A couple years ago, I discovered a model for thinking about learning that I call the Comfort/Chaos Circle. I don’t recall where I picked it up, but it was immediately useful in my interactions with students and practitioners and I have used it in nearly every learning community I’ve fostered in the time since. The model is simply three concentric circles, each charting a specific zone: comfort zone, learning zone, chaos zone.
In general, I want learners to be in the green, the “learning” zone, but that’s not always the case. Comfort zones can be places to rest and recover, to build courage, to notice and reflect. Depending on our relationship with chaos, that zone can be uniquely productive as well. Our circles can and do shift across seasons of our lives, days of the week, and even moment to moment. Whatever’s going on in the world affects our relationship to comfort and chaos, as does our personality and our personal histories.
I typically engage students in this model by asking them to draw their own Comfort/Chaos Circle. This is a great activity to get students to check with themselves and communicate where they are with me. It’s also fairly easy to draw and intuitive to do so.
But given our recently imposed virtual learning environments, I have found a new way to use the Comfort/Chaos Circle and it’s working really well. I draw three circles on Jamboard (or any tool that allows collaborative editing, drawing, and stickies) with enough space for folks to put stickies in each zone. Then, I ask everyone to create a sticky, color it however they like, and plot where they are in that moment.
In the span of a minute, I know so much more about where the group is: Jamie may need a nudge to stretch a little (or not, depends on how well I know Jamie). Lee has a toe in chaos, so I’ll need to keep an eye out for that. Robbie needs to be reeled in and Kelly is either putting a little levity in the exercise, doesn’t know how to use Jamboard, or needs a little one-on-one to see what’s going on.
In a large group, taking this sort of temperature check helps me re-assess my approach if there are a lot folks in comfort or learning. I like using Jamboard because it allows people to place their names on the line, which I’ve found is something people tend to do. (I’m sure other tools would do this as well, but it’s nice that the sticky goes “under” the line, so you can really gauge where they are.) Perhaps best of all, everyone in the group realizes where everyone else is and can contribute to the work of getting everyone nearer to the learning zone (including themselves).
I realize that online learning is creating a heap of work and considerable hurdles for many educators. This activity is a great way to get students using collaborative tools and paying attention to themselves and each other, one that’s actually a bit better online than in person. I hope it gives you insights into your students you wouldn’t have otherwise. And if you try it, please let me know how it goes, if it breaks, and/or how you’ve changed it to better meet your needs.