Responsible Student Learning
Module One

Dona Cruikshank - Course Designer
E-Mail:dona@ontarioeast.net

COURSE OUTLINE: Students Taking Responsibility for Their Own Learning

Because learning in schools is traditionally dominated and controlled by adults, students seldom make decisions about their own learning (Goodlad, 1984). Even though our philosophies of education purport to graduating students who are responsible citizens capable of participating thoughtfully in a democracy, our educational practices have a tendency to foster dependence, passivity and a “tell me what to do and think”attitude.
(Critical Issue: Working Toward Student Self-Direction and Personal Efficacy as Educational Goals, John Barell, 1995 )

This internet course will allow participants to explore this topic at their own pace and in their own classrooms. By working with your own students you will be able to see success right where it counts. The first module of the course will be spent in looking at your current practices and reflecting on how your students work right now in your classroom. The following modules will explore specific strategies that will allow students to become more responsible for their own learning and will allow you, their teacher, to be more effective at guiding their learning.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

Participants will:
1. Understand that making students more responsible for their own learning will prepare them to be responsible, thinking citizens;

• Develop skills for themselves and their students that will encourage and foster student responsibility for learning;
• Practice strategies in their classrooms that will promote student responsibility for learning.

COURSE TASKS

In this course, you will complete 7 modules
In each module, participants:
1) Access the internet between the 10th and the 20th of each month
( October-April) and follow through on all work assigned.
2) Complete a product and present the product at a meeting in early May.
3) Respond to a series of questions about the activities conducted in class
and post responses by the 10th of each month (November - May; in October, participants respond to a self assessment question.)

COURSE MODULES
The topics for this course are as follows:
October - Setting the Stage/Self-Assessment
November - Problem-Solving
December - Metacognative Reflection
January - Self-evaluation/Portfolios
February - Posing Questions
March - Graphic Organizers
April - Habits of Mind
May - KWHL
June - Student-Led Conferences

October Module

Change is a personal thing and before we can start asking students to take more responsibility for their own learning, we have to look at our own practices and ask where we, as individuals teachers, are:

What does research say?
How does my practice reflect this research?
What strategies can I implement that will improve my practices?

Actvity:

Click on the following website and read the article,”Critical Issue: Working Toward Student Self-Direction and Personal Efficacy as Educational Goals”.

www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/students/learning/lr200.htm
After reading the article, self-assess your classroom for student responsibility over a one-week period by responding to the following areas. You can use any means that you wish to record your responses: a chart, graph, reflective journal, a log, audiotape, or other choice..

1. Amount of teacher talk vs. student talk
2. Frequency of students choosing how they can respond related to
Frequency of
• teacher-directed lessons

• textbook activities

• similar response/activity for whole group
3. Number of times daily that students reflect in writing or orally on what and how they learn.

When you access this site in November, be prepared to respond to each of the three questions posed (above). Save your recorded responses (whether a chart, graph, reflective journal, a log, or an audiotape) for use in a portfolio next Spring. You may also want to have your students participate in reflection or discussion on the three questions. Add their comments to your responses.

Please respond to the following questions now, via e-mail:

Participants, please self assess your comfort level with the course content by checking one of the following:

With regard to using responsible student learning in the classroom

I consider myself a novice
I have some familiarity, but little classroom experience
I have a reasonable amount of proficiency
I have extensive experience using numerous strategies

Please include any additional comments as well.


Related Reading
The following related reading is not required, but you may find it of interest and/or value:

http://ncrtl.msu.edu/http/teachers.pdf

How Teachers Learn To Engage Students in Active Learning.

http://snow.utoronto.ca/Learn2/mod3/tchstyle.html

Teaching Styles Inventory

Product:

You will be asked to complete a product for this course by April 28 and to bring it with you to the final session for *Roll-Out teachers on April 30, May 1, or May 2.

The product can be any of the following that demonstrates an authentic presentation of your learning in this course: cd rom, portfolio, video, journal, audiotape, visual display, etc.

This course is intended to give back to you what you give to it. Enjoy the journey!