Med hjerte for det individuelle : Å undervise både med hodet og hjertet sett i et humanistisk, pedagogisk perspektiv for å forebygge frafall i den videregående skolen.

Abstract

Frafallsproblematikken har økt i den videregående skole de senere årene. Det har vært mye snakk om hvordan dette kan bedres og lærere har fått mye oppmerksomhet i denne debatten. I mitt utviklingsprosjekt ønsket jeg å se på hvordan en lærer kan bidra til å øke selvverdsfølelsen og legge til rette for tilpasset opplæring for å redusere frafallet. Min problemstilling ble: ”Hvordan kan jeg som lærer på helse- og sosialfag legge til rette for å fremme tilpasset opplæring og øke selvverdsfølelsen hos elevene for å hindre frafall, sett i et humanistisk pedagogisk perspektiv?”Fokuset gjennom hele utviklingsprosjektet var å skape et tillitsforhold og gjensidig respekt hos elevene. Prosjektet var basert på aksjonsforskning, der arbeidet ble evaluert gjennom hele skoleåret. Det ble lagt vekt på elevmedvirkning, motivasjon og mestring. Resultatene viser at læreren er et svært viktig redskap i dette arbeidet og de lærerne som lykkes best, er de som gjør en ekstra innsats for elevene sine. Altså de som gjør litt mer enn det som forventes i en ordinær lærerjobb. Forskningsarbeidet viser derfor at det viktig å undervise både med hjertet og med hodet, for å skape de rette relasjonene hos elevene, slik at vi kan bidra til å redusere frafallet i den videregående skolen.

In recent years there has been an increase in the number of students who drop out of upper secondary school, which has had serious economic consequences for schools as well as society in general since these young people are having difficulties finding jobs. This problem has often been discussed and debated, particularly among teachers who have naturally had a say in the matter. One of the most popular solutions suggested is the so-called “tilpasset opplæring”, which means adapted teaching. I have therefore decided to explore this method of adapted teaching by asking the question: from a humanistic pedagogical perspective, as a Health teacher, how can I adapt teaching to prevent my students from dropping out of their vocational study and increase their self confidence? In my Master’s thesis, I described how teachers could proceed to establish and develop a trusting relationship with their students and how this trust would enable them to adapt teaching, which would increase each individual’s self confidence and the feeling of mastering the subject. This was to reduce the number of school drop-outs and it yet had to be tested by myself and my colleague. We divided the school year into different periods, corresponding with different tasks. Each Friday, the students were asked to give individual feedback to us about their participation in class, their level of motivation and what type of exercises boosted their self confidence. All these steps are actually part of the required Norwegian curriculum; one of the aims of the curriculum for Health studies is to present different career choices by using the appropriate terminology as well as encouraging reflection, ethical awareness, respect and tolerance. This approach combines theory and practice as the curriculum further mentions that the students are to play an active role in the learning process while the teacher’s task is to stimulate the students, present different methods of learning the students can choose from and guide them though critical and self reflective thinking. This development of self awareness can only happen when the students take an active part in the learning process at their own pace. Based on our observations, we have noticed that our students needed a lot of constant reassurance and encouragement to increase motivation. We also noticed that an increase in v self confidence automatically increased a better knowledge and understanding of the subject. This encouraged us to turn theoretical exercises into more practical tasks, such as using role-play instead of written tests. Many of the theoretical tasks were systematically tested out in practice, which gave the students a real sense of experiencing certain medical professions first hand. The reinforcement of theory through practical exercises had various positive effects on the students, such as a better understanding of the subject. It was also an excellent way of creating a nice class environment. Through feedback, we were then able to adjust, change, and develop new methods that were better fitted for the students’ needs. A teacher’s responsibility is also to listen, to be a genuine and compassionate human being who is ready to help out and who strongly believes in human potentials. It is important to think and act positively. Therefore we tried to adapt to our students’ needs. I strongly believe that adapted teaching should already be practiced in primary school to prevent children from becoming school drop-outs later on. Likewise, the more able students should also benefit from adapted teaching. One of the teacher’s first steps should be to build a good relationship and a state of trust with his/her students and thus create a nice class environment. This can be done by using the students’ names, having regular conversations with them, giving them constructive feedback through personal evaluation and assessments, but also by having contact with the students’ parents. A teacher ought to take into consideration the psychosociological aspect in a class environment as well as being able to envision possibilities. Furthermore, a teacher needs to use her heart as well as her head to earn the trust and respect of her pupils and thus prevent more students from dropping out of school