Goal-directed Instructional Design Plan - Student Zeal Development

Author - Kareem Jabbar Downer-Shojgreen

1. A problem or a need

Teachers need to improve the development of student zeal for education. This task includes the improvement of the autonomy given to students in the classroom. The goal for this lesson is to provide the teachers with the skills and knowledge to help students become more autonomous, accountable, collaborative, and driven in the pursuit of their education. For example, Diana Laufenberg during her TED Talk referred to an assignment she gave to the students. Diana provided her students in Kansas an authentic experience that allowed them to learn for themselves. She posed a problem in front of her students, then she allowed them to find the solution in their own way. The finish product, according to Diana, “It was theirs. It was experiential. It was authentic. It meant something to them”. Situations like this assignment, encourages the behaviors that make students autonomous, accountable, collaborative, and driven in the pursuit of their education without needing individuals as the source of knowledge. When we allow students to solve problems, do projects, create solutions, and present what they have done, this is when students engage and learn.

2. A real-world performance

The learning objective addresses the need to develop student energy, enthusiasm, and interest in the pursuit of their own education. This workshop for educators regarding student zeal for education, comes in the form of a Goal-Directed Instructional Plan. By exploring current methods of improving students interest in their own education, we can assess what works and doesn’t work. Thus, determining the proper way of addressing what makes them autonomous, accountable, collaborative, and driven in the pursuit of their education while still accommodating their learning style. According to Chris Lehmann, teachers need to allow students to develop the skills to research, collaborate, create, present, and network.

A self directed learning through an independent project allows students an opportunity of individual thinking and freedom. In this approach at education, the main bodies of knowledge are covered. These projects can accommodate different types of learners and multiple learning styles. Free from assigned work and test, students focus on the passions that push them to learn. The independent project is broken down into three main parts, with each day starting with students in a group meeting. The three parts of the independent project follow the single rule of allowing the student to design their own learning. The first part is the weekly questions. On Monday, students choose one question that they are curious about, which is related to one of their core subjects. Students spend the week doing research and experimentation in search for answers to their question. On Friday each student does a formal presentation of what they have learned. The second part is the individual endeavor, which is a much more ambitious project to which a presentation at the end of the year must be done. This can be anything they decide as long as it demonstrates effort, learning, and a mastery of skills. The third part is the collective endeavor. This collective endeavor   provides social impact and helps students make a difference, they practice collaboration skills and teamwork. The key benefits to the self directed learning independent project is that learning becomes a group activity. The student development is dependent on people working together, helping each other, providing constructive criticism, support, praise, using and finding resources, and their own creativity. All of this benefits come together and provide a feeling of ownership for the students over their own learning.

3. An instructional objective

The objectives for this lesson are based on educator implementation of knowledge gathered during the development of student zeal.

1. Teachers will be able to provide students with the adequate information, resources, and technology for the development of student zeal.
2. Teachers will provide a framework or parameters within which students will work.
3. The teacher will be able to relinquish control over some aspects of the classroom to the students, as teachers take on their roles of advisors and students take on the roles of knowledge seekers.
4. Teachers will keep notes on their students performance and compare it to other methods of developing student zeal. Educators will then modify their methods if necessary.

4. A set of essential content 

Teachers will collaborate with other teachers locally, nationally, and internationally through DropBox, blogs, twitter, Skype, google hangout, tango, and other media outlets as they research different techniques used to promote students zeal for education.

Teachers will have the flexibility to find, conduct, participate, and/or observe environments that relate to this goal-oriented instructional design plan.

Teachers will be evaluated by their ability to show, by any means, how their class could benefit from improving student zeal for education.

5. An evaluation consisting of a test or observation

Teachers evaluations will consist of proven understanding and reasoning regarding their best choices for student zeal development through a posted online presentation, papers, subsequent blogs, and classroom discussion.

Teachers will make the appropriate changes and modifications, if needed, to their student zeal for education presentation and paper. Teachers will create the lesson plan and presentation(s), based on the objectives of this instructional plan, that will be used for their students.

6. A method to help participants learn

The teachers will deliver the content gathered in this Goal Oriented Instructional Design Plan through a combination of web presentation, paper, and lesson plan.

• Motivation:

• Meaningfulness

Teachers will be able to identify which techniques they have learned work best with their students. The teacher can engage each student and help them understand the key aspects of student zeal like being autonomous, accountable, collaborative, and driven.

• Pleasant consequences

Teachers will be freeing themselves to be more at the student dispositions.

• Novelty

Teachers will utilize a real world example they have gathered, or personal experience, in order to show how zeal has had a positive or negative effect in the scholastic and professional life of an individual.

• Socialization

The collaborations through blogs, twitter, Skype, google hangout, tango, and other media outlets; the opportunity to find, conduct, participate, and/or observe environments that relate to this goal oriented instructional design plan will allow for interactions with individual in and out of education that can share the needed techniques to develop student zeal for education.

• Audience

• Age

The teachers taking part in this goal oriented instructional design plan range from recent graduates to veteran teachers.

• Skill level (including technology skills)

The teachers involved range from certified educators to professionals with B.A’s, B.S’s, and M.A’s, who are technology competent.

• Prerequisite knowledge (including technology background)

The teachers have average to above technology proficiency.

• Technology Needs

The teachers will need home and work computers with high speed Internet access and plentiful memory and RAM.

The teachers will need Proper knowledge on how or where to save their work in progress.

The teachers will need to be comfortable working with either MAC or PC systems.

The teachers will need access to DropBox, twitter, Skype, google hangout, tango, and other media outlets, and printers.