What can education do for them?

     As I returned to finish my education after children, being involved in a challenging career, and as a wife; I often considered the question “what can education do for me”?  The thought that “common sense outweighs school learning for getting along in the world”(Resnick, 1987) was an important focus for me as a young organizational leader.  I had done a great deal in my life by the time I returned to complete my education, and by most accounts had become successful.  I had a desire to educate, to change the world one student at a time so a degree was necessary.  Now, as an educator I reflect on that same question but in a different way “what can education do for them"?

     Knowles, a pioneer in the adult learning theory, states that for adults to learn that they have to be curious (Knowles, 1972).  As a curious adult learner I seek to understand how to better educate students.  I remember a small portion of my formal education and must admit that a majority of what I know today comes from experience.  How then, as an educator, can I accept the same techniques used to educate me?  I recently had a conversation with a fellow educator on this topic.  He is known as an excellent teacher and I have often heard students tell me that they have worked harder in his class than any other classes.  The students appreciated his enthusiasm and how he applied current events to his course topics.

     Enthusiasm, I agree is important - maybe even key - in education, however in my experience, application makes the difference. The best Learnings (my own word here) that have “helped me get along in the world” have been based on my ability to try to apply and then have the freedom to make mistakes.  Let me switch that thought – what a better place to try something and make mistakes than in a learning environment. 

    When I teach Quality Assurance in my business courses, we talk about quality as a “race without a finish line”, that famous book title by Schmidt.  The basis for continuous improvement is a foundational strategy for most organizations to remain competitive.  Why then has education not followed this same philosophy?  Businesses understand that change and growth require constant process, product, and service innovation.  When was the last time we really focused on process, product and service innovation in our education methods?   

     What would happen if educators actually listened to their students?  Rather than reusing the same model of education – that regurgitation of knowledge – what if we listened to what our young adult learners are asking? Every student survey I had completed in prior years included the same comments - "more activities", "less lecture", "more videos".    I decided it was time to listen. I teach my students in total quality management that teamwork and participation are required for successful quality initiatives.  Who best knows how to do their job that the ones doing it?  Well, who best knows how they learn that those attempting to learn.
 
     I reformatted a course into a collaborative learning environment, a subset of the active learning techniques.  I will admit it happened more by accident, maybe even by fate, but I listened and changed.  The results were amazing.   My student survey comments were a little different than the ones I received in past years  --Understanding, application, collaboration, learning, interaction, active, current, impact, team building, realistic, open, trust, friendly, interesting, reinforces, attention grabbing, knowledge, variation ... these are the words my students now use to describe their learning experience.






Find out more about this successful learning environment in an upcoming post - A justification for collaborative learning environments.  I will discuss the format of the course as well as provide results from grades and attendance.