[nabs-l] About Structured discovery in every day life

[Jedi]

Jewel,

I really liked your story and found it interesting for a few reasons. 
First, I liked how methodical you were in getting the information you 
needed and putting it to use. I liked how you listed your alternative 
techniques ranging from using the internet and translating pdf 
documents to having the driver call your stop, from writing down the 
times to getting directions to the mall's front door. I have a feeling 
there's some bureaucratic reason why your teacher couldn't take you on 
an O and M bus trip, but he still found a way around this problem by 
giving you just enough tools and information to complete the trip on 
your own time. This is the mark of a progressive cane travel instructor 
who believes in the capabilities of his students. I will no doubt use 
this strategy when I start teaching in potentially bureaucracy-laiden 
agencies. Finally, your story about bug collecting is interesting and 
exactly what any science teacher would do. Well done.

Respectfully,
Jedi


Original message:
> I'll shar an example of structured discovery that I experienced, and
> one I used as a nanny.

> At the rehab center, my O&M instructor was very enthusiastic about my
> sense of self-dependence. So, he liked to give me tasks over the
> weekend to show him my learning on Monday. One Friday, he gave me the
> tasks of finding out how to get from my apartment to the mall. This
> was no simple task for me, because I had very little experience with
> the bus system. I knew how to get to the bus...schedule a Paratransit
> trip to drop you off at the curb! But he said no more "cheating" (he
> used this term because I had used it to describe why I wanted to learn
> how to use the buses, that I felt Paratransit was a kind of cheating
> as far as O&M goes). So, I was like...where to start? He gave me a few
> links, and sent me on my way for the weekend. The first link was the
> webpage for Crabtree Valley Mall. This gave me the address, and it
> even mentioned where the bus stop was (outside Belk's) and what buses
> go there (quite a few, but I concentrated on the #16, which was a
> direct route to the mall). The second link was the webpage of the CAT
> bus system. There, I searched until I found the #16 route, and then
> had to translate the PDF file (a lesson all it's own). I finally found
> the time and name of the stop. Then I had to get to Moore Square for
> the transfer, so I had to use a past lesson wher he taught me how to
> get to the bus stop closest to my apartment, two blocks away. It was
> the #12, and in Moore Square, it went to the blue zone (Moore Square
> has zones, coloured red, blue, green, yellow, and purple). The #16
> left from the blue zone, so I was lucky and didn't have to recall the
> crazy layout of Moore Square. So, I went back to the CAT bus page,
> found the route PDF file for the #12, and figured out the time it got
> to my stop, and when it got to the transfer point. I wrote these all
> down. On Saturday, I took the #12 to Moore Square, transferred to the
> #16, and asked the driver to let me know when we got to the mall stop.
> He did, and I got off. I asked another shopper where the front door to
> Belk's was, and went in. After navigating the mall a bit, I stopped in
> at a chocolate store, grabbed a chocolate bar for myself and a few
> chocolates for my teacher, and headed home. On Monday, he asked me how
> it went, and I handed him the candy and said "Great; want me to show
> you my new favourite chocolate shop there?" So, we did a kinda
> test-run (he wasn't allowed to take me on the bus, but he could do the
> parts before and after the bus, so he took me to the #12 bus stop,
> went over the times I chose, then brought me by car to the mall and we
> went from the bus stop to my new favourite shop. It was a great
> experience, and I got a prize out of it...he bought me some great
> chocolate sticks! That is what I consider structured discovery...give
> the student the means to learn something, and then step back and let
> them figure it out for themselves.

> As a professional nanny, I often used this design of teaching, as it
> helps children learn to be independent. They must learn not to rely on
> adults for every word of learning and every activity they participate
> in. For example, I planned a bug hunt activity one afternoon. I
> printed sheets that showed pictures of three common bugs
> (grasshoppers, roly-polys, and earthworms) and explained to the
> children (ages 4 and 6) where to find the bugs and how to collect them
> into the three jars provided. Then, I sent them out into the back yard
> and supervised this bug hunt. They both had a rather nice collection
> of grasshoppers in a wire-topped container with grass and dirt, roly
> polys in a jar with holes at the top and containing dirt and a few
> rocks, and earthworms in a larger plastic jar with lots of dirt and a
> few shriveled leaves and some grass blades. At the end, we went over
> the three types of bugs we had discovered in the back yard, and
> discussed why each bug was put in the container it was put in, and
> what sort of environment each bug needs. I asked them where they found
> their bugs (roly polys and earthworms were usually under rocks, while
> the grasshoppers were of course hopping around in the grass). And then
> we read a book about earthworms and how they create soil. I taught
> them, but they also taught themselves. The tools were provided to them
> to get as much out of the experience as they could, and we discussed
> it afterwards and they knew a great deal about each bug after.

> Hope that wasn't too boring,
> Jewel

> On 4/24/10, Gerardo Corripio <gera1027 at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Hi guys: I was reading up on the Structured Discovery method and as I
>> understand it it's a combination of guidance and doing things yourself. I
>> got to thinking that not necessarily O&M is the only place where one can use
>> it because though we don't or might not know, we tend to use it in every day
>> life! for instance on the PC suppose a friend teaches us the basics use of
>> Qwitter, Jaws or whatever software and hardware. Knowing the basics I can
>> then take it from there and learn more advanced things myself. is this kind
>> of how the structured discovery method works? I don't know why but it sounds
>> very interesting, thus my question to you guys and hoping that it might
>> serve for those also new in all these topics! Definitely lots of things to
>> take in!
>> Gerardo


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