“Learning through Practice” (LdP)
实践学习计划
From: Intermediate Chinese (With Background), Spring 2011
Educators from Harvard have long promulgated the eternal pedagogical question - How to teach?
The ‘current’ trend is rooted in John Dewey’s major contribution to education that has influenced not only American education but also many other nations, including China and Japan.
John Dewey advocated hands-on learning or experiential education. He has been credited for having great influence on Project Based Learning (PBL) that places students in the active role of learning. Through active participation, students are fully engaged and utilize their full mental capacity.
In my own humble way, I have adopted their fundamental premises and made adjustments to fit our unique environment at Columbia University – a metropolitan modern center for an international clientele. I consider it a postmodern modified version of the pedagogical practice of incorporating Dewey’s theory with pragmatic application.
【“Learning through Practice” (LdP) together with “Lernen durch Lehren” (LdL) have varied focal points or objectives. We began by adopting it with some of the intermediate Chinese heritage students; later adopting it in our advanced 4th year reading courses. We use them to align ‘methodology’, ‘material,’ and ‘management’ (what I call “the 3 ‘M’s”) in the current modes: new media mode, globalization mode and practical value mode. 】
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Introduction to Experimental Learning or Learning through Practice (LdP)
‘Learning through Practice’ is a short, one semester bound, course-work related project that supports and supplements classroom learning. In the book “Learning from Experience” by Ogilvy and Wortham, it is also referred to as ‘Experiential Learning’; “It is learning grounded in a personal experience in an authentic setting… An authentic setting is one that is closely similar to the actual setting in which knowledge acquired later will be used.”
Our project, Learning through Practice (or LdP) 实践学习is not limited to Courseworks (the Columbia University course website) but combines the classroom material with any and all previous knowledge from heritage speaker students and their experiences. This allows for an increasingly rich course load with the nuanced intricacies of individual experiences.
In terms of language learning and teaching, the LdP approach is a collective work of the classroom activities environment where students can improve their language skills by the required activities. Additionally, the end products (journals and reports) improve students’ writing and editing skills and aid the development of their voice. All of this contributes to the student’s overall comfort and confidence in the language.
Goals
The goals of our LdP, beyond acquisition of language data, are:
(1) A deeper understanding of how language works,
(2) Maximize the practical application of language, and
(3) Actively confront problem areas and refine their usage.
All in all, it is the project’s mission to teach a language as it ‘lives’ in real time, prepare students with hands-on exercises, and create a ‘real time’ experience.
Top
Educators from Harvard have long promulgated the eternal pedagogical question - How to teach?
The ‘current’ trend is rooted in John Dewey’s major contribution to education that has influenced not only American education but also many other nations, including China and Japan.
John Dewey advocated hands-on learning or experiential education. He has been credited for having great influence on Project Based Learning (PBL) that places students in the active role of learning. Through active participation, students are fully engaged and utilize their full mental capacity.
In my own humble way, I have adopted their fundamental premises and made adjustments to fit our unique environment at Columbia University – a metropolitan modern center for an international clientele. I consider it a postmodern modified version of the pedagogical practice of incorporating Dewey’s theory with pragmatic application.
【“Learning through Practice” (LdP) together with “Lernen durch Lehren” (LdL) have varied focal points or objectives. We began by adopting it with some of the intermediate Chinese heritage students; later adopting it in our advanced 4th year reading courses. We use them to align ‘methodology’, ‘material,’ and ‘management’ (what I call “the 3 ‘M’s”) in the current modes: new media mode, globalization mode and practical value mode. 】
Top
Introduction to Experimental Learning or Learning through Practice (LdP)
‘Learning through Practice’ is a short, one semester bound, course-work related project that supports and supplements classroom learning. In the book “Learning from Experience” by Ogilvy and Wortham, it is also referred to as ‘Experiential Learning’; “It is learning grounded in a personal experience in an authentic setting… An authentic setting is one that is closely similar to the actual setting in which knowledge acquired later will be used.”
Our project, Learning through Practice (or LdP) 实践学习is not limited to Courseworks (the Columbia University course website) but combines the classroom material with any and all previous knowledge from heritage speaker students and their experiences. This allows for an increasingly rich course load with the nuanced intricacies of individual experiences.
In terms of language learning and teaching, the LdP approach is a collective work of the classroom activities environment where students can improve their language skills by the required activities. Additionally, the end products (journals and reports) improve students’ writing and editing skills and aid the development of their voice. All of this contributes to the student’s overall comfort and confidence in the language.
Goals
The goals of our LdP, beyond acquisition of language data, are:
(1) A deeper understanding of how language works,
(2) Maximize the practical application of language, and
(3) Actively confront problem areas and refine their usage.
All in all, it is the project’s mission to teach a language as it ‘lives’ in real time, prepare students with hands-on exercises, and create a ‘real time’ experience.
Top
