The Learning Skills and Work Habits section of the Ontario report card lists specific skills that students need to develop in order to become effective learners. According to a 2010 Growing Success report, the ministry of Ontario deems that the assessment of these learning skills “should not be considered in the determination of a student’s grades”. These skills are generally assessed separately from curriculum achievement although they can sometimes be linked. Although not part of the curriculum, the need to foster these learning skills is just as important as the academic learning of a student. The learning skills, as outlined in the Ontario Ministry of Education report card are as follows: responsibility, organization, independent work, collaboration, initiative and self-regulation. Our group thinks that the best way to develop the skills as a whole is for the teacher to effectively model these learning skills and work habits. The Hutchinson text notes the importance of model strategy use especially when it comes to instructing exceptional students. The text states, “for exceptional students you are making the invisible (efficient learning strategies) visible; they may never come up with these strategies on their own” (339). Modeling these skills is the first step in fostering the development of them in our students, but it is also important to create assignments, real-life situations and lessons that will further encourage this development. We have brainstormed a few ideas of ways to develop each learning skill separately.
Responsibility
Fostering responsibility among students will help them take ownership of their own behaviour and actions. Encouraging students to drop their excuses and take ownership for what they have done will build responsibility. It is important for the teacher to allow to students to feel comfortable enough to own up to their behaviour. We found a great lesson plan online (see source at the bottom) that could begin a classroom discussion on ownership. With proper tailoring, this lesson could be used for a wide range of grade levels.
| Lesson Plan: Taking Responsibility |
| Description It’s common for kids to try to avoid taking responsibility for their actions, especially when the outcome is a negative one. Often kids believe that if they project blame onto someone or something else, this relieves them of the need to admit a mistake, as well as the need to solve the problem. But instead, making excuses takes power away from kids because it keeps them from owning problems and finding solutions. Try this lesson plan to help your students focus on finding the power to make positive changes |
| Method 1. Discuss how we use “excuses” to try to deny responsibility for our actions and what is happening in our lives. Emphasize that we often try to project blame onto others, in an attempt to also deny our responsibility in fixing the situation. Discuss how repeatedly making these excuses can lead us to feeling helpless. 2. On the board, write the following six examples of “excuses”. Ask students to generate ideas for how these can be re-stated in a way that reflects taking responsibility for both the problem and the solution. Use the suggestions for changes listed below as a guide. • EXCUSE: It broke. • TAKING RESPONSIBILITY: I broke it. How can I fix it? • EXCUSE: I can’t find it • TAKING RESPONSIBILITY: I haven’t found it yet. I need to look harder. • EXCUSE: He started it. • TAKING RESPONSIBILITY: I chose to get involved in something I should have stayed out of. • EXCUSE: You made me do it. • TAKING RESPONSIBILITY: I caved in to peer pressure, and I shouldn’t have. • EXCUSE: She was doing it, so I did it, too. • TAKING RESPONSIBILITY: I won’t do it. • EXCUSE: I can’t do it. • TAKING RESPONSIBILITY: I choose not to do it. I need help to do it. 3. Ask students to think of three “excuses” they have used recently and write each one down. When all have finished, ask them to rewrite each one. Share some of the statements and their rewrites with the class. 4. Discuss how each choice has consequences and how people are responsible for the consequences of their choices. If time allows, have students work in small groups to complete the following statements. Have students brainstorm the various consequences that different responses might bring about. • When I get angry at my friend, I… • When I am picked on, I… • When I can’t have my way, I… • When I get in trouble, I… • When my parents won’t listen to me, I… 5. As a group, process the following discussion questions: • Why do we use excuses? • When you use a responsible statement, who is in control? • Tell about a time that you made an excuse to avoid a negative consequence. What happened? • Is it easier to make excuses or responsible statements? Why? • Is it better to take responsibility and accept consequences or make an excuse to avoid consequences? Why? • How can accepting responsibility help improve your schoolwork or your relationship with your friends? |
Organization
Organization is a very important skill that students need to develop. It is something that they will need to be able to apply throughout their life and career. As we said previously, modeling these skills is an important first step in helping students develop learning skills and work habits. As teachers, we can keep our own classrooms organized, return homework assignments in a timely manner and be consistent.
This website contains some great ideas for classroom organization: http://www.realclassroomideas.com/143.html
Establishing a clear organization plan for the students at the beginning of the year will also help to foster organization among students. For example, establishing a clear area for homework to be dropped off from the beginning will help students get into the routine of dropping it off without being prompted (this will also encourage self-regulation). Also, having a clear set of expectations for the students to follow at the beginning and end of the day will also be helpful in developing organizational skills. Posting a list of these morning and home-time routines could be helpful for the students. Some of your special needs students may need a copy of these lists on their desks or by their cubbie for additional reference. Additionally, posting a daily/weekly schedule on the chalkboard will help students remember what days they have classes such as gym and music or if there are any special occasions such as an assembly coming up. Here are some lists we created that might work to foster responsibility among students:
| Good Morning! Don’t forget to do the following before starting your day… 1. Smile! 2. Hang up your coat and backpack 3. Put your agenda and homework in the drop box 4. Sharpen a pencil 5. Sit down 6. Start working on the day’s brainteaser and wait quietly for the morning announcements |
| Home-Time Checklist Did I remember to.... 1. Write down my homework? 2. Pack my agenda and any notes from the teacher? 3. Leave my desk neat and tidy? 4. Say goodbye to my teacher? |
Independent Work
Encouraging students to work independently can be a huge challenge. Often students are very dependent on the teacher for guidance on every aspect of assignments. Fostering independence is important for students’ overall achievement in school. In the future they will need independent working and studying skills in order to succeed in post-secondary and beyond. Some ways to encourage independence among students is to allow them to take ownership of their work. Allow choice when it comes to assigning questions and also ask open-ended questions. Students will be empowered by this and become more able to form their own hypothesis and answers. Encouraging something as simple as using a dictionary to look up an unknown word rather than just giving them the meaning can also help to encourage independent learning.
Setting goals is another effective way to encourage independent work. By setting goals, the student has to take ownership and initiative in achieving those goals. Providing goals sheets that require follow-up from the student will ensure that goals are met. The goal sheets should contain a realistic goal, a timeline for completing it, and a reflection section where the student can assess their achievement.
Collaboration
As teachers, we know the importance of collaboration when building unit and lesson plans for our students. Teaching collaboration among students will enrich their learning experience. Group work is the first strategy that we came up with to foster collaboration among students. The ability to work in a group is a skill that students will require for a lifetime. Additionally, being able to work effectively with groups of people that challenge you can also be a valuable experience. When it comes to group projects, a teacher can foster collaboration by changing the group formations each time. Sometimes allowing students to choose their groups, sometimes assigning them with peers they normally would not work with. Team building exercises at the beginning of the school year, as well as throughout, will help build a sense of community and respect among the students in our classrooms. Having this sense of respect among one another will hopefully create a better environment for effective collaboration. Students should also be allowed to have input on things in the classroom as well. Allowing students to collaborate with you when it comes to creating rubrics, creating classroom rules, changing the seating plan and so on will create a sense of community in the classroom. The students need to be able to feel like their opinion is valued in the classroom.
Initiative
Initiative is something that we gather from life experiences and is something that is difficult to teach. In an article written by psychologist and educator Marilyn Price-Mitchell, it is suggested that traditional classroom learning and homework do not offer much potential for learning initiative. Rather, Mitchell suggests that participation in activities outside of the classroom will help to foster initiative among students. Mitchell states “kids must choose [activities] for themselves because it gives them “internal” rewards! Examples might include music programs, service-learning, and a myriad of other after-school activities” (2012). As teachers, we can gently steer our students in the direction of these types of activities. We as teachers can make sure that information about after-school programs such as sports teams, band and other clubs are readily available in the classroom. Additionally, teachers can get involved in chaperoning and coaching clubs and teams in an effort to show enthusiasm for these activities. Showing enthusiasm will hopefully encourage more reluctant students to take the initiative to join these teams and clubs.
Self-Regulation
The Hutchinson text describes that “self-regulated learners have a combination of academic learning skills and self-control that makes learning easier…they have the skill and the will to learn” (43). Self-regulation is something that is acquired, with the right tools, over a student’s learning career. We were encouraged in teacher’s college to self-regulate by writing reflective journal entries. These types of reflections are important in discovering what kind of learners we are. Reflecting on how well a lesson implementation went can help us discover what our strengths and weaknesses. This same type of reflection can be used by our students to promote self-regulation. Encouraging students to reflect on their learning by writing journal entries about their academic progress can be very helpful. Students can reflect on what areas of an assignment they struggled in and possible ways that they can succeed next time. Additionally, having students create portfolios of their work can foster self-regulation. This will enable them to critique their own work and decide what they want to showcase in their portfolio.
References
Hutchinson, N. Inclusion of Exceptional Learners in Canadian Schools. Pearson Canada: Toronto.
Ontario Ministry of Education. Growing Success: Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting in Ontario Schools. First Edition, grades 1-12. 2010. Retrieved on June 9, 2012 from: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/policyfunding/growSuccess.pdf
Ontario Ministry of Education. Report Card Updates. Retrieved on June 9, 2012 from: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/document/forms/report/1998/report98.html
Price-Mitchell, Marilyn. How We Foster Initiative in Young People. Retrieved June 12, 2012 from: http://ahopefulsign.com/making-to-difference/how-we-foster-initiative-in-young-people
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