By Anne M. Beninghof
I pulled my first all-nighter my freshman year of college. My roommate and I had both been assigned to Mr. Seager’s 8 a.m. chemistry class. Mr. Seager was a science whiz who was passionate and knowledgeable about his topic, but he was a lousy teacher. After dozing through many of his uninspired early-morning lectures, Kaye and I had fallen way behind in our understanding of the content. We knew we had to stay up all night and cram.
Up until this point in my life, I had never had a cup of coffee. Both of my parents were British immigrant tea drinkers who believed in serving whole milk to their growing teenagers. But then came college—no rules, no parents, no sleep. And Mr. Seager.
To be fair, Mr. Seager was not atypical of the teachers at many universities. Their practice was to stand at the front of the room, back to the class, as they wrote notes on the board and lectured simultaneously. This type of teaching was fertile soil for dozing students.
Thank goodness for the 24-hour coffee shop on the corner. A quick trek from our dorm, and within minutes we were back to our studies with two mega-cups of coffee. My first sip was tentative. I added sugar and cream to smooth out the flavor. A few gulps later, and the buzz was palpable! The words on the page began to make sense, connections jumped out at me, and our conversation was rich with comprehension.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if caffeinated learning were delivered upfront by the teacher instead? What if teachers, instructors, professors, presenters—all those who facilitated adult learning experiences—infused a jolt of caffeine into their instructional design and delivery? Imagine a room full of awake and engaged adults, interacting with new content in meaningful ways, ready to return to work with the necessary knowledge and skills for successful application.
Recently, I attended a national education conference with dozens of sessions to choose from each day. I was excited to plan out my agenda and learn from the best in the education field. By the end of three days I was sorely disappointed. The sessions were mostly lecture—experts talking about good teaching practices without actually modeling them. Unfortunately, my experience is not uncommon. I hear frequently from teachers about district workshops in which they struggled to stay awake as the presenter lectured at them about the latest buzz word in our field.
How can we change the state of professional learning activities? I asked a group of teachers to share what works and what doesn’t work to keep them awake and engaged in a workshop or training (other than coffee). Animated discussion followed, as teachers were allowed to share their frustrations over wasted time and missed opportunities for learning. One teacher expressed it best when she said, “Shouldn’t we, as teachers, demand high-quality teaching from those who are telling us how to teach?”
Based on this conversation, I developed a Presenter’s Agreement. It includes a list of minimal expectations for a class or workshop lasting longer than an hour. It is a work in progress—not definitive, but a starting place for conversation with anyone we may hire to facilitate a professional learning session.
Presenter’s Agreement
- Near the beginning of the workshop, please ask participants to greet someone seated near them. This sets the tone for an interactive experience.
- Use visuals—including photos, videos, and infographics—to emphasize your content and maintain attention.
- Keep bullet points on a slide to three or fewer, with no more than five words each. Make sure the slides are legible from a distance.
- Do not face your slides and read from them. Instead, enhance the bullet points with additional information.
- If there is a microphone, please use it. Learning needs to be accessible to all, even those who are hard of hearing.
- Embed interaction every 20 minutes so that participants have a chance to talk or apply their learning.
- Honor the experience in the room by asking participants to contribute, share ideas, and teach one another.
- If the session is longer than 45 minutes, be sure to vary the interaction. Discussion, reflection, games, role-play, cooperative learning, video viewing, demonstrations, readings, case studies—they all have value.
While organizations such as Learning Forward and the Association for Talent Development are making great strides in setting high standards for professional learning, educators at the district level can make a difference, too. Imagine if this list of expectations were a part of every agreement signed with a workshop provider. Imagine school administrators discussing these expectations when they phoned a consultant. Imagine if this list were disseminated to presenters prior to every large conference. Imagine how these minimal expectations, when met, would begin to change the nature of professional learning!
To learn more, visit www.caffeinatedlearning.com.
Anne M. Beninghof, M.S., is an internationally recognized consultant, author, and presenter with a passion for inclusive practices. Her newest book is titled Caffeinated Learning: How to Design and Conduct Rich, Robust Professional Training. Contact her at anne@ideasforeducators.com.
