Their anticipated and desired results for their education, personal or practical, may vary widely in unpredictable ways. The attitudes towards educational processes may differ due to the greater and more diverse social and life experiences that color perceptions of classroom life, even more so than the raw educational materials used in the classroom. The teacher must balance addressing individual needs through conferences, personal contacts, and allowing for more independent research, yet also strive even harder to create a coherent class dynamic and unity between individuals with different schedules and belief structures. This may require greater management on a technical level as well as greater personal finesse than might be expected by an educator with experience only teaching undergraduates. Eskensberger (2001) on the subject of "Action Theory" provides some interesting supporting evidence to address the difficulties posed by a mixed classroom of old and young learners, or adult learners of diverse backgrounds. Since practicality is so important to adult learners, creating a classroom environment with a focus upon action-oriented activities might be one way to create unity, at least on the surface, of the classroom. From a grading perspective, because the intention or thought behind actions are not necessarily observable from the outside, it is essential that projects such as team presentations include some controls to evaluate the effort as well as the final result -- especially if students have not given such presentations before in their school or working lives. But despite the limitations of grading through action, the idea of action theory can inject excitement into the classroom, especially if students have a 'pro forma' attitude to classroom procedures. Action also creates a greater sense of free choice in learning, which can...
Focusing on action and results, and personal choice shows respect for adult learners as adults, and excitement about the work that is done in the classroom increases levels of participation even if distance learning through the Internet is an unfortunately necessary part of a great deal of outside interactions involving the class.Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
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