[ProfessionalDevelopment 2238] Re: What do we mean bystudentinvolvement and critical thinking?Louise Wiener lwiener at llfinc.orgWed Jul 9 17:25:28 EDT 2008
Very much so. LLF uses art, architecture and design because the process builds basic learning skills while pulling on people¹s creativity, knowledge, and pride. It is truly a strength based approach. Design based approaches are more typically applied to gifted and talented programs than to adult ed. I think there¹s lots of mileage top be made in adult ed by using design as a medium for recognizing and building on strengths. Louise On 7/9/08 4:38 PM, "Holly Dilatush" <holly at dilatush.com> wrote: > Very interesting post, Louise; thanks! > Just a quick comment -- your ideas about LLF remind me of the principles of > universal design, which seems to be creeping into more and more discussions, > philosophies, applications... > > This has been one of my favorite discussions ever on the listserv -- lots of > voices chiming in! Keep the ideas coming, please. > I'm hoping to add a more substantive post before the discussion 'closes' -- > > holly > > On Wed, Jul 9, 2008 at 1:20 PM, Louise Wiener <lwiener at llfinc.org> wrote: >> Hello All, >> >> I have been following the language development / critical thinking >> discussion with interest. Learning and Leadership in Families, the >> non-profit I lead in Washington, DC, uses visual literacy - i.e. learning >> through looking - to encourage both language development and critical >> thinking. We teach critical thinking through exercises that gather >> information through careful observation and encourage critical thinking by >> comparing and contrasting what the adult already knows with the information >> gathered from visual clues. >> >> LLF teaches how to use visual vocabulary (line, shape, color, texture, etc) >> to explore familiar environments and/or to decode unfamiliar environments. >> This can be done with dress / costume, with buildings or with other objects >> that encourage discussion about cultures and their similarities and >> differences. The process of building on what people already know and >> underpinning their knowledge with a structure that encourages critical >> thinking and deductive reasoning results in language development. >> >> What is most interesting in an ELL context is that the visual vocabulary >> provides a structure that cuts across cultures, but different cultures >> interpret different visual elements differently. For example, the meaning >> of different kinds of lines is universal. The meaning of different colors >> and patterns varies from culture to culture - but is present as an >> identifier across cultures. Makes for interesting conversations. Louise >> Wiener >> -- >> Louise W. Wiener, Executive Director >> Learning and Leadership in Families >> >> Holly (Dilatush) >> >> holly at dilatush.com >> (434) 960.7177 cell phone >> (434) 295.9716 home phone >> [OK to call 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. EST / GMT -5 time] >> >> "Live with intention. Share inside~out smiles, inspire hope, seek awe and >> nurture in nature." (original by Holly) >> >> www.tales-around-the-world.blogspot.com >> <http://www.tales-around-the-world.blogspot.com> >> www.abavirtual-learningcenter.org <http://www.abavirtual-learningcenter.org> >> www.blogblossoms.edublogs.org <http://www.blogblossoms.edublogs.org> >> *Twitter ID = smilin7 > > > ---------------------------------------------------- > National Institute for Literacy > Adult Literacy Professional Development mailing list > professionaldevelopment at nifl.gov > > To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to > http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/professionaldevelopment > > Professional Development section of the Adult Literacy Education Wiki > http://wiki.literacytent.org/index.php/Adult_Literacy_Professional_Development -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://www.nifl.gov/pipermail/professionaldevelopment/attachments/20080709/7394c50e/attachment.html
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