Learning targets are one of the four essential pieces of a teacher’s professional portfolio. These are the documents the teacher provides to demonstrate their pedagogical competence and can be used to judge whether or not you should hire them to teach yours.
However, there is one issue you need to be careful about when producing these documents: the language you use.
While it is important to make sure you write something that is both easy to understand and memorable, you need to be careful not to overload your learners with information. As a beginner, you may think the more you write the better and your learners will understand everything you tell them. But that’s not necessarily the case. Writing too much can actually be detrimental to the learning process.
Overloading Your Learners
When you overload your learners with information, they have no chance of understanding what is actually going on or, worse still, remembering it. This is why you should always aim to write as little as possible while still keeping your meaning clear. When you write a lot, you may think you are being helpful but you are in fact, causing more harm than good.
According to a study from the Centre for Learning and Memory at the University of Edinburgh, researchers examined how much information new college students needed to succeed academically and how much information they could retain. What they found was that too much information can cause problems.
They examined how much information new college students needed to succeed academically and how much information they could retain. What they found was that too much information can cause problems.
The students in their study were required to read a textbook on a subject they had no previous knowledge of. They then had to study the information, answer a few questions, and take a test. The results of the study showed that while the students needed the information in the text to answer the questions correctly, they could not retain all the information. This showed that too much information can cause problems.
Short-changing On Simplicity
One of the easiest ways to improve the effectiveness of your learning targets is to reduce the length of the document. When you write a lot, you run the risk of making your writing unclear and hard to follow. You also need to bear in mind that your learners may not have the same attention span as you do so you must be careful not to make your writing too long. Keep your introductions short and your conclusions to a minimum. The more you write, the more you will clutter up your text.
What you want to aim for is a balance between an introduction that is short enough to keep your readers interested and a conclusion that is long enough to make your point perfectly.
Avoiding Plagiarism
Plagiarism is when you use parts of someone else’s work and call it your own. This is a terrible way to behave as a teacher and you must avoid doing it at all cost. When you write your learning targets, you need to make sure you cite your sources and give proper credit where credit is due. You also need to be careful not to include any copyrighted material or content owned by others without permission. Just because you think something is interesting or important enough to write about, it does not mean you have permission to steal from others.
The Danger Of Research Papers
While it is an excellent idea to conduct original research and provide your learners with information they did not previously have access to, you must avoid overdoing it. When you write a lot of learning targets, you are increasing the chances of your paper being rejected because it is too academic and does not relate to a real-world situation. Your paper will also not stand out among other similarly themed papers. When you write a lot of papers, you are decreasing the chances of being chosen for a genuine academic project because it is too specific.
Overwriting
Overwriting is when you use too many words when you write, causing the text to become hard to read. You need to avoid doing this as much as possible because too many words take the reader out of the narrative and into your periphery. When you write a lot, you are increasing the chances of your work being rejected because it is too wordy.
As a teacher, you must aim to be concise but not necessarily wordy. It is also important you do not use too many abbreviations because they make your work look untidy. Just because you feel your learners will benefit from a certain piece of information, it does not mean you have to give it to them in a bloated essay. Keep your language concise but still comprehensive enough to maintain your point.
Creating Confusion
When you write a lot of learning targets, you are increasing the chances of your paper being rejected because it is too chaotic. You need to make sure you have a clear structure and logical development of ideas. When you write a lot, you are decreasing the chances of your paper being accepted because it is too ordered and follows a set formula. People hate being told what to think and do and so will your readers if your writing is too structured and you seem to be telling them what to think and do.
Avoiding Complexity
Complexity is when you make your writing overly complicated, causing the text to become hard to follow. As a teacher, you must aim to write your learning targets in a way that is easy for your learners to understand. When you write a lot, you are decreasing the chances of your paper being accepted because it is too complex. Just because your writing is complex does not mean it will add value to your readers’ knowledge. Overcomplicated texts often end up being difficult to read and that’s not what you want when writing learning targets.
The Power Of Pictures
In today’s world, information can be accessed and learned from a variety of sources and devices. However, there is still something unique about reading something printed on paper. Seeing words can evoke all kinds of visual imagery, helping you to instantly recall what you have read. When you use images and diagrams in your writing, you are increasing the chances of your paper being accepted because it is bringing something new to the table.
You need to make sure you always have access to sufficient technology where you teach. Even if your classroom is equipped with the latest tech, there is still no substitute for actual human interaction and face-to-face teaching. However, as a teacher, you must adapt your teaching methods to accommodate your learners’ needs. There are many instances where technology has allowed for great advances in education but there are also times where technology has hindered learning due to excessive use.
A Final Word
As a teacher, you must judge each piece of work you produce on its own merit and not on the number of pieces you have produced. When you write a lot, you are decreasing the chances of your work being accepted because it is too untidy or because it does not follow a set formula. Just because you think something is interesting or important enough to write about, it does not mean you have to give it to them in a bloated essay. Your writing will also not stand out among other similarly themed papers. When you write a lot, you are increasing the chances of your work being rejected because it is too academic and does not relate to a real-world situation. Keep your language concise but still comprehensive enough to maintain your point.