Developing positive learning environments and facilitating help-seeking
Mary Pillai
- Introduction and background
- Purpose of workshop
- Positive learning environments
- Factors that underpin positive learning environment
- Realistic expectations and evaluation of needs
- Local provision and shared responsibility
- Specialist provision
- Improving your learning
- Preferred learning styles
- Conclusions
- References
Introduction and background: the need for an inclusive approach
The workshop was designed in response to two important background factors, familiar, it became apparent, to all participants:
1. De Montfort University (DMU), like many other higher education institutions, has succeeded in drawing into higher education students from diverse academic backgrounds, who bring to the sector a range of skills, experiences and knowledge that may not seem to them to be valuable or transferable into an academic context; it is also clear that many of these students have not yet developed, or recognised the need to develop, the academic skills required for a successful transition into higher education. Additionally, institutional concern for student retention, and the developing focus on Personal Development Planning (Quality Assurance Agency 2002) have resulted in a situation in which support for students' learning development cannot continue to be seen simply as a 'special provision'.
2.Within this context there is likely to be a significant percentage of students with dyslexia, and they may well need additional specialist support, but these students also need to be able to participate fully and successfully in activities and support that are provided for all students .For many students with dyslexia, who have had long experience of specialist support, the need to be 'an ordinary student' on arrival at university, is understandably strong, At the same time, although awareness of the characteristics of dyslexia is more widespread, there is a certain unease amongst some academic staff about 'doing the wrong thing'. There may be a resulting tension, between the students' concern to be ordinary and the unsurprising eagerness of academic staff to invoke specialist support ('I need to know where to send them!').
The purpose of the workshop
One aspect of the work of the Student Learning Advisory Service (SLAS) at DMU is to support the development and delivery of processes and activities within the curriculum that not only include dyslexic students but enable them to shine. Learning support (LS) in higher education is not a widely accepted concept, and consequently it is not an area that is well researched, but there are significant elements of learning support that are generic, and have been explored in a higher education context (). One element relates to student behaviour, namely effective help-seeking(), and the other to the context in which that behaviour occurs, namely positive learning environments ().
SLAS's work at DMU acknowledges that both of these elements are fundamental to accessible, effective and inclusive support for the learning development of all students. There is much anecdotal evidence at DMU that seems to indicate the significance of these two elements:
- Needy students who are reluctant to use support
- Successful students who use support confidently
- Many students who appear to be 'grade focused' rather than 'learning focused'
- Dyslexia support provided at a distance from the students' courses (geographically and conceptually)
It was clear from the responses of workshop participants that they also recognised these links.
The workshop aimed to:
- describe the factors that contribute to positive learning environments and effective help-seeking.
- enable participants to evaluate a selection of activities and materials that support both, in the light of the learning experiences of dyslexic students.
In this paper I will expand on the overview given in the workshop, describe simple practical activities that support both elements, and reflect on the implications for LS policy and practice.
What do we mean by 'positive learning environments'?
This approach has been described and justified from a range of perspectives (Wolfendale 1996; Singleton1999; Cottrell 2001; Hunter-Carsch and Herrington 2001; Peelo and Wareham 2002), but a simple overview might focus on the following aspects of a positive learning environment:
- It is pro-active, and encourages all students to participate and succeed rather than only identifying those with apparent skills deficits and providing remedial provision. (Is this a challenge to the notion of centrally provided learning support?)
- Where there is a need for further development, so that students can fully engage with their study, there is recognition that both the student and the course have a role to play. (In other words all students need to be supported to take responsibility for their learning)
- It takes a metacognitive approach and supports students to reflect on their learning experiences and to transfer skills and knowledge from one context to another (another challenge - this time for Personal Development Planning (PDP)(QAA 2002) and personal tutoring)
- It accepts students' entitlement to guidance and learning development in the academic context, and values accessible support contextualised to the requirements of students' study.(another challenge to the notion of central learning support?)
- It recognises that the needs of particular groups of students (e.g. students with dyslexia) are addressed both on the course (i.e. integrated into teaching and assessment) and through specialist provision. ( Might this reduce some of the demand for, and dependence on, specialist support?)
Factors that underpin positive learning environments
Cottrell( 2001), Singleton (1999) and Wolfendale (1996) each address a range of issues relating to the factors that underpin positive learning environments. The workshop was designed to explore specific aspects which are described below.
Realistic expectations and evaluation of needs
If we want students in higher education to develop their capacity to make decisions about their learning, including acknowledging their need for help and taking appropriate action, they should at least be informed about the nature of the skills they will need in order to confidently engage in the learning process. Also students will need to be aware of the developmental support available (embedded in their course, provided additionally in their department or faculty, or provided by specialists).
The key issue here is the institution's acknowledgement of the learning needs of all students, particularly new undergraduates in this new academic context. Students need to consider their learning needs not only in relation to skills development, but also to the pace of learning, expectations, roles, responsibilities, and academic conventions. (De Montfort University is addressing many of these issues via the Improving your Learning self assessment (Bloy and Pillai 2003) and reflection activities which are described below.)
On a more fundamental note, will students have time to fit in any additional support they might want to use? We know as practitioners that students who have learning development needs (not only students with dyslexia) are often working for longer, and are under more stress than students without such needs. If we expect our students to take responsibility for their learning then we should at least ensure that they have a realistic chance of addressing the issues they have identified.
Local provision and shared responsibility
Developing and maintaining positive learning environments places significant demands on both students and staff, not least the requirement for both to work with a 'different' view of dyslexia. A useful starting point is the notion of shared responsibility, and recognition that difficulties associated with dyslexia are also experienced by many other students. Cottrell (2001) points out that the presence of dyslexic students who are aware of, and are able to express, what they need, can ensure good practice for all students, by indicating where the learning environment can be improved. (We were able to observe something of this in the Learning Preferences Workshop described below.)
Some thoughts concerning specialist provision
Traditionally specialist support for dyslexic students is provided at a distance from the student's course. Sanderson and Pillai (2001) looked at the LS provision of 6 universities and found that although there was an acknowledgement on the part of LS practitioners that support needed to be relevant to the requirements of HE, there was little evidence of liaison with academic areas. This seemed to be largely the result of lack of time and a lack of positive response from academic staff. Where there had been effective liaison, clear benefits were identified, including awareness-raising and the fact that academic staff were themselves supported. Apart from the enhanced learning experience of the students concerned, this approach proved to be an appropriate responsive and practical staff development strategy!
Where there is a ‘separation’ of support from the student's course there is the possibility of inadvertently maintaining a dyslexic student’s dependence on specialist support: for instance, students with dyslexia may not value the 'ordinary' support available to all students through personal tutoring. Not only do some academic staff want to 'send' dyslexic students to experts, but some dyslexic students may lack confidence in their course tutors’ capacity to be helpful to them. The learning experiences of these students can thus be diminished in some way, rather than enhanced by the provision of additional support.
SLAS at DMU has worked closely with faculties to devise activities that engage all students in curriculum-based learning development, in which dyslexic students not only participate fully but also contribute significantly.
Effective help seeking
Even where good practice exists in the provision of support for students' learning development, there remains the issue of students who would benefit from the provision but who do not use it, or who use it inappropriately (for example students who try to protect themselves from risk of failure by repeatedly asking for reassurance, or simply those students who feel too ashamed to ask for help).
In the context of positive learning environments, an understanding of this behaviour is certainly critical if resources are to be deployed in a cost-effective and efficient manner, and not least because research indicates that effective help-seeking is fundamental to successful learning when students are unable to resolve a problem independently (Taplin et al 2001).
Karabenick (1991) acknowledged that help-seeking as an activity is not always necessarily appropriate or effective, and he described two types of help seeking behaviour:
Executive help-seeking
where the student seeks to decrease the cost of completing tasks by relinquishing responsibility and finding someone else to solve the problem, or to provide the answer.
Students who adopt this strategy and are frustrated in their attempts may simply give up or be prepared to accept lower marks. They are also likely to feel bitterly let down by staff. For example, out of a group of 11 Level 3 undergraduates, 8 expressed disappointment that they needed help with their study, and also that they felt let down by lecturers ('We've had to do it all ourselves').
Instrumental help-seeking
where the student is actively taking responsibility for the task, and values the learning process. This approach is about acquiring just enough help to allow the student to complete the task independently. Instrumental help-seekers would say that that they will only look for help when they have done everything they can to help themselves. They are likely to regard help-seeking as an integral aspect of learning,
Factors that influence help-seeking behaviour
It is clear from the literature (), and from our own experiences as practitioners, that there are factors which facilitate students' appropriate help-seeking behaviour, and equally, conditions that will hinder this behaviour.
Self-esteem and active learning
There is evidence that students who are 'grade-oriented ' (as opposed to learning- oriented) may regard their need for help as an indication of their lack of ability and will avoid seeking help in order to conceal this (Ryan and Pintrich (1997), whereas students whose goal is self-development and understanding tend to have a positive view of help- seeking and are not threatened by it. (There are clear links here to deep and surface learning strategies.)
'Rhetorical resources'
This phrase is used by Grayson et al (1998) in describing the difficulties many students have in describing their need for help. The ability to construct a 'narrative' that accounted for their need to seek help, was found to be critical, Students may need a new vocabulary, but certainly, clarity about their new learning environment will help to put their learning needs into words.
Positive Learning Environments
Students need to feel safe to ask for support. Grayson et al (1998) found that positive and explicit invitations from academic staff to come forward if help was needed, were important factors.
Cottrell (2001) describes what happened when support for learning acquires a positive connotation, to the point where students have asked why they have not been recommended additional support.
Feedback and Reflection
Feedback that helps student to understand their own learning, and opportunities to reflect, are both important factors if we expect students to gain insight into themselves as learners and to acknowledge their learning needs. In higher education students may be asked to reflect on their subject; they are less likely to reflect on themselves as a learner.( However, PDP may provide structured opportunities to do exactly this.)
Valuing help-seeking
If students perceive that academic staff do not value help-seeking, this will profoundly influence their behaviour. Students who are struggling may decide that it is not safe to admit as much if staff are likely to label them as 'weak' or 'failing.'
Evaluation of resources and activities
Resource materials, and activities that address many of the factors described above, were presented in the workshop and two examples are outlined below. Participants were asked to evaluate the materials and activities from the perspectives of students with dyslexia.
‘ Improving Your learning’ : The key skills self-assessment exercise at De Montfort University
What is it?
Over the last 5 years new undergraduates at De Montfort University have had an opportunity to take part in the ‘Improving your Learning‘ key skills self-assessment exercise (Bloy and Pillai 2003). This involves a facilitated workshop during induction, in which they are guided to reflect on their confidence to apply their existing skills in their study at university, and to identify the areas they want or need to develop. This emphasis is important. The activities in the Resource Handbook encourage students to acknowledge their strengths and to plan to exploit them, as well as guiding them to acknowledge areas that require development. Addressing both aspects ensures a balanced perspective and can make acknowledging weakness more acceptable for some students.
Why is it anonymous?
It is important that students are not pressured into producing the 'right' answers and so their responses are private. The Resource Handbook is not marked or handed in, and the feedback provided by students (their levels of confidence for each skill area and their response to the workshop) is anonymous. Course tutors receive information about groups of students but are unable to identify individuals.
How is it followed up?
The resource handbook contains information about the support available for each of the skill areas and for this practical reason alone, students are encouraged to keep it, but it also has a value as a record of their responses at the start of their studies. It is the first stage of a process of reflection that can continue throughout their studies. Some faculties have integrated the process into modules and some have made overt links between it and personal tutoring.
And the challenges?
SLAS designed the Improving your Learning Self-assessment Exercise as a generic resource that has the potential to be customised to different academic contexts and to be relevant to all students. There are of course significant issues around its accessibility. The activity is fundamentally an extensive reading exercise, but at its best is an interactive process, a chance for student-to-student, and student-to-tutor discussion. For students with dyslexia this presents a dilemma. If they prefer to complete the activities individually, at their own pace and in their preferred environment, they will have a different learning experience from students who attend the workshops and are able to participate fully. The basic issue is that of ensuring that this process occurs within a positive learning environment and that students with dyslexia can participate as 'ordinary' students. Different formats and special provision are only part of the story. Sensitive and informed delivery by non-specialists is the next step.
Preferred learning styles workshop
What is it?
This workshop is designed as an opportunity for students to review their initial experience in higher education, and to provide a framework within which they can see themselves as individual learners rather than simply as 'students'. The format and activities within it mean that all students are able to contribute in a manner that is appropriate to their preferred learning style.
Why learning preferences?
The basis for this reflection is initially learning preferences, specifically perceptual preferences (Fleming 2001). In this context, students with dyslexia are able to participate fully and, more importantly, to contribute significantly. The focus of all the activity in the workshop was ultimately improved learning, and students worked in small groups sharing experiences, concerns and solutions. The groups were made up of students with similar learning preferences.
In feedback sessions regarding study techniques aligned to learning preferences, it was the dyslexic students who took centre stage. Most crucially, they were able to do this without reference to the word 'dyslexia', and their reflections on study strategies and techniques were valued by other students. Student comments after the session indicated that this was a revelatory experience for many, and a useful and insightful experience for most.
And the challenges?
Students appear to engage fully with the content of this workshop and their feedback indicates that they have responded from academic, emotional and practical perspectives. For example:
'…now I understand why I find note-taking in lectures so difficult. I need to listen out for practical examples to understand the theory. Really worth knowing.'
There are opportunities in personal tutoring and personal development planning to nurture this, and to encourage students to look back, and to re-evaluate as they progress through their course.
Conclusions
In conclusion then, it is apparent that the development and maintenance of positive learning environments and the factors that underpin students' effective help-seeking are closely aligned. It can also be argued that the attitudes of both students and staff need to be understood and acknowledged in order that support provision (in the widest most inclusive sense) is effective.
Provision that is relevant to all students, responsive to their identified needs, has a clear developmental purpose, and is provided locally rather than centrally, can avoid the negative connotations of 'support'.
The Student Learning Advisory Service works with new undergraduates at De Montfort University, to support them through a process of self-evaluation and to ensure they have access to faculty-based support. There is still much work to do and we do not get it right all the time, but when asked to report his feelings about attending optional study workshops in his Faculty, one student responded:
' I looked through the door and saw the two smartest students in the group sat there, so it seemed to me it was OK to go in, so I did.'
References
Bloy, S and Pillai, M (eds) (2003) Improving your Learning: A Key Skills Resource Handbook for Students, 2003/04, Leicester: De Montfort University, (Student Learning Advisory Service)
Cottrell, SnG, (2001) Developing Positive Learning Environments for Dyslexic Students in Higher Education, in Hunter-Carsch,M and Herrington,M,(2001) Dyslexia and Effective Learning in Secondary and Tertiary Education. London: Whurr
Grayson A, Miller H and Clarke D, (1998) Identifying barriers to help-seeking: a qualitative analysis of students' preparedness to seek help from tutors. British Journal of Guidance and Counselling. 26, 2, 237-253.
Hunter-Carsch,M and Herrington,M,(2001) Dyslexia and Effective Learning in Secondary and Tertiary Education. London: Whurr
Karabenick S and Knapp J (1991) Relationship of academic help-seeking to the use of learning strategies and other instrumental achievement behavior in college students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 83, 221-230
Peelo, M and Wareham, T, (2002) Failing students in Higher Education. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) (2001) Progress Files for Higher Education (summary). Available from: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/crntwork/progfileHE/contents.htm (accessed on 12th October 2003)
Ryan A and Pintrich P (1997) 'Should I ask for help?' The role of motivation and attitudes in adolescents’ help-seeking in math class. Journal of Educational Psychology. 89, 1-23
Sanderson A and Pillai M (2001) The Lottery of Learning Support in Higher Education, in Dyslexia at the Dawn of the New Century, 5th BDA International Conference, Conference Proceedings, University of York.
Singleton, C (1999) Dyslexia in Higher Education. Report of the National working party on Dyslexia in Higher Education. Hull: Department of Psychology, University of Hull.
Taplin M, Yum J C K , Jegede O, Fan R Y K Chan M S C (2001) Help-Seeking Strategies Used by High -Achieving and Low-Achieving Distance Education Students; Journal of Distance Education. Vol 16. No 1. 56-69.
Fleming, N (2001) VARK Questionnaire: www.vark-learn.com (accessed on 12th October 2003)
Wolfendale, S, and Corbett, J, (eds) (1998) Opening Doors, Learning Support in Higher Education. London: Cassel
