DEPUTY PRINCIPAL REPORT

Why Approaches to Learning Matter

In the next few weeks students and their parents will receive reports that reflect their learning progress in the particular subject area, as well as information about how their learning has developed in general-the latter are called approaches to learning, or learning skills. These are the vital skills that all students should look to develop as they play a key role in helping them be a successful learner. 

Many of our students are going to be working in jobs that currently do not exist, with technologies that haven’t yet been invented, so it is vital that they develop these skills for the 21st century. The college will report on these in the coming weeks, so it seemed a logical time to explain the finer points of some of these skills:

Communication falls into three broad categories, listening, speaking and writing. Understanding audience and purpose are integral to development here, as is being an active listener. Elements that teachers consider in making this on balance judgement include giving and receiving meaningful feedback, making inferences and drawing conclusions and using appropriate media to communicate with their audience. 

Social Skills are a measure of how well students collaborate and work effectively with others. Many of the so called ‘soft’ skills we hear so much from universities and employers are developed in this realm. Giving and receiving meaningful feedback, playing a role in a group and delegating and sharing responsibility for decision-making are key tools that exhibit collaboration skills. 

Being organised and managing class and study time effectively are Self Management skills. Using a planning tool, developing strategies to achieve personal and learning goals and bringing requisite equipment to class are just three ways in which self management can be exhibited. In many ways these are the skills that underpin all others, allowing students to reach their learning potential by having in place the organisational skills that will facilitate that success. These include practicing mindfulness, focus and concentration, overcoming distractions, perseverance and persistence, overcoming impulsiveness, preventing and or eliminating bullying, developing strategies to reduce stress and anxiety, practicing positive thinking and dealing with disappointment and unmet expectations. Phew...no wonder this is the realm in which we spend so much time educating our students!

It is ironic that in a world in which the information sits at our fingertips, Research skills become even more vital. It is essential that students demonstrate information literacy, finding, interpreting, judging and creating information. They need to be able to effectively collect, record, verify, analyse and interpret data and access information in an informed manner. They should make connections between various sources of information, find and use appropriate sources and present information in a variety of formats and platforms. Understanding academic intellectual property and creating references and citations are also important skills as students move into even more academic spheres. 

It would appear self-evident that Thinking is a vital ingredient to success at school and in life. The key element of this is teaching students to think critically, analysing and evaluating issues and ideas, recognising problems and gathering and organising relevant information to formulate a solution. Many of the other learning attributes depend on a growth mindset that sees learners recognise the importance of how we think in regards to their approach to learning. At the core of this should lie a recognition that learning is hard, it has pitfalls that need to be overcome and that it takes resilience and focus to master knowledge and skill. If learning is always easy, what is being learnt? 

When reports are made available please take the time to discuss these approaches to learning. They influence all subjects, all students and all situations, not just school but in the ‘real world’ of work, further studies or life in general.

As always, if you would like to discuss anything learning, I would love to hear from you.

Anthony.heffer@trac.nsw.edu.au

Anthony Heffer | Deputy Principal - Teaching, Learning and Innovation