WHAT’S YOUR EXCUSE?

HOW ADVISORS CAN FOCUS ON

STUDENT EXCUSES TO PROMPT

BEHAVIOR CHANGE

Alexander Kunkle, M.S.Ed.

Academic Advising and Learning CenterWestern Oregon University

kunklea@wou.edu

@kunkleaWOU

• Who am I?

– I am an Academic Advisor…

– What is an advisor? What do we do? What does that look like?

INTRODUCTION

We are CONVERSATIONALISTS.-We talk-We listen-We advise…

• As professional conversationalists, should we not study language?

• We have trigger words…but beyond that we can look at more conversation theory to advance our advising theory.

• Just like within any discipline, there is theory and practice behind everything we do.

THE STUDY OF

LANGUAGE?

WHAT!?!?!?!?

KAT: Yeahx he might ha:ve.

(.) JAN: [Hm::.]x

KAT: [ .hhh] He >said ‘e had< da be therex by noo:n.

JAN: He di:d.

KAT: So he pro’ly pulled in eleven fifty ni:[ne.]

JAN: [ hh] heh hehheh heh heh .hh Pr(h)ob’(h)lyx d(h)i:d. [.hh]

KAT: [Ye:]aw. =JAN: =Oh: my.x well I I’ve- I was- (0.7) thought su:re he

woulda gotten away earlier,x

(.)KAT: .hh I did too:. but my car has >front wheel drive<x so

he should do pretty good in [thuh snowx (an’ ice)]

JAN: [Well I su:re=(eh)-] that sure was nicex of youx to let him: borrow your ca:[r.]

KAT: [Oh] Iwas glad to.x I hated ‘im head’n out in that,x (.) tunaboat,x that ‘es go:t,x

JAN: We:ll,=id- (gill/-e’ll), what’re you gunna drivex ta schoo:l.

(.)KAT: Tuna bo:at? =h

(0.2)KAT: [I on]ly have twen’y miles to go:.

JAN: [( )-]

– But why can’t we take the common findings and use them in our practice!

WE’RE NOT

COMMUNICATION

ANALYSTS

Objectives•Understand and apply concepts of conversation analysis•Learn to trigger Mezirow’s disorienting dilemma •Learn to guide students through the Transformative Learning process.

Who has the time to review communication analysis transcripts?

TediousMind-numbingFRUSTRATING!

• Conversation Analysis uncovering elements of talk/language.

– Sidnell (2011)

• Turn-Taking sequence.

• Begin talking at expected end of previous turn.

– Intonation/Volume

– Pacing

• Learned patterns of communication to avoid gaps or overlapping conversation.

• Effort to be understood.

• Shield speakers from hidden truths of communication.

CONVERSATION

THAT AWKWARD MOMENT

WHEN…

KEVIN HART AND THAT

AWKWARD MOMENT…

WHAT IS THIS? AND HOW DOES

THIS RELATE TO STUDENTS?

THESE ARE EXAMPLES OF

DISPREFERRED RESPONSES!

• Part 1 - promotes the accomplishment of an activity between the Questioner (Advisor) and Responder (Student).

Important to note:

1) it does not need to be verbalized -Angry stare, or even the expectation of the question.

2) It does not need a follow a specific script pattern.

3) It could be a prior dispreferred that is now being discussed (often with advising)

WHAT IS A

DISPREFERRED

RESPONSE?

• Part 2 - granted or rejected.

– Granted is the PREFERRED RESPONSE.

– Rejection is the DISPREFERRED RESPONSE.

WHAT IS A

DISPREFERRED

RESPONSE?

COMMON

ELEMENTS OF A

DISPREFERRED

RESPONSE

If ‘no’ is included, social protocol REQUIRES that certain characteristics of a dispreferred response are also provided.

• Delays

• Pro-forma

• Accounts

• Delays –

– “inter-turn gaps” and “inter-turn delays”

• Time before response.

– Audible noises/words which have no direct relation to the statements.

• Examples include audible breathing (hehhh) and elongated words (welllllll).

COMMON ELEMENTS OF A DISPREFERRED RESPONSE

• Pro-forma agreement –

– Agreement is given, but followed by the dispreferred response.

– “yes, but…”

– MY DOG ATE MY HOMEWORK!

COMMON ELEMENTS OF A DISPREFERRED RESPONSE

MOST COMMON…

ACCOUNTS (ALSO KNOWN

AS EXCUSES)

• Accounts –– Justification which indicates why the dispreferred response

is given. – “I didn’t do my homework because I was stuck in traffic!”– Accounts are used to save face for both the questioner, and

the responder.

So if we focus on the most common element , accounts, how can advisors turn this to a positive?

COMMON ELEMENTS OF A DISPREFERRED RESPONSE

• Since there are required protocols to providing the dispreferred response, and excuses are a very common element to the response, society often ignores the underlying reasons behind why excuses are being provided.

EXCUSES…

“I failed my history class.”

AN ADVISOR

EXAMPLE

“What happened with that course?”Here, the Advisor prompts student to provide response.

“I didn’t turn in my final assignment.”

“Why Not?” Here the advisor is recalling the dispreferred response which may have already been given to the professor.

Excuses for homework are common in pop culture…what have we heard as advisors!

SO HOW DID

THE STUDENT

RESPOND???

Funny Excuses! What are some of the best?

“Why Not?” “INSERT HILARITY HERE”

Excuses often include rank preferences between accomplishing or accepting the preferred response and an object which prevented that from happening.

RANK

PREFERENCE

This accomplishes two goals;

1. they are showing the requestor that they wanted to complete the request, but due to circumstances beyond their control, they were unable to.

2. they have removed the feeling of guilt off of their conscience, as it was beyond their control. If it was out of their control, there is no expectation of change.

1. Student chose to (X).

2. Thus, (Y) was a by-product of their prioritization of (X) over the completion of their homework.

3. This implies that they were unwillingto re-prioritize their homework above (X), not, as the excuse indicated, that they were unable.

ADVISORS…

TIME TO BREAK

IT DOWN!

Explain this to your students about excuses…WHY NOT?

If you explain to students how their excuses are being used, what would happen?

1. Allow the student to gain an understanding of how language is used

THIS WILL…

2. Allow student to question their prior understanding of excuses.

3. And form a new perspective, one which explores how excuses mask our choices and shields an individual from their own truth.

What then does this mean?

TIME FOR THE THEORY!

Mezirow (1990) explained, “To make meaning means to make sense of an experience; we make an interpretation of it. When we subsequently use this interpretation to guide decision making or action, then making meaning becomes learning” (p. 1).

JACK MEZIROW’S

TRANSFORMATIVE

LEARNING

Students must be made aware that their behavior and language patterns are trained mechanisms.

AND they must be brought to terms that these will no longer will function in adulthood,

OR change is unlikely.

STUDENTS

NEED TO

KNOW!!!

Advisors can break learned patterns!

Learners move through a process of self-reflection, promoted by a trigger moment.

WHAT EXACTLY IS

TRANSFORMATIVE

LEARNING?

The Advisor/Advisee conversation on dispreferred responses shakes the students perspective and this serves as the trigger.

This trigger moment sparks Mezirow’s Disorienting Dilemma. This is the first step in the Transformative Learning Process, designed to change frame of reference (interpretation of experience) and behavior.

• The entirety of transformative learning process is not necessary for behavioral changes.

• Student must recognize that their view of excuses has caused harm.

• Must be willing to integrate new frame of reference into their lives.

KEEP THIS IN

MIND…

If a student provides an excuse, and an advisor effectively explains how people use excuses to shield behavioral choices, they can trigger…

HOW EXCUSES

LEAD TO

MEZIROW

Significant transformation in perception of self

Communication Analysis =

Disorienting Dilemma

Academic Advisor

Student

Disorienting Dilemma

– Their choices have caused harm, in this context, within the grades.

– The old ways of doing things aren’t working.

– They way the student thought about the old patterns did not factor in all the information.

1.

Self-examination with feelings of guilt or shame;

• Were you unable, or is it that you made an alternative

choice because you were unwilling.

• Student who understand the difference, will meaning

behind the original face-saving technique, thus making it

no longer valid.

2.

A critical assessment of assumptions;

• What other choices am I making?

• When have I used an ‘able’ statement.

3.

Recognition of one’s discontent and the process of

transformation are shared and others have negotiated a

similar change;

• What could be different?

4.

Exploration of options for new roles, relationships, and actions;

• If you were to begin to make changes, how would

that look?

• Would you begin using willing statements, or simply

understand which words you have chosen?

5.

Planning a course of action;

• Which of these options are you willing to commit to?

6.

Acquisition of knowledge and skills for implementing one’s

plan;

• How can we help?

• What other resources can help?

7.

Provisional trying out new roles;

• When making decisions, think about willing versus able.

• What would you now say to a professor?

8.

Building of competence and self-confidence in new roles and

relationships.

• I think this can work for me…

9.

A reintegration into one’s life on the basis of conditions dictated by one’s new perspective (p. 168).

10.

• Advisors can help learners become aware and critical of their own assumptions.

• Effective discourse depends on how well the advisor can create a situation in which those participating have full information.

• Learning requires that new information be incorporated by the learning into an already well-developed symbolic frame of reference.

WHY DOES THIS

WORK?

• This does not necessarily mean that the student will stop providing excuses, mainly because it is an expected social practice.

KEEP THIS IN

MIND…

• What this does mean is that the student will understand that excuses are used to protect their own ego, and reflect upon their own priorities within a given situation.

• By understanding the implications of excuses on their own performance, students can then make different choices in an effort to avoid excuses going forward.

• Thus these students can catch themselves using excuses and realize the situation could have been avoided.

• Situation found to be most impactful

• Critical Incidents

– Failing grades

– Suspension/dismissal

• Used at Western Oregon with all suspended students in mandatory class for reinstated students.

EXAMPLES OF

USE…

PRACTICE!

• Academic Advising Today Fall EditionSHARE WITH

YOUR

COLLEAGUES

• Hart, Kevin. (2013). Let Me Explain. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVRym-scL-g

• Mezirow, J. (1990). How critical reflection triggers transformative learning. Fostering critical reflection in adulthood, 1-20.

• Mezirow, J. (1991). Transformative dimensions of adult learning. Jossey-Bass, 350 Sansome Street, San Francisco, CA 94104-1310.

• Mezirow, J. (1997). Transformative learning: Theory to practice. New directions for adult and continuing education, 1997(74), 5-12.

• Mezirow, J. (1994). Understanding transformation theory. Adult education quarterly, 44(4), 222-44.

• Sidnell, J. (2011). Conversation Analysis: An Introduction (Vol. 45). John Wiley & Sons.

REFERENCES