Community Education Learner-Centred Approaches IDEAS AND THOUGHTS IN RELATION TO ‘WHAT TO PAY ATTENTION TO?’ FOR CONSIDERATION AND REFLECTION What to pay attention to? The Task Learning / The Programme or Curriculum Individual Group (Process) Person / Learner The Class / The Group Who is the learner? IS THE LEARNER THE INDIVIDUAL LEARNER? OR IS THE LEARNER THE CLASS OR THE GROUP? The Individual – Individual needs Transcendence needs SelfActualization needs Aesthetic needs Cognitive needs Esteem needs Belongingness and Love needs Safety needs Biological and Physiological needs Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs The Individual Learning / Teaching styles Concepts • Behaviourist • Things are learned though doing which provokes particular behaviour – reenforcement • Cognitive • Things are learned through understanding them at a conscious level – comprehension and sense making • Constructivism • Things are learned through creating realities and meanings – co-creation Styles • Visual • Maps, diagrams, charts • Aural / Auditory • Heard or spoken • Read / write • Words in a written form • Kinesthetic • • (Experience and Practice) Often the preferred style of Adults VARK Individual’s journey (Mezirow) Building confidence and competence in new role Trying out new role Reintegration into one’s life with new perspectives Phases in transformative education process Acquisition of knowledge and skills Planning a course of action Exploration of options Disorienting dilemma Selfexamination with feeling of guilt or shame Critical assessment of assumptions Recognition that discontent and transformation are shared and have been successfully negotiated by others Paying attention - The Individual There is a need to  Pay attention to the needs of the Learner perhaps the lower ones in Maslow Hierarchy for Community Education  Pay attention to the Learning styles of participants  Consider the ‘journey’ the individual is on Group / Individual In joining a class or group individuals take or are given role:  Initiator  Co-ordinator  Evaluator  Mediator  Gatekeeper  Harmoniser  Blocker  Avoider  Doubter  Critic These roles may be perceived as negative or positive by Tutor and other members of class / group The Group – Group Dynamics at task level Tuckman (1975) Stages in Group Development 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Forming Storming Norming Performing Adjourning / Ending Garland, Jones and Kolodny (Boston – 1978) Stages in Group development 1. Pre-Affiliation 2. Power and Control (Trust Testing) 3. Intimacy (Mutual support) 4. Differentiation (Challenge and change) 5. Separation Group Dynamics at a psychological level -Bion Task Pairing Dependence / Independence Fight / Flight One-ness* Me-ness* Group Dynamics at a psychological level (Jarlath Benson) Will 1. Mobilise power 2. Separate 3. Differentiate 4. Action 5. Compete 6. Judge Love 1. Unification 2. Connecting 3. Understanding 4. Fusing 5. Uniting 6. Relating The Group - Paying attention  Paying attention to the stages of group development (Tuckman and Boston Model) might allow you to understand group behaviour and support the group to understand it too!  Tutor to allow the stages to happen  Paying attention to Psychological aspects will support you to avail of behaviour in the ‘here and now’ as a rich vein of learning and development  Bring learners back to each other and engage (love) Content –what is to be learned and taught? THE CONTENT IS THE SYLLABUS AND THE PROGRAMME THE CONTENT IS THE PEOPLE What the Learners bring What the tutor brings Content –The syllabus and the programme • • • Material to be covered Learning Outcomes Exams to be passed • • • Projects Tests Assignments Content –The People Learners • Their experiences • • Prior learning Lived experience • Their desired outcomes • • • What they want to learn consciously What they want to learn unconsciously What they ‘need’ to learn for accreditation Tutor • Insights • Knowledge • Principles and values  When is this useful and when is it not? What to pay attention to???? The Task Learning / The Programme or Curriculum Individual Group (Process) Person / Learner The Class / The Group Bibliography                Aontas. (Bailey, N. Ward, M. and Goodrick, M.) (2011) Sowing the Seeds of Social Change – the outcomes and Impact of a Social Action Model of Community Education. Dublin Aontas Benson, J. F. (1991, 1997). Working More Creatively with Groups. London, England: Routledge Bion, W. (1961). Experiences in Groups and other papers. London: Routledge. Brookfield, S. D. (1990). The Skillful Teacher - on Technique, Trust and Responsiveness in the Classroom. San Francisco CA, Oxford England: Jossey-Bass (2nd Edition 2006) Brookfield, S. D. (2012). Teaching for Critical Thinking – Tools and Techniques to help students question their assumptions. San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Freire, P. (1972). Pedagogy of the Oppressed. London: Penguin Education. Garland, Jones and Kolodny (1978) A Model for Stages of Development in Social Work Groups. In S. Bernstein (Ed) Explorations in Group Practice (p 12-53) Boston University of Social Work, USA Hope A. and Timmel S. (1984) Training for Transformation – A Handbook for Community Workers Book 1. Mambo Press, Zimbabwe Illich, I. ((1971) Deschooling Society. London: Penguin Education Mezirow, J. (1991). Transformative Dimensions of Adult Learning. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Newman, M. (1994, 2007). Defining the Enemy - Adult Educatioin in Social Action. Sydney: Stewart Victor Publishing ; also on-line: Michael Newman (www.michaelnewman.info). Newman, M. (2007). Teaching Defiance - Stories and Strategies for Adult Educators. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Sheehy M. (2001) Partners Companion to Training for Transformation. Partners Training for Transformation, Dublin Tuckmann, B. (1965). Developmental Sequences in Small Groups . Psychological Bulletin Vol 63 (6) , 384 - 399. Zastrow C. (2009) Social Work with Groups – a Comprehensive Workbook. Brooks/Cole Centage Learning CA, USA