Preparing_and_Enabling_Learning_in_the_Lifelong_Learning_Sector.

Preparing and Enabling Learning in the Lifelong Learning Sector. According to the Collins English Dictionary (2002 pg 458) a resource is “a thing resorted to for support”. For teachers and learners a resource in its entirety comes in many guises and can be used as a way of engaging, informing, inspiring and motivating both inside and outside of the classroom. For teachers though, the challenge is to find, adapt or create resources that through suggested principles are developed in a way which result in them being accessible to all, promote inclusivity, are differentiated and actually useful to the topic or lesson planned to meet their learner’s needs. (excellencegateway.org.uk . accessed 26/01/13) Recently Gravells (2012 pg 77) suggests that any resources you use should be evaluated and questions asked of it such as “did the resource do what I expected' If not why not'” and “Did it reach all the learning styles'” According to Smith (2002) a number of questions or statements need to be chosen to cover all areas of learning styles such as “what will you be seeing when you achieve your goal'” (visual), “what will you and others be saying when you are successful'” (auditory), “what words will you read and write to show this success'” (read/write) and “what will you be physically doing or feeling to achieve success' (kinaesthetic). Using these statements alongside your variety of evaluated and fit for purpose resources could only ensure that every student’s thoughts and processes are reached confirming you have planned to meet your learner’s individual needs. To support revision work for an exam unit within Health and Social care is to produce a “case study” which covers the topic meaning the student can produce a “story or essay” giving them a picture or overview to think of and relate to when answering real exam questions. Making up a family who have diverse backgrounds, needs and access to services can really support students, particularly visual and pragmatist learners as it helps them to remember the people within the case study, their issues, how to solve their problems and what legislation protects them in a real life situation. Differentiated questions can then be used e.g what legislation could support this family' The student could then write about two or three from the topic or all six that had been covered; this then gives them choice and encourages independent learning skills too. In terms of accessibility it can be produced as a paper copy and given to all students, voice recorded if need be and uploaded onto a school or college intranet service and be emailed across to all students. However for some learners, using case studies can be time consuming and visual techniques do not work for them. Another issue could be that case studies are " particularly prone to bias; especially selection, recall and observer bias” (Barratt & Kirwan 2009) therefore both the learners and teacher need to be aware of any bias they may bring to it. Images and terminology also need to reflect diversity and ensure they challenge stereotypes so they depict all of our society. As the technological age is upon us and most of our students confident in the use of them, a video camera can be used to record the students in small groups practicing clinical skills they may use in the workplace, role plays for communication skills and counselling sessions. This is often met with reluctance at first but encouragement and gentle persuasion often reaps great benefits. Students eventually learn not to see themselves but only the skills they are good at or identifying areas for improvement. Provided clear guidelines and criteria are set for achievement inclusivity and differentiation is standard and some learners are very able in using technology and this can be their chance to “shine” and show others how to use it confidently thus boosting self- esteem, motivation and peer learning, particularly for those who find the academic demands of learning challenging. On the other hand, some learners will never get used to the camera or feel they are always playing a part or following a script which can interfere with their success. Another area to consider is that it can be time consuming if learners want to edit and re-record and if the equipment is readily accessible to you. Embedding one or more functional skills into a resource is often unrecognised as we do this without realising. Discussions, asking questions, reading articles, word processing, understanding data in charts and graphs are some ways we embed functional skills every day within the classroom. One useful way to embed literacy skills that is inclusive to all, promotes differentiation and a key motivation source is to show students how to use the thesaurus tool in a “word” document and in a book! Too often coursework is marked with duplicate or slang words that limits the flow or grade marks of achievement. Having students assess their work and find alternatives to words such as “also” and “another” helps them express their work more effectively and broadens their vocabulary. Further reading skills develop too as they understand and recognise more academic words as they use them. However to begin with it can be time consuming and there is a danger that some students will use words they clearly have no understanding of. It can also be difficult if English is a second language as some word choices may not always make sense. Ultimately though, with practice and having access to a thesaurus in the classroom and at home either through a personal computer or borrowing a thesaurus from the library means students can work on this independently or in pairs, at their own time and pace and as a useful resource to use within all their topics and lessons. Ultimately though reading over their finished work that has now a more fluid style enhances their confidence in their ability and gives them pride in their work. In summary, resources are only valuable to learning in the classroom providing they actually prove to be useful, are accessible by all and provide a range of differentiated outcomes which can only be guaranteed through consistent evaluation from the teacher and the students. Reference List Barratt H & Kirwan M 2009, Case Control Studies, Health Knowledge (online) Available at: http://www.healthknowledge.org.uk/public-health-textbook/research-methods/1a-epidemiology/cs-as-is/case-control-studies (Accessed 21st January 2013) Collins (2002), English Dictionary, Harper Collins Publisher, Glasgow. Gravells A (2012) Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector. 5th Edition. Sage Publications. London. Learning and Skills Improvement Service (no date),Inclusive teaching and Learning. Available at: http://tlp.excellencegateway.org.uk/tlp/cpd/assets/documents/inclusive_teaching_learning.pdf (Accessed 26th January 2013) Smith A (2002) Accelerated Learning in the classroom. Network Educational Press Ltd. Stafford