Week 6: Object-Based Learning – Micro-teaching

Object-Based Learning (OBL) is a student-centred learning approach using objects within the classroom for visual thinking and visual literacy strategies. It encourages the student to create the focus of the enquiry, through asking questions and being inquisitive, creating deeper meaning. The most common place for OBL is in a museum setting, where an artefact from the archives or museum collection is brought out for participants to react to. OBL can create a space for intercultural dialogue to embrace intercultural diversity. As Chatterjee and Hannan note, ‘a core facet of object-based learning is its multisensory nature; the use of objects in teaching invokes a variety of senses and encourages a form of interactive or experiential learning which has been encapsulated in Kolb’s (1984) cycle of learning (Figure I.1).‘ (p.1, 2016)

According to UCL, the benefits of using real objects in learning include:

• providing a direct link with a topic or ‘the past’ and can enhance the interest in and understanding of a topic/subject.
• encourage learners to use all their senses – especially touch, sight and smell
• help to develop the important skill of drawing conclusions based on an examination of evidence, together with an understanding of the limitations and reliability of evidence
• ideal for generating group and class discussion
• promote the value of museums and encourage young people to visit museums and galleries with their families to further their learning.

Design & Delivery of the Microteaching Session

For this Microteaching session, the task was to deliver a 20 minute session on OBL and it was entirely up to me in terms of how to deliver this online session. I tried to mimic the museum setting in which OBL is often used by using an online archive which is available through the Shades of Noir website called Tell Us About It, and used an artefact to reflect on in the microteaching session. The session was designed to introduce the archive as a resource, and then to focus on a specific artefact within the archive to reflect upon. To ensure a student-centred approach, I gave the students some time to view a specific artefact (by Yasmeen Melius) and to contemplate the piece. I gave some prompting questions to consider which was also added to a Padlet board for the students to add their thoughts to: What is Yasmeen trying to say? What stood out to you? How can this artefact inform your teaching practice?

The discussion which took place was fruitful, and the 20 minutes shot by. I wanted to make sure there was enough time to consider the artefact and to reflect individually before coming together as a group, but on reflection I think I should have reduced the individual reflection time by a fraction to enable a longer discussion as a group. However, the feedback suggested that it was better to have that time to fully digest the piece. Perhaps the artefact touches on a heavy topic which can’t be digested too quickly.

Although I have begun my placement within LCC, I have yet to deliver a taught session which was led by me (although I have a session coming up on Wednesday which I’m very nervous about!) so this felt like a whole new experience. I felt like I was in safe hands with my peers, who gave me feedback to consider for when I do deliver my first session.

I hadn’t realised that there would be time for feedback embedded within the session, so when I was preparing the presentation I had put in a MentiMeter page so that my peers could submit anonymous feedback so I could learn from my micro-teaching experience.

The verbal feedback I received included the following:

• the session was well-paced and it was clear
• it was good to have the time to digest the piece
• it never felt rushed
• it’s great that it considers how it may inform our teaching practice
• it could be pitched for a Staff Development session
• very good to have a trigger warning, enabling students the option to opt out or leave if it’s something that triggers them
• great to have a set of resources out of UAL as well as within
• better to turn mic off during self-reflection as the sound was distracting.

Overall, it was nice to have a safe environment for me to explore my first online teaching experience. The feedback was positive which gives me some confidence for my next teaching session to take place on Wednesday with the BAUXD cohort. In future, I will remember to turn my microphone off when there is no need for me to speak, so that it prevents from distracting the students. I will also remember to keep a steady pace, and allow for time for reflection and for silent contemplation. Silence isn’t something to be scared of, and it never needs to be filled for the sake of it.

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References

Chatterjee, H. J. and Hannan, L. (2016) Engaging the Senses: Object-Based Learning in Higher Education. Ashgate Publishing: New York.

Melius, Y. (n.d.) Reaching Out. Available from: http://www.shadesofnoir.org.uk/artefacts/tell-us-about-it/#yasmeen-melius [Accessed 17 March 2021]

Ross, F. (2021) Object Based Learning – Yasmeen Melius Padlet. Available from: https://padlet.com/f_a_ross/OBL [Accessed 17 March 2021]

Shades of Noir (n.d.) Tell Us About It. Available from: http://www.shadesofnoir.org.uk/artefacts/tell-us-about-it/ [Accessed 17 March 2021]

UCL (n.d.) Teaching & Object-Based Learning. Available from: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/culture/schools/teaching-object-based-learning [Accessed 17 March 2021]