How can you stay current with learning theories and models?

What I have found impactful and what I have not seen very often is the implementation and bringing of the articles in a place based setting. I don't see education as a rigid structure. I see it as a guide to help us on our diverse paths of implementation.

I have always found reading academic Journals and research aid in deepening my knowledge base. It has allowed me to try out cutting edge best practices and assess student results. These new ideas benefit myself and my students.

Another way to look at this is the future of bite size learning. This enables constant evolution of learning to happen alongside the robust learning experience. I predict this will become a strong indicator for future degrees and tertiary education.

Conferences and webinars are a good resource to reach the majority audience, but additional activity or practice is required to convert information to action, and be value added.

I have a webinar on the learning process coming up on July 26 at 9:00 AM CDT (UTC-5) or 5:00 PM CDT. What I have discovered is that we work so hard on the front end, the way we present the material, that we neglect to show the student how to process this material in a way that allows them to remember and use it. A great many times, we think that if they can regurgitate the information we give them that they have learned it, and that just isn't the case. The homework that is assigned may provide practice but doesn't provide a way to fill in the gaps if they don't understand. So we need to make sure we are observing them in the learning process to help clarify their progress with insightful and thought-provoking questions.

In my experience, this is helpful to a point. What I mean by this is that when is ongoing education enough for educators? Hundreds and hundreds of hours of mandated workshops did not necessarily help me become a better educator. When I am able to pick and choose things relevant, to my day to day, everyone wins. Furthermore, I am all in when the presenter truly is an expert in their field. There is always something to learn. The slippery slope is when the assumption is more workshops equals better education for students and resolving classroom issues. These workshops do not resolve the problems of poverty, inequity, sleep issues, homelessness and lack of food that many of my former students have faced.

My first 15 years in the field I was very zealous about my coursework. Unfortunately, the things learned in these higher education courses often were not relevant to solving my classroom issues. Many of the credentials offered today were not available in prior decades. An example ,is in the field of ABA. All my in home ABA therapy experience, we set the ground work in the 90's was not "credentialed." I have provided 100's of hours of in-home ABA. There was not an Autism Specialist degree, nor BCBA licensures. Three locations, in the US, where the only places even offering in home ABA. In 2023, this experience is not recognized, nor validated, despite the degrees and experience, unless it coins the modern letters behind your name.

With 55 years of experience in teaching, I've discovered that the more mistakes I make the better the students learn. When I assess their progress, I understand what my shortcomings are in presenting and illustrating my material, and I make corrections until they're able to make use of the information or skills based on the new material I've provided. The next time I present the material, I tweak it to work better until the results the students are looking for exceed their expectations.

One thing that I have experienced as a founder of a progressive learning centre is that experimentation alone is not enough. There is a need to also consciously look at what will serve the system you are in at that point in time. It is a constant evolution and co-creating alongside experimentation.

We have this concept called the Triad. One teacher works with the student, one teacher IS the student, and One teacher observes the process. The person in the Teaching role receives feedback firstly from the one in the student role who asks questions, clarifies some concepts, and offers suggestions as to the efficiency of the presentation. The Teacher can respond by asking the student questions and making observations about how the student was receiving the material. The Observer then offers feedback regarding the Teacher's art and skill in presentation and the ability to draw out information that the student already has on the subject and how this new information can be applied. Then the observer offers feedback to the student the same way