Looking at Learning through the Group's Eyes

As I write this, I am vacationing with family in the Rockies, about 10 miles from Beavercreek, and maybe 18 miles down-valley from Vail. Because I didn't get out of the dot-com business by way of golden parachute, it is fortunate that I actually have family that lives in the area. It certainly makes accomodations more affordable, but it still requires teamwork and collaboration/cooperation on the part of many to make a seemingly-uncomplicated trip such as this a reality.

I reflected on this while enjoying a ride up to the Vail Valley by way of the most-excellent Colorado Mountain Express, a shuttle service that is comfortable, swift, and convenient. Prior to climbing on board, my wife and I flew in to Denver via Alaska Airlines. In order to get to PDX, we bummed a ride off of my step-son who, surprisingly, was more than happy to arise at 4:30 in the morning in order to get us to the airport in plenty of time for out 6:40 departure. Now that we're in the Valley, we're collaborating and cooperating with family as we share outings and child care. Overall, it works just fine.

Teamwork. It's what made this trip work. It's also hugely important for student success. This is especially true for older students who may have had a less than stellar experience in school at an earlier time, or for those who are returning to school after a prolonged absence. Indeed, it seems to be especially helpful for students who are facing the need to integrate computer technology into their professional lives...sometimes after systematically avoiding it for years. Yes sir, there's nothing quite like a mandate from above to motivate behavior. Stick or carrot? Maybe both??

I have noticed that students often learn best from other students. "Duh, Dan!" I hear some of you say. But as intuitive as this sounds, there are still plenty of instructors out there who focus on driving through content, requiring that students learn things in one way, and strongly sanctioning any collaboration. I have met some instructors who insist on teaching four different ways to copy and paste during the same lesson in Word. Confusing? Obviously not for the instructor, but probably for the student who just wandered through the door with a requirement to upgrade some skills. "Just give them all the ways they can do a certain thing, then let them choose," one of my former colleagues insisted. Choice is good, and constraining students harms them in some way which I have yet to understand or even discover.

No, I would reply. It's probably better to help them learn one approach to solving a technology problem well, then work in a supportive atmosphere on educationally-valid assignments tied to their area of responibility. Make the learning relevant, and let the students feel free to clarify and amplify as they collaborate. This may sound like I'm abdicating my responsibility as an instructor, but it's exactly the opposite. Years of teaching students from 7 to 70 have taught me that after I have patiently explained something three radically different ways, the best way to clarify the situation is for another student to chime in and elucidate. Why? I'm glad you asked.

Most students haven't plowed years of their lives into learning and teaching applications. Similarly, most students don't seize upon the mission of spreading the good news about instructional technology in quite the same way we TechnoZealots do. Stands to reason, then, that they will approach the topic with a beginner's eye and will see the little stumbling blocks we old war horses may miss. Interestingly enough, I'm comfortable with this, and, if you teach, you should be, too.

About 9 weeks ago, one of my very bright students (VBSs--we all have them, but my very bright students ARE much brighter than your very bright students) was helping one of my more junior students (JS) deal with a problem with a certain HTML tag when I floated past on one of my 200+ trips around the room during a typical 3-hour class. When I approached, VBS suddenly jerked back and stopped talking to JS. I was surprised, commented that her ideas were welcome, and that I didn't have a problem with her helping out JS. I then asked VBS why she had reacted as she had. Her reply caught me off guard, then caused me to mull the point for some time (approximately 9 weeks, or so it would seem). It appears that she was corrected by not one but several instructors in the past who felt that they were the only legitimate source of knowledge. Her input, they told her, was best used on her own assignments. Students should do their own work.

Well, maybe, especially when we're building foundational concepts. Let's face it: there are some things you just gotta know. Rote doesn't do it, and having someone else do the work doesn't help. However, using a more collaborative approach (informally here, obviously) can pay tremendous benefits in terms of clarity and speed. Further, as much as I would like to be known as the person with the answers, I'm not sure that I want to stand up to that level of pressure. I really don't have a problem with a student coming up with a clearer way of doing something; indeed, I may look at something from a point of view so substantially different that I don't understand that which an individual student is facing. At this point, we need to do what is necessary to help the student learn. One way to do this is to tap into the power of the group. We are stronger learning together, because no one has all the answers...no matter what the sages on the stage may want you to believe.