Effective Teaching Techniques?

wondible · 2018-11-18 14:01:42

I long ago had the idea that towns rise and fall all the time, souls are the only investment that matters. But I've found actually teaching people to be challenging.

As a mother, I can cover the very basics - F for food, good tiles to stand on, but often have another kid before I can get much farther, especially with limited baby communication (I'm terrible at following one letter sentences). I'll tell my kids to let me know if there is anything they want to learn later, but we rarely reconnect.

As a male or currently childless woman, I sometimes ask if there is anything anybody wants to learn, or announce when I'm about to make stew (missing in many towns at the moment) or whatever, if anybody wants to learn. But it's hard to find places to start the conversation.

Dacen · 2018-11-18 15:23:41

Since the relase steam, i ask all my kids if they are new. If they say yes, i ask at which point. And then i say i will learn them that or that, i don't even ask if they want, and they never say "no fuck off".

To learn, i think it's very important to do yourself. If i'm very busy i will instead say them to look what i do, i will do steps slower, so they can see well what i use, then i will let them do.

But if i have time i prefer to lead them near materials, then explain them without doing it myself, usually not a global explaination but more like "we will need for compost bowl of berries and carrrot, and wheat" " first take an empty bowl", "fill it with berries", "six it's full" "now add a carrot", "here you have bowl with berry and carrot", etc... And between steps i say them to follow, i lead them to berry field, then carrot farm, etc, so they can remember where things are.

If i can (always time) i also give some tips, in this exemple where to make compost, the importance to always be sure farms can reproduce, etc/

It take far more time and it's not always effective, some people have real troubles with it, but, if i only show them by doing myself, i'm pretty sure they will come back to me at a point cause they forgot a step. If they do it themselves, they take time, but there is less misunderstanding. Also, maybe they don't know how to put things in bowl, how to combine, etc. If they only see you, they think "ok i got it", but understand steps is not always understand how to do steps.

Catfive · 2018-11-18 15:49:24

I often teach by saying 'i'm going to do X at North edge of town' or similar then try my damndest to have double of everything I need so they can literally mimic me. It proved a great system when composting and baking

Randomname · 2018-11-18 16:00:00

I have no tips but I usually start with don't forget to eat and the lesson often ends with dead child with berry in hand, been there done that myself as a noob lol

betame · 2018-11-18 18:52:59

Personally, I always start off my children with
"Hi! You are . F for food. Stay warm here. I'll brb" [wrap up project].
"Want any guidance?" "I can teach you anything" tells me if they want to learn regardless of their experience
A tour of town is super helpful!
I always keep an eye out to teach folks who are struggling, or messing things up.
Whoever I need to teach in a life, I always try to go in logical order, with repetition (point 3 below).

Violetlily is a professional, and wrote up some great advice here
The rules apply even though children in game are adults, there's just added complexity to how they can follow.

VioletLily wrote:

Okay, so there are a lot of lovely people teaching others on the forums. You all are awesome, but I do believe this could be done more effectively at times. So I am going to try to give you some teaching tips. I'm only doing this because a lot of the information you all give is really useful and I genuinely want what you guys are saying to have the best chance of getting through to people.

As a little background info, I work with a lot with children, and believe me, there is a whole lot of teaching involved with that. I'm not perfect but there are a couple things I've learned from experience that I think could be useful to keep in mind:

First: People don't learn if they become defensive. It only makes them stubborn and less willing to learn, even if they know you are right. It is human nature.
Anything that can be seen as a personal offence will make someone defensive (eg. Anything negative directed at said person). Some people may also become defensive if another person says something that can be seen as a personal offence directed at someone other than themselves.
Anything that seems all-inclusive will tend to make people defensive too (eg. "everyone/everyone-in-said-group does this negative thing"). I know that this might sound odd, but even if literally everyone does indeed do said thing, it is best to say something like "some people" instead.
Nothing that makes a person defensive helps said person retain the information someone is trying to teach. In fact, it has this funny way of doing the exact opposite.

Two: People have a harder time retaining information under stress. Anything that adds to a person's stress level will make their learning experience less effective. This includes things like becoming defensive, being pressed for time, being spoken negatively to, etc.
This is actually one of the reasons it is so hard to learn in this game. People tend to feel rushed because their life is so short. That is why I agree with what Tea mentioned earlier about letting new players take their time learning. This is also one of the reasons why it is so important to talk kindly to people you are teaching.
Many of the smartest, most well behaved children I have come across have been those with parents who know how to teach patiently, calmly, and kindly. It may seem counterintuitive to some, but it truly proves to be the fastest and most effective teaching method - for any age

Three: Repetition can be an excellent teaching tool, especially in the absence of non-verbal communication or visual references. Say you are trying to teach someone in-game why they shouldn't eat all the carrots. You could say:
"No carrots means no compost
No compost means no soil
No soil means no food
No food means mass starvation"
This is a very simple, concise way to explain the consequences of their actions that's fits well in the in-game chat. (Skipping the first part of all but the first sentence, starting with "means", would work too, if you are young and can't say much.) The repitition of words and phrases make it very easy to remember. This is why Dr. Suess's "Green Eggs and Ham" is one of his most popular books. It's the repitition. It makes it easy for kids to understand and remember, therefore making it an excellent tool in helping kids learn to read.
As a warning: Using repitition in excess with adults could sound patronizing as it is often seen as a teaching tool for children. So use with caution outside of the game. Inside the game, it is a very fast and effect way to teach if you are short on time.

Four: Many, many people learn visually or kinetically. Simply explaining isn't enough for people who don't learn well by reading. This includes reading on the forums. So show them by having them watch you and/or by doing it themselves. Let's say you are trying to teach someone in-game why they shouldn't feed other people:
Have them eat a berry. Then tell them to eat a different food, like a pie. (Berry in bowl might cause confusion) Tell them to look at bottom left of screen. They should see a +1 by their food bar. Tell them that is yum bonus. You get it when you eat a chain of different foods. They ate a Berry and Pie. The higher the chain, the less you need to eat. Now have them eat Berry again. They broke the food chain. Now the bonus is gone. Feeding others can take away their bonus, which isn't nice.
This not only tells them, but shows them why they shouldn't feed people, making it more effective.

Five: People tend to learn to exhibit the same behavior they are treated to. This is why physical punishment isn't anywhere near as useful as people would like to think. It seems like the faster method, but it tends to cause more trouble than it solves, and should be saved for extreme circumstances if used at all. A child who was often dealt physical punishment is more likely to become aggressive themselves. (Not to mention the phycological issues that go along with it... Please be nice to kids)
How does that translate to the game? Killing a new person who makes a mistake makes them more likely to become an actual griefer. There have probably been a few griefers who were born this way. In fact, killing at all for any reason makes others more likely to do it themselves. This is actually the greatest griefer recruitment tool. Do you want to prevent murder? Try to avoid killing anyone yourself. Again, this may sound counterintuitive to some, but please only kill if absolutely necessary (say, if someone else is already on a murder spree then you can kill him/her). Also, killing people causes them stress. See #2
Likewise, treating people well makes them more likely to treat you and others well in return.

I know these aren't perfect, but hopefully this helps. Feel free to adapt them how you wish. I can guarantee that people will be more open and receptive to your teaching if you follow some of these. Happy teaching everyone!

Last edited by betame (2018-11-18 19:09:22)

Lily · 2018-11-18 19:17:18

I usually start with the basics. Which is farming, especially taking care of bushes. If I am in the wild when I have birth and they say they are new I will point out the things you can eat, that might not be obvious, like burdock and wild carrots. If eggs are plentiful, I will teach them that.

A lot of time people will ask questions so if you are paying attention and hanging out near people you can answer their questions and help them out. If you see people standing around the forge or something you can see if they know what they are doing or just looking around. If they are looking around then you can offer to teach them something.

Usually if I am doing something and it is practical, I will ask if anyone wants to learn as well. Fire is a really important thing so that is one I often try to teach as well.

gabal · 2018-11-18 19:51:54

The best time to teach is when you are too old for kids as then you can type long sentences and aren't distracted by giving birth. I ask my students what do they want to learn or if they would want to learn whatever I have resources to show. I must be frank - I still haven't taught forging to anybody in-game due to time sensitivity.

Also, when you are left without fertile females that is a fantastic time to teach as there is no pressure - nothing you will do won't last anyway. You can either teach or prepare village for potential Eve spawn.

PeaGirl · 2018-11-18 23:19:14

Best way new people ever can do is try to be curious and ask how things are done. It's easier when people ask instead of teaching them something they might already know. It's waste of time to teach, when you could just be asked instead in anything they don't know about.

pein · 2018-11-18 23:53:53

let the kids die if you are helding one

tell the reason why you stabbed them, they wont forget

One Hour One Life Forums

#1 2018-11-18 14:01:42

Effective Teaching Techniques?

#2 2018-11-18 15:23:41

Re: Effective Teaching Techniques?

#3 2018-11-18 15:49:24

Re: Effective Teaching Techniques?

#4 2018-11-18 16:00:00

Re: Effective Teaching Techniques?

#5 2018-11-18 18:52:59

Re: Effective Teaching Techniques?

#6 2018-11-18 19:17:18

Re: Effective Teaching Techniques?

#7 2018-11-18 19:51:54

Re: Effective Teaching Techniques?

#8 2018-11-18 23:19:14

Re: Effective Teaching Techniques?

#9 2018-11-18 23:53:53

Re: Effective Teaching Techniques?

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