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Unit 5: Creative Ageing - Opportunities and Outlook

10.0 Application and Reflection

In Unit 5 you have considered creative ways to continue language learning with senior learners and considered activities that use multi-sensory approaches to language learning (cross-generational, role-play, visual art, music and/or non-verbal communication activities). For the Unit 5 application and reflection, you will plan a session for your language learner or language learning group that uses a multi-sensory approach to learning; you will try this out and reflect on its successes and challenges.

Step A

As a starting point for your application and reflection, and to provide you with some more ideas, please check the activities in Rosi’s Starter Pack for Carers.  The pack contains engaging language activities and materials which you can adapt to suit your own purposes.  Alternatively, feel inspired by the materials and develop your own accordingly.

Step B

To support the reflection on your practice, revisit the work you did in Unit 1, activity 6, where you developed criteria for good social care practice and considered the skills you already had at the start of the course and those you thought you needed/wanted to develop in order to enhance the quality of care in your context.

Now look back at your notes and ideas from this activity in Unit 1 and reflect on your learning journey throughout this course, specifically in the context of ‘good practice in social care’.

In your Reflective Learning Log make notes to capture:

  • the skills you have developed since you started the course, 
  • any new/other criteria for good practice in social care you developed during your course study,
  • and any skills you feel you still need to develop (further).

Incorporate insights from this reflection in your planning of the language learning activity for the Unit 5 application task.

Step C

In your own time, continue planning your chosen creative language learning activity, adding more detail where required. 

To ensure that your language learning activity meets the needs of your senior learners, we suggest you use the teaching template (Word 2007 document9.4 KB)  (Word document download) to help with your planning, because it helps you develop a suitable structure and pace for the activity you are planning for your care context.  In the template, also incorporate important elements of your planned activity such as: 

  • The creative aspects and approach you will use in this activity
  • The optimal learning environment for this activity
  • The resources/materials you want to use for the activity
  • The vocabulary items you want to use
  • Any cultural information you want to convey
  • What you will do and what the senior learner/s will do
  • How you want to establish the success of the activity


Step D

Try out the planned activity with your learners. You might want to gather some feedback from your learners about the activity as well, which you can bring to the course and share with your fellow students.

Step E

Write a reflective post in the Forum (250 words or more) about the successes and challenges of this multi-sensory learning experience, also in view of teaching a language using a creative approach from the arts. 

These questions might help you focus your reflection:

  • What was the activity you had planned?
  • Why had you planned this particular activity?
  • Which materials and energisers did you try out?  Why these?
  • On reflection, how did the activity work?  What went well, what did not go as planned? - What would you differently next time and why?
  • What was your learner/s' feedback?
  • What are the next steps for your learner/s?
  • How will you provide further opportunities to practise and reinforce the new language?

To help you with your reflective account, have a look at our model answer.

Step F

Then post your reflective account together with an overview of the planned activity you produced in Step A, and where appropriate the materials you used, in the Forum.

Read and comment constructively on at least one post by a fellow student.


Step G

A)

Once you have tried out your language learning activity and shared it with your peers, it will be useful to think about what you have learned from sharing your experience and ideas with your fellow students.   You might want to note down some key points in your Reflective Learning Log. Some aspects for reflection you may want to consider:

  • Is there any teaching idea you want to try out in your own setting?
  • What aspects of your fellow students' teaching worked well?
  • Where did your peers see problem areas , and why did they think this was problematic?
  • Where do the group's reflections coincide with yours, where do they not?
  • Were there any posts you particularly agreed or disagreed with and why?

B)

This final step in activity 10.0 is specifically designed for you to contribute to the collaborative research project between The Open University and Lingo Flamingo.

In your Reflective Learning Log, make notes capturing your reflections during the study and application of content of this unit as well as the course overall on the following aspects, which will be particularly important for the research project:

  • your own learning journey applying the skills you are learning in this course in your care context, in particular:
    • your motivation and confidence as you go through the course
    • whether your relationships with your learners are changing due to the language learning
    • any impact this learning has on your opinion of good care practice
    • any views colleagues, your learners and/or families have shared regarding the language learning activities

  • your observations on you senior learner(s)’ learning journey (the individual as well as the group), particularly:
    • on their motivation for participating in this learning
    • the impact the learning has on their overall confidence and participation in the sessions and the learning group (if there is one)
    • aspects of how they learn and engage (for example you could share some relevant incidents during the language learning sessions and other examples)

Please note: This part of the application and reflection is NOT assessed and is primarily a tool for you to feed into our research whilst encouraging you to think more closely about your own learning journey and the wider impact of the language learning activities. Your tutors will read your entry and provide some brief comments, although the main focus here are your own insights and reflections.