Through my experiences both as a student and as a teacher, I have come to believe that learning is a progressive, multi-step process. With each step, students come to understand the materials and topics in a deeper and more meaningful way. Walking students through these steps is the primary responsibility of any teacher and should be addressed in each aspect of the class, from the structure of the course to details within class assignments. Without any type of planned mental progression, or by omitting steps in this learning process, I believe that learning will be incomplete, either due to a lack of applied knowledge or the presence of mere short-term recall. I will explain each of these steps in more detail, using specific examples from a course that I developed and taught: KINE 4640 – Physical Conditioning and Speed. This is a required course for students majoring in Fitness, Conditioning, and Health in the Department of Kinesiology at Auburn University.

It is incredibly important to remember that students are not blank slates. They have views, beliefs, ideas, etc.  that color any new information they receive.  As a teacher, I always try to find a way to build on or reshape their views with a critical lens.  A student is like a garden.  There may be areas that are already developed and fruitful, while other areas are ripe for planting with new information and ideas.  Some parts of the garden might have weeds that need to be pulled through the removal of false information or misunderstanding.  But most importantly, both newly-planted seeds and full grown trees need water and attention, supplied through study, review, testing, and application. Without including these steps, trees of knowledge would wither and plants of new information would never take root and grow.

As I mentioned, the process of student learning begins by creating a course structure in which students can grow throughout the class. Topics should be arranged in a logical manner, building and expanding on each other so that no topic is covered, then left behind. For my KINE 4640 course, the first topics cover more basic physiology, because this provides the framework on which training for physical conditioning and speed is built. For example, as seen in my sample course outline, lectures on bioenergetics, neuromuscular function, etc. are presented near the beginning of the semester, before moving to topics more specific to this course. From this point, topics are presented in an order that reflects movement through the bioenergetic processes, beginning with resistance training topics before moving to training for sprint speed/agility and aerobic endurance performance. Each topic is presented through the scientific lens of bioenergetic and neuromuscular demands, which provides logic and reasoning while encouraging critical thinking as opposed to strict memorization. For example, students could just memorize that rest periods should generally be 2-3 minutes when training for peak power and < 1 minute when training for local muscular endurance, but this is easily confused and forgotten. However, when viewed in light of bioenergetic and neuromuscular demands, it allows students to see the why behind these rest period recommendations, not just what they are.

Course design is highly important, but as a teacher, I have realized the need to flex and revise according to student needs. I experienced this when I discovered three days before the start of the semester that I would not be teaching primarily seniors with a few juniors, as I had been told. When examining the class roll I found that I would be teaching primarily sophomores and juniors, with a few seniors and even one freshman. I discovered that a diagnostic quiz on the first day of class is a highly useful tool for analyzing student proficiency and making the necessary adjustments to class materials to accommodate students with a wide range of background knowledge coming into the class.
 

Through careful course design, topics can be clearly connected, but many times students will not “connect the dots” between different portions of the class. Students often get bogged down in the details of the material and fail to see the bigger picture. That is why it is important to clearly state the connections and emphasize the interrelatedness on a near daily basis (and it is why prezi makes a useful teaching tool).
 

Before students can comprehensively think about a topic, they must first learn and understand the material that has been presented to them. As a teacher, my responsibility is to present this information in a clear and organized manner, as well as to reinforce student learning through frequent quizzes, writing responses and assignments, and tests. When presenting new information, student engagement is critical, and this cannot be accomplished solely through the use of new technology in the classroom, even though it can be useful. Unfortunately, this is something I learned the hard way. After a few days of blank stares and poor quiz grades I realized the need to get students more involved in the learning process. I began to include writing responses, actively encourage student questioning, provide demonstrations, and make efforts to relate concepts to experiences and sensations they feel during physical activity.
 

Frequent quizzes, tests, and writing assignments encourage students to continually think about and review the course material, increasing student exposure to various concepts as well as student feedback. Student feedback is especially important to me as a teacher, not only by helping clear student misunderstandings, but also by allowing me to evaluate and modify my presentations or focus on concepts that were not presented with enough clarity or detail. This frequent testing strategy is especially useful for undergraduate students, but may not be appropriate for graduate-level students, who require less external motivation to keep up with course material.
 

The characteristics of quizzes, tests, and writing assignments should reflect the transition of the course from basic, factual knowledge to synthesis and comprehensive understanding. For example, quiz and test questions should progress from multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank questions to more short answer and essay questions that incorporate multiple concepts and ideas. Writing assignments also provide the opportunity for students to apply their knowledge and especially to think critically about ideas and accepted practices. I have included an example of a writing assignment from my Physical Conditioning and Speed class, which requires students to examine multiple sources of scientific research and explain how they contribute to the current recommendations for strength training. This assignment requires students to practice reading scientific literature, understand the material presented, and synthesize that material into a unified argument for why certain exercise prescriptions are recommended.
 

The class project, assigned near the end of the semester, embodies the final step in the student learning process. This final step is the gathering of all the information from the class into a body of knowledge that can be applied in a real-world setting. Providing students with the opportunity to apply and synthesize their knowledge in a meaningful way is important to me as a teacher, primarily because I was rarely given the opportunity to do so as a student. Students finish the course not just feeling like they know more, but that they are capable of more. Again, using the project from my course as an example, students must comprehensively consider concepts ranging from the first day to the final day of class. I believe that the larger the assignment, the more real-world usefulness it should have, so this assignment mimics the actual demands of a strength and conditioning coach or personal trainer. The students, broken into groups of three, must assemble a detailed, 12-week training plan for a given athlete or sport, and write a scientific rational for each detail they assigned. Each group is assigned a different sport or athlete, and each final project will be shared amongst the class, allowing each student to leave the class with a portfolio of detailed training recommendations that can be used or modified for future use.
 

I strongly believe in helping students apply course material in a useful and meaningful way, a concept often forgotten in the college classroom. I think it is necessary for students to feel that the class material is truly worthwhile. My goal for each of my students is that they will leave my class confident in their knowledge and comfortable in its application in settings outside of the classroom. When students realize that there is a purpose for the concepts and information presented in class, this will hopefully inspire them to continue to expand their knowledge and seek out opportunities to apply that knowledge, regardless of whether it be personally or professionally.