Observational Learning
My son Rowan is beginning to mirror a lot of my and my husband’s behaviors. He is starting to wave “bye bye”, clap his hands, and shake his head from side-to-side. When we start clapping, he begins to clap his hands. If we brush our hair, he attempts to perform the same action. I have even noticed that he clicks his tongue the way his sitter does when she interacts with him. He is learning through observation!
I relate observational learning to Doug Fisher’s Gradual Release of Responsibility Model (GRR): I do, We do, You do. The first step in the Gradual Release system is to model for students how to perform a skill or task, the “I do” part. Students learn through observation and then gradually take on responsibility for performing a learned skill. As an educator, I can harness the power of observational learning by engaging students with meaningful and authentic learning experiences. Engagement and motivation are integral components to the learning process. In order to foster motivation, students must receive frequent positive feedback from their teacher.
In the classroom, teachers need to instruct by being a model for students and participating in the learning experiences alongside their learners. Teachers must engage with the students, provide positive support, and experiences that are challenging enough to be motivating, but not so challenging that the student gives up. Teachers can meet the student where they are, and scaffold learning in a way that continuously builds on current knowledge.
Students look towards the experts and adults in their lives to show them the way. Not every adult in their life will model the desired behavior we want from them. For example, a student in my school speaks very rudely and crudely to female teachers. Unfortunately, our school is largely made up of female teachers (except for our PE teacher). I learned that his father speaks in a similar way to his mother on a regular basis. This child does not have a positive male role model that can show him how to interact with women respectfully. Schools should be intentional in providing students with a wide-range of diverse models that they can identify with, observe, and learn from. Teachers must model how to be lifelong learners, how to persevere when things are tough, and how to treat others with respect and compassion.
