Returning to Learning - UniHub - Middlesex University

Returning to Learning
Learner Development Unit

Learner Development Unit
• “Now what I want is facts. Teach these boys and girls
nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life …
nothing else will ever be of any service to them …
Stick to facts …”
(From a teacher called Mr Gradgrind in “Hard Times” by Dickens (1854: 1))
• In 2012, what has changed?
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Quotes on learning:
I cannot teach anybody anything,
I can only make them think – Socrates
You cannot teach a man anything. You can only help him
discover it within himself – Galileo Galilei
I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the
conditions co d o s in which c they ey can ca learn ea – Albert be t Einstein ste
Thinking itself is nothing but the process of asking and
answering questions – Anthony Robbins
One must learn by doing the thing; though you think you
know it, it you have no certainty until you try – Sophocles
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Quotes on learning:
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What I hear, I forget.
What I see, see I remember. remember
What I do, I understand.
Kung Fu Tzu (Confucius)

Returning to learning!

Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
• Learning: school, college, university, life, workplace
• Who really has the advantage?
• Who seems to have the most confidence? Why?
• What is learning?
– Think of two things: you have learned well / badly
– What made learning effective / not effective?

Returning to learning
Did you report any of the following:
‐ Motivation, emotion
‐ Engagement , feeling immersed
‐ Getting useful feedback
‐ Making sense of ideas to absorb them
‐ Attitudes –having a go, buckling down, investing
time, repeating, being self‐aware
‐ Knowing what what’s s expected of you!
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Returning to learning
Successful Learning:
• Learning by doing – being active
• Learning as a process
• Taking ownership of it (being autonomous)
• Making sense of input – “getting getting your head
round it”… “digesting”; engaging with feedback;
di discussing i id ideas – QQuestioning ti i , reflecting fl ti
• Wanting/needing g gto – engagement, gg motivation
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Abstract
Conceptualisation
Slide from Phil Race
http://phil‐race.co.uk [2011]
Active
Experimentation
Reflective
Ob Observation ti
Concrete
Experience

Returning to learning
Therefore ‘learner responsibility’ is paramount:
– IIndependence d d and d iinitiative iti ti tto solve l problems bl
– Motivation, , self-discipline, p , time management g
– Study groups with peers. Consider
• The rich wisdom obtained from your work/career,
• From your life experiences, your family and other
relationships, and your pursuits.
• The wisdom and expertise of your study group peers
• The power of relationship-building and alliances or
study groups with others returning to learning!

Form informal study groups
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Returning to learning
• Firstly, understand your own ‘intelligence’:
– LLogical, i l spatial, ti l musical, i l emotional, ti l numerical i l …
– Audio, , visual, , kinaesthetic, ,
– Social, individual, global, analytic …
• Reconfigure study habits to fit preferences
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Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
• Find out what academic writing is:
What is a report? Research report? Essay? Reflective writing?
• Considered the differences?
– In structure
– In convention and format
– In writing g style y
– In content
– In approach pp

Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
• Essays:
– leading the reader from a nowhere place to a somewhere
place – logical logical, flow
– Supports a thesis statement, which is basis of conclusion
• Reports:
– efficiency of readability, simple/overview to complex/detail
• RResearch hreport:
– literature reviewing, method, results, discussion, limitations,
conclusion l i
• Reflective writing:
– reporting situations and responses, analysing, assumptions,
– alternative scenarios, future actions

Love your laptop!
Slide 15
Master the art of touch typing, editing, keyboard shortcuts, filing
30/10/12

Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
Find out what referencing is:
• Acknowledging sources, locatable sources
• Shows you read widely
• Substantiates claims, can distance claims too
• Plagiarism will fail you!
• Be aware of academic voice
• Academic discourse: a social process, spans time and space
• Reflect this in your y writingg
• Fluid paraphrasing: rich variety in reporting verbs

Reporting verbs
“Smith claims …” ” YAWN!
“Smith says …”
(Smith 2007)
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Reporting p g verbs: subtle meaningg
admit d it agree postulate t l t assume bbelieve li claim l i
imply py consider decide deny y
determine discover
doubt explain hypothesize oppose indicate infer
maintain prove presume reveal highlight state
observe note contend propose conclude assert
challenge reveal refute outline indicate suggest
point out support acknowledge examine concede recognise
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Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
• Get comfortable f bl with ihtexts:
Make sense of journal articles and papers
Learn ‘word attack’ and ‘guessing from context’
Learn to ‘survey’, ask, read, recall, review
L Learn to ‘ ‘act curious’ i ’ to stimulate i l your iinterest
• Meet a librarian! Love your library!
Get online and see the library interface
Join a library induction
Opening hours, borrowing, copying
Library catalogues
Electronic directories and e‐journals

Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
• Find out what help you can get:
Learner Development Unit:
Academic Writing and English Language Development (AWL),
Maths, Stats & Numeracy Support (MSN), Dyslexia Support,
Student Learning Assistants (SLAs), visit the Learning Lounge
UniHelp online
International Support
Student Welfare Advice
Disability Support
• Give your y mind what it needs:
Sleep, play, fun, decent food, sport and fitness, routine

Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
• Taking part: getting your voice heard ‐ early
• LLeading di discussions: di i physical & intellectual control, steering
• Developing p gp presentation skills
• Teamwork skills
• FForming i fi friendships: dhi
– Alliances from diverse backgrounds
– Fresh and rich perspectives
– Support … but avoid freeloaders and cheats!

Aspects of Thinking …
• Finding things out
• Working things out
• Deciding
• Solving
• JJustifying tif i
• Remembering
• Planningg
• Arguing
• Identifying
• Speculating
• Calculating
• Comparing
• Deducing
• Predicting
• Realising implications
• Concluding
• Presuming • Distinguishing
• Analysing • Creating
• SSummarising i i • TTesting ti
• Hypothesising • Assessing
• Evaluatingg
• Linking g ideas
• Sequencing
• Ordering
• Sorting
• Classifying
• Grouping
(Adapted from McGuinness, 1999)
McGuinness, C. (1999). From
Thinking Skills to Thinking
Classrooms: A Review and
Evaluation of Approaches for
Developing Pupils' Thinking.
Nottingham: DfEE Publications.

Aspects of Thinking …
• Finding things out
• Working things out
• Deciding
• Solving
• Justifying
• Remembering
• Planning
• Arguing
• Identifying
• Speculating
• Calculating
• Comparing
• Deducing
• Predicting
• Realising implications • Concluding
• Presuming • Distinguishing
• Analysing • Creating
• Summarising • Testing
• Hypothesising • Assessing
• Evaluating • Linking ideas
• Sequencing
• Ordering
• Sorting
• Classifying
• Grouping
(Ad (Adapted d ffrom MGi McGuinness, 1999)
McGuinness, C. (1999). From
Thinking Skills to Thinking
Classrooms: A Review and
Evaluation of f Approaches pp for f
Developing Pupils' Thinking.
Nottingham: DfEE Publications.
Reflect on your work/career, life experiences, your family and other relationships,
your pursuits: how many of the above have you used extensively already?

Testing your awareness
• Your main sources of information are lectures lectures. True or false?
False! Seminars, workshops, tutorials, online learning, and personal research
through reading. The lecture is a basic ‘springboard’ into all these.
• You get individual attention in a (group) tutorial. True or false?
True, although the extent may vary.
• MMost tllearning i on a course comes through th h reading. di True T or false? fl ?
True, especially the further you get through university.
• Seminars involve one person presenting and then leading a group
discussion on the topic. p True or false?
True

Extra tips
• Meet and show commitment to your lecturers
Enthusiastic about ideas
Solution‐focussed
Curious
Comfortable with disagreement (it’s academic)
• Identify & keep in mind your learning outcomes
• Find past assignment and exam papers
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Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
• Consider:
External examiners check everything
Your lecturers are trained educators and subject experts
BUT, you also learn from sharing of knowledge and
experience among peers
• Consider:
There are no short‐cuts
You (and only you) are in charge of your progress

Levels in HE
Slide 27
Level Zero: Learning at this level will reflect the ability to:
apply knowledge and skills in a range of complex
activities demonstrating comprehension of relevant
theories; access and analyse information independently
and make reasoned judgements, selecting from a
considerable choice of procedures, in familiar and
unfamiliar contexts; and direct own activities, with some
responsibility for the output of others.
30/10/12

Levels in HE
• Level One: Learning at this level will reflect the ability to:
develop a rigorous approach to the acquisition of a
broad knowledge base; employ a range of specialised
skills; evaluate information using it to plan and develop
investigative strategies and to determine solutions to a
variety of unpredictable problems; and operate in a
range of varied and specific contexts, taking
responsibility for the nature and quality of outputs.
• (plus level zero)
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Levels in HE
• Level Two: Learning at this level will reflect the ability to
generate ideas through the analysis of abstracts
concepts, with a command of specialised skills and the
formulation of responses to well defined and abstract
problems; analyse and evaluate information; exercise
significant judgement across a broad range of functions;
and accept responsibility for determining and achieving
personal and group outcomes.
• (as well as previous levels)
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Levels in HE
• Level Three: Learning at this level will reflect the ability
to critically review, consolidate and extend a systematic
and coherent body of knowledge, utilising specialised
skills across an area of study; critically evaluate new
concepts and evidence from a range of sources; transfer
and apply diagnostic and creative skills and exercise
significant judgement in a range of situations; accept
accountability for determining and achieving personal
and/or / group outcomes.
• (plus all previous levels)
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Levels in HE
• Level Four: Learning at this level will reflect the ability to
display mastery of a complex and specialised area of
knowledge and skills, employing advanced skills to
conduct research, or advanced technical or professional
activity, accepting accountability for related decision‐
making including use of supervision.
• (plus previous levels)
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The Mdx 20-point scale
• To grade d you on your assignments, Middlesex ddl University uses a 20‐point scale, l
where the higher the number the higher your success. True or false?
• Scoring g 1‐4 on the scale is the very y highest g and means yyour understanding g is
wide and relevant, you are self‐reflective, your thinking is abstract and original,
you can generalise from what you find out and make great deductions. 5‐8 is
very good indeed. indeed 99‐12 12 is quite good good. True or false?
• Scoring 13‐16 on the scale means your knowledge is adequate but very basic,
you get the main point but that’s all, you can’t generalise so well, and you
perhaps h jjust ddealt l with ihone aspect iinstead dof f many. TTrue or fl false? ?
• Scoring 17‐20 on the scale means you have failed because you have missed the
point, p , lack the knowledge g needed, , or just j repeat p the same simple p thing g in
different ways. True or false?
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The Mdx 20-point scale
Grade Class of Honours Degree Other Qualification
1, 2, 3, 4 FIRST DISTINCTION
55, 66, 77, 8 UPPER SECOND MERIT
9, 10, 11, 12 LOWER SECOND PASS
13, 14, 15, 16 THIRD PASS
17
FAIL ‐ MARGINAL FAIL ‐ MARGINAL
Compensation allowed Compensation allowed
18
19
20
Slide 33
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FAIL
Compensation allowed
FAIL
FAIL
Compensation not allowed
FAIL
Compensation allowed
Compensation not allowed
FAIL ‐ Incorporating failure to participate in FAIL ‐ Incorporating failure to participate in
assessment necessary to achieve all learning
outcomes. Compensation not allowed.
assessment necessary to achieve all learning
outcomes. Compensation not allowed.

More details
Go to ‘My Study’ in UniHub
Slide 34
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Learner Development Unit
Returning to learning!
• Greatest boost:
– Frame study as fun!
• Greatest danger:
– Procrastination!
• Learner Development Unit:
– Come see us!