Teachers and trainers can’t fake it. They put their whole selves out there to help learners. Yet, much research is happening on authentic teachers, authentic learning, authentic assessments and so on. The word ‘authentic’ seems to be popping up everywhere. We hear that authenticity forms the bedrock of trust for brands and leaders. ?
According to the Cambridge dictionary, authenticity means “the quality of being real or true.” ?In that sense, we are all born ‘authentic’. Babies are true to no one but their own selves. Then why do adults need books and workshops to become authentic? A quick Google search reveals close to 50,000 books and millions of workshops on how to be authentic. What happens in life that moves us so far away from this real self? Apparently, education happens! Education is being identified as the single-most guilty party in destroying creativity and uniqueness of the individual spirit.
I remember that during Art class in school, we drew houses with a sloping roof and a chimney. I wonder why we never questioned it because none of us in the classroom lived in a house that looked like that. We don’t have sloping roofs with chimneys in India, except for some houses in the hills where it snows. But that’s how we learnt to draw houses. My brother is an artist. When he entered Art College, one of his seniors took a look at his paintings and praised them a lot. He also added, “By the time you have finished college, you will no longer be capable of such brushstrokes”. A rather disturbing statement!!! If that’s what college can do to artists, I can only imagine what can happen in other disciplines.
When did education become the bad guy? The answer is simple. Education systems developed during Industry 3.0, that is the Industrial era, because society needed to churn out uniform, standardized and ordered humans that could function like machines. Education helped iron out the unique crinkles in humans and make them fit for societal needs.
We are now headed towards Industry 5.0 where anything standardized, predictable, uniform and mechanical is being taken over by machines. Our real selves with all their quirks can be our only saviours. And that’s where authentic learning can play a role – by preserving and nurturing the unique ‘you’.
Here are some simple, tangible ways to practise authenticity in the classroom.
- Become an authentic teacher: The five qualities of an authentic educator have been identified as Approachable, Passionate, Attentive, Capable, Knowledgeable. Gone are the days when the mark of great teachers was directly proportionate to the degree of awe and fear they struck in the hearts of students. Teachers who are tuned into classroom dynamics; know learners by name, knows their strengths and vulnerabilities; and are unafraid to share their own strengths and vulnerabilities are most trusted by the learners. In-depth knowledge of the subject has always been a given but those who exude passion for the subject and pass on that energy through class activities that dip into learner realities are most capable of providing enduring learning.???
- Create environment for authentic learning: Authentic learning happens when learners are fully engaged and present, when learners feels safe to put their whole self out there, when they feel they belong to the space. Teachers are masters of that learning space; they create and control its culture. They lead by example. If a shy teacher sticks to the front of a classroom, delivers very knowledgeable lectures and leaves, he is creating and perpetuating a disengaged culture. A learner will feel no sense of belonging in that space. Pulling everyone into the learning space is a teacher’s job, making them feel safe enough to be themselves and share is also a teacher’s job. It starts with the teacher owning the whole space, by walking to the back of the room, stopping by a student to exchange a word or two or asking a question about that person. The learner can be a front bencher, a back bencher, someone sitting in a corner, quiet or vocal, but they must feel that the teacher notices them and acknowledges them for what they are. Today, the educator has much more in hand to make space for the quiet, unobtrusive learner. Tools like padlets or sticky notes are cases in point.?
- Create authentic experiences: We need to take learners out of sterile problems and solutions and instead, give them real ones. Project-based, case-based or problem-based learning is far better suited to modern learning that traditional text-book methods. Learners need to connect with the content, tie it to their lived experiences and carry back reflections into their own lives. As a communication trainer, it does not really matter to me if my learner forgets the correct conjugation of a verb or the correct preposition, but if she manages to skilfully navigate her way out of a tricky meeting, I will be thrilled.?
- Use authentic assessments: Authentic learning means developing multi-layered skills which can make assessments a challenge. There isn’t always a right or wrong way to solve problems in real-life situations. Various assessment strategies can be used to evaluate learners accurately: ongoing feedback and self-assessment help learners understand their own strengths and weaknesses during the learning process; end-of-project assessment helps learners understand the effectiveness of outcomes and peer assessment helps understand one’s overall collaboration and communication skills. Finally, it would be good to evaluate the assessment process itself: gather feedback from learners and use the data to fine-tune assessment strategies.
Once we strip away the top layers and work with our real self, we will feel happier and also cut out all competition because there is only one ‘me’ in this world. I don’t know about you but I’m really working hard at peeling off the top layers. And every time I make progress, I feel so much more liberated.
Dolon Gupta, Consultant, Communication and Culture
#stayingrelevant #futureofeducators #authenticity #authenticlearning #authenticteachers #studentengagement
Corporate Trainer - Communication skills and Business Communication
10 个月Creating authentic learning experience is of paramount importance. The sessions need to revolve on the customer needs. Today for a corporate training I worked on their workplace email. AI tools also were incorporated and helped them to understand the nuances. It was caring and sharing. And learning took place without an effort. Article touched the real time effect Dolon.
H U M A N & INDUSTRY 5.0 FOUNDER
1 年Dear Dolon Gupta thank you for your article and interest in INDUSTRY 5.0. My name is Michael Rada, I am the Founder of INDUSTRY 5.0 implementing its principles in companies and businesses since 2013, leading a global network in 118 countries. I would like to help you to narrow your understanding about INDUSTRY 5.0 origin, principles, and future development and this is why I share with you a keynote delivered to global industrial leaders at the end of 2023. If any questions, feel free to ask https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luQRihdApRw
Working at Tata Consultancy Services
1 年Dolon Gupta In hush bush and the rat race, people have lost authenticity and then someone who is really genuine is left with no place to live with. Teachers and students along with parents need to play major role to bring back the authenticity. Parents are now-a-days least interested as they believe paying hefty fees to school and classes can be their replacement and teachers that is sad reality
I turn leaders, sales teams & engineers who want to get more yeses into top 2% persuaders and presenters in 15 hours | Keynote speaker | Certified Ethical Persuasion & Presentation skills trainer & coach
1 年Agree that authenticity is a key trait. I have started seeing kids following unauthentic behaviours as early as 5-6 years old when they copy the unauthentic smiles adults put on for a photo. It makes me feel sad when I see this.