Self-Authorship: The Key to Student Learning Aspirations

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2 Self-Authorship: The Key to Student Learning Aspirations Marcia Baxter Magolda Miami University November 2, 2014

3 VT LEARNING ASPIRATIONS Commit to unwavering Curiosity Pursue Self-Understanding and Integrity Practice Civility Prepare for a life of Courageous Leadership Embrace Ut Prosim as a way of life

4 DEVELOPMENTAL CAPACITIES How we make sense of our experiences How we view knowledge - decide what to believe, come to know How we view ourselves - sense of identity How we view social relations - how we construct relationships Holistic perspective - all three dimensions intertwined

5 A DEVELOPMENTAL BRIDGE a holding environment that provides both welcoming acknowledgement to exactly who the person is right now as he or she is, and fosters the person s psychological evolution. As such, a holding environment is a tricky, transitional culture, an evolutionary bridge, a context for crossing over (Kegan, 1994, p. 43) Kegan, R. (1994). In over our heads: The mental demands of modern life. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

6 INFORMATIONAL VS TRANSFORMATIONAL LEARNING Informational learning focuses on increasing our fund of knowledge, our repertoire of skills, and extending already established capacities into new terrain; deepening resources for an existing frame of reference Transformational learning focuses on shifts in how we know developing the cognitive, interpersonal, and intrapersonal capacities that enable people to navigate complexity Kegan, R. (2000). What "form" transforms? A constructive-developmental approach to transformative learning. In J. Mezirow (Ed.), Learning as transformation: Critical perspectives on a theory in progress (pp ). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

7 LEARNING ASPIRATIONS REQUIRE TRANSFORMATION To meet learning aspirations learners will need to transform how they think about learning & knowing, their identities, and their social relations To promote learning aspirations educators will need to transform how they think about learning & knowing, their identities, and their social relations

8 WORKSHOP GOALS Understand one possible portrait of the journey toward self-authorship and complex developmental capacities and its relationship to the learning aspirations Explore the nature of Learning Partnerships that help adults develop more complex capacities to meet aspirations Consider how Learning Partnerships could enhance your educational practice

9 BAXTER MAGOLDA LONGITUDINAL STUDY Began with 101 first-year traditional age college students in interviewed annually during 4 years of college [see Knowing & Reasoning in College, 1992] 30 remain in study in 29th year [see Making Their own Way, 2001; Authoring Your Life, 2009] Learning Partnerships Model [see Learning Partnerships, 2004]

10 WABASH NATIONAL STUDY Designed to discover the student experiences and developmental capacities that affect growth toward seven liberal arts outcomes (King, Kendall, Brown, Lindsay & VanHecke, 2007) Began with 315 traditional age students on six campuses in 2006 [approximately one third identified as students of color] 177 students returned for interviews all four years of their college experience [228 year 2; 204 year 3] Baxter Magolda, M. B., & King, P. M. (2012). Assessing meaning making and self-authorship: Theory, research, and application. ASHE Higher Education Report (Vol. 38 (3)). San Francisco: CA: Jossey-Bass.

11 CAVEATS Developmental narratives offer possibilities regarding how to interpret meaning making Transferability: leaders responsibility to judge applicability based on deep understanding of particular context Learning partnerships: key to understanding partners and interpreting development in context

12 Baxter Magolda, M. B., & King, P. M. (2012). Assessing meaning making and self-authorship: Theory, research, and application. ASHE Higher Education Report (Vol. 38 (3)). San Francisco: CA: Jossey-Bass.

13 FOLLOWING EXTERNAL FORMULAS Believe authority s plans; how you know Define self through external others Act in relationships to acquire approval Baxter Magolda, M. B. (2001). Making their own way: Narratives for transforming higher education to promote self-development. Sterling, VA: Stylus.

14 REFLECTIVE INTERLUDE Consider your context are any of the participants using external formulas uncritically? If so, how does that affect learning aspirations? How does learners use of external formulas affect their capacity to meet a learning aspiration? How does educators use of external formulas affect their/your capacity to promote a learning aspiration?

15 CROSSROADS Torn between following others versus own visions and expectations Questioning External Authority E(I) Constructing the Internal Voice E-I Listening to the Internal Voice I-E Cultivating the Internal Voice I(E)

16 REFLECTIVE INTERLUDE Consider your context do any of the participants seem to be in the crossroads? If so, how does that affect learning aspirations? How does learners being in the crossroads affect their capacity to meet a learning aspiration? How does educators being in the crossroads affect their/your capacity to promote a learning aspiration?

17 SELF-AUTHORSHIP Internal voice comes to the foreground to coordinate external influence.

18 TRUSTING THE INTERNAL VOICE Realize that external realities are beyond your control, but that you can control your reaction to them. Trust the internal voice sufficiently to refine beliefs, values, identities and relationships. Use internal voice to shape reactions and manage external sources. Baxter Magolda, M. B. (2008). Three elements of self-authorship. Journal of College Student Development, 49(4), Baxter Magolda, M. B., & King, P. M. (2012). Assessing meaning making and self-authorship: Theory, research, and application. ASHE Higher Education Report (Vol. 38 (3)). San Francisco: CA: Jossey-Bass.

19 BUILDING AN INTERNAL FOUNDATION Trust internal voice sufficiently to craft commitments into a philosophy of life to guide how to react to external sources. Internal foundation is a filter through which to process external circumstances. Baxter Magolda, M. B. (2008). Three elements of self-authorship. Journal of College Student Development, 49(4), Baxter Magolda, M. B., & King, P. M. (2012). Assessing meaning making and self-authorship: Theory, research, and application. ASHE Higher Education Report (Vol. 38 (3)). San Francisco: CA: Jossey-Bass.

20 REFLECTIVE INTERLUDE Consider your context do any of the participants seem to be self-authoring? If so, how does that affect learning aspirations? How does learners self-authorship affect their capacity to meet a learning aspiration? How does educators self-authorship affect their/ your capacity to promote a learning aspiration?

21 LEARNING PARTNERSHIPS MODEL Balancing Challenge & Support

22 ! Complex work & life challenges Challenge Respect learners thoughts and feelings Develop personal authority Learning Partnerships Share authority; interdependence Support Situate in learners experience Mutual learning & problem solving Baxter Magolda, M. B. (2004). Learning Partnerships Model: A framework for promoting self-authorship. In M. B. Baxter Magolda & P. M. King (Eds.), Learning partnerships: Theory and models of practice to educate for self-authorship (pp ). Sterling, VA: Stylus.

23 ! Reflective writing; group process Urban Leadership Internship Program Role in placement, community Negotiate new environment & identity Learning Partnerships Challenge Mutual learning with peers Support Job, community service in urban setting Collaboration: coworkers, roommates, supervisor Egart, K., & Healy, M. (2004). An Urban Leadership Internship program: Implementing learning partnerships "unplugged' from campus structures. In M. B. Baxter Magolda & P. M. King (Eds.), Learning partnerships: Theory and models of practice to educate for self-authorship (pp ). Sterling, VA: Stylus.

24 ! Learning Community; Reflective Assignments Earth Sustainability Series Complexity of ES; multi-disciplinary, spiraling curriculum Develop own perspective Learning Partnerships Challenge Mutual construction of knowledge Support Problem based pedagogy; personal assignments; service learning Joint processing; weekly note card feedback Bekken, B. M., & Marie, J. (2007). Making self-authorship a goal of core curricula: The Earth Sustainability Pilot Project. In P. S. Meszaros (Ed.), Self-Authorship: Advancing students' intellectual growth, New Directions for Teaching and Learning (Vol. 109, pp ). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

25 DEVELOPMENTALLY SEQUENCED GOALS First semester: sorting opinions from arguments supported by evidence Second semester: identifying assumptions Third semester: evaluating arguments and supporting assumptions Fourth semester: framing arguments from multiple perspectives, justifying assumptions, and assessing evidence Bekken, B. M., & Marie, J. (2007). Making self-authorship a goal of core curricula: The Earth Sustainability Pilot Project. In P. S. Meszaros (Ed.), Self- Authorship: Advancing students' intellectual growth, New Directions for Teaching and Learning (Vol. 109, pp ). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

26 REFLECTIVE INTERLUDE In what ways does your practice already incorporate LPM components? In what ways could you alter your practice to make it more like a learning partnership? Are there aspects of your own development that you will need to consider to implement developmentallysequenced learning partnerships?

27 TRANSFORMATION FOR EDUCATORS LPM is a philosophy about learning Recognize assumptions about learning & learners Recognize how our authority is interwoven in our behavior Examine our own development - are we self-authoring such that we can share power and authority with learners? Challenge structures & systems that constrain learning?