MBurns and ASaunders Assignment 8: Embodied, spiritual, and narrative learning

 Assignment 8: Embodied, spiritual, and narrative learning

MBurns ASaunders Week 8 Project EDAC 634

Names: Molly Burns and Abigail Saunders

Molly’s Roles: Body, recipe card

Abigail’s Roles: Introduction, materials, videos

Project Title: Healthy Breakfast Cooking Demonstration

Introduction:

This week we learned about embodied learning. Embodied learning is using your body in the process of learning. As future registered dietitians, we encourage individuals to consume a healthy and well-balanced breakfast. For this project, we are going to use the principles of embodied learning to guide a cooking demonstration for creating a healthy and delicious breakfast. Doing a cooking demonstration will not only teach learners about how to make a healthy breakfast, but it can also be used as a tool for registered dietitians to use for patient education. The breakfast meal that will be demonstrated is egg scramble and toast.

Materials:

• Vegetables: red bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, green onion, mushroom, and spinach.

• Egg: two free range eggs

• Toppings: shredded cheddar cheese, salt, and pepper

• Olive oil

• Cutting board and knife

• Nonstick pan

• Spatula 

• Colorful plates, utensils, and napkins

1. Setting the Stage:

1. Engage the senses: We will play upbeat music, use colorful plates, napkins, and cooking utensils, and emphasize the colors in the meal. 

2. Explore the Ingredients:

1. Touch and smell: Learners will be invited to touch the vegetables, feel their textures, and smell their aromas. Touching the food allows the learners to connect with the food in a more personal way.

2. Discuss nutrition: We will discuss the macronutrient and micronutrient content of the foods with the learners. The eggs and cheese provide protein. The pepper, onion, mushroom, spinach, and tomato provide vitamin C, vitamin B6, potassium, vitamin K, and folate. The toast provides whole grains and fiber. Understanding why the ingredients are beneficial to health and how to include nutritious ingredients into breakfast is important to discuss with the learners.

3. The Cooking Process:

1. Preparation: We will show a video that discusses knife safety and then demonstrate proper and safe knife skills for vegetable chopping. Then, we will have the learners practice knife skills by cutting up the vegetables for the meal. We will have each participant toast their own piece of bread as well.

2. Plating: When the egg scramble and toast is done, the participants will add the meal to their plate however they please and enjoy creativity. Some may put the egg scramble on the toast and some may keep the two separate. Some may add hot sauce, some may enjoy plain.

4. Enjoying the Creation:

1. Mindful eating: We will encourage the participants to take a moment to appreciate the colors, textures, aromas of their creation before taking a bite. We will encourage them to chew slowly and savor each flavor. 

2. Reflection: After enjoying their well-balanced breakfast meal, we will ask the learners to share what they learned about the importance of healthy breakfast and the experience of preparing their own meal.We will provide the recipe card below and a video demonstration of the egg scramble  so participants can have the confidence to recreate the meal at home. 

Embodied learning values the engagement of multiple senses and promotes deeper understanding and retention compared to traditional lecture-based methods. This project encourages healthy eating habits by introducing learners to delicious and nutritious meals for breakfast. This project also fosters creativity and independence in the kitchen, empowering individuals to make healthy choices.

Knife Safety 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYZ1F8qSIBE 

Video Demonstration

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2eMgjXIiuU 

Transformational Learning

Transformational Learning Name: Tianna Tucker (1) Goals/objectives: The purpose of this project is to promote transformational learning among high school students by fostering critical thinking, self-reflection, and personal growth through experiential activities and reflective exercises. (2) Rationales: Through the readings and discussions this week, I have learned about the importance of transformational learning in empowering individuals to challenge assumptions, expand their perspectives, and enact meaningful change in their lives. I intend to apply these ideas by designing a project that incorporates experiential learning opportunities, promotes self-reflection, and encourages students to explore their values and beliefs. Drawing from the principles of transformational learning, I aim to create a learning environment that encourages students to question, reflect, and actively engage with the material. To frame my design, I will also borrow strategies and methods from existing programs grounded in transformational learning theory. For example, I will incorporate elements of outdoor education programs that emphasize hands-on experiences and immersive learning in natural settings. Additionally, I will integrate reflective writing prompts inspired by the work of Mezirow and Freire to facilitate critical self-reflection and dialogue. (3) Design: Main Components of the Project: •Experiential Learning Activities: -Outdoor expeditions such as hiking, camping, and environmental conservation projects. -Team-building exercises and group challenges to promote collaboration and problem-solving skills. -Service-learning opportunities to engage students in community service projects and social activism. •Reflective Exercises: -Journaling prompts encourage students to reflect on their experiences, emotions, and insights. -Small group discussions to facilitate peer-to-peer dialogue and perspective-taking. -Guided mindfulness activities to promote self-awareness and stress reduction. •Personal Growth Workshops: -Workshops on goal setting, values clarification, and decision-making to help students identify their aspirations and priorities. -Guest speakers and role models to share personal stories of transformation and resilience. -Creative expression sessions such as art therapy, music, or drama to explore emotions and foster self-expression.

LM Week 6: Transformative Learning

 

Week 6: Transformative Learning

 

Project Title: The Volunteer Bundle

Learning Goals:

-       Students will become familiar with their community by volunteering at three different places.

-       Students will observe and learn diverse perspectives.

-       Students will build awareness of those within their community, challenging their own assumptions and previous knowledge.

-       Students will reflect on their time in a final journal.

 

Rationales: 

For this project, I decided to focus primarily on Daloz’s psychodevelopmental perspective of storytelling within education. Rather than the teacher and student relationship, I wanted to build a program in which participants create connections with members of their communities. These relationships also provide the opportunity to transform traditional learning, going outside the classroom space to engage with those whose backgrounds may be unlike their own. Regarding Daloz’s belief on students, Merriam & Baumgartner (2020) explain how “individuals are often in a developmental transition when they seek higher education” (p. 172). Despite adult learners entering a program with past experiences, there is also a likelihood they have not, or are unable to, be involved in their communities. As an instructor, I would not assume volunteer work is an easy task due to adult life commitments. This program would allow for the volunteer work to serve as the mentor, with those they meet as the “story-tellers”, and it is through this relationship of “mutual storying of lives that development can occur” (p. 173). Participants will have the opportunity to confront personal norms, assumptions, and experiences to broaden their perspective of the world and their community. The final journal is a platform for participants to reflect on their time and comprehend how strangers’ stories are a meaningful method of learning.

Design: 

The Volunteer Bundle program will take place in Bloomington, IN. The city holds a wealth of opportunities for volunteering and has a population that is diverse in socio economic status, ethnicity, and age.

The three volunteer opportunities are as follows:

1)    Community Kitchen of Monroe County

The community kitchen comprises of buildings and food trucks, serving those in need. The unhoused population of Bloomington is one of the largest sectors requiring assistance of community members.

Website: https://www.monroecommunitykitchen.com/

2)    Boys and Girls Club

With multiple locations, the Boys and Girls Club of Bloomington is accessible for adult volunteers. The age of members ranges from kindergarten to secondary grade levels.

Website: https://bgcbloomington.org/who-we-are/

3)    IU Health- Flower delivery

 

IU Health Bloomington Hospital offers multiple areas for participants to volunteer, specifically flower delivery. Patients may be in critical care, in a specific unit (such as maternity) or in hospice. Volunteers bring flowers and other gifts to rooms, while conversing with patients, helping to comfort them.

Website: https://iuhealth.org/about-our-system/volunteering/volunteer-at-iu-health-bloomington

 

Example of program for individual participant:

References: 

Merriam, S.B., & Baumgartner, L. (2020). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide (4th ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

 

Transformative Learning

 

From Struggle to Triumph: A Transformative Approach to Eradicate Poverty

by Caroline Everidge

Commented On: Carly Pease

Goals & Objectives

1.       Participants will have an increased awareness of the challenges faced by individuals experiencing poverty.

2.       Participants will engage in critical reflection, identifying the influence of their personal biases and values when working with individuals experiencing poverty.

3.       Participants will transform these new insights about poverty into action by developing concrete action plans (e.g. changing policies).

Rationales

Transformative Learning is about “dramatic, fundamental change in the way we see ourselves and the world in which we live” (Merriam & Baumgartner, 2020, p. 166). This change is achieved through four main components: experience, critical reflection, reflective discourse, and action.

·         Experience: Every learner presents with prior experiences, values, and biases. Mezirow’s transformative learning theory emphasizes the importance of the learners’ experience. Participants in this workshop are professionals who work with individuals experiencing poverty. Some may have experienced poverty themselves; others may have many years of professional experience. Volunteers assisting in delivering the Poverty Simulation all have lived experiences of poverty.

·         Critical Reflection: However, it is noted that just having experience is not enough, self-reflection is a critical component in Transformative Learning. Reflection allows for the learner to alter previously held assumptions. Mezirow identifies premise reflection as the type of reflection that leads to transformation. This reflection “involves examining long-held, socially constructed assumptions, beliefs, and values about the experience or problem” (Merriam & Baumgartner, 2020, p. 183). Historically in these workshops, participants share biases and viewpoints of common stereotypes of people experiencing poverty (e.g. Why don’t they just get a job? People who do illegal things are criminals.) During the reflection time, participants are asked if they needed a job (and if they were able to get one) and if they engaged in any illegal activities during the simulation.

·         Reflective Discourse: Now that participants have experienced a disorienting dilemma (the poverty simulation), they are tasked with evaluating their current policies and procedures. They are asked to look at these policies with the perspective of an individual experiencing poverty. Are there unintentional barriers that can be removed? These organizations then come together one month later, to complete the Bridges Out of Poverty training and share/learn with others.

·         Action: This final component of transformative learning theory is when the learner acts on their new perspective. In alignment with Mezirow’s belief that individual transformation precedes social transformation, these workshops initially target personal beliefs and biases before moving to social action.

Design

Phase 1: Experience   Participants will experience a disorienting dilemma by participating in a Poverty Simulation. This two-hour workshop is an interactive experience designed to help participants begin to understand what it might be like to live in a typical low-income family trying to survive from month to month.   Participants assume the roles of different families facing poverty. In these scenarios, some are newly unemployed, some are recently deserted by the “breadwinner,” and others are recipients of TANF. Some families are made up of older adults receiving Social Security benefits or grandparents raising their grandchildren. The participants are tasked with surviving (meeting basic needs) the four 15-minute “weeks.” Participants will need to go to work, feed their families, pay outstanding debts, and ensure their children’s needs are met.

Phase 2: Critical Reflection   After completing the Poverty Simulation, there are three stages of reflection. First, the family will discuss their experience with other families who had similar situations. Second, the entire group will be divided in half and a group reflection will take place. The facilitators of the Poverty Simulation will guide this discussion using prompts. Last, the entire group will participate in a discussion – highlighting any new, or changed, assumptions they may have gained about people experiencing poverty.

Phase 3: Reflective Discourse   One month after completing the Poverty Simulation, these participants will attend an eight-hour Bridges Out of Poverty training. Participants will share with the group what policies/practices they became more aware of since participating in the Poverty Simulation.

Phase 4: Action   After completing the Bridges Out of Poverty training, participants will identify what action steps they will take to make their organization a “Bridges Organization” (one that utilizes the strategies and tools to empower individuals experiencing poverty). Additionally, since all participants’ organizations are members of a health coalition, action items will be identified to address poverty from a community perspective.

 

 

Merriam, S. B., & Baumgartner, L. (2020). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive
guide (4th ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

 

 

Assignment 6: Transformational learning by Molly Burns and Abigail Saunders

 MBurns ASaunders Week 6 Project EDAC 634

Names: Molly Burns and Abigail Saunders

Molly’s Roles: Title, goals, design

Abigail’s Roles: Learning objectives, rationales

Project Title: Debunking Nutrition Myths

Goals: The goal of this project is to discuss common nutrition myths and provide participants with tools to both identify nutrition misinformation and locate credible nutrition information. 

Learning Objectives: In this course, there will be 4 modules that use Mezirow’s Psycho Critical Approach to transformational learning. The overall course objectives for participants to: 

1. Understand what nutrition myths are and identify nutrition myths they have heard and may believe themselves. 

2. Understand the negative impact nutrition myths can have on overall health and eating habits. 

3. Be able to identify nutrition misinformation and learn about the credentials individuals should have in order to give nutrition information.  

Rationales: 

We framed our project around Mezirow’s Psycho Critical Approach to transformational learning. This approach focuses on past experiences and taking actions to change pre-existing perspectives and assumptions. Nutrition myths are extremely prevalent in our world today and these can unknowinlgy lead to unhealthy eating habits. Nutrition myths include thinking carbohydrates are unhealthy, you should not eat sugar, organic foods are healthier, etc. Mezirow’s psycho-critical approach to transformational learning has four components: experience, critical reflections, reflective discourse, and action. 

• Experience: Adults have gained a vast amount of knowledge and experiences throughout their life that frame their habits and beliefs. Participants will participate in an icebreaker and will share nutrition myths they have heard before with other members of the group. A Registered Dietitian will also share their professional experience with nutrition myths and the impact it has had on individuals. 

• Critical Reflection: The process of reflecting on experiences and why those experiences occurred is key to fully understanding how they may shape thoughts, feelings, or actions on certain topics. The participants will complete a survey created by a registered dietitian that will include questions about which non-evidence based sources they use and what credentials they look for when researching nutrition information.  Participants will critically reflect on what sources they commonly use for nutrition information and what credentials, if any, they look for in people, websites, etc.,that provide nutrition information. This will allow participants to better understand why they may believe certain nutrition myths and where they are hearing them from. The participants will reflect on their survey results to attain a better understanding of where and who they are getting their nutrition information from.

• Reflective Discourse: Discussing nutrition myths and sources where participants are getting nutrition information as a group will allow for better understanding of why these myths are believed in society. Group discussions allow for participants to see how their experiences are similar or different from others. Participants who are comfortable will share their survey results and discuss where they commonly get nutrition information from. This will help develop a shared understanding of nutrition myths among the group.

• Action: The last component of Mezirow’s psycho-critical approach is action. Participants will be educated on the credentials nutritional professionals have and tools they can use to identify potential nutrition misinformation. They will also be provided with evidence-based resources they can use and social media accounts they can follow with accurate information. Participants will be able to actively identify nutrition myths they come across and learn about nutrition topics from credible sources. 

Design: 

Modules	Content	Activity	Rationale
Module 1 Presentation by Registered Dietitian (RD)	A RD will present on common nutrition myths and how this can negatively impact health.	Myth Busters Icebreaker:  The participants will break the ice and get to know each other and discuss the common nutrition myths they have heard and possibly followed in the past.  After the icebreaker, the registered dietitian will present the common nutrition myths she often sees. The dietitian explains how certain myths, if followed, can negatively impact health.	Component: Experience By discussing with each other and breaking the ice, the participants will be able to reflect on their experiences when it comes to nutrition myths. It is important for the participants to understand the myths they have followed in the past in order to be prepared to learn about why the myths are myths and potentially change the way they think about certain nutrition-related topics.
Module 2 Survey on Nutrition Information Sources	Participants reflect on where they get nutrition information from and what they look for in the individuals portraying the nutrition information. Participants will learn about sources of nutrition information that are evidence-based and those that are not reliable sources. Participants will also learn about what credentials to look for in authors of nutrition information.	Survey:   Participants will complete a survey created by the registered dietitian. The survey will consist of nutrition websites or blogs that are not evidence-based. There will also be questions about which credentials, if any, participants look for in authors of nutrition-related information.	Component: Critical Reflection  Completing a survey and understanding their results will help the participants reflect and understand more about the sources they use for nutrition information and who they retrieve nutrition information from. Critical reflection on how they get nutrition information can lead to individual and social transformation when it comes to nutrition myths.
Module 3 Group discussions	During this module, the participants will discuss with small groups and the registered dietitian to learn more about how false nutrition information can lead to negative health effects. The participants will also discuss strategies they can use to make sure they are following nutrition information that is evidence-based.	Group discussions: Participants will discuss the common nutrition myths the RD presented in module 1 and discuss with one another their experience with nutrition myths if any. The participants will  discuss the common sources of false nutrition information and the credentials that are important to look for.	Component: Reflective Discourse Reflective discourse will allow for better understanding of why these myths are believed in society. Also, group discussions allow for participants to see how their experiences are similar or different from others. Discussing each others’ results from the survey will help develop a shared understanding of nutrition myths among the group.
Module 4 Finding Credible Nutrition Information	The RD will share what red flags to look for in nutrition information online. Credible nutrition resources will be shown and participants will learn how to identify nutrition professionals’ credentials. The participants will also learn what tools they can use to identify nutrition myths and how to debunk them. The registered dietitian will also give the participants evidence-based resources they can use and social media accounts they can follow with accurate information.	Practice: The registered dietitian will pass out examples of evidence-based nutrition sources and sources that are non-reliable. The participants will write down which sources are reliable, which are not, and why. The registered dietitian will go through the answers with the whole group to check the participants’ understanding of what nutrition sources and credentials should be followed.  After practicing, the registered dietitian will provide participants with credible resources for nutrition information to take home and also tools to identify nutrition misinformation.	Component: Action By providing participants with credible resources for nutrition information and also giving tools to identify nutrition misinformation, participants can actively avoid nutrition myths. Participants will have the information they need to make science-based nutrition decisions rather than believing information given online from uncredentialed individuals.

Handout given to participants:

References: 

YouTube. (2009, June 29). Transformative learning: IDEAS AND STRATEGIES. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUxrip6w2g4 

Valamis. (2023, July 7). Transformative learning theory by Jack Mezirow . https://www.valamis.com/hub/transformative-learning