APRIL UPDATE:
HI everyone,
Here is the April update for the Learning Spaces/Learning Styles network.
Our next level of learning focuses on
: looking at personalised learning - understanding how our students learn, embedding that in 21st century learning.
: reflection of the teacher researcher results - using it as an affirmation or tool for planning together.
www.learningspacesandlearningstyles
"How can teachers use flexible learning spaces to cater for 21st Century learning styles?"
Welcome to the April update of the www.learningspacesandlearningstyles.com website.
You have received this newsletter as you are either part of the Action Research Project or have subscribed to the website.
There were over 300 hits to the website this month – yay!
The project is embedded in 21st century teaching and learning and has a focus on personalised learning.
In this update:
how kids learn best.”
- “It is challenging to use the additional space - planning ahead on how to use it needs to match the purpose of the lesson rather than just using it ad hoc. Everyone needs to be clear about agreements for student /teacher code of conduct
to use flexible learning spaces wisely.”
- “It is really important to plan for the flexible learning spaces when planning the curriculum. Otherwise, we may fall into the trap of teaching as per a "normal" classroom and not making the most of the flexible learning space.”
- “I am currently a Deputy Principal in 1200 student Catholic school. Over the last 7 years or more have been involved with developing and realising the Building MasterPlan of the College I work at.”
- “sounds great! look forward to been apart of this learning community! :) I am very interested to learn more about teaching styles which support student centred (thou I would like to call it directed more so...)learning.”
- “Hi, I am student studying Post-Grad Middle Years with Latrobe in Shepparton. I live in Mildura and was referred to you by another student. I am interested in what you have to show we up-and-coming teachers!”
- “I am a Grade 1/2 teacher and I am excited to be using a new learning environment with my team this year.”
- “Teachers are all in a huge learning curve and some are unsure about maximising potential and making it productive.Am happy to be invited to join the online learning community”
- “I'm excited to be able to utilise flexible learning spaces in the area of LOTE - German. My students love practising their role plays in a kitchen area (eg. for cafe role plays) or just retreat into their own group space.”
- “I'm intrigued and excited about the possibility of broadening my learning horizons.”
- “One of the most important concepts in education is that teachers need to become aware of the uniqueness of their students in order to achieve a better learning outcome.”
Dunn, R. (2000). Learning styles: Theory, research, and practice. National Forum of Applied Educational Research Journal, 13, (1), 3-22.
Dunn, R., & Griggs, S. (1998). Learning styles: Link between teaching and learning. In Dunn, R. & Griggs, S. (Eds.), Learning styles and the nursing profession (pp. 11-23). New York: NLN Press.
Copyright © 2004-2010 Teresa Dybvig and Sarah Church
Other learning styles focus on Visual, Auditory, Kinaesthetic; Random, Abstract, Concrete and Sequential;
Some sites that have online tests and explain in a nutshell different learning styles are: http://www.ldpride.net/learningstyles.MI.htm or http://www.education.com/topic/different-learning-styles/ for your VAK and VARK learning styles. Google and you will find more on these. However, it is the Dunn and Dunn model being used for this Inquiry Project. We’d love to hear your thoughts and what you use.
Jen suggests pininterest.com for great pics of learning spaces and all sorts of literacy and classroom pictures. [and along with Janice, now has me addicted :-)]
Some useful resources:
On FACEBOOK
- Edutopia – some really good discussions focussing on education.
- Ted – some really insightful discussions and current thinking [and Ted-Ed]
Do you have any favourite Facebook sites? [of course, learning spaces and learning styles FB page would love your comments]
On Twitter
- @Learningspaces1 - check out the 27 people @learningspaces1 is following – some great discussions.
On the Web:
- Professional Learning:
http://www.learningstyles.net/teaching-resources/web-links-ideas - the www.learningstyles.net website has great teacher resources - and the different learning style elements - e.g. emotional, environmental structure, physiological, perceptual,
http://www.educause.edu/LearningSpaces
http://www.learningspaces.co.uk/index.htm [I know this is advertising, however it sparked my imagination for the art of the possible with classroom and other spaces.]
On wikis:
- http://edorigami.wikispaces.com/ - some great ideas on 21st century learning styles and pedagogy.
Member Profiles: - 2 more next month!
1.
Name: Nune Jordaan
Nune Jordaan
DEECD SMR New Arrivals Program Outreach Officer
jordaan.nune.n@edumail.vic.gov.au
School you teach at: Base school with office at Noble Park English Language School
Country of residence: Australia
Year level teaching: Non-teaching – Leadership role - Consulting with principals, schools and teachers and assessing new arrivals’ English proficiency
Interests: Family, Education, walking, cookery books
2.
Name: Tessa Cash
cashtm814@gmail.com
School you teach at: Little Scholars Child Care and Preschool
Country of residence: United States
Year level teaching: 3-4 year old children
Interests: reading, dancing, learning, teaching
Here is the April update for the Learning Spaces/Learning Styles network.
Our next level of learning focuses on
: looking at personalised learning - understanding how our students learn, embedding that in 21st century learning.
: reflection of the teacher researcher results - using it as an affirmation or tool for planning together.
www.learningspacesandlearningstyles
"How can teachers use flexible learning spaces to cater for 21st Century learning styles?"
Welcome to the April update of the www.learningspacesandlearningstyles.com website.
You have received this newsletter as you are either part of the Action Research Project or have subscribed to the website.
There were over 300 hits to the website this month – yay!
The project is embedded in 21st century teaching and learning and has a focus on personalised learning.
In this update:
- Welcome: A big welcome to the newcomers to our network: we have new members from Ireland, USA, Sweden and Argentina. A big welcome. [see below for profiles of some of our network members]
- Planning School Visits: Thanks to Michael D'Ath, Barb Crowe, Marg Armstrong, Nune Jordaan, and Gill Prentice who have all suggested schools for the teacher researchers to visit. We are still adding to the list - schools that plan their learning spaces well and/or schools that use learning styles in their team planning.
- Sharing stories: some vignettes from the website contact form, blog and emails:
how kids learn best.”
- “It is challenging to use the additional space - planning ahead on how to use it needs to match the purpose of the lesson rather than just using it ad hoc. Everyone needs to be clear about agreements for student /teacher code of conduct
to use flexible learning spaces wisely.”
- “It is really important to plan for the flexible learning spaces when planning the curriculum. Otherwise, we may fall into the trap of teaching as per a "normal" classroom and not making the most of the flexible learning space.”
- “I am currently a Deputy Principal in 1200 student Catholic school. Over the last 7 years or more have been involved with developing and realising the Building MasterPlan of the College I work at.”
- “sounds great! look forward to been apart of this learning community! :) I am very interested to learn more about teaching styles which support student centred (thou I would like to call it directed more so...)learning.”
- “Hi, I am student studying Post-Grad Middle Years with Latrobe in Shepparton. I live in Mildura and was referred to you by another student. I am interested in what you have to show we up-and-coming teachers!”
- “I am a Grade 1/2 teacher and I am excited to be using a new learning environment with my team this year.”
- “Teachers are all in a huge learning curve and some are unsure about maximising potential and making it productive.Am happy to be invited to join the online learning community”
- “I'm excited to be able to utilise flexible learning spaces in the area of LOTE - German. My students love practising their role plays in a kitchen area (eg. for cafe role plays) or just retreat into their own group space.”
- “I'm intrigued and excited about the possibility of broadening my learning horizons.”
- “One of the most important concepts in education is that teachers need to become aware of the uniqueness of their students in order to achieve a better learning outcome.”
- Data: Initial data has been collected from the teacher researcher and student participant surveys. 12 teachers and 120 students completed surveys. I will have the analysis of this data in next month's update. Data has been shared back to the teachers and students for their feedback.
- Learning Styles: The learning styles assessment tool used for the 3 classes in this inquiry project are from the Dunn and Dunn learning styles – I have copied material retrieved from the website: http://www.teresadybvig.com/learnsty.htm as I felt this explained the learning styles tool used. Learning to spot their general processing style (where they are on the global - analytical continuum), their preferred modalities (kinesthetic, tactile, auditory, visual), and their needs with respect to authority and structure, can speed up learning and clarify their practice.The cornerstone of the Dunn and Dunn Learning Styles Model is that most people can learn, and individuals each have their own unique ways of mastering new and difficult subject matter (Dunn, 2000).
- Environmental. The environmental strand refers to these elements: lighting, sound, temperature, and seating arrangement. For example, some people need to study in a cool and quiet room, and others cannot focus unless they have music playing and it is warm (sound and temperature elements).
- Emotional. This strand includes the following elements: motivation, persistence, responsibility, and structure. For example, some people must complete a project before they start a new one, and others work best on multiple tasks at the same time (persistence element).
- Sociological. The sociological strand represents elements related to how individuals learn in association with other people: (a) alone or with peers, (b) an authoritative adult or with a collegial colleague, and (c) learning in a variety of ways or in routine patterns. For example, a number of people need to work alone when tackling a new and difficult subject, while others learn best when working with colleagues (learning alone or with peers element).
- Physiological. The elements in this strand are: perceptual (auditory, visual, tactile, and kinesthetic), time-of-day energy levels, intake (eating or not while studying) and mobility (sitting still or moving around). For example, many people refer to themselves as night owls or early birds because they function best at night or in the morning (time-of-day element).
- Psychological. The elements in this strand correspond to the following types of psychological processing: hemispheric, impulsive or reflective, and global versus analytic. The hemispheric element refers to left and right brain processing modes; the impulsive versus reflective style describes how some people leap before thinking and others scrutinize the situation before moving an inch. Global and analytic elements are unique in comparison to other elements because these two elements are made up of distinct clusters of elements found in the other four strands. The elements that determine global and analytic processing styles are: sound, light, seating arrangement, persistence, sociological preference, and intake. Global and analytic processing styles will be discussed in detail in the next section.
Dunn, R. (2000). Learning styles: Theory, research, and practice. National Forum of Applied Educational Research Journal, 13, (1), 3-22.
Dunn, R., & Griggs, S. (1998). Learning styles: Link between teaching and learning. In Dunn, R. & Griggs, S. (Eds.), Learning styles and the nursing profession (pp. 11-23). New York: NLN Press.
Copyright © 2004-2010 Teresa Dybvig and Sarah Church
Other learning styles focus on Visual, Auditory, Kinaesthetic; Random, Abstract, Concrete and Sequential;
Some sites that have online tests and explain in a nutshell different learning styles are: http://www.ldpride.net/learningstyles.MI.htm or http://www.education.com/topic/different-learning-styles/ for your VAK and VARK learning styles. Google and you will find more on these. However, it is the Dunn and Dunn model being used for this Inquiry Project. We’d love to hear your thoughts and what you use.
- Shared suggestions:
Jen suggests pininterest.com for great pics of learning spaces and all sorts of literacy and classroom pictures. [and along with Janice, now has me addicted :-)]
Some useful resources:
On FACEBOOK
- Edutopia – some really good discussions focussing on education.
- Ted – some really insightful discussions and current thinking [and Ted-Ed]
Do you have any favourite Facebook sites? [of course, learning spaces and learning styles FB page would love your comments]
On Twitter
- @Learningspaces1 - check out the 27 people @learningspaces1 is following – some great discussions.
On the Web:
- Professional Learning:
http://www.learningstyles.net/teaching-resources/web-links-ideas - the www.learningstyles.net website has great teacher resources - and the different learning style elements - e.g. emotional, environmental structure, physiological, perceptual,
http://www.educause.edu/LearningSpaces
http://www.learningspaces.co.uk/index.htm [I know this is advertising, however it sparked my imagination for the art of the possible with classroom and other spaces.]
On wikis:
- http://edorigami.wikispaces.com/ - some great ideas on 21st century learning styles and pedagogy.
Member Profiles: - 2 more next month!
1.
Name: Nune Jordaan
Nune Jordaan
DEECD SMR New Arrivals Program Outreach Officer
jordaan.nune.n@edumail.vic.gov.au
School you teach at: Base school with office at Noble Park English Language School
Country of residence: Australia
Year level teaching: Non-teaching – Leadership role - Consulting with principals, schools and teachers and assessing new arrivals’ English proficiency
Interests: Family, Education, walking, cookery books
2.
Name: Tessa Cash
cashtm814@gmail.com
School you teach at: Little Scholars Child Care and Preschool
Country of residence: United States
Year level teaching: 3-4 year old children
Interests: reading, dancing, learning, teaching