CREATING ENVIRONMENT FOR FOSTERING DEEP LEARNING Dr Sirwan K Ali Assistant prof of Psychiatry

All genuine learning is active, not passive. It involves the use of the mind, not just the memory. It is the process of discovery in which the student is the main agent, not the teacher (Adler, 1987). 6/1/2016 2

W HAT DOES THE TERM learning mean to you ?

L EARNING A process resulting in some modification, relatively permanent, of the way of thinking, feeling and doing of the learner (More a behavouristic definition)

L EARNING Learning is construction of knowledge, based on prior knowledge and new information that is interpreted by prior knowledge. (Cognitive Psychology)

“T EACHING METHODS WHICH PLACE THE STUDENT IN AN A CTIVE S ITUATION FOR LEARNING ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE EFFECTIVE THAN THOSE WHICH DO NOT ” G EORGE M ILLER ( M EDICAL EDUCATIONIST )

T WO TYPES OF LEARNING Active - Learner takes the responsibility for learning, less dependant on teachers - knows how to learn- life long learner Passive – Very much dependant on the teacher and expects most to be provided, lectures, lecture notes, questions etc. find difficult to keep abreast with new knowledge

P ASSIVE L EARNING Examples Listening to a lecturer, taking down everything that is told Waiting to be told what to do next following routines without questioning/ reasoning out Teacher is in full control, authoritarian

W HAT IS MEANT BY ACTIVE (DEEP) LEARNING ? That is to say that the learner is taking the initiative for ones’ learning Teacher is only a guide

E XAMPLES R EADING TEXT BOOKS D ISCUSSIONS C LINICAL CASES OF RELEVANCE E NGAGED IN PRACTICAL O BSERVATION P ROJECTS T EACHING OTHERS

WHAT IS DEEP LEARNING Oriented to deriving meaning (probing, exploring, considering new applications) Translation to new situations, integration, synthesis, reflection Reproducing, rote memorization Deep LearningSurface Learning 6/1/

MORE ….(BARR & TAGG (1995) Focus on means Students passive recipients Teacher is expert conveyer of knowledge Strategies: lecture Focus on outcomes Students co-creators of knowledge Teacher is coach & facilitator Strategies: create meaningful experiences, active reflection Teaching ParadigmLearning Paradigm 6/1/

A PPROACHES TO LEARNING Students focus their attention on the overall meaning or message in a class session, text or situation. They attempt to relate ideas together and construct their own meaning, possibly in relation to their own experience. Students focus their attention on the details and information in a class session or text. They are trying to memorise these individual details in the form they appear in the class or text or to list the features of the situation in order to pass the examinations. Surface approach Deep approach

S TRATEGIES FOR ACTIVE LEARNING Setting goals Setting up a plan for what you need to achieve Developing a table with deadlines Making decisions Checking progress

S TRATEGIC Student adopts deep and surface approaches in combination so as to achieve the highest possible marks.

S TRATEGIC The approach involves using well organized study methods and careful time management, alertness to cues given by tutors about what they are looking for in deciding grades or marks or what they are going to set in the examinations.

W HAT IS DEEP, ACTIVE LEARNING ? 17 6/1/2016

The students are conscious of two separate foci of attention the academic content and the teacher’s reward system. (Marton, Hounsell and Entwistle 1997)

P ASSIVE L EARNING VS. A CTIVE L EARNING DALE’S CONE OF EXPERIENCE 6/1/2016

WHAT OBSTACLES DO FACULTY MEMBERS COMMONLY REPORT AND, HOW CAN THESE BARRIERS BE OVERCOME? You cannot cover as much course content in class within the time available. Devising active learning strategies takes too much pre-class preparation. Large class sizes prevents implementation of active learning strategies 6/1/

CONTINUE Most instructors think of themselves as being good lecturer. A lack of materials or equipment needed to support active learning approaches. Students resist non-lecture approaches 6/1/

SECOND SET OF POTENTIALLY MORE DIFFICULT OBSTACLES First, there are risks that students will not  participate actively,  learn sufficient course content,  use higher order thinking skills  enjoy the experience. 6/1/

SECOND SET OF POTENTIALLY MORE DIFFICULT OBSTACLES Second, there are risks that you as a faculty member will not  Feel as self-confident,  Initially possess the skills needed to use active learning instructional strategies effectively, and  Be viewed by others as teaching in an established fashion. 6/1/

A quarter of our learning comes from our receptors Own intellect and talent provides a quarter A quarter from the peers and friends And the remainder only with time (UGC 2006)

CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS  True learning involves figuring out how to use what you already know in order to go beyond what you already think.  Start with modest expectations (i.e., think big but start small).  One must learn by doing the thing; for though you think you know it, you will have no certainty until you try,  As long as one keeps searching, the answers come 6/1/

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