Scout Instructor Development Course (SIDC)

1. Scout Instructor Development Course (SIDC) June 14

2. The reason you came • This planned 4 hour course will provide Senior Scouts (1st class and above) with a better understanding of what it takes to learn and what it takes to train/teach others.  It is anticipated that the knowledge gained in this course will help Scouts to better prepare and to make presentations, lectures, demonstrations, and other forms of learning for their units. 

3. Syllabus - Part I • Introduction to learning (50 Min) • Why do all senses matter? • Group exercise (15 Min) • Model of Learning • Break 10 Minutes • Introduction to teaching (80 Min) • Group exercise – Fruit Salad (15 Min) • Group exercise - Red Green Show (10 Min) • How can you teach with each sense (Sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch)?

4. Syllabus - Part II • Break 10 Minutes • Leading and Teaching (60 Min) • Cutting interference • Using Pazzazz! • Gettysburg Address (5 Min) • Presentation tools • Group presentation (20 Min) • Break 10 Minutes • Using your knowledge to learn (10 Min) • Wrap up (10 Min)

5. Syllabus - Part I • Introduction to learning (50 Min) • Why do all senses matter? • Group exercise (15 Min) • Model of Learning • Break 10 Minutes • Introduction to teaching (80 Min) • Group exercise – Fruit Salad (15 Min) • Group exercise - Red Green Show (10 Min) • How can you teach with each sense (Sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch)?

6. Introduction to learning 1 • “Collaborative studies of the design and evaluation of learning environments, among cognitive and developmental psychologists and educators, are yielding new knowledge about the nature of learning and teaching as it takes place in a variety of settings. In addition, researchers are discovering ways to learn from the ''wisdom of practice" that comes from successful teachers who can share their expertise.”* * How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School (National Academy of Sciences,1999)

7. Introduction to learning 2 • “Research on learning and transfer has uncovered important principles for structuring learning experiences that enable people to use what they have learned in new settings.”* * How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School (National Academy of Sciences,1999)

8. Introduction to learning Yuck! I’d rather eat rocks and read the phone book then read that! SO – What does it mean to learn in real words? (Lets restart this discussion!)

9. Introduction to learning (in real words!) • We are only now beginning to understand ‘learning’ • It is not just a bunch of chemical reactions • ‘Learning’ is adapting your thoughts to match what you observe. • Let’s examine this statement

10. Introduction to learning • ‘Learning’ is adapting your thoughts to match what you observe. • Does this mean your past affects your learning? (YES) • Learning is affected by cultural norms (Your grandmother is more important to you then just her cookies) • Everyone - even babies - have ideas that affect learning • Everyone will learn in slightly different ways

11. Introduction to learning • ‘Learning’ is adapting your thoughts to match what you observe. • If you don’t ‘experience’ something can you learn from it? (NO) • Good teachers realize this • They have ‘tricks’ to get students to observe new items. (Yes your teachers really do care!)

12. Introduction to learning • ‘Learning’ is adapting your thoughts to match what you observe. • This bring us to an important question - Can you use this knowledge to help teach? (Of course the answer is YES)

13. Some other questions • What does a rock taste like? • What does a stick taste like? • Why do you know the answers to these questions? • Why is this guy asking such strange questions? (The answer is coming!)

14. Group exercise #1 • The ‘Tell Me’ Game • Break up into three groups • Each group will go to a different room and work on the exercise • Come back in 15 minutes

15. Introduction to learning So what have we just learned? • The more involved you are in the activity of learning - the better you learn. This is exemplified by the Confucian saying Tell me and I forget Show me and I remember Let me and I understand

16. Introduction to learning So what have we just learned? • The more involved you are in the activity of learning - the better you learn. In effect you have: more observations ‘Learning’ is adapting your thoughts to match what you observe.

17. Introduction to learning So now back to the rock and the stick. As babies we learned by using all of our senses. We touched, tasted, looked at, listened to and smelled everything - including rocks and sticks. All of these are efforts to OBSERVE an item (Yes, you tasted rocks and sticks!)

18. Introduction to learning This leads us to a second Chinese saying about learning “Learning is from thin to thick to thin.” What does this mean?

19. Learning by young adults “Learning is from thin to thick to thin.” At first, you know VERY FEW DETAILS (THIN) Later, you know LOTS OF DETAILS (THICK) Finally, you see SIMPLE PATTERNS or GENERALIZATIONS (THIN) This concept can be carried further…. To a model by David Kolb

20. Learning by adults Experience • Learning starts when you experience something new • (Thin Knowledge) • The richer the experience (more information) • The better the ‘learning’ Model of David Kolb

21. Learning by adults Experience Process • The new information is combined • with all of your previous knowledge • (Thin => Thick) • This is ‘processing’ the information Model of David Kolb

22. Learning by adults Experience Process Once you have enough information You can generalize the knowledge (Thick => Thin) Generalize Model of David Kolb

23. Learning by adults Experience Finally you apply this to everyday life Process Apply Generalize Model of David Kolb

24. Learning by adults Experience We will examine this more later today Process Apply Generalize Model of David Kolb

25. Break time • Return in 10 minutes

26. Syllabus - Part I • Introduction to learning (50 Min) • Why do all senses matter? • Group exercise (15 Min) • Model of Learning • Break 10 Minutes • Introduction to teaching (80 Min) • Group exercise – Fruit Salad (15 Min) • Group exercise - Red Green Show (10 Min) • How can you teach with each sense (Sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch)?

27. Experience Process Apply Generalize Teaching adults Use learning model to develop teaching techniques Each step important Start with experience and go around the circle

28. Introduction to teaching Experience • What is Experience? • How do you get ‘an experience’? • How do you make a ‘rich experience’? • What gets in the way of a ‘rich experience’?

29. Introduction to teaching Experience • You are born with this ability • How do babies learn? • They use all of their senses • Touch • Taste • Scent • Sound • Sight

30. Group exercise #2 & #3 Experience • #2 - Fruit Salad • Small groups • Each person should taste at least once • #3 - The Red Green Show • One group

31. Group exercise #2 & #3 Experience • Our exercises showed • Senses matter!

32. Introduction to teaching Experience • How can you teach with touch? • Teach someone how to sail a boat • Names of parts of the boat • Show them the parts of the boat • Let them touch the lines/tiller/etc • Show them how they work • Let them sail the boat

33. Introduction to teaching Experience • How would you teach with touch? • Examples from class

34. Introduction to teaching Experience • How can you teach with taste? • Teach someone how to bake a cake • Names of baking utensils • Show them the how the oven works • Show them(and maybe let them taste)the ingredients • Show them how how to mix the ingredients • Let them taste the mixture • Bake the cake • Let them taste the cake

35. Introduction to teaching Experience • How would you teach with taste? • Examples from class

36. Introduction to teaching Experience • How can you teach with scent? • Teach someone how to buy fresh fish • Names of common fish • Show them the fish • Let them smell fresh fish(no smell) • Let them smell old fish(fishy smell)

37. Introduction to teaching Experience • How would you teach with scent? • Examples from class

38. Introduction to teaching Experience • How can you teach with sound? • Teach someone how to play a guitar • Show them guitars • Names of the parts of guitars • Let them listen to you play • Show them how to play • Let them listen to their playing

39. Introduction to teaching Experience • How would you teach with sound? • Examples from class

40. Introduction to teaching Experience • How can you teach with sight? • Teach someone how to tie a knot • Name of the knot • Tell them where the knot is used • Show them how to tie it • Let them tie the knot

41. Introduction to teaching Experience • How would you teach with sight? • Examples from class

42. Introduction to teaching Experience • Did you notice something? • Each example used multiple senses

43. Introduction to teaching Process • As a teacher, you must provide experiences for your students • Is this the end of your job? (NO!) You need to help your students PROCESS the information that you gave them. FAILURE HERE IS PROBABLY THE BIGGEST REASON WHY STUDENTS DO NOT LEARN

44. Introduction to teaching Process • What does it mean to “PROCESS INFORMATION”? • Dictionary definition Process: A series of actions, changes, or functions bringing about a result Information: Knowledge derived from study, experience, or instruction • Make information useful

45. Introduction to teaching Process • For information to be useful • We must have a way to retrieve it • Think of a library • Books placed randomly Does not work • Books placed in order Works

46. Introduction to teaching Process • Each person has their own way of ordering knowledge. • The best learners have a systematic method Meta-cognition

47. Introduction to teaching Process • Meta cognition is • “Learning to learn” - “Thinking to think” • Active control over the learning process • This “active control” includes • Monitoring of progress • Active learning strategies

48. Introduction to teaching Process • Monitoring of progress • Identify the task • Check the progress • Evaluate that progress • Predict the outcome

49. Introduction to teaching Process • Typical active learning strategies • Allocate needed resources to learning • Determine order of steps to learn • Set intensity/speed needed to learn • Specific active learning strategies depend on the subject

50. Introduction to teaching Process • “Expert teachers know the structure of their disciplines, and this knowledge provides them with cognitive roadmaps that guide the assignments they give students”* • As a teacher/leader you must understand your subject (What, where, when, why, how & impact) *How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School: Expanded Edition (National Academies Press, 2000)