Description
As society and the labor market develop, it is increasingly important for young people to be able to bear responsibilities and make autonomous decisions. Hence, teachers also need to acquire the capacity to encourage entrepreneurship, problem-solving, and decision-making among their students.
As a teacher, you can promote these essential skills by employing two fundamental educational approaches – i.e., team coaching and team learning – to create a collaborative environment that encourages participation and nurtures the individual talents of your students.
This course will introduce the participants to team coaching and team learning. Students mature their potential much more when they approach novel subjects and problems together rather than individually.
As a participant of the course, you will reflect on the effects of different educational approaches on your students’ activity and attitudes, and learn how much the roles of teacher and team coach differ. You will also acquire a variety of techniques to master the three essential elements of team learning: dialogue, projects, and knowledge acquisition.
The course will use a practical approach by providing dialogue sessions, team coach training, and a possibility to make a plan for implementation.
By the end of the course, you will be able to coach student teams promoting dialogue and constructive discussion. As a participant, you will head home with new perspectives on teaching and learning, and with a plan on how to introduce team learning in your classrooms.
Learning outcomes
The course will help the participants to:
- Reflect on the role of the teacher and the student in team learning;
- Discover the basics of team learning;
- Initiate dialogue and discussion in the classroom;
- Coach students during dialogical activities;
- Plan collaborative project assignments for students;
- Design a learning environment that supports team learning;
- Come up with a plan on how to introduce team learning at school.
Tentative schedule
Day 1 – Introduction to the course and to the basic elements of team learning
- Introduction to the course, the school, and the external week activities;
- Icebreaker activities;
- Presentations of the participants’ schools;
- Identification of needs and goals for each participant.
Team learning and dialogue
- Introduction to the basic elements of team learning;
- Learn dialogue competences.
Day 2 – The teacher as a team coach
- Refection on how the team coach role differs from the traditional teacher role;
- Introduction to and training of the most important team coach competences;
- Reflection on how to promote participation, collaboration and responsibility among students.
Day 3 – Projects
- Introduction to planning collaborative learning projects for students;
- Thoughts on how to build a learning environment that supports team learning;
- Group discussion on how to enable knowledge acquisition in groups.
Day 4 – Plan how to apply team learning
- Plan your road map for introducing team learning in your classroom and school.
Day 5 – Synthesis
- Presentations;
- Summary of the course.
Day 6 – Course evaluation & cultural activities
- Course evaluation: round up of acquired competences, feedback, and discussion;
- Awarding of the course Certificate of Attendance;
- Excursion and other external cultural activities.