Holistic Approaches to Learning: Empowering Children and Young People Through Active Engagement and Personalised Goals

Lava

In Development, Education Posted April 20, 2024

Supporting children and young people in identifying their learning objectives and desired achievements involves a holistic approach that focuses on individual interests, strengths and aspirations. Trust and open communication must be established by building rapport and listening actively. Building reports creates a safe and welcoming environment where children feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and interests. Active listening encourages open dialogue, ensuring children know their voices are heard and valued.

Interests and strengths must be explored by offering a variety of activities and experiences to help children discover their likes dislikes and potential areas of interest. This could include hands-on projects, creative arts, science, and experiments. It is also important to pay close attention to what activities engage them the most and where they excel. That can be done during structured lessons, playtime, or extracurricular activities.

We can support children and young people by setting goals and planning, having conversations about what they might want to do in the future and linking these discussions to real-world jobs or roles, they might be interested in, or working together to set realistic and attainable goals based on their interests and strengths. We must make sure these goals are SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

It’s important to encourage autonomy and ownership by giving children the opportunity to make choices about what they learn when possible. We can give them responsibility by assigning tasks or roles that align with their interests and encouraging them to take responsibility for certain aspects of the Learning or group projects.

Providing information about educational paths and careers related to their interests, including guest speakers, career, days or educational field trips can be extremely empowering for children and young people. They must be encouraged to participate in clubs, sports or groups that align with their interests, offering a more in-depth exploration of their passions.

Communicating regularly with families helps us gain insights into the child’s interests outside of the educational setting, helping reinforce and extend learning opportunities at home. Collaboration with colleagues to share insights about the child’s interests and strengths ensures a supportive and cohesive learning environment across different subjects and activities.

We must regularly review and reflect on their goals and achievements with them, offering constructive feedback and celebrating successes, and adjust to goals in learning approaches as children’s interests and abilities evolve.

Identifying the needs of children and young people involves a combination of observations, assessments, and collaborative discussions. Observational assessments can be divided into behaviour observation, developmental observation, and strengths and abilities. The child’s behaviour can be monitored in different settings and during various activities to understand their social interactions, emotional responses and coping mechanisms. It is crucial to assess their physical, cognitive and emotional development stages, by looking for signs of progress or areas where they might be lagging behind their peers, as well as focus not just on challenges, but also on identifying the child’s strengths and talents, which can be leveraged to support their learning and development.

Samples of the child’s work can be reviewed to identify patterns in errors, understanding of concepts and areas of difficulty providing insights into specific academic challenges, they might be facing. Academic progress can be monitored over time to detect any stagnation or aggression, which might indicate underlying needs.

Engaging in open discussion with the child can help us gain insights into their feelings, experiences, and personal perspectives on their learning and social interactions. Encouraging children to share their thoughts on what helps them learn better and any ideas where they feel they need more support is also important.

We must collaborate with parents and caregivers by exchanging information about the child’s behaviour, learning and development both at home and in the educational settings. Parents often provide crucial insides that are not always observable in educational settings. Discuss any concerns parents might have and consider the observations as valuable data points in understanding the child’s needs.

If concerns arise, they cannot be addressed solely within the educational setting collaboration with other professionals, such as educational psychologists, speech and language, therapists or paediatricians may be necessary to work together with specialists to develop intervention strategies that are consistent across different environments.

Appropriate standardised assessments must be administered to evaluate specific areas such as cognitive abilities, language skills, or emotional and behavioural development. If developmental disorders or learning disabilities are suspected, specialised diagnostic assessments may be required to identify specific needs.

The child’s educational records must be reviewed, including report cards, attendance records, and previous assessments to identify patterns of changes over time. The child’s development and achievements must be compared against established benchmarks, or developmental milestones to identify areas of need.

The process of setting specific goals and targets plays a pivotal role in guiding children and young people towards achieving positive outcomes. By identifying what is important to them, children and young people can concentrate their efforts on areas of matter most, leading to more efficient use of their time and resources.

Goals help differentiate between attainable, objectives and far-fetched, dreams, guiding young individuals towards achievable aspirations, and setting them up for success. Setting goals encourages self-reflection, allowing children and young people to recognise the capabilities and areas needing improvement, which is crucial for personal development.

Clear goals provide motivation, giving children and young people, something to strive for. This aspirational aspect keeps them in gauged and persistent, even when faced with challenges. Meeting or progressing towards a goal instils a feeling of accomplishment, which is a powerful motivator and boosts self-confidence and self-belief.

Involvement in setting their own goals in powers, children and young people giving them control over the learning and development paths. This autonomy enhances their commitment to the goals set. With clear goals, young individuals can make more informed decisions as they have a better understanding of what steps are needed to reach their objectives.