Do you teach people – or brains?

Whole person education is the idea that educators should foster intellectual growth, social relationships, personal growth, and physical challenges throughout the learning process.  I thought that I had come up with this idea myself until I ran into this description on the Boston College Office of Graduate Student Life website:

“What does it mean to be a "whole person"? As a graduate student, you are focused on advancing your education, but your true education involves so much more than expanding the knowledge of your discipline. You are a whole person with unique social, emotional, spiritual, intellectual needs and experiences.” – Boston College

I’ve thought a lot about how to engage these learning modalities and I want to share my ideas with you.  Here I am providing an overview of each type of learning and am happy to talk with you about each modality in more detail.

1.  Fostering Intellectual Growth

Intellectual growth has been a focus of public education for several decades, so you are probably already familiar with these techniques.  My environmental science, environmental studies, and ecology students feel a great responsibility for the environmental, economic, and social crises of today.  So it makes sense that they learn best when they have a practical, real-world problem that they feel like they can understand and potentially solve. This is true when I ask them to dissect the cause of environmental problems using case studies and when I ask they serve as “consultants” for local non-profit organizations.
 
I use real-world problems in the field as well.  My favorite approach to keeping students intellectually engaged in the field is to roll out a case study – as if it were scavenger hunt – throughout a course.  I start by giving them a brief overview of the a thorny problem – maybe by watching a short film clip or reading a magazine article – and then the adventure begins.  We meet with guest speakers. We read increasingly detailed articles and essays. We have discussions over meals.  The students write reflections in their journals.  Near the end of the course I ask students to present how they would solve the problem if they had a large budget and plenty of time.  This storytelling / problem-solving method of teaching has worked to keep many students intellectually engaged throughout long, hot, challenging field courses.

2.  Fostering Social Growth

My students are oriented towards one another and the greater social good.  They want to make a difference in the world, which is at their fingertips via smartphone or computer.  I have found that group challenges are a valuable way to engage students in learning – especially if the challenges are meaningful and authentic.  Specifically, I have students work to solve the problem of sediment erosion in the Grand Canyon, to determine how to reduce food waste in the university dining halls, and how to measure the number of exotic trees along the San Juan River. 
 
In order for students work successfully in groups, I teach communication and conflict resolution skills during the course.  I spend one lecture explaining group development, giving the students tools for conflict resolution, and letting them share stories about past group projects that have gone awry.  I encourage open communication by arranging students in a circle whenever possible (so students can see and hear one another) and facilitating conversations about the course content and the group process. Throughout the course, I check in with students about projects and empathize with them if a group member isn’t pulling his or her weight.  I assure students that the slacker’s grade will be impacted, but suggest that the more enduring, lifelong lesson would be to learn skills to engage the slacker and resolve the situation.  I am willing to put in time outside of class to help students learn these skills.

3.  Fostering Personal Growth

A fun, lively, group-project oriented learning environment works for many students, but can be distracting and even taxing for introverted students.  So, I facilitate self-reflection and personal growth in my classes as well.  I will admit that I have more tools for facilitating personal growth in the field than I do in the classroom (coming soon), but I still think it is important to create space in indoor classes for students to quietly process information on their own. I often ask students to answer reflective journal questions, to work alone to create mind maps, and to draw sketches of experimental designs to engage the right sides of their brains.  I also ask at least one opinion question on essay exams so students can speak their minds.

4.  Fostering Physical Growth              

It is much easier to encourage physical activity in the field than the classroom, but kinesthetic learners need to move their bodies.  In the classroom, I have students role play scenarios and mill during mocktail parties for discussions.  I had a colleague years ago who encouraged his students to use interpretive dance to present their final projects in atmospheric science classes.  I recently met an art history professor who has her students physically reenact the scenes in famous paintings.  These approaches bring a lot of fun into the classroom and keep things lively.

As a former Outward Bound instructor, I rely heavily on physical challenges in the field that require the group to work together in order to accomplish the task at hand, such as getting everyone up and over a mountain pass before thunderstorms with potentially hazardous lightning build in the early afternoon. This type of authentic challenge fosters all four types of growth in students and provides enough of an adrenaline rush that students are buzzing with excitement on the way down from the mountain.  In my experience whole person teaching is more engaging, more fun, and more impactful than brain-based teaching.  What techniques do you use to teach to the whole person?