Living Life in Survival Mode

I received some really good insights from listening to a devotional that was given at BYU back in February of this year, entitled “Live Your Life With Purpose.” I originally started listening to the devotional when I was thinking about my life mission, and learned a few good things regarding that, but one idea that Sister Janie Penfield shared applies to a much wider variety of situations.

She said:

 “We are constantly making decisions, and if your life is like mine, most of those decisions are made while in ‘survival mode.’ This is decision making in the moment, instead of planning out a course and moving forward when the time is right. This is not the best way to make decisions, for when I live in survival mode, I too often fail to accomplish the things I prioritized in my mind—that phone call to a friend, lunch with my brother, an evening at the temple, a workout, and even what I’m going to do on vacation. It is also while I am in survival mode that I see opportunities pass me by—a weakening friendship with a kindred spirit, waning family relationships, a decrease in desire to do the things to stay close to the Spirit, decreased fitness level, and even a missed opportunity to kayak the Napoli Coast in Hawaii! (How did I let that happen?)”

Survival mode often exists when we are stressed or have a lot to do. We slip into the mentality of “I will just focus on the next thing that needs to be done, and then I will focus on the next thing that needs to be done after that. When that is done, I will focus on the next.” It is “I have a paper that is due in one hour so I will work on that now, after that, I will prepare for the lesson that I will be teaching in two hours, and if I have time, I will eat dinner.” Our life becomes segmented and we lose the overall vision of what we are trying to accomplish. I think we can all relate to this idea and understand how when we live in “survival mode”, we lose purpose and often do not accomplish the things that we really intended to and found most important.

On a smaller scale, the missionaries we teach may also at times lose the overall vision of what individual tasks, activities, and experiences are supposed to be accomplishing in the overall vision of missionary work.

This last week, I was in a classroom with a group of missionaries who were struggling with their studies. Some of them had already finished planning for investigators and others were confused about how to prepare for TRC investigators that they had never met, and so didn’t know what to do.

The missionaries were caught up in the Plan, Study, Teach cycle, which is great, but as soon as they planned all of their lessons or were trying to prepare for a first lesson in the TRC, they panicked and didn’t know what to do with their study time. These missionaries had lost sight (or never understood) the bigger picture of what their studies are accomplishing: not just to prepare for the next lesson they will teach, but to simultaneously prepare for every lesson they will ever teach and to receive conversion themselves.

This is just one way the idea of “living in survival mode” could apply. The same thing could apply to the way that they teach, even the way they live the white handbook. And of course, it applies to the way that we think as teachers, as well.

A question to ponder: In what was are you living life in “survival mode”?

The Parroting Bait-and-Switch: On using the full training model

     When a missionary parrots your demonstration, how do you respond? I hear many teachers (myself include) say things afterward like “they just copied what I did, so I’m not sure they got it.” While this may certainly be the case in certain situations, we should not assume it; and when it is the case, sometimes it is our fault.

     “LEARN BY DOING: I show missionaries what to do more often than I tell them what to do.... The majority of class time is dedicated to effective demonstrations and practice. I provide context, focus on the lesson objective, repractice often, and provide feedback and coaching.”

     How many of us provide the full training model in class activities, including repractice immediately after evaluation? Explain (context), demonstrate, practice, evaluate (feedback), repractice. Simply practicing twice in rapid succession can help a missionary see the underlying principles better. Otherwise, we tell them to do one specific thing in practice, and then get frustrated when they do it, claiming that they didn’t understand. Let’s set them up for success by applying the training model.

     As always, comments are welcome.

Heirs of God

I read an article for a class this week that talked about how classroom dynamics often are thought to be the sole responsibility of the Teacher in the class.
   It says, "as we understand the nature of learning we will... help teachers understand how to initiate and maintain conditions in their classrooms conducive to the emergence of learning--because the action of learning is emergent."
                    Emergent meaning: arising as a natural or logical consequence.

As I was thinking about this, I thought of how as teachers we really need to be aware of purposefully creating learner enabling atmospheres. Part of that is helping the class be actively involved in being agents by choosing the class dynamics. 
   In order for this to occur, clearly and simply helping them understand, throughout their stay, how to be agents and choose is vital. Agency will influence their entire lives. Even choices as simple as choosing to be happy, or choosing to be sad depending on what they focus on. Choosing to let things go... choosing their attitudes toward missionary work and what they are doing in general. 
   As I think about this more, I love how being an agent helps us emerge. We learn characteristics about ourselves and strengths about ourselves we never would have seen or recognized before. 
   I hope we all take some time to think about how we can use our agency, as teachers, to create learner enabling environments that help our missionaries develop their awareness of their own agency... and by doing this begin to learn and emerge into the Heirs of God that they are.

Leaving the Worm's Eye View

As I have floated these last couple of days, I have reflected on the broader MTC experience that missionaries have outside of the classroom. The first would be their experience with the TRC. I had an opportunity to sit down with one of the supervisors and to watch the TRC Orientation video. I think it is important to note that the missionaries are having experiences and learning principles in both of these settings. The TRC Orientation video goes over the plan, study, and teach cycle again as they prepare to teach TRC investigators. The video also has a FAQ section that goes over a lot of the questions that missionaries typically have about the TRC. Finding ways to observe their TRC visits can also provide insight as to how well the missionaries are progressing.

Another setting that oftentimes gets overlooked by teachers is the study periods that missionaries have in between classroom blocks. There are segments such as "Missionary Portal/Assessments," "Doctrinal Study," and "Additional Study" that take up several hours of the missionaries' week. While staying within the bounds of our role as a guide to the missionaries, we can keep these sacred hours in mind as we consider the full experience that missionaries are having at the MTC.

One final activity of note would be the Zone Leader Orientation held on Wednesday or Thursday nights for incoming missionaries. I actually sat in on one of these meetings a few weeks ago. I was both impressed and surprised at what I saw there. A lot of the missionaries' first impressions of the MTC come from the pick-up experience, the meeting with the MTC Presidency, and this meeting. I thought the zone leaders did a a great job in leading the meeting. It would also be important to consider the training that these Elders had beforehand. The feeling I had in the meeting is that these zone leaders are "just doing whatever the guys before them did." This is a great opportunity for them to learn about leadership and especially the importance of setting a spiritual tone as they "being teaching."

The "Sunday School" Answer

        "How do you live the Gospel of Jesus Christ in your every day life?".... This reluctant group of missionaries was quiet for a moment while they contemplated their potential answers to their teachers question. Almost like a group of school children standing at the edge of a frozen pond unsure of whether the ice is thick enough. Eventually a confident elder raises his hand and makes a comment. He says, "I try to live the gospel of Jesus Christ by studying my scriptures daily"  "Thank you Elder", the teacher responds. Just as if one brave child had ventured out on to the ice, skated around a little, and  then exclaimed "Its safe come on out!" more hands shoot up. The missionaries begin to make comments similar to the first elders, they add things such as going to church and praying. After a few more moments of participation the teacher moves on in the lesson. In the moment it seems like the class is energized, interactive, and learning together; but in retrospect, did the missionaries' answers demonstrate an understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ?  
        I have been thinking recently about how to help Elders and Sisters dig deeper and have real learning experiences as a result of class room discussion. One of the conclusions I have made is that we need to facilitate a change in classroom environment in order for this to happen.
       One day I was talking with Lisanne about this idea and she gave me some interesting ideas to consider. She taught me that people are trained to behave a specific way when they are in a classroom environment. This "public school mentality" as she described it is formed from our very first days of kindergarten through our entire public school experience. At the root of this mentality is the desire to please the teacher, or impress peers. Although the MTC is a place of powerful spiritual learning, the desks, marker board, and pattern of our teaching can engender this dangerous mentality. While missionaries are approaching questions from this perspective I have observed that the original question is significantly less important than the first response. Like the children on the ice, missionaries wait for someone to "step out", not because they aren't formulating their own answers to the question but because they are waiting to see if they're potential responses are "safe". I fear that missionaries may stop thinking critically about the question, and start listing responses patterned after the original response, out of a sincere desire to contribute in a safe way, a way that will receive their teachers accolades.
       I am not writing to say that there is any one answer to this problem, or to share applications that I have observed that may help change this mentality. However I feel that in order to facilitate more meaningful discussion in our classrooms there needs to be a change of environment. Perhaps there needs to be less discussion overall? Its hard to say, but I sincerely feel that missionaries need to approach classroom discussion asking "What does God understand about this topic that he would like me to know?"
                     

An interesting trend.

I have done a great deal of observation in the past few weeks and months. I have frequently observed that the part of the lesson that is arguably most crucial is the part of the lesson that is given the least amount of attention in our preparation. I am referring to the practices. I have been guilty of this on numerous occasions, and it's amazing/alarming how much I have learned about myself through observation. I have been guilty of planning my speech or my innovative/catchy way of introducing the lesson while neglecting to give adequate thought and preparation to how the missionaries practices will be structure and geared towards powerful experience and fulfillment of the objective.

I feel that there are a couple major reaons for which we fall into this trap. One, we don't trust the missionaries enough to let them learn on their own, or two, we trust ourselves excessively in believing that we can transfer our understanding to the missionaries.

I think these are to be overcome by trusting our Father to teach His missionaries, and handing them over to Him in their studies and practices. I think it comes by being humble enough to let the missionaries learn from the Master Teacher, instead of ourselves. I think it comes as we study and trust the curriculum and follow it closely, without being confined to it. The curriculum is designed to put learning into the missionaries' hands. As we prepare for the missionaries' learning, as opposed to preparing solely for our teaching, we will more carefully and deliberately structure their practices and studies to be the most crucial part of class.

I love this work!

CJ Bacon

Allowing Learning to Take Place

Over the past couple of weeks I've been thinking a lot about teaching in such a way that true learning takes place. Through study, discussion, observation and practice, I feel like I've learned a few principles about helping others learn (learner enabling). Here they are! These thoughts aren't complete yet, and I appreciate any input so that I can better understand this.

Principles of Learner Enabling
*Understanding what you teach: One thing I've noticed about teachers who I have perceived to be learner enabling is that they have a great understanding of what they teach. They have treasured up the word and know it well. The doctrine is understood both in their head and in their heart. They learn often from their missionaries and from the Spirit.
*Faith in what you teach: Learner-enabling teachers have a great faith in what they're teaching, including the doctrine, the curriculum, the training model (explain, demonstrate, practice, evaluate, re-practice), etc. These teachers, for example (the following is an application), leave adequate time for solid practices.
*Faith in God: These teachers of course have a great faith that the Spirit is the teacher, that it will confirm truth to the learner's heart.
*Faith in the people you're teaching: Teachers who allow learning to take place have a great faith in the people they teach. They treat them as agents, not as objects. They allow their students to exercise their agency. These teachers also learn much from their interactions with their missionaries. They have faith that their missionaries are capable of being taught by the Spirit.

Any additional thoughts? I want to be better at learner-enabling. If you have any additional principles of being a learner enabler  that would be great!