new ones
Communicate results
Design their own
experiments
Students will:
Define the field of study
How to create one?
Develop a project proposal
• Project's objectives and activities
• Principal Investigator
• Students to be recruited and their role in the research
• Other organizations involved in the project's operation
• Timeline: summer activity? academic year?
• Project evaluation and reporting, etc.
Submit to a funding organization
1
2
3
http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2007/nsf07569/nsf07569.htm#prep
Professor’s role is to:
Indentify university job positions that could be occupied by students
Advise, mentor or guide students while they are developing and implementing their
research projects
What professors should do to create opportunities?
Include students in your projects
Design a simple project with clear goals
Ten Time-Saving Tips for Undergraduate Research
1
http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ756062&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ756062
Provide hands-on supervision2
Ensure good communication and explanations3
Involve students early4
Sign a student-mentor contract (clarify expectations)5
Maintain well-written protocols6
Establish student research communities7
Capitalize on inexperience8
Create a template file for student posters9
Increase retention10
Assess your student’s interests, knowledge, and abilities
Tips for Research Mentors
1
http://www.engineering.cornell.edu/student-services/learning/undergrad-research/tips-mentors.cfm
Explain the project at the outset and students’ contribution2
Clearly define your expectations for the student3
Develop a schedule of regular meetings with the student (Review the
student’s research products and give feedback)
4
Keep and share notebooks and other lab records5
Outline your student’s daily tasks and responsibilities in the lab (if
possible, in writing)6
Communicate about overall project progress7
Make an effort to get to know your student on an informal basis (it will
encourage a comfortable relationship)8
Work-Based Learning
What is it?
Interning at a workplace provides a firsthand look at
what skills are needed, how knowledge learned
in school is put into action in the workplace, and
informs the student about career choice
It provides a clear connection between future career and class work!
It improves school-to-work transition!
http://dpi.wi.gov/cte/workbase.html
Work-based learning occurs when a youth acquires knowledge, skills, attitudes, and
habits needed for a particular occupation in a workplace environment
How it works?
School and/or professor will provide opportunities to student interact with future employers:
Internships or Co-op Job Shadowing
There are many types of work-based activities:
School-Based Enterprises
How it works?
Wisconsin Work-based Learning Guide
Internship or Co-op
It is an workplace experience in which students complete a series of
activities or project(s) and achieve a set of learning objectives designed to
give a broad understanding of a business or occupational area
It may be highly structured or not
It may be paid or not
It may be for credit or not
It may be done in the summer or during the semester
It is a workplace experience (typically three to six hours per week) during
which a student spends time, one-on-one, with an employee observing
daily activities and asking questions about the job and the industry. Students
are also given the opportunity to do hands-on activities at the workplace.
Job Shadowing or Practicum
Wisconsin Work-based Learning Guide
How it works?
http://www.usoe.k12.ut.us/ATE/wbl/Manual/Apprenticeships.htm
It can also be an activity in which students will interview a professional and
learn about his routine and work activities
It is usually done within a course and for credit
School-Based Enterprises
School-based enterprises allow students to put into practice what they learn in
the classroom by running an actual small businesses. While participating in
these activities, students learn overall business operations such as managing
costs, ordering supplies, working under pressure, conserving supplies and
maintaining facilities
Wisconsin Work-based Learning Guide
How it works?
http://www.usoe.k12.ut.us/ATE/wbl/Manual/Apprenticeships.htm
It is an extracurricular activity in which students will provide services to
companies, like a consulting company, and use the proceeds to fund the
group activities
Clubs can also be considered a School-Based Enterprise
What professors should do to create opportunities?
Be a networker:
Professors’ role:
- Support students during work experience by clarifying concepts, giving behavioral
orientation….
Be an advisor or counselor:
- Help students to understand what would be the benefits of each opportunity; help
them to choose
- Be in contact with companies, promote partnerships and connect students to work
opportunities
How to get started with
Lab-Based and
Work-Based Learning?
The decision to do it is usually up to the students!
Students will choose according to their learning goals!
Professors and School Administration will work
together to create work opportunities:
At Campus:
Lab-Based Learning
At Companies:
Work-Based Learning
Professors and School Administration will guide students in their decision and give
support throughout the experience
Contextual learning
Summary
Contextual Learning bring knowledge to life!
It engages students in real-life and outside-of-the-classroom experiences,
which prepare students to face professional and civic life
Place-Based LearningService Learning
Lab-Based Learning Work-Based Learning
Learning Objectives
• What is the purpose of using Contextual Learning?
• How to use Contextual Learning in a course?
• How to create and use:
• Service Learning Activities
• Place-Based Learning Experiences
• Lab-Based Learning Experiences
• Work-Based Learning Experiences
References
• Contextual Learning:
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contextual_learning
• http://www.texascollaborative.org/WhatIsCTL.htm
• Service Learning:
• http://www.studentsinservicetoamerica.org/guidebook/classroom.html
• Place-Based Learning:
• http://dpi.wi.gov/cte/workbase.html
References
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