DJ WendebornCHEP

My oh my, or should I state MI. For many years I have known of the primary four means of learning and today I had an eye opener; the concept of nine intellegence catagories which seem to me to better streamline and delineate how learning actually works. In the old school learning I would be visual with kinestetic notes, now I see myslef as interpersonal, visual and logical. And it is me, it is how I learn. Had I known this many years ago life would have been so much easier. Take mat for example, I really suck at math,… >>>

Just as a brand new nickle is extremely shiny, so is everything when it comes to processing the intake of something new. Your brain seeks means by which to intrepret the data into usable knowledge, this is usually done through association with an already known element. Take for example the title of this topic discussion "too shiny", many of you immediately thought of the movie Rainman as the image of Dustin Hoffman stating that line is an example of episodic memory. It was neither formally presented or required, yet you learned it anyway. To me, it becomes easier to remember… >>>

Ok... how many of us can recite this: "This little piggy went to market..." We all know the story even though we have not uttered these words for years. When we learned these words we were engauged and having fun. A very powerful and elemental part of being an instructor is generating the students feelings of wanting to be there and upset when they have to miss due to unforseen circumstances. The Pygmyillon effect is a broad spectrum tool that is easily forgotten. As an instructor adopt the philosophy of "build it and they will come" attitude to making class… >>>

Technologies in some ways complicates our lives yet enhances the learning outcomes for our students. As witnessed in the adult learner classrooms, any attempt to incorporate technologies into the learning process is met with great excitement on behalf of the student. Gone are the days of litographs and overhead projectors; to get a students attention today and FACILITATE THEIR LEARNING, smart phones, Ipads/pods/phones have become the new medium of learning. You can run an experiment simply by providing directions on a sheet of paper for one half of the class and send the others the exact same information via email… >>>

I believe that as instructors we know how important it is for our students to be comfortable in the learning space. It is no different than designing YOUR space at home, the office or wherever you want to feel comfortable and at ease with the world around you. I know instructors who spend thousands of dollars on creating their own sanctuary at home yet have the leanest starkest exisitance of a classroom. As much if not more thought and energy should be brought forward to the classroom inviting students into the learning sanctuary. Color, music, invigorating visuals all play a… >>>

From past experiences it is easy to be the "bully" teacher stating you must learn this and I know more than you. This expereince however has also sparked the movement that I now share, we all have a clear image of what we want out of a course including the instructors, the students hold preconcieved notions as to the desired outcomes and falling short of recieving these outcomes become disconnected with the class and the subject. As an instructor one can make the impact real for each and every student by finding relavency to each student. Admit when you are… >>>

In teaching I believe that group tasks increase the learning outcome and provides much needed social interaction in order to achieve successful task completions. However, often it is observed that a group will split unintentionally into the active and reactive sides. Better stated it is the doers and the waiters. When conducting group activities an instructor must be aware of this and learn methods to involve all the students in the group dynamics. Teaching by wandering about to me is the best means by which this is achieved. Stopping by each group and pulling the waiters into the conversation in… >>>