The TPI

The Teaching Perspectives Inventory is a lot of big words. A lot of big words which I would never be qualified to explain, however even at the lowest level I think it does show a lot about myself as an instructor.

I received results close to what I was expecting, showing very high scores in transmission and apprenticeship while getting my lowest score in social reform.

The transmission perspective reflects the importance of subject matter knowledge. Our systematic processes that must be followed in the electrical trade are crucial. I also believe that I am very enthusiastic about the content, because I do truly enjoy it.

The apprentice perspective is everything the trades is based on. As teachers, we show early learners the basics of what we are doing, and as time progresses we shift from teaching more into assigning more responsibility and guiding of the subject matter. It is our job to simplify some of the complexities of the content and deliver it in a more manageable way for the students.

The social reform, my most recessive trait, deals with using our position as teachers to try and awaken our students ideologies and values. I do not make this a part of my daily job.

I look forward to reflecting more on my TPI and hopefully giving all three of my readers an update one day.

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My Classmates Thoughts

Joining me on my blogging journey is some of my classmates in the Professional Practice course. Here is some links to their blogs:

 

Brian Kennedy – https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/random-thoughts-about-education

Johnson Yu – https://johnsonyu13.wordpress.com/

Ken Izumi – http://kizumivcc.wordpress.com/

 

Enjoy!

Updated Biography

Well I am now halfway through my second year of being an instructor at SAIT. It is still going great. Every new group of students brings all sorts of different challenges and rewards. I am an electrician by trade, and wanted to try something new so I took advantage of the opportunity to teach apprentices.

In my spare time I like to hang out with my dog, play squash, drink coffee, and do some woodworking in my garage.

The Professional Practice course is the last one I have to complete before the Capstone which I hope to complete by the end of June. So far I have found the PIDP quite rewarding, although sometimes I fail to see the whole purpose of certain assignments, after receiving feedback and reflecting I often have learned more than I expected. I’m looking forward to seeing what 3260 has to offer.

Self-Directed Learning

Self-directed learning is tough. There’s no question about it. It may be easier for some, more motivated people, however I know for myself it is a difficult task. I read a pretty simple article about it here: https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/teaching-resources/teaching-tips/tips-students/self-directed-learning/self-directed-learning-four-step-process. I liked this because it covers the basics of a learning contract, something I have not personally done, but should definitely consider. I am finding myself struggle with the timeline and time management for completing online courses. I have just started making it a priority along with weekly goals, and so far it is going well.

What I like about this course, is the ability to reflect on what we learn though blog posts, journal entries, and eventually an essay (which so far I have put off because it seems daunting). This reflection on what we’ve learnt so far is concreting the information we should be learning as well as confirming to ourselves and instructor that we are making progress.

The next step is to review what I learnt about motivation and get working on my essay.
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Memory – Science of Learning

http://www.cdl.org/articles/what-strategies-can-be-used-to-increase-memory/

I chose this article for two reasons, it has a quiz at the beginning, and I like lists. My score on the self-test was 18. Accordingly to this, my memory needs a little work.

Going through the list I notice quite a few points that I can relate to in being a trades instructor. Our program is very content heavy and we often fall into the trap of remembering information. Although this will help them be successful on their final exam in the program, it does not necessarily make them better electricians, which is our ultimate goal. With our lab component we are able to have multi-sensory instruction which aids in reaching our goal. With these “content heavy” courses, I believe it is imperative we are always trying different ways to help our students learn. For myself I want to work on developing some mnemonic devices for use of understanding system components and sequence of operations.

Using some of these strategies to help my students I think will go a long way in furthering their career and education goals.
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Motivation

Without motivation to participate in adult education, not a whole lot would get completed. As adult learners our motivation is typically quite simple – to learn something useful. For myself, like many adult learners, I want practical knowledge and skills that I am going to be able to apply in my daily life, typically at work. This article speaks to this as well as many other ways to motivate adult learners: http://theelearningcoach.com/elearning_design/isd/30-ways-to-motivate-adult-learners/.

Everybody learns differently, therefore as adult educators we need to do our best to accommodate multiple interests and goals in the classroom. If we are doing our best to help empower our learners by facilitating multiple goals, our students will be even more motivated to participate, because they will be getting as much as possible from the course.

I know in my teaching job I need to focus on relating the sometimes boring content to the real world. This will hopefully provide the most amount of motivation, seeing as they can then use the information when they return to work.

 
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Creating a Positive Learning Environment

Nobody enjoys working on something that they don’t enjoy. As adults when we take classes we have the expectation to know what to expect and what is expected of us. Having this base knowledge for the course makes the entire learning procedure much more positive. I found this interesting article on creating a positive learning environment: http://www.brighthub.com/education/online-learning/articles/41064.aspx. I agree completely with this article when it talks about treating students in adult education. Facilitating the learning as opposed to just teaching the content is one of the main struggles I have as an instructor, but it is a definitely more positive and effective learning environment. Keeping up with effective and open communication with my students will show them the respect they deserve to help contribute to the learning. This positivity, in my area, can sometimes be extremely tough as some of the students are here only because they have to be in order to get a raise, not necessarily because they are interested in the curriculum.

 
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Skype Call with Partner

I had a wonderful Skype chat with Elizabeth yesterday. I really enjoyed discussing how our instructor roles are very similar and different at the same time. It was great to see also the differences between our two different fields of expertise.

Her field, like most is currently being heavily influenced by technology. They are in the process of attempting to make patient records electronic so that they are available at all healthcare facilities. Their big hurdle at this point is patient confidentiality and the security of the online records.

In adult education she is noticing a big increase for qualifications and certifications of the instructors. As the scope of practice increases out in the field, it is increasingly crucial for the instructors to become trained and certified to instruct the new practices. Adult learners expect that when they attend a course or program, that the teacher has all of the required qualifications.

With an expanding scope of practice in the field and new, more effective learning theories, it is the responsibility of the instructor to stay current and relevant in both areas. One of the main focuses Elizabeth has, which I couldn’t agree more with, is ensuring that the transition from theory into practice is as seamless as possible. This means making sure learners have the proper training in accessing patient records, for example. Our role as instructor includes trying to make our students as ready as possible to step into the workforce.

I learned a lot from Elizabeth and was surprised by both the amount of similarities and differences in our fields.

Characteristics of Adult Learners

You often hear the phrase “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. Many of us who have owned dogs know this is certainly not true. You may just have to teach the dog the trick in a different way. I don’t like to compare humans to dogs, however one thing that can be said, is that as we grow older and our lives change, we begin to learn in different ways.

I found this interesting article relating to characteristics of adult learners: https://elearningindustry.com/8-important-characteristics-of-adult-learners. The one that speaks the most to me as a new adult learners is number 2, practical and results oriented. When taking a course I find it much easier to stay motivated when I have a real world usage for the content I am covering. This for me is also very applicable in the course I teach. When we find ways to relate what we are teaching to the real world of electrical, the level of commitment and interest from our students is much higher. In regards to PIDP it is helpful being able to take what I learn on my spare time in courses and relate it to my daily teaching.

Just because we learn differently as we age, doesn’t mean we should ever stop learning.
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