Feature Friday

Diverse hands around the world

Theme

My blog features information pertinent to teachers of learning communities (LCs), as well as students interested in learning communities.  In Feature Friday, you'll find some research-y stuff as well as some anecdotes from teachers and students alike regarding LCs.

In these posts, you'll read about how to implement LCs, as well as different features of LCs that can help teachers and students alike see the benefits of the program.  New blogs will be added once a month, and some features will be geared more to educators, while others will be directed more to students.

Feel free to interact and ask questions or provide your own unique LC experience.  I love to learn from my audience!

Don't Make Me!

Yawning woman bored from teaching the same thing over and over again

Have you ever gone to class and just wanted to shrink behind the desk from boredom?  Yeah, teacher...I'm talking to YOU!  Have you ever sensed that your students just aren't engaged? Do you ever wish you could sprinkle a little magic dust and get your students involved?

Let's face it.  We've all been there.  

One solution to this all-too-common problem is to consider teaching a learning community.

Folks are sometimes hesitant to step out of their comfort zones and do something new.  After all, aren't we supposed to do things the way they've always been done?  Ummmm...no.  No, we are not!

In my original blog post, I defined a learning community, but I didn't get into who should consider one.  If you pride yourself on being a self-starter and a trail blazer, if you play well with others, and if you're not a scaredy-cat when it comes to taking a blind leap, you should seriously consider teaching a learning community.

So How Do I Get Started?

Steps to begin planning a learning community

There are several things to consider before deciding on teaching a learning community.  

• Think about what concepts/subjects outside your curriculum would make a great pairing.
• Consider the educators who teach those concepts/subjects and choose someone with whom you could work well.
• Contact that person to gauge their interest in a LC.
• When you find an interested colleague, compare curricula to see where natural intersections between each of your course concepts would take place (four to five intersections per semester are optimal).
• Approach your administrator or chair, present the idea, and get approval.
• Begin with the end in mind--what is the goal for your students at the end of the term?  Then, do some backwards planning.
• Start planning, and remember: the sky's the limit as you integrate assignments!  Do hands-on projects, take a field trip, plan cooperative assignments, consider learning centers.  These are just a few options.
• Service learning projects are an integral part of learning communities, also.  Help your students decide on a service project with which they share a connection.  Here are a number of great examples to get you started.
• Don't be afraid to ask me questions.  I may not have the answer, but we can work together to find one!

How Do I Maintain the Momentum?

Momentum is key to planning a successful learning community

It's easy to start something new when you're excited about it, right?  Keeping the momentum going, though, is sometimes a challenge.

However, once you realize how excited your students are about LCs, it will win you over.  Seeing students enjoy the depth of learning that takes place, the way their comprehension soars, and the connection and camaraderie among peers that organically develops, you'll never want to go back to traditional instruction.

If that isn't enough, another way to keep the momentum going is to keep your instruction fresh!  If you've used an assignment a couple of times, consider changing it up.  Don't be afraid to jump in and "get your hands dirty" with your students.  They'll like you even more.  I promise.

And as far as student success is concerned, the proof is in the pudding, according to research conducted by Tinto. Students in LCs achieve a higher level of success and higher GPAs than non-LC students.  That's enough to make any of us cheer!  Hip, hip, hooray!

Take the time to do some research and visit blogs about learning communities to help stay current.

What Do Students Think?

When I was in one of my graduate programs, it was set up as a learning community where the instructors worked closely together, and we were enrolled in the courses together.  That has been eight years ago, and guess what?  We still keep up with each other on social media, we meet for dinner occasionally, and we also still keep in touch with our professors.

Also, a student in our learning community program at my college said, "It’s not just about the combinations of classes, it’s also about the combination of people. Since its at least two classes you will have the same people in those classes. You will always be able to ask for help and you form friendships with your peers. You really become a family and create so many memories throughout the semester."

Convinced yet? 

So What's Next?

The next Feature Friday post will be dedicated to service learning projects.  Although I've touched on them in this post, more specifics will be offered and additional suggestions and research will be available to you.  

Start thinking about a theme you might like to base a learning community on, find a partner who's willing and excited to pair up with you, and give it a shot.  You'll be glad you did!

Let's Talk!

Please reach out to me if you're interested in learning more about learning communities or if you currently teach a learning community.  I would enjoy learning from you!

What's a Learning Community?

The purpose of this blog is to briefly explain a bit about learning communities to students and educators in the higher ed classroom.  For example, what are they, and why should you be interested?

For starters, a learning community is the pairing of two or more linked courses, and the instructors in the courses work together to integrate assignments across their curricula so that students have a much deeper and more meaningful learning experience than in a normal classroom.  In other words, instructors combine assignments where it makes sense in overlapping concepts between curricula, and students and instructors benefit from the connections.

Also, the same students are enrolled in each of the courses so that their time spent together helps form a community.  Research also proves that students who are in a learning community within the first two semesters of college are more likely to stay in college, have higher GPAs, and complete their programs of study when compared to students who don't participate in a learning community.

The major takeaway for students is this: because students become more familiar with one another, as well as better acquainted with their instructors, they tend to spend more time together.  Also, instructors typically spend some time in each other's classes when teaching the integrated lessons, so students get double the "bang for the buck" than in typical courses.  This element helps students feel more comfortable in working cooperatively and in asking questions of each other and their instructors as they build a lasting camaraderie with one another (not to mention the deeper learning that takes place).

A student recently told me that he was excited about a learning community I was teaching because he could actually understand how my course and the other course fit together.  He said he could see the benefit of using the strategies he was learning once he got a job after graduation.

In short, learning communities benefit students and instructors, too.  Students find college more satisfying through new relationships with peers and instructors.  Instructors find their teaching strengthened through consistently evaluating their curriculum and tweaking it to help students see connections.

Learning communities are a win-win for everyone!

https://www.eschoolnews.com/2014/03/12/power-learning-communities-804/