Tashia Mossman

Creating Significant Learning Environments

Authentic Learning Opportunities & Outcomes-Based Education Reflection

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I feel inspired and validated after viewing the Outcome-Based Education vs. Competency-Based Education video. The inspiration is due to the fact that I very much prefer teaching in a way that is learner-centered and gives the students the power to choose their topics, paths, and methods of study. I feel this results in more buy-in from students and therefore, more success overall.

 

The video left me feeling validated because I've done a lot of work to set up my classroom to be more outcome-based over the past few years, although I'm not sure I would've labeled it that way before now. My unit of study revolve around a real-world problem for which all students are asked to design a solution. The students brainstorm and research to create their design plans, build their prototypes, and test the effectiveness of their creations. Throughout this design process, students must acquire new skills and knowledge, oftentimes on their own. I act as a support person, guiding them when needed and assisting with hands-on skills such as helping them learn to use tools and equipment in the lab.

 

I've received some raised eyebrows from my coworkers in setting up my classes this way. It's misunderstood by some why I would give the students so much control or allow them the use of sometimes dangerous building equipment. Many teachers cannot comprehend why I'd go to the extra trouble of creating these learning opportunities rather than making it "easier" on myself by giving lectures, assigning worksheets, and other traditional formative assessments that are quicker to grade. The way I do things now has led to more meaningful learning, memorable experiences, and workplace preparation than any worksheet could. I enjoy my job and my students in ways I never did before I made this adjustment, and I've been able to foster better relationships with them. 

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Concerning my Innovation Plan to incorporate coding opportunities into core curriculum, I feel I am off to a good start in organizing outcome-based education. My plan was created in partnership with some core class teachers who volunteered some class time to participate in my trials, so I tried to design my plan in a way that would benefit their curriculum outlines. My fellow teachers asked that I support the lessons they would already be teaching with my coding activities, so there is a little more of the competency-based education involved than I would typically allow. However, I'm confident the lessons will be open-ended in a way that the students will find refreshing and engaging. As we know and they will discover, coding often allows for many different answers to solve the same problem. Therefore, the students will all be given the same goal, but will find their own ways to achieve it through coding.

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I hope that my coworkers will recognize how my innovation plan is different than our traditional competency-based educational system and will be inspired to design lessons with more outcome-based goals in mind for the future. I'm excited for the opportunity to collaborate with them, and I would be very happy to be a resource on our campus to help others innovate their classroom environments. More than that, I am excited to show how different the faces of our students look when they are challenged and determined to solve the problems we give them.