Know, Do and Be-The Framework to Successful Learning and Learning Strategies

 Developing effective strategies for a learning curriculum is just as important as the content itself. Like many others, my student career prior to university consisted primarily of standardized tests and rubrics. Although this is an effective way for teachers to gauge how much content the students can regurgitate, it does not show the ways in which students came to form their knowledge and does not provide much feedback for them to grow as learners. Teacher’s today should be fully focused on incorporating the Know, Do and Be framework into their classroom, proposed by Drake, Reid and Kolohon (2014) as a means to help their students develop successful strategies to acquire knowledge.

 There are four different types of knowledge making up the “know”, the initial step of the framework. Factual and conceptual knowledge are essential for a teacher’s marking scheme and a student’s grade, however their procedural and metacognitive knowledge is essential to their growth as a learner. One of the primary issues in my student career was my own lack of understanding of how I learn best. Being exposed to so many lessons where I was placed amongst twenty-five other students, I would simply have to take in the information being lectured from the teacher. However, students have different ways of forming knowledge; whether they be visual learners, need to work in groups, individually or need their lesson to be placed in some sort of real life context. Once teachers expose students to more strategies and techniques to learning, the students themselves can then further develop procedural and metacognitive knowledge. This could result in many more students taking initiative in the classroom to participate as well as help their peers whom may use similar strategies to form knowledge.

 After the “Know” is completed than students must be able to perform and demonstrate their knowledge in the classroom. The “Do” is the part of the learning process where students exercise the knowledge they have gained, as well as other sorts of interdisciplinary skills (Drake, Reid, Kolohon, 2014). In order for students to complete the “Do”, they must have knowledge of the proper strategies to do so.  Being educated does not simply guarantee success or a job. Instead, it is the twenty-first century skills or life skills that are greatly valued in neighbourhood communities as well as the workplace. This includes but is not limited to skills such as communication, collaboration or critical thinking. These types of skills and traits are essential to succeeding in both teaching as well as learning positions.-first century skills  provide students with traits that will be useful inside and outside the classroom. This is why I believe twenty-first century skills should be renamed “life skills”; they are necessary for work and nearly all aspects of community life. 

 What is to be done after one learns the knowledge and acquires the skills to perform the task at hand in the classroom? In order to reach the final step of the framework, students must become moral and ethical learners. This is considered the “Be”, where the overall growth of the learner can be recognized and assessed. The "Be" involves a class-first mentality for students which includes respect, tolerance and participation. I feel that this is an essential part of learning even if the proper knowledge or skills were not acquired. Having moral and ethical students who are eager to learn is vital in a classroom.

 In order for students to become critical learners they must obtain the proper knowledge (“Know”), the proper skills to perform (“Do”) and become a responsible student whom contributes to their community of students (“Be”). The following link provides a short video that demonstrates the need for twenty-first century skills amongst students in today’s society. Although their definition of twenty-first century skills is slightly different than the one used in EDUC 4P19, the goal in creating optimally effective and fully functional learning environments remains the same. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AvZ5ulVyLc)

 Source: http://weknowmemes.com/2012/10/not-sure-if-i-am-actually-learning-in-class-or/

             The picture above raises acknowledgement of an issue many students, including myself sometimes contemplate. By developing twenty-first century skills students can ensure that they will not find themselves wondering the same thing. With the implementation of twenty-first century skills during lessons and tasks students will be capable of learning the required curriculum and becoming moral and ethical learners, prepared for the real world.