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Anatomy of Learning

Leveraging Relationships to Inspire Engagement & Rigor

Michelle Pacansky-Brock, @brocansky

Faculty Mentor, Online Teaching & Learning

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DAY 1

Live Sessions:

11am PT - Anatomy of Learning
1pm PT - Sending Cues of Trust Online

Self-Guided Activities:�

Import the Getting to Know You Survey into Your Course
Decentering Whiteness Reflections

January 20 - 22, 2021

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Photo by Nikita Taparia on Unsplash

Belonging is a basic human need. But belonging is not the same as fitting in. “Fitting in” requires a person to change who they are and conform to something else. “Belonging” is being accepted for your true, authentic self. It’s only when a person truly belongs that they can thrive and achieve their full potential.

When a person doesn’t belong, it is an effect of their social environment, not the person. When we recognize that minoritization is an active process and is not an inherent trait of a person, it compels us to recognize that we are complicit in the process of minoritizing others unless we commit to actively working to understand the experiences of those who are different from us and be intentional about creating inclusive environments.

When a person is continuously expected to “just fit in,” it is dehumanizing and it is exhausting. And this presentation is going to help you see barriers that may exist within your course that may be leaving some students out.

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Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

“... emotions are not just messy toddlers in a china shop, running around breaking and obscuring delicate cognitive glassware. Instead, they are more like the shelves underlying the glassware; without them cognition has less support.”

Mary Helen Immordino-Yang & Antonio Demasio

We Feel, Therefore We Learn: The Relevance of Affective Social Neuroscience to Education

Photo by DESIGNECOLOGIST on Unsplash. Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

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Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

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Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

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Each college class is a landscape of socio-psychological threats for many students. These threats are barriers that prevent them from achieving their full potential.

Photo by Gift Habeshaw on Unsplash

If you are a CA Community College instructor, you serve the most diverse group of students in the nation. Three out of every four students in our system has black or brown skin. A recent study of 40,000 CCC students conducted by the the Hope Center found that half of student respondents reported being food insecure in the prior 30 days, 60% were housing insecure in the previous year, and 1 in 5 were homeless in the past year. Basic needs insecurity rates are highest for Black and African American students, those who identify as LBTQIA, students who are financially independent from their parents or guardians, those who have served in the military, former foster youth, and formerly incarcerated students.

Each college class is a landscape of socio-psychological threats for many students. These threats are barriers that prevent them from achieving their full potential.

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And when students learn online, these stressors can intensify without the intentional cultivation of human connection.

Photo by Gift Habeshaw on Unsplash

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Photo by Nikita Taparia on Unsplash

"Most...faculty have been well prepared in the disciplines they teach, but too few have been prepared for the reality of today’s students — the ways they learn, and the cognitive and affective challenges they bring with them through the open door.” ��John E. Roueche�Director, Community College Leadership Program�The University of Texas at Austin

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Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

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When a flower doesn’t bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower.

-Alexander den Heijer

Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

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How might we teach online in a way that supports the emotional well-being of our students and us?

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Describe how this student feels.

Please share your answer in the chat.

Video by Teaching & Learning Innovations at CSU Channel Islands, CC-BY-NC

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Describe how this student feels.

Video by California Community Colleges, CVC-OEI/@ONE, CC-BY

Please share your answer in the chat.

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What instructor behaviors influenced her success?

California Community Colleges, CVC-OEI/@ONE, CC-BY

Please share your answer in the chat.

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Human connection is an antidote to threat. When students feel seen, they are more motivated to lean in.

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What course design features influences online community college student performance most?

Quality instructor-student interactions

Jaggars, S. S. & Xu, D. (2016). How do online course design features influence student performance? Computers & Education, 95, April 2016, 270-284.

Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

(An instructor who cares)

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Cognitive differences influence belonging.

Photo by Nikita Taparia on Unsplash

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Hammond, Z. L. (2014). Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students. Corwin Publishers.

The Dependent Learner	The Independent Learner
Unsure about how to tackle a new task Needs scaffolds to complete tasks Will sit passively and wait if stuck until the teacher intervenes	Possesses cognitive strategies for getting unstuck Attempts new tasks without scaffolds Has learned how to retrieve information from long-term memory

Features of Dependent and Independent Learners

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Education is not neutral.

Classroom studies document the fact that underserved English learners, poor students, and students of color routinely receive less instruction in higher order skills development than other students (Allington and McGill-Franzen, 1989; Darling-Hammond, 2001; Oakes, 2005). [This] denies students the opportunity to engage in what neuroscientists call productive struggle that actually grows our brain power (Means & Knapp, 1991; Ritchhart, 2002). As a result, a disproportionate number of culturally and linguistically diverse students are dependent learners.

Zaretta Hammond, Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain, pp. 12-13.

Becoming an independent learner is a form of cultural capital that not all students have access to.

As this quote by Zaretta Hammond explains, “Classroom studies document the fact that underserved English learners, poor students, and students of color routinely receive less instruction in higher order skills development than other students (Allington and McGill-Franzen, 1989; Darling-Hammond, 2001; Oakes, 2005). [This] denies students the opportunity to engage in what neuroscientists call productive struggle that actually grows our brain power (Means & Knapp, 1991; Ritchhart, 2002). As a result, a disproportionate number of culturally and linguistically diverse students are dependent learners.”

Culturally responsive teaching is designed to grow your students’ cognitive capacity towards becoming an independent learner.

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When an instructor took time to learn my name.
When an instructor said, “You can do this, and I am going to help you.”
When an instructor became a partner in my learning
When faculty encouraged student to support each other

Rendón, L. (1994). Validating culturally diverse students: Toward a new model of learning and student development. Innovative Higher Education, 19, 33-51.

Validation Theory

“I don’t think I can do this.”

“I’ve got this!”

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Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

“Students who feel invisible and unimportant” need to be “seen” and “valued” by educators.

Wood & Harris III, 2017, p. 41.

Wood, J. L., & Harris, F., III. (2017). Supporting men of color in the community college: A guidebook. San Diego, CA: Lawndale Hill.

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Starts with cultivating positive instructor-student relationships

Relationships are leveraged to increase academic performance. �
Producing a high level of academic work becomes a reciprocal obligation between student and teacher�
Students push themselves beyond their perceived ability so they do not let their teacher down

Warm Demander Pedagogy

Kleinfeld, J. (1972). Effective Teachers of Indian and Eskimo High School Students. Institute of Social, Economic and Government Research, University of Alaska

Kleinfeld, J. (1975). Effective teachers of Eskimo and Indian students. School Review, 83, 301–344.

Dependent

Learner

Independent

Learner

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Cultural differences influence belonging.

Photo by Nikita Taparia on Unsplash

Culture has visible characteristics (like art, food, clothing) and invisible characteristics (values and beliefs). Culture shifts based on one’s environment. When you are with your family, there is a particular culture at play. Your college has a particular culture. And you may find that your program and even your department has a distinctive culture. The thing about culture is that it when you have internalized its values, you cannot see them. They are undetectable like the water in which a fish swims. It’s there, influencing everything you do, without you being aware. When you begin to see characteristics of your culture, it is intensely enlightening. For me, seeing the characteristics of dominant white culture and how they influence me has been the most striking, helpful step in my journey towards becoming racially literate. For, if we aim to create welcoming and supportive multicultural environments, we must be able to see and decenter aspects of dominant white culture.

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Individualism	Collectivism
Individual achievement is valued Individuals take care of themselves with the goal of getting ahead Learning happens through individual study and reading Competitive Technical/Analytical	Group success is valued Group members take care of each other with the goal of advancing the group Learning happens through group interaction and dialogue Collaborative Relational

Features of Individualistic and Collectivist Cultures

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Low Context	High Context
Context (who says it, how it is said) is less important than what is said Relationships begin and end more frequently, are plentiful	Context (who says it, how it is said) is as important as what is said Relationships develop slowly over time

Features of Low Context and High Context Cultures

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Principles of Humanized Online Teaching

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Walton, G. M., & Cohen, G. L. (2007). A question of belonging: Race, social fit, and achievement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92(1), 82.

Belongingness Uncertainty

Internalized message, “People like me don’t belong here”
Triggered by lack of social connectedness, macro/ microaggressions, negative stereotypes
More likely to impact Black, Latinx, Indigenous, other students of color, first-generation students, and low-income students

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Weeks 0-1 are a high opportunity zone.

Walton, G. M., & Cohen, G. L. (2007). A question of belonging: Race, social fit, and achievement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92(1), 82.

Estrada, M., Eroy-Reveles, A., & Matsui, J. (2018). The Influence of Affirming Kindness and Community on Broadening Participation in STEM Career Pathways. Social issues and policy review, 12(1), 258–297. doi:10.1111/sipr.12046

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Humanized Online Teaching Elements

Created with funds from the California Education Learning Lab. Shared with a CC-BY-NC License. Please attribute Pacansky-Brock, M., Smedshammer, M., & Vincent-Layton, K. (2020) in any re-use.

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Registration

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

Walton, G. M., & Cohen, G. L. (2007). A question of belonging: Race, social fit, and achievement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92(1), 82.

Reduce “belongingness uncertainty”

(Walton & Cohen, 2007)

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Liquid Syllabus

Created with a website tool (Google Sites)
Public
Phone-friendly
Accessible (alt-text, color contrast, headings/subheadings, lists)
Components:

Starts with a captioned brief, imperfect welcome video
Written with welcoming, hopeful language
Tips for success
Learning pact
Inclusive images

Kindness Cue: “I trust you. I am here for you.”

Pacansky-Brock, (2014) and Pacansky-Brock, Smedshammer, Vincent-Layton, (2020)

Example by Sarah Williams, Foothill College.

DAY 3

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Humanized Homepage

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Getting to Know You Survey

Kindness Cue: “I want to know how I can support you.”

What are your pronouns?
I will leave you feedback in video format. Does that work for you?

Yes, sounds great.
No, thanks. I prefer written feedback.

In one word, describe how you are feeling about this class.
Please share one thing that may interfere with your success in this class.

See a Google Forms sample: brocansky.com/humanizing/student-info

Import from the Canvas Commons: Search for #HumanizingSTEM

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Adapt Your Teaching

Sends the cue: “I believe in you.”

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Take notes about what you learn from the survey. �
Track activity and performance.�
Reach out directly before it’s too late.�

Humanizing Element

Record voice and video feedback in the gradebook for high opportunity students.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

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Self-Affirming Ice Breaker

Kindness Cue: “Your values and experiences matter.”

Spitzer, B. and Aronson, J. (2015). Minding and mending the gap: Social psychological interventions to reduce educational disparities. The British Psychological Society, 85, 1-18.

Contributed by Fabiola Torres

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Self-Affirming Ice Breaker

What will you hold onto?�

Contributed by Denise Maduli-Williams

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“Wisdom Wall” Assignment(s)

Metacognition • Growth Mindset • Self-Efficacy

Pacansky-Brock, M. (2017). Best practices for teaching with emerging technologies (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.

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Bumper Videos

Kindness Cue: “I am here to help you learn.”

Brief, Visually Oriented Video: Clarify a sticky topic or introduce a module/assignment

Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

Matt Mooney, Santa Barbara Community College. Made with Adobe Spark.

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by Maritez Apigo, Contra Costa College

DAY 2

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by Michelle Macfarlane, Agriculture Instructor, Sierra College

Made with Adobe Spark

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Contributed by Michelle Pacansky-Brock

Brief, Imperfect Videos

Let’s get real series

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Microlectures

Kindness Cue: “I am here to help you learn.”�

Focused and brief instructional videos.

Slide by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, CC-BY-NC

Contributed by Sarah Williams, Calculus, Foothill College. Made with MS OneNote & Zoom or Screencast-O-Matic

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DAY 1

Live Sessions:

1pm PT - Sending Cues of Trust Online

Self-Guided Activities:�

Import the Getting to Know You Survey into Your Course
Decentering Whiteness Reflections

DAY 2

Live Sessions:

10am PT - Practicing Radical Love: Breaking Down Instructor- Student Hierarchies

Self-Guided Activity:�

Record, Host, Caption & Share a 2-3 minute welcome video

DAY 3

Live Sessions:

10am PT - Humanizing Pre-course Contact with a Liquid Syllabus

Self-Guided Activity:�

Create & Share a Liquid Syllabus