Enhancing Student Response To Academic Stimuli In A Community At Risk
Linda L. Ridley
Understanding the stimuli that drive student behavior is essential for effective teaching.
Student engagement is enhanced by the comprehension of those core issues that inform success.
Any professor in Business brings industry expertise into the classroom co optimize the student's learning. In addition to my teaching, I am the CEO of an international management consulting firm. Using the discipline of cognitive semiotics and a cutting-edge management concept that we implement, we focus on change management and the many aspects of behavior chat come into play during the change process. Our intention is to achieve a multidisciplinary approach, transcending what Goldberg (2002) calls an epistemological hybridity (pp. 29-30).
Our sole objective in our reaching practices is to enhance student learning through the introduction of critical thinking. Notwithstanding those exceptional Honors students that can be found here and there throughout the disciplines, how do we get all students to think critically- As importantly, when reaching undergraduate students from communities at risk, often for whom English is a second language, it is important to reinforce the reality that such a student population is uniquely positioned to lead the demographic shift that we are currently undergoing in this nation. Indeed, many of these students are immigrants from multiple countries around the world. We faculty can lead the national academic community in creating change by collectively conveying to our students their potential for greatness. Bur what are we up against?
We must first reflect upon and question our own reaching practices. As educators, I would suggest that it is important for us to understand the dynamics of symptoms and symbols on the thinking process and behavior. According to Jung (1964), "a word or image is a symbol, when it implies something more than its obvious and immediate meaning. A symbol is anything that implies, in any way, something more than is obvious and immediate in the casual observer" (p. 21). Fun her, Ridley (2001) tells us "Symbolism is used to mythologize history, manipulate behavior, and set in motion a way of thinking that creates the phenomena of racism, neurosis and other forms of mental illness. Symbolism, through its mythological content, has caused the distortion of scientific facts. Nothing can be accomplished by thinking symbolically. Our decisions should not be made from mythological assumptions. A thoroughgoing, careful reading of history cells us char it is only when we are not able to face the realities of life that we rend to mythologize and distort anything and everything that we do not want to be true. Symbols produce myth, superstition, and ritual, and these elements cannot be allowed to stand if we are to progress"(pp. 5-6).
Fortunately, our consulting platform of change management is most useful for classroom pedagogy. Our proprietary management concept, tided a Symptomatic Thought Process, pioneers a shift in thinking by focusing on changing the mindset for behavior transformation, and it is revolutionary. This change in mindset goes beyond symbolic chinking, eradicating it and introduces a symptomatic thought process. We have successfully implemented this change concept with client management teams throughout Asia, Africa and Europe. But how do we introduce this approach into the classroom?
As a type of dialogic inquiry, admittedly unscientific, I explored the outlook of students toward their school, their environment, and even their self-awareness, using a traditional approach known as root cause analysis. Although this approach is commonly used in production environments, we consultants find the process highly useful for assessing symptoms and discerning cause and effect. What I found was char the students' feedback indicated a particular tendency to think symbolically - indeed, the themes were consistent. Students expressed significantly reduced self-esteem; low regard for their institution with an unrealistic view of higher-level institutions, and shame in terms of their English proficiency:
The reason I don’t speak up in class in because other students make fun of my accent.
Studying is not that important here; it’s only a two-year school.
Four-year schools are superior; I’ll wait til I’m here.
I’m not as good as students at other schools-that’s why I’m here.
Indeed, it is commonly accepted by all scholars that there are only two ways of thinking and behaving: symptomatically or symbolically (Rid ley, 2008, p. 122). When our students think symbolically, such thinking serves only as a reinforcement of the unfortunate stereotypes applied to this student population. We wane co get them co chink symptomatically. As Ridley (2008) cells us, "When one thinks symptomatically, one is led by the symptoms of one's experience. Instead of mythologizing, one reads the symptoms of their existence like a language, to which they respond accordingly. This means they do not mythologize the events in their life, nor do they approach their life with a symbolizing attitude (p. 140).
I found it important co remind students that anyone speaking English as a second language is at least bilingual, if nor multilingual. Research by Marian and Shook (2012) has shown that individuals with bilingual capabilities nor only pay
closet attention to comment but also switch tasks better than those who speak one language.
As reaching methodologies have evolved, an applicable approach has been that of "Ripping the classroom''. In such an environment, the instructor utilizes technology to facilitate learning outside the classroom, thereby liberating classroom time for fertile discussion, inquiry and reflection. TI1ro ugh videos posted on learning management systems such as Blackboard, students can access the comment at their own speed. The result is amplified student engagement in the classroom, as they transition from passive learning to increased interaction with the instructor.
An effective approach coward changing student behavior was to challenge first-year students with a semester assignment on immigration. Surprisingly, the students had up to then little if any engagement around the subject matter, even though many were indeed living the experience. Their man factory deliverable was to take a position on the pending immigration legislation and defend their point of view. Their subsequent research enabled them to identify and link the potential economic benefit gained by the contribution of the many undocumented workers in our population. Naturally, this assignment provided an illumination not experienced previously - the students gravitated towards the comment with enthusiasm, including personal stories of themselves or family and friends.
An additional reaching moment was co invite students to link their classroom inquiries into ad hoc, extra-credit presentations as a way of having their question answered. This activity, of "flipping the classroom", led students down an unexpected path of research and investigation that they had not done before, including preparing and presenting presentations to educate the entire class - and the professor! Very importantly, the students' lack of self-confidence and general lack of self-esteem was significantly and collectively diminished.
Assignments were accompanied by Cull-semester messaging regarding the students' potential for capitalizing on the nation's changing demographic. Emphasis is always placed on diminishing and/or eliminating the tendency to think symbolically, which hinders learning. The outcome is a strengthened resolve co overcome future obstacles in school and in life.
Although having students’ complete presentations and semester papers is a shore-term win, this kind of curricular planning sets the stage for the heavy lifting that comes in throughout the entire program and beyond, as all faculty collaborate with one another to provide a consistent push for success.
SUMMARY
For a true 21st century teaching and learning environment, professors are advised to:
Implement the Symptomatic Thought Process (STP) co confront inappropriate stereotyping and unfortunate belief systems {also known as symbolic behavior).
Remember that the Symptomatic TI1oughc Process (STP) offers the objective to "see things as they really are void of superstition or mythological assumptions” (Ridley, 2008, pp. 137-139).
Discontinue symbolic chinking - poor outcomes should be evidence based, nor imaginary. Symbolic thinking is a learned activity; it is not innate to the human brain.
Practice chinking symptomatically - be acutely mindful of the potential for deeper engagement with ESL learners. Symptomatic thinking is natural, it is innate to the human brain.
Do not assume silence infers lack of knowledge.
Be creative with the construction of pedagogy
Flip the classroom to intensify engagement and encourage enthusiasm.
REFERENCES
Goldberg, D.T. (2002). 7be racial state. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
Jung, C.G. (1964). Man and his symbols. New York, NY: Doubleday.
Ridley, E.J. (2001). Symbolism revisited: notes on the symptomatic thought process.
Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press.
Ridley, E.J. (2008). The golden apple: changing the structure of civilization. Trenton,
NJ: Africa World Press.
Viorica, M., & Shook, A. (2012, October 31). The cognitive benefits of being bilingual. The Dana Foundation.