The classroom is a diverse environment consisting of students with different learning preferences, academic readiness, learning aptitudes, cultural backgrounds and family support structures. The challenge of teaching is to address each of these factors as well as inspire learning. R.E.A.L. Instruction, coined by Thom and Joani Schultz, is an acronym that stands for Relational, Experiential, Applicable, and Learner-based. As an instructor, I have used the R.E.A.L. method for over 10 years in various academic settings. R.E.A.L. Instruction is effective because students are active participants, externally stimulated and emotionally impacted. R.E.A.L. Instruction is evidence-based and is the pedagogy of Shepherds College, a three-year post-secondary school for individuals with intellectual disabilities. All classrooms are challenging, but stop for a minute to think about a classroom at Shepherds College where student processing is as varied as instructional methods.
Relational Teaching
Teachers must provide relational learning opportunities. Students learn from each other by talking and working together. In the class example listed previously, students decided what to create, which items to use and what steps to take. Group work allows peers to influence and motivate one another. It is also important that teachers and students connect relationally. To facilitate learning, a teacher must know student learning preferences, accommodations needed and student strengths.
Experiential Teaching
Aristotle summed up the learning process when he said, “What we have to learn to do, we learn by doing.” Teaching has contingent and uncertain results because learning is done by practicing it. Learning that is applicable produces life-changing results. Experiential-based learning is effective because 90 percent of what individuals see, hear, discuss, and do is remembered. As students interact with materials, they discover new avenues of thinking and recognize connections.
Applicable Teaching
Shepherds College curriculum strategically focuses on content that is applicable to life after graduation. How is taking a bag of recyclables and creating a sculpture applicable to life? It was not the sculpture but the lesson objective that was pertinent. The goal of the class was for students to demonstrate proficiency in team work, interpersonal communication, and leadership development. All of which are vital skills that impact individuals in a job setting. I tell students, “I teach Communications, but I am also preparing you for life.” Equipping students for life goes beyond class content; I also expect students to arrive to class prepared and on time because these are skills that employers require.
Learner-based Instruction
Learner-based instruction incorporates students into the learning process and elicits intrinsic motivation. Active learners take ownership for class materials and become self-aware, committed, and creative. Students learn in many different ways; therefore, instructors should incorporate concrete, multi-sensory and experiential learning in the classroom.
The goal of learner-based education is to empower students to be self-motivated and gain more control in the educational process. The academic goal at Shepherds College is to develop independent, motivated and self-directed individuals.
Individuals receive, interpret, and understand information visually, audibly, and kinesthetically. Visual learners process information by reading textbooks, watching videos, viewing pictures or charts, and interacting with other visual media. Auditory learners process information through music, oral narratives, class discussions and by reading aloud. Kinesthetic learners gain knowledge by touching, writing, using manipulatives, moving physically and interacting with peers. Individuals with intellectual disabilities benefit from multi-sensory instruction.
Education that is student-centered uses the instructor to guide and facilitate learning. According to Maryellen Weimer, author and retired professor of speech and communication from Penn State, “...when the focus is less on teaching and more on learning, learning is not assumed or presumed to happen automatically. Faculty become much more aware of how teaching influences learning.” Students participate in the learning process when teachers provide choices. When students take ownership, they are committed to class, interested in the content, ask questions, and are motivated to learn. R.E.A.L. Instruction mandates students to take ownership of their learning and empowers them to become committed, interested and motivated.