Motivating With Live-Event Learning

by Stephen Barkley

Incorporating real-life learning experiences into a classroom setting can be tricky. Yet the value so outweighs the challenge that it merits an effort. Teaching with live events not only motivates the student because the learning is relevant, meaningful, and fun; it can also motivate the teacher who is probably also tired of the tried-and-true textbook approach.

"Live events" are lessons that rely on the "real" environment to impart both content knowledge and process skills. Students see a reason for doing a project other than the fact that you assigned it and they will be graded. And to connect to the real world, it is not necessary that you leave the school. To a student, school is the real world, and it abounds with opportunities for relevant learning experiences.

Anatomy of a Live Event

So what constitutes a live event? There tend to be certain elements in place whenever a Live-Event Learning® experience occurs. Here is an example to show these elements.

An elementary teacher decides to have her students change the water in the goldfish bowl. They need to remove the fish, clean the bowl, and replace the water to the correct temperature and ratio so as not to injure the fish, and then replace the fish. They need to understand temperature, volume, environment, ratios, water properties, math, science, and so forth.

Multisensory

Participating in a live event stimulates many senses: sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste. The students changing the fish bowl felt the temperature, saw the fish, heard the instructions, and smelled the foul water. This example is multisensory and also involves the following elements of a live event:

Process Skills

A live event includes both complex proficiencies and basic skills used in everyday life. Once learned, they can be used under multiple circumstances. The middle school students creating a school newspaper learn writing, interviewing, editing, and proofreading skills. They learn goal setting and prioritization as they meet deadlines, do layout, or design. They learn to categorize, analyze, research, and synthesize.

Relevance

Students learning in live event lessons are emotionally involved. There is a strong motivation to do it correctly. Brain research shows that most people will not learn anything unless it is relevant to them.

Real Environment

A live event takes place in real life. It is rich with meaning, involves a lot of action and interaction, is colorful and exciting. It uses all the senses and calls on the emotions. It lends itself to learning in a positive, memorable way. It is motivating because it is real.

Emotion

The brain recalls information when there is emotion attached. There are critical links between emotions and the patterns needed for learning. The primitive limbic area of the brain, while it can neither "read nor write," provides us with the feeling of what is real, true, and important. The limbic system will not believe something it does not feel is important or true.

Real Consequences

Students are engaged in something that has real meaning. Something is at stake; it counts. In the above example, the students could kill the fish if they did not undertake the process correctly.

Debriefing

Debriefing is a critical ingredient to a successful Live-Event Learning® experience. Live events occur all the time, and even if there is learning available in every live event, it is not often obvious unless someone points out the learning and describes what happened during or after the live event.

It is the "teachable moment" where teachers stop the action and ask, "What did we just learn?" It's inductive on the part of the student, yet the teacher guides the learning by prompting them to recall what just took place.

Source: Stephen G. Barkley is a consultant and educator and serves as Executive Vice President of Performance Learning Systems, Inc. With 25 years' experiences, Barkley is a riveting and motivational keynote speaker, trainer, and consultant to educators and business. More about the effective use of Live-Event Learning™ in teaching may be found in the PLS course Discovering the Power of Live-Event Learning™. Call PLS at 1-800-526-4630 or check here for the course closest to you(insert link to: http://www.plsregistration.com).