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This past Spring I participated in a course titled, “Affective Development,” which focused on, among other topics, behavioral interventions at the early stages of child development. It was perhaps one of the best courses have taken at GWU. My interest and enjoyment in the course stemmed from a variety of reasons.
When addressing the “what” of my learning, the course not only brought on new material, but very much adding to my existing knowledge base. Working in the field of traumatic brain injury, I have and continue to study and teach child and adolescent neurodevelopment. This course added to that level of knowledge by providing me opportunities for continued learning and education on the social and emotional developmental stages, characteristics, and interventions for all children. The “what” was also very applicable to my current occupation, and moreover, my life. This September my wife and I are expecting a son, and the wealth of information I received from this course, from the perspective of an upcoming parent, was invaluable.
This is not a criticism, but a reflection, so I must say the “how” of my learning in this class was rather monotonous. My inspiration for the acquisition of information was fueled by the following reasons: 1. The neurodevelopmental (from social and emotional perspective) subject matter; 2. The direct applicability to my current job; and, 3. The fact I can utilize the information to make myself a better parent.
This course was interactive, with activities where each class member would teach a section of the required readings and each class member would teach a behavioral theory, but collaboration was minimal. I find that I enjoy collaborating and that it is an essential characteristic to positive student, family, and team outcomes.
Again, while I did not favor the method this course was taught, I truly find the developmental theory, research and evidence imperative to my work and interesting to my life. This course certainly enhanced the depth of my learning and not necessarily challenged, but again, inspired me to continue to seek out information of the subject matter. My professor’s positive feedback and expertise was a great factor that helped shape my techniques and skill sets.
Joe
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I’d like to call attention to the phrases “the course not only brought on new material, but very much adding to my existing knowledge base. Working in the field of traumatic brain injury, I have and continue to study and teach child and adolescent neurodevelopment. This course added to that level of knowledge…”. You point out a great example of how we need to have a certain level of beckground context or prior knowledge for learning to be meaningful to us. Certainly this was the case for you! Were there others who struggled, and were there any ways for them to access the prior knowledge that they may not have possessed yet?
It certainly helped! I feel other students may have struggled a bit, but perhaps it was because my knowledge base was aadvanced. But you know, there are definitely ways to access information if needed (e.g., purchase additional readings, academic search tools like ProQuest, and of course, my favorite, Google). I’m not sure they were directed to do so, if that was the case. That’s why I always like it when professors give supplemental resources, “not mandatory, but if necessary, here’s more,” kind of thinking…
I think it’s interesting and very telling that although you didn’t particularly like the teaching method of the class, you still seem to have gained a lot from the course. This goes back to something I mentioned in my personal story blog which is that motivation is fueled by many things such as relevance. If something is relevant to your profession, personal life etc., learning will take place.
Like Karen, I picked up on the fact that you weren’t captivated by the delivery style but felt the course was satisfying. I attributed it not only to the material, which was important to you, but also to the fact that the feedback you received from the professor was so positive. Interesting, isn’t it, how much students of all ages and at any level of education derive benefit from that kind of validation? Yet, I find that my students have trouble accepting genuine educational compliments. Why are they so skeptical? I would venture to say that they are so unaccustomed to the praise that they assume it can’t be for real. And that’s sad! I like the fact that UDL incorporates balanced feedback that guides the learning process. I think this would helpto be students more receptive to constructive suggestions and more likely to see praise as authentic.
Based on our discussion today about the impact of individual teachers on our educational experience, I think it’s significant to note as Karen did that although you didn’t particularly care for the format of the course, you ended up feeling good about it. Hmmm. You noted that you received a lot of poistive feedback from the professor. Boy, does that make a difference!
Based on our discussion today about the impact of individual teachers on our educational experiences, I think it’s significant to note as Karen did that although you didn’t particularly care for the format of the course, you ended up feeling good about it. Hmmm. You noted that you received a lot of poistive feedback from the professor. Boy, does that make a difference!