Trails to Literacy: PHASES
Whether your participants are literacy learners, placements or volunteers, the principle of "learning by doing" can (and should) be extended to finding ways for the participants to teach others the skills and principles that they are learning. When they do, they will learn better themselves.
Participatory learning is a creative problem-solving method, in which every member participates actively. The approach involves specific attitudes, skills and knowledge. In the participatory approach, the learning process is just as important as the subject being learned.
In intentional learning, like collaborative and participatory learning, learners set their own goals. However with intentional learning they also learn and apply effective and appropriate strategies to achieve these goals. The learners have "intentional control over their own learning" (Scardamalia, & Bereiter, 1994; Swallow, & Woodruff, 1989.