Laura Stenger

After reviewing this module, I reflected on my current assessment activity for some senior leaders.  I realized that I should provide a rubric to assist them in crafting their communication strategy.  They are very knowledgable, but very busy...by providing them with a framework to assess their own strategies I can reduce their time spent developing the strategy and provide them criteria for their own self-assessment.

I really liked the layout of explaining objectives versus outcomes...this topic was always pretty nebulous in our organization.  The explanation of the difference between the two was very helpful.  It is important that both the instructor and the student have a clear understanding of the differences as the student experiences the content.  I will reference this chart as I develop new courses in our organization.

This material is conveniently packaged for easy consumption.  I needed this right now!  I wrote down all the interventions and plan to try one each week over the next six weeks.  I am personally in a transition time both personally and professionally.  I am going to do more research on the the Best Possible Self...and use this intervention first. I have really enjoyed learning about this material...my organization could use more people with a positive mindset!

This is the first I heard of the VIA Institute on Character.  I plan on connecting my colleagues who are doing research on moral injury with our military/veteran student population.  I believe there are some valuable relationships to be explored.  Also, I particularly like the exercise - close eyes, breathe, the focus on a strength...I will apply this in both  my home and work environments.  Finally, I am trained in LEGO Serious Play - I think it would be a great activity to "build" out each of the virtues/character traits as part of our "warm-up" sessions.

Prior to signing up for this course I had been vaguely familiar with the term "positive psychology".  I had been exposed to Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's work on Flow but only viewed it as a stand alone concept, not as just a piece to a more comprehensive approach to maximizing a student's potential.  My student population is a little unique - active duty military members.  Being exposed to PERMA has given me some new tools in preparing my population for the challenges they face in transitioning back to civilian life.  It may or may not be widely known that we have lost… >>>

Taking a learning point from Warren Bennis's list on what good leaders do, I am going to focus more on providing hope to my team.  I am a subordinate leader in an organization that has undergone constant change in leadership for the last three years.  The uncertainty about our efforts/mission has led to many folks to retire or leave for other opportunities.  I want to be more intentional about providing a vision for my team that reiterates our purpose.

I definitely lean towards being a leader.  My philosophy with my small team, many of whom are former military officers, is to approach each as the unique individual they are.  With a sudden change in our team leadership model, I was thrust into "leading" my team of peers through a very tumultuous year.  My first priority was to get to know each person on a more personable level and to conduct a "team" -assessment of our problem-solving preferences using the FourSight Assessment.  This tool highlighted each team member's preferences - clarifying, ideating, developing, implementing - in their approach to problem… >>>

In the current COVID-19 environment we have worked to flip a number of our courses.  The "classroom" time has now become the virtual meeting space.  Zoom has been a tremendous help and a number of our instructors have adopted the platform to assist them in executing their courses.

I appreciated breaking down applying the flipped classroom into three steps.  It seems less daunting to take a module, identify the methods of learning, create the activities and then assess the material - in a creative way.  

Both verbal and non-verbal cues are important in demonstrating active listening.  I have always had an issue with my facial expressions - communicating the exact opposite of what I intended. 

This module emphasizes the concept of student-centered learning.  The instructor's role is to maximize each student's learning journey - to assist each student in constructing knowledge.  To do that, an instructor needs to be engaged, to listen, to communicate,  to show genuine concern, and to treat students equitably.