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LEADERSHIP, LEARNING, &  PErsonal Growth

It's Their Journey, Not Ours!

4/24/2014

2 Comments

 

How will we let our students arrive at their destination? 

Allowing our students to embark on their own learning journeys is essential if we are to truly engage the learners in the programs in which we teach. As each of our students is a very unique individual, so too is their learning journeys. I recently led a 2-day workshop at Greenfield Community School in Dubai and one of the major ideas that I presented was just how critical it is to make student learning outcomes explicit at the start of the units that we teach. 

I stressed that both the starting and end points of their learning journey relate directly to the student learning outcomes and used the picture below during my keynote presentation in Dubai to emphasize the fact that each and every student learning journey is a uniquely different experience. 

At the end of the unit, some students will arrive at their final destination in a sleek, decked-out car that has not only the basic requirements, but also all of the extras. Students who go above and beyond and are great thinkers doing more than required to show their knowledge and understanding of the key learning outcomes. Some students will arrive at their final destination in a beat-up, dirty car that is perhaps missing a wheel, hubcap or a windshield wiper. My point here is that the students demonstrate most of the student learning outcomes in a unit, but may miss one or two. Despite not being able to do it all, they have still understood most of the big ideas in the units that they teach and are therefore successful in their own right.

I used the photo of a group of people pushing the truck to represent the idea that some of our students will need as much help as possible in reaching the learning outcomes in the unit. This help comes not only from the teacher, but also their peers. Allowing students to peer teach and support one another adds a whole new dimension to the possibilities that exist in allowing every single student to achieve success in the programs we teach. The picture of the group of people pushing the truck represents a students being given support and guided by their peers and the teacher. What are your thoughts about getting students to peer teach in PE? How can we give more opportunities for our students to achieve success in our programs? Thanks for reading. 
Picture
2 Comments
Ashley Casey link
4/24/2014 10:25:19 pm

I love the analogy but would like to offer a different perspective. What if it won't the destination that was the same and the cars that were different but the other way around or in fact if both the car and the destination were different? What would this say? Is the destination currently of our choosing and not the students? Could it be the same in the same grid square rather than the same place? What if we all travelled in different ways and by different roots but ended up where we wanted to be? I think the analogy is great but wonder at the constraints it places on the learners? Often it is a journey (not the journey) that is important and the destination is...well...just a bonus. A friend of mine describes it as a sunday afternoon drive...doesn't so much that you go anywhere in particular...it's just that you head out and experience something of the journey and make connections to it. Anyway, I hope that my ramblings make a little sense...

Reply
Osama Abujafar
4/25/2014 04:36:02 pm

Very intresting Andy and I do agree with Ashley
That would be great and the outcomes may supriz you !!!, but I think it will not easy to plan and assesst the kids to evaluate thier achievement
If you try that before Ashley can you share with us how did it work ?!
I like Andys way of teaching the kids which have a lot of freedom for the kids to be part of the journey not only passengers but also planners

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    KAUST Faculty, Pedagogical Coach. Presenter & Workshop Leader.IB Educator. #RunYourLife podcast host. 
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  • Welcome
  • All Things Teaching and Learning
  • The Aligned Leader Blog
  • Consulting and Coaching Opportunities
  • My TED X Talk
  • My Leadership Blog
  • Run Your Life Podcast Series
  • How PYP PE with Andy Has Helped Others
  • Good Teaching is L.I.F.E
  • The Sportfolio
  • Example Assessment Tasks
  • PYP Attitude Posters (printable)
  • Publications