Interestingly enough as I was preparing this blog, I also just finished teaching a class for our TANF customers on Learning Styles. The Kolb model was used as a foundation regarding the formal distinct learning styles (preferences) and then restructured by Bernice McCarthy (1980) who came up with 4MAT learning for grades K-12. What is so funny is that while I was giving instruction to my class, I started to think about how my learning style (s) hinder for motivate my teaching styles. Like that of the generational classrooms, we have to take into consideration that every class of learners does not learn like you or think like the instructor thinks.
I had a chance to take the VAK on vark-learn.com and I was humored and surprised. It classified me with Multimodoal, Aural and Reading and Writing preferences for learning. I do love notes, textbooks, manuals, information and written documentation. However, the description made it seem as though I sit in front of Office Max stores and Libraries waiting to jump the first person with a dictionary or a handout in tow! I do converts notes that I write into well scripted detailed (color coded-pen and highlighted) documents with diagrams and the like so that I can get a better picture of the concepts that are being discussed. It helps me to make it relevant to me today so that I can use it more effectively tomorrow. the Aural strategy pegged me as a class/workshop attending , picture toting (viewing), sitting in corner of my home or quiet placed reciting information and talking to myself! LOL ( I do, but not loud enough so others can hear me...LOL)
Looking over how I learn, I notice that I sometimes communicate in the same way. I try to use my awareness with how my brain works to make it work for those who are attending my classes. Not everyone loves statistical information or diagrams, but I try to do all that I can to take what has made me excited and create an excitement in the hearts and minds of my students. Knowing those who are more abstract in learning, bombarding them with concrete experiences could hinder their abilities to see themselves in the learning process or as carriers of the information for future success!
My son is a very emotional converging/accommodating learner and because I am more converging and abstract (sometimes reflective) I have to think like he thinks in order to get him to understand those concepts and not get flustered in the process. Because I have a son who is dyslexic, it is important that I take things that are simple for me to understand because of how I process it to roll it over and translate it into something that is easier for him and not as abstract. Concrete concepts work for him more than those that are ambiguous. He can easily get confused and not want to do it (whatever it is) at all.
Learning experiences that match me completely is when I have taken a class that allows me permission to use all my love for information gathering, aural study strategies to help people help themselves learn more technical academic concepts. IT MAKES ME GIDDY when I had the opportunity to attend a class regarding Inductive study techniques. You take words that are repeated in a text and with colored pencils identify them with a shape or something that is reflective of that word. Then you as the following questions, who, what, where, when ,why and how. You use these questions and the symbols in the text to identify the context of the passage and the importance of the content! I LOVED IT. Because of this, I reclaimed my nerd status and wear it proudly.
There was an instance where I was given as assignment by my instructor, and the directives were not clear. She was a great instructor, however she made the assignment so ambiguous and choppy that my linear mind could not get it together. We had to write a paper on an experience that needed mediation between two parties. She gave no other info but, "Do it how you see the concepts working in the situation". I was stumped. I didn't know what to do or how to do it, because I needed clear precise directives on the how. I went to her on several occasions and she always put it back on me, " You know the situation, just write on what you think according to the text would have been the best solution" AAAGGGHHH!!! Completely paralyzed! Eventually, I did the paper with ambiguous instructions and got it done. That was the most difficult paper for me to write in my whole life. Her learning style ended up being the way that the class was conducted and it wore me out something awful! I did learn, that instruction and self reflection are so crucial as you share with different populations of people who have different approaches to learning you can't afford to TEACH how you LEARN. You loose a lot of people that way and they walk away from the experience feeling like they aren't as smart as their counterparts.
I try to incorporate this into every class that I teach. All people process information different and you have to accommodate them best you can. For those who are more information focused, give them handouts and statistics; those who are hands on learners, give them opportunities to work on the project or use a handout. Those who learn by visual stimulus, overheads, PowerPoint and other visual examples. I have had student who during a lecture are drawing pictures. But when I ask them questions about the information, they are well engaged and actively participate. You have to pay attention to the order of your class and continue to switch up in between concepts to gain better cohesion and facilitation of information!
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
What am I now?
ok...So I have been reading and I came across some interesting information as it relates to generational integration in training sessions/classrooms. Everyone is there! Transitionalist want you to suck it up and deal with what comes. The Baby-Boomers have this concerned fear that once you get the training that you will envitably leave the workplace and nulify your loyalty to the company and your other coworkers. The Gen Xer's are trying to find out how will this all play out in the end and if the training that is offered or available has the potential to progress us forward and into the next dimension of our careers. Then those precious Millenials know that training is a part of growth and are looking for a good time in the process of learning.
This is an interesting look at the dynamics of classroom design but also how as a facilitator you need to be aware of the commonality that you share with those whom you represent (generationally) and how you communicated those needs and address them appropiately. As a Gen Xer with friend, colleagues in each generation, I see first hand the effects on how they view their value in the classroom and if I know what I am talking about when we discuss events of the hour. My generation was the premiere generation to increase the teen pregnancy rate in the US than any other generation in history. We are grandparents in our late 30's and early 40's with retirement no where in sight. Our understanding of who we are and the effectiveness of our presence in the workplace is sometimes overshadowed by those who have "traveled this way before" or see our contributions as less than stellar.
Using the classroom as a community glue works. It makes you create the kind of environment that will be condusive for others while at the same time making you work harder to find the needs of the populations and pieces in the confines of the curriculum that will have long lasting and pivotal effects on how people operate, move and grow.
This is an interesting look at the dynamics of classroom design but also how as a facilitator you need to be aware of the commonality that you share with those whom you represent (generationally) and how you communicated those needs and address them appropiately. As a Gen Xer with friend, colleagues in each generation, I see first hand the effects on how they view their value in the classroom and if I know what I am talking about when we discuss events of the hour. My generation was the premiere generation to increase the teen pregnancy rate in the US than any other generation in history. We are grandparents in our late 30's and early 40's with retirement no where in sight. Our understanding of who we are and the effectiveness of our presence in the workplace is sometimes overshadowed by those who have "traveled this way before" or see our contributions as less than stellar.
Using the classroom as a community glue works. It makes you create the kind of environment that will be condusive for others while at the same time making you work harder to find the needs of the populations and pieces in the confines of the curriculum that will have long lasting and pivotal effects on how people operate, move and grow.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Training for Life
Looking at possibilities for the final project, I have come up with a most interest scenerio; not necessarily different from my everyday duties as a career facilitator, but with a distinct twist. I am making an attempt (regardless of how fictional) to train Case Managers (Business Development Associates) who assist TANF customers with life resources, to improve their participation rates by incorporating creative communication techniques.
This will be a 3 day workshop that will incorporate case study, theoritical applications and communication assessments to help them figure out how they communicate. I will also make the attempt to assess them on communal biases (any ideologies or theories they currently are practicing with our customers. These biases may not have an concrete theoretical application, but the passing down of "survival tactics" from other colleagues may prove to be instrumental in how they approach problem solving strategies with our customer and how they may communicate with them (verbally or non verbals). The ultimate goal is to change the culture of the Department of Human Services by re-introducing the human component back into service to the community and the City's objective of getting people working in Denver County.
Scope: The subject will begin with the definition of who our TANF customers are; i.e education, goals, barriers, family structures. If we start with the current state of the population we can address what difficulties we have seen in communication styles and customer expectation as it relates to Federal and County guidelines. Building relationships and providing essential boundaries to the working relationship to get the expected result, activity participation and completion.
Depth: Because Workforce Development wants to eradicate the "social services stigma" to make this population employable, we will have to cover specific communication approaches in the allotted time to cover the essentials. We will cover individual communication styles and biases, mirroring, how to handle confrontation without being confrontational and every customer is not the same.
Centrality and Balance: Communication is a broad subject matter, so we will spend time on biases and communication styles and who is our customer. This will give us a better idea of knowing what is working and what is causing TANF customers from fully participating and completing work activities. There must still be a balance is providing quality communication/ relationship building without trying to become our customer's "buddies". The building of relationships with customers based on a "communication partner" framework.
Sequence: This is interesting. Covering the "who is our customer/ personal biases." Seems to be the most effective starting point. I am sure that as I look at this more closely, I will find something else that will take presidence over this starting point. We may need to also look at the foundation of "what is customer service and what is communication" as a foundational starting point and then branch out into styles, responsibility and the human identification component.
Gap: What is being left out? Hmmm, that is an interesting one. In order for the Case Managers to facilitate more effective communication strategies, the supervisory leadership needs to have the skills in place also so that they will be able to implement and see the effects of the change on participation rates and customer satisfaction. If the leadership is not instructed as well, we will have a repeat of trainings that have been manditory for the workers and not taken seriously or considered relevant to management. Communication styles and approaches must practiced by leadership to be followed and implemented by frontline staff. An additional training will need to be done with supervisors and an progression of implementation effects to be reviewed in 30 days from the completion of the initial training.
Intention: The intention is that the Case Managers will walk away with more effective communication tools in dealing with TANF customers with the results of higher participation rates. However, it is a good chance that it will end up that some Associates will begin to share how management doesn't make it easy to implement new ideas for participation rates and will spend the time doing damage control and justifying the necessity of the training all together. However, again, it could end up a gripe session about how all our customers are, "liars, deceitful, and people trying to abuse the system". We will have to go back to concrete definitions of what is, what isn't and what we as a group want it to look like and then formulation a plan and a strategy to make it happen.
In a perfect world this would be amazing and everyone would be self-sufficient, however the animal itself has never been tamed for quite sometime. In taking on this huge task, I hope that I am not leaving out anything concrete (that would not be good) LOL.
This will be a 3 day workshop that will incorporate case study, theoritical applications and communication assessments to help them figure out how they communicate. I will also make the attempt to assess them on communal biases (any ideologies or theories they currently are practicing with our customers. These biases may not have an concrete theoretical application, but the passing down of "survival tactics" from other colleagues may prove to be instrumental in how they approach problem solving strategies with our customer and how they may communicate with them (verbally or non verbals). The ultimate goal is to change the culture of the Department of Human Services by re-introducing the human component back into service to the community and the City's objective of getting people working in Denver County.
Scope: The subject will begin with the definition of who our TANF customers are; i.e education, goals, barriers, family structures. If we start with the current state of the population we can address what difficulties we have seen in communication styles and customer expectation as it relates to Federal and County guidelines. Building relationships and providing essential boundaries to the working relationship to get the expected result, activity participation and completion.
Depth: Because Workforce Development wants to eradicate the "social services stigma" to make this population employable, we will have to cover specific communication approaches in the allotted time to cover the essentials. We will cover individual communication styles and biases, mirroring, how to handle confrontation without being confrontational and every customer is not the same.
Centrality and Balance: Communication is a broad subject matter, so we will spend time on biases and communication styles and who is our customer. This will give us a better idea of knowing what is working and what is causing TANF customers from fully participating and completing work activities. There must still be a balance is providing quality communication/ relationship building without trying to become our customer's "buddies". The building of relationships with customers based on a "communication partner" framework.
Sequence: This is interesting. Covering the "who is our customer/ personal biases." Seems to be the most effective starting point. I am sure that as I look at this more closely, I will find something else that will take presidence over this starting point. We may need to also look at the foundation of "what is customer service and what is communication" as a foundational starting point and then branch out into styles, responsibility and the human identification component.
Gap: What is being left out? Hmmm, that is an interesting one. In order for the Case Managers to facilitate more effective communication strategies, the supervisory leadership needs to have the skills in place also so that they will be able to implement and see the effects of the change on participation rates and customer satisfaction. If the leadership is not instructed as well, we will have a repeat of trainings that have been manditory for the workers and not taken seriously or considered relevant to management. Communication styles and approaches must practiced by leadership to be followed and implemented by frontline staff. An additional training will need to be done with supervisors and an progression of implementation effects to be reviewed in 30 days from the completion of the initial training.
Intention: The intention is that the Case Managers will walk away with more effective communication tools in dealing with TANF customers with the results of higher participation rates. However, it is a good chance that it will end up that some Associates will begin to share how management doesn't make it easy to implement new ideas for participation rates and will spend the time doing damage control and justifying the necessity of the training all together. However, again, it could end up a gripe session about how all our customers are, "liars, deceitful, and people trying to abuse the system". We will have to go back to concrete definitions of what is, what isn't and what we as a group want it to look like and then formulation a plan and a strategy to make it happen.
In a perfect world this would be amazing and everyone would be self-sufficient, however the animal itself has never been tamed for quite sometime. In taking on this huge task, I hope that I am not leaving out anything concrete (that would not be good) LOL.
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