How do the characteristics of my students affect how they learn and what might an ideal environment look like to them.

I agree with the general class discussion last week that today's students, indeed today’s human beings, are intrinsically the same in their fundamental needs and desires. This is why concepts such as Maslow's 'hierarchy of needs' is still included in current pedagogy.

However, modern students  who grow up with  new technologies as a part of their intrinsic social mileu, are meeting these needs using different technological tools.

They are becoming used to information and communication being packaged differently to when I was growing up.

The need for educational environments to utilise these new tools is common sense to me.

The medical students I engage with are totally comfortable using wikispaces and u-tube presentations to compile and enhance their groups learning. Familiarising myself with wikispaces these last few days has allowed me to see its value. I   would like to explore with my students, whether a more “ideal” learning environment for them would include me, as moderator, interacting  with their wikispaces.

It could allow me to provide timely feedback, assist with dilemmas and challenge clinical thinking out of face to face time. Rules would have to be incorporated as to how often I would be available on line given that I am a part time academic tutor.  An internal discussion board could also provide this function…and I think this is underutilised by current students and staff.

As to other characteristics of an ideal learning environment I found myself nodding as I read most of  Kemi Jona's article, Rethinking the Design of Online Courses (2000). I resonated with her premise that modern education needs to heed the principles  of “natural learning”.  She argues that “Natural learning” is based on 3 basic  concepts

Natural  learning is

1.   goal directed, 

2.   case based and 

3.   driven by “expectation failure”

I noted that her ideas resonated  with the foundational principles of education I explored in the Early Childhood Studies  I completed last year (early childhood development and learning is one of my enduring fascinations).  Young children are surely some of our greatest learners and we can learn much from them!

Child care providers are now expected to be trained educators of young children. Their official pedagogy, called the Early Years Learning Framework incorporates all the concepts of natural learning. “Children learn by playing” is a fundamental concept. We were taught to make observations of young children at play, note their natural interests, strengths and weaknesses and design individual programs to guide and enhance each child’s early learning through play. Surely the principles of adult learning, despite the seriousness and responsibilities of adulthood are parallel.

I do feel that the Notre Dame medical course, being small group and problem/case based, incorporates these concepts well.

It is so much more relevant, engaging, motivating and indeed challenging  than the traditional lecture and rote learning  format I endured during medical school in the late 1980’s/early 90’s.

However there are three final points I would like to explore more in my discussion with students re creating a more ideal learning environment.

1.   The use of games in learning….an interesting idea and one I am open to. Of course medicine is a serious business and we must avoid giving the impression that we can treat medicine as a game.

2.   The importance of failure as one of our greatest teachers! Doctors and medical students are not at all comfortable with failure…it obviously could have dire consequences. But  I take  Kemi Jona’s point that “Once learners have come upon the limits of their knowledge, as evidenced by making a mistake or not knowing how to proceed, they are ready and motivated  to acquire the missing knowledge or skills. And thus, a key feature of effective learning environments is that they must provide learners with a safe environment in which to learn from their own mistakes”.

As tutors we play a crucial role in  creating an environment where students can view mistakes as intrinsic to learning  and not necessarily  a source of embarrassment, shame and discouragement ?

3.    Multitasking : Prensky argues that there it is likely young people  brains are changed by processing information differently, and that we need to change teaching to accommodate and respect this  But this  is still an evolving debate and a case for investigation.  See my wikispace for a video  and some ideas exploring the debate over young peoples ability to multitask   http://purplesock.wikispaces.com/