Flow Theory and Universal Design for Learning

This week, while we did not have an official class time, my group met to work through the activities for this week. We were tasked with looking at the concept of Flow Theory and UDL.

I had never heard of Flow Theory before this activity so it was such an interesting topic to learn about. 

To summarize Flow Theory was established in the 1970s and 1980s by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (Spencer, 2017). The overall idea is that people end up “in the zone” when doing work because they are deeply engaged in a task that they lose track of time and place, which is described as being in the “optimal experience” (Spencer, 2017). 

The video (Spencer, 2017) we watched goes on to talk about the five key factors of this theory which include:

1. The task needs to be intrinsically rewarding
2. Clear goals and a sense of progress
3. Clear and immediate feedback
4. Match of challenge and skill
5. Intense focus on the present moment

These five factors are what make the Flow Theory become achievable. When we get in this “zone” we tend to lose focus on what may be going on around us because we are so lost in whatever we are doing. In some cases this can be rewarding because you are able to get work done, but in some cases it can be detrimental because you are ignoring the world around you.

I have fallen into this “zone” before when I do work because I get on this track of everything is going great and I am getting my work done which makes me feel great, but then I realize that I have missed things, like dinner for example, because I lost track of time and now need to find food before my sugar levels get low. 

When my group discussed what this theory tells use we had a great discussion about how we should try to create and foster learning environments were students can reach this “Flow State.” In connection to that point, we came up with three questions including: How can we set the classroom up physically? How can we set students up for success? How can we utilize the 5 key factors to student learning?

These questions provided us with some insights into how we might find ways to get our students to reach that “Flow State” or “zone”. 

We also created a list of things that teachers should do in order to try and achieve this possibility. This list included:

1. Tap into intrinsic motivation – tasks students want to do rather than have to do
2. Embrace student choice and agency – let student own their learning
3. Provide the right scaffolding – students can match the challenge level to their perceived ability level
4. Minimize distractions – students can focus on learning
5. Help students monitor their progress through metacognition – teach them to set goals, analyze tasks, figure out what they need to do, make adjustments, and reflect on their progress
6. Provide constructive feedback – timely and specific feedback is important to help students adjust and stay in flow

This list was only just some of the ideas we discussed, but are some of the more important points that need to be considered by teachers in order to meet the Flow Theory ideals.

I really find the concept of Flow Theory so interesting because I have been in this “zone” before and did not realize that there was an actual theory behind it.

This week we also were tasked with watching a video about UDL or Universal Design for Learning. Now this is not a concept that is new to me or any teacher as it is a concept that has been drilled into our heads since teacher’s college. 

To summarize UDL for those who may not be familiar with the concept it is an educational framework designed to help create inclusive classrooms that accommodate the diverse needs of all students (Novak, 2021).

Within UDL there are three domains which are: Engagement, Representation, and Action & Expression.
My group was tasked with looking at the Action & Expression domain which focuses on how students show their knowledge and skills (CAST, 2018). It is important for teachers to desig lessons/activities with students’ varying actions and expressions in mind and there is not one means of action and expressions that will be optimal for every learner (CAST, 2018). 

Based on the video and the additional resource we found that this domains tells us how learners demonstrate what they know, thus digital pedagogy should support multiple ways for students to act, responde and express themselves.

Some strategies that we came up with based on the Novak (2021) video include:

1. Avoid one-size fits all tasks (Design alternative formats for assessments – e.g. video, podcast, oral presentations, etc.)
2. Students do not all learn in the same way – teachers should provide choice and differentiation
3. Students should have choice in how they complete assignments to best support their way of expressing themselves
4. Identify and remove barriers – build flexibility into the design (i.e. captioned videos, assistive technology compatibility, clear instructions, multilingual supports, etc.)
5. Provide timely and ongoing feedback – use digital tools (i.e. comments, audio notes, etc.) to guide learning and improvement

These strategies provide great insight into how UDL can be used in a classroom setting to make learning more accessible to all learners no matter what their strengths and challenges are.

This week I learned something new with Flow Theory and got a refresher on a concept I was already familiar with in UDL. 

References:

CAST. (2018, January 12). Action & expression. Universal Design for Learning Guidelines. https://udlguidelines.cast.org/action-expression/

Novak Educational Consulting (2021, January 8). What is UDL? [Video]. https://youtu.be/eYN-qrKIIYI 

Spencer, J. (2017, December 3). What is Flow Theory? What does this mean for our students? [Video]. https://youtu.be/iUsOCR1KKms