Supporting Active Learning for Adults:
The Who, What, and How
Camille CatlettFPG Child Development Institute
Professional Development
NPDCI Definition of Professional Development
“Professional development is facilitated teaching and learning experiences that are
transactional and designed to
support the acquisition of professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions as well as the
application of this knowledge in
practice…..
Definition (continued)
The key components of professional development include:
a) characteristics and contexts of the learners (i.e., the “who” );
b) content (i.e., the “what” of professional development); and
c) organization and facilitation of
learning experiences (i.e., the “how”).1”
Your Professional Development Interests
Who are the learners? Getting to know the audience Applying the concept of multiple intelligences to adult learners:
How do they prefer to learn? How will they learn most effectively?
What is the content? Creating the balance between the big concepts and the details What do the learners know ? What do they need to know? Keeping the content relevant and applicable
Your Professional Development Interests
How will the content be delivered? Creating a good mix of activities to move
students toward mastery Creating a balance between structure and
flexibility Encouraging participation Finding and using good instructional materials Answering questions Managing time Finding good examples of syllabi, PowerPoint
presentations Handling nerves
What Do We Know About Adult Learners (the who)?
Adult learners are…
self-directed want the learning to be relevant to
their lives and experiences goal-oriented practical eager to be respected
(Lieb, 1991)
Adult learners are stimulated by… environments that feels safe and
supportive environments that foster intellectual
freedom and encourage experimentation and creativity
opportunities to be treated as peers active involvement in learning regular feedback mechanisms
(Billington, n.d.)
WHAT Drives the Content of Professional Development?
naeyc
State Standards & Licensure
Competencies and Credentials
OSEP Outcomes
National Professional Organizations (e.g., NBPTS, ASHA, AOTA, APTA)
Head Start Performance Standards
HOW is PD provided?
Traditional methods Preservice teaching and inservice training
Promising but unproven strategies Consultation Coaching Mentoring Communities of practice
One thing we can say with certainty about professional development is that workshops alone are not effective.
A recent survey of Part C and 619 Coordinators indicated that workshops were the primary mode for delivering training and technical assistance.
(NPDCI, 2011)
Effective Professional Development …
…is grounded in specific practice-focused content.…is intense, sustained over time…is organized around a sequenced approach to learning…emphasizes application to real life situations…builds on learner’s current level of understanding …includes guidance and feedback to the learner…is aligned with instructional goals, learning standards,
and curriculum materials
(Trivette, Dunst, Hamby, & O’Herin, 2009; Winton, 2006)
Your Professional Development Interests: Who are the learners?
Getting to know the audience Straw polls Surveys Draw out personal experiences through reflection and
dialogue School memory
Dealing with learners who are apathetic/noisy/late/unprepared Establish clear guidelines and expectations
Ground rules or agreements Model respectful interactions with students and colleagues
Your Professional Development Interests: What is the content?
May be predetermined; check for flexibility What do you want participants to know and be
able to do afterwards? Opportunities to promote core values, e.g.,
inclusion Infusion Extension
Start with the basics and build (Winton, McCollum, & Catlett, 2007)
readinglecture
readinglecture
role playingfield applicationcase studies
role playingfield application
demonstrationobservationinterviewingproblem solvingbrainstormingdiscussion
guided reflectionself-analysisclinical supervision
guided reflectionfollow-up planscoaching
Attitudes, values
Skill
Knowledge
Awareness
Complexity of synthesis and application required
Low High
A model for matching training approach to desired training outcomes and complexity of application (Winton, McCollum, & Catlett, 1997 ; adapted from Harris, 1980)
De
sir
ed
im
pa
ct
(le
arn
ing
ou
tco
me
s f
rom
lo
w t
o h
igh
)
What is an ampersand?
Draw an ampersand
&
UDL: Multiple Means of Representation
kinestheticVisualauditory
Building Dispositions: What We Know
Five most influential experiences in building culturally responsive dispositions (Kidd, Sanchez, & Thorp, 2008)
Material resources Interactions with diverse children, families and
colleagues Diverse internship experiences Discussion and dialogue Critical reflection
Features to Shoot for
Relevant & realistic
content Active, engaging
sequential process Opportunities for
discussion, processing & reflection
Support from a facilitator
Evaluation
Your Professional Development Interests: Instructional Design and Delivery
Creating a good mix of activities to move students toward mastery
Force yourself to limit the verbal (or visual) lecture The Change-Up in Lectures (Middendorf and Kalish,
1996) Alternative: true/false quiz Use meaningful activities and energizers
Put Yourself on a Continuum vs. juggling Apple activity
Cooperative and small group learning
Use video segments effectively
Use video segments effectively
Your Professional Development Interests: Instructional Design and Delivery
Creating a balance between structureand flexibility
Prepare more than you can possibly use so you can speed up or slow down
Know your material well
Encouraging participation
Make expectations for participation clear in course or workshop criteria
Your Professional Development Interests: Instructional Design and Delivery
Finding and using good instructional materials Natural Resources, Baby Talk Resources for Supporting Each Young Learner
Handout
Landing Pads
SCRIPT-NCSupporting Change and Reform in Preservice Teaching in
North Carolina
http://scriptnc.fpg.unc.edu/resource-search
EDU 144 Landing
Pad
See For Yourself
http://www.ecetp.pdp.albany.edu/videolibrary.shtm
See for Yourself
Your Professional Development Interests: Instructional Design and Delivery
Answering questions
Managing time
Handling nerves
Organizing your content/syllabus
Your Professional Development Interests: You’re a Learner, Too!
Assessing your teaching effectiveness Constant monitoring and feedback
Coffee, tea, water
Remembering what it is
like to be a student
Professional development that does not produce change is as useful as a parachute that opens after the first bounce.
PJ McWilliam
All learning occurs in the context of relationships.
For more information
Camille Catlett
FPG Child Development Institute
CB #8185 UNC-CH
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-8185
Phone (919) 966-6635 Fax (919) 843-5784
Email [email protected]