Teaching & Learning Philosophy

As I continue my occupational therapy journey, I bring with me unique skills, strengths, and approaches as an educator with newly developed tools. I have come to be aware and considerate of the multitude of learning styles that my future clients and patients will maintain. It is essential that I individualize my education to each specific client and their unique learning style. While some of my clients may learn best kinestically or visually, other clients may learn best through aural or read / write teaching styles. To accommodate my future clients and their learning preferences, I will bring with me my knowledge of various instructional teaching methods. Dependent upon the setting, circumstance, and unique client, I will cater my educational style to the learner's needs, style, and readiness to learn. Additionally, knowing that many learners obtain information best through a multimodal instructional teaching method, I will plan my educational sessions to include a variety of instructional methods that account for multimodal learners (ex. one on one, demo-return-demo, use of clear handouts).  In addition to optimal comprehension, I hope that my future learners / clients walk away from my sessions feeling supported and confident in their ability to utilize new knowledge. Further, I hope my learners feel as if my educational session was individulized to them as a unique client.

At the core of effective teaching is the acknowledgment and awareness of various learning theories. Specifically, the humanistic and androgogy learning theories will be influential in my educational sessions moving forward. The humanistic learning theory addresses basic needs prior to engaging in education. Successful education supported by the humanistic learning theory includes collaboration with my future clients to ensure their physiological, emotional, and safety needs are met prior to engaging in teaching. It must be noted that creating a safe environment that encourages learner curiosity without judgement is a foundational component of the humanistic learning theory. Finally, the humanistic learning theory is founded upon the value that treats the client in an unconditionally positive regard (Bastable, 2020). This is a value that I personally resonate with, and a value that I will carry with me throughout my future practice. The androgogy learning theory is also at the core of effective teaching.  At the base of androgogy are the principles that learning is voluntary, self-controlled, and self-directed. Additionally, learning under the adrogogy lens is person and problem centered, which is reinforced by application and feedback (Bastable, 2020). The roles of therapist and educator are continuously interacting as a signficant component of the occupational therapy profession entails education. Clients and caregivers must be able to carryout the material and therapeutic practices learned during the sessions, once they are at home without the therapist. Therefore, it is essential that the therapist demonstrates learner-centered education to ensure optimal learner understanding and comprehension so that what is learned during therapy, can be continued outside of therapy sessions. 

In the future, I hope to work in pediatrics, thus in addition to considering the learning styles of each individual client, I must take into account the key aspects of the humanistic learning theory. Prior to engaging in teaching with my pediatric clients, I must ensure that their physiological, emotional, and safety needs are met prior to engaging in teaching. This can be carried out by providing my clients with snacks, addressing how they slept that previous night with their caregivers, and addressing their sensory needs prior to beginning our sessions. My knowledge on various instructional teaching methods will guide my educational therapy sessions. In working with children, utilizing the gaming instructional method may yield greater learner comprehension than lecturing. Further, working in pediatrics does not limit my engagement as an educator to only teaching children. Similar to other settings, successful pediatric occupational therapy is dependent upon caregivers and parents  continuing therapy practices at home. The goal of pediatric occupational therapy is ensuring not only understanding within the child, but also understanding within the parent. Thus, it is essential that I apply the fundamentals of the androgogy learning theory to my practice as well. An element of adrogogy that I feel is essential to the success of my educational sessions is "asking" before "telling". I will engage in knowledge checks with my adult clients, prior to engaging in education. Additionally, to confirm learner comprehension, it is essential to ask my clients if I have been clear in my teaching through use of open-ended questions, and forming questions to ask how I specifically can re-explain and re-state material to enhance clarity.