The
tree can be used as a metaphor to convey all sorts of concepts, beliefs
and ideas. For my consulting practice, the tree represents my roots in
the electronics industry, from which I continually draw to nurture my
growth in other areas, my branches. The passage of time deepens my
perspective on past experiences and broadens my overall ability to
create meaning in my work, thus benefiting myself, my clients, and my
students.
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Nancy Kristiansen, principal consultant of Training by
Design Consulting, provides design and facilitation services for the
full range of activities in the training cycle. Her clients have
included high and low tech manufacturing firms as well as academic
institutions. As a workplace learning professional, Nancy was
responsible for the ground up formation of several corporate training
programs requiring industry and regulatory compliance and today she
assists her clients in the development of their own programs.
Nancy
is also a member of the Graduate and Professional Studies faculty at
Saint Joseph's College of Maine. In this capacity, she has authored and
facilitates on-line courses included in their ground-breaking
Leadership MBA program, which is largely based on Dr. Edward Deming's
"system of profound knowledge."
To
complement her professional experience Nancy received her Master's
Degree in Adult and Organizational Learning from Suffolk University in
Boston in 1998. She also maintains Master Instructor level
certification in the electronics industry.
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My Teaching Philosophy
"If you don't believe that people have the capacity to grow, then you might as well shut everything down because the nature of being human is to be on a journey towards a higher level (Jim Collins).
My belief that all participants in the learning process are collaborators forms the foundation of principles and practices that ground my teaching philosophy in theory and ongoing development. Though one is designated the teacher and the other a student, the usual image of one who stands over the other serves little purpose. In this mutual relationship that informs my practice, the teacher, rather than posturing as a subject matter expert who positions herself in front of the student, is a leader, or facilitator of learning. In this capacity the role of teacher is one who welcomes and is open to the possibility of learning with the student, as if the two, teacher and student, are standing side by side and both seeking to advance their knowledge and skill in a given area of inquiry. Both desire to venture into the realm of creating new knowledge and deeper understanding. The teacher as learning leader or facilitator of learning leads the way with a certain confidence and faith in the process of learning, ensuring they together maintain their focus and avoid the perils of merely going around in circles or digressing in irrelevant directions.
In practice, the facilitator of learning believes in the learner's ability to learn and does not rob them of the opportunity to explore the relationship between experience and new knowledge, diverse perspectives and an ongoing practice of inquiry. To this end, the facilitator of learning seeks, in any subject, to develop the mind of the learner, rather than seeking to fill or pummel the student with information. Adult students, with their varying degrees of and types of experience are sometimes reluctant to shed their beliefs and assumptions, attitudes and postures, even when new evidence may indicate inherent weakness in the lessons of their experience. The role of facilitator is to accept this challenge by ensuring that ongoing guidance and feedback is consistent among students, is honest and forthright and in line with clear expectations made from the beginning of their learning journey.
Facilitation strategies that aim to develop the mind of the learner seek to develop a sense of ownership. To this end, the facilitator of learning does not seek to minimize the responsibility of learners to engage in the learning process as active participants, not as passive recipients of information. As a learning facilitator, my respect for students' ability to learn and create new knowledge is unceasing and it is my role to tap into their natural motivation and create an environment that is safe enough for them to welcome change, conflict and even seeming failures as opportunity for growth.
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