Reflect on Applying Adult Learning Principles to PD

Video Transcription

In this tutorial, we will reflect on how the application of adult learning theories can help us to design more effective professional development. We'll begin by looking at a specific example of how we can alter our PD design to align with those principles of adult learning. Then I will model for you how to reflect on professional development using Pappas' model. And finally, I will share some strategies for further reflection on your professional development. Let's get started.

Let's begin by looking at an example of how professional development can be altered to be more aligned with adult learning principles. Let's begin with this sample curriculum alignment plan.

On a workshop day at the beginning of the school year, teachers are going to receive large-group instruction on some new curriculum mapping software. Then throughout the school year, teachers are going to work on their own time before and after school in grade-level and subject area teams to fill in blank curriculum maps from scratch. And finally, over the summer, the curriculum director is going to evaluate the alignment of these curriculum maps to the standards, and teachers will receive feedback in the fall. What changes might we make to this plan in order to have the various elements be better aligned with the adult learning theories that we've learned about?

A key element of andragogy is honoring the unique experiences and situations of adult learners. Furthermore, transformational learning theory asks us to allow learners to critically reflect on their experiences, and have valuable discourse about those experiences that will prompt them to make any necessary changes.

This first step of the current plan does not honor teacher's unique responsibilities at the beginning of the school year. Though it may be true that this curriculum alignment is going to be an important initiative throughout the whole school year, what teachers truly are focused on during those initial workshop days is getting their classroom and their instructional resources ready for their students. So this may not be the best time to introduce this new initiative.

Furthermore, this plan makes no indication that it has been developed using teacher's unique needs and experiences. And it seems that there are no opportunities built-in for teachers to reflect on and discuss why this curriculum mapping is going to be happening in the first place.

So an altered first step of this plan would be to have this instruction take place sometime after the beginning of the school year. Instead of large-group instruction, we could use small-group instruction that is tailored to the unique experiences and needs of the teachers. And this small-group instruction could include that important component of critical reflection and valuable discourse about to the instruction that is taking place.

Some similar issues are present in the second step of the plan. Asking teachers to work on their own time before and after school does not honor their professional commitments or their unique situations. Furthermore, teachers don't need to build these maps from scratch. Instead, they can be asked to bring to the table all of their vast amounts of experience in curricular design so that we can use those past experiences as jumping off points. Again, this is in line with andragogy and those six assumptions of adult learning from Knowles.

So a better second step might say that teachers are going to work during pre-designated times that will honor their professional commitments and responsibilities. And also this step can read that teachers are going to be building these curriculum maps using their existing curricular resources as reference materials.

Finally, self-directed learning theory indicates that learners need to be prompted to take ownership of their own learning. They need to be involved in making decisions about the content and methods and in the evaluation of their learning. So having the curriculum director taking ownership of the evaluation of the alignment of these curriculum maps takes that ownership away from the adult learners.

Also, making teachers wait until the fall to receive feedback on their curriculum map is problematic when we look at the situation through the lens of andragogy. Teachers are going to be wanting, at that point, to already be making their curricular plans for the school year. And so, receiving feedback at that point that might ask them to make changes, may not be very effective.

Once again, we can incorporate that element of transformational learning theory where teachers are critically reflecting. They should be discussing these issues with the curriculum director so that they can help to identify any potential problems and decide what actions need to be taken. So this step might read that the curriculum director is going to meet with those teams in the spring, and immediate feedback will be provided so that the teachers know what action steps need to be taken. And, in fact, the teachers themselves will be part of the decision-making process in determining those action steps.

So now that we've seen an example of how to alter a professional development plan to be more in alignment with the three adult learning theories that we've learned about, let's take a look at how to reflect on the implementation of professional development using the Pappas model.

Most often, this model of reflection is used in teacher's self-reflection on their instruction, but it can definitely also be applied to professional development design. So in this case, the designer of the PD would reflect on the professional development that was delivered to the participants using these levels that are based on Bloom's taxonomy. The levels are-- remember-- understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, and create.

So you might ask yourself the following questions. What were these specific elements of the design of the professional development? And did you make any alterations to it? What were the important elements of the PD design? Why did you make the alterations that you made?

Could you reuse certain aspects of that PD design? Would you make similar alterations in future applications? Are there any patterns that you're noticing in your design of PD? Are there any particular areas of strength or weakness that you would like to address?

How well was the PD received? Did the participants respond well to any changes that you made? What do you want to do next? Do you need to continue making changes or are there other actions that you can take?

While the Pappas model is one that you can definitely use to reflect on your design of professional development, there are also just some more general reflection questions that you can ask yourself. First, have your PD experiences been aligned with the principles of adult learning? Do you think you personally would benefit from PD that is aligned with these adult learning theories? Why or why not?

If you were going to be designing PD for your school or your district, which principals do you think you would want to incorporate? Which would be the most important to implement in the design of the PD? Consider both school-developed sessions and district-wide initiatives, along with the implementation in professional learning communities.

Now it's your tread to stop and reflect. If you have designed PD for your school or district, consider reflecting using Pappas' model. If you have participated in PD recently, consider asking yourself some of the more general questions about your experiences.

To dive a little deeper and learn how to apply this information, be sure to check out the Additional Resources section associated with this video. This is where you'll find links targeted toward helping you discover more ways to apply this course material. Thanks for watching. Have a great day.