Values tree: What It Is And How This Education Technique Is Used
The values tree is an activity mainly used to instill life principles It is generally used in a child population, but depending on the case, and with some adjustments, it could also be useful in adults.
In the following article we are going to review everything related to this technique, what is the main way to use it, and the contexts in which it could be used to motivate people.
The values tree is an educational and self-knowledge resource that is designed so that people are able to discover what is really important in their lives that is, so that they carry out a process of self-discovery and realize what values define their way of being.
It consists of a strategy for mapping ideas and vital priorities. That is, it helps us to be able to order and organize the concepts that represent everything that matters to us and that serve as a guide for our actions and long-term projects. For this reason, the values tree is one of the materials that psychologists and educators can use to help people decide what they are going to do, what they are going to study, etc. It makes use of our predisposition to quickly understand relatively complex structures through visual processing
Firstly, participants are presented with a series of values that are easily recognizable to them, with the intention that they are able to select them and explain for themselves what the value they have selected is about.
In this way, they are given the opportunity to recognize what is really important to them, and the facilitator has the opportunity to expand the participant’s prior knowledge of the value they have selected.
The usual thing is that the values are explained through examples, stories, and tales and other similar resources; so that the participants, who are generally children, feel more motivated to get involved in said knowledge, and to practice it in their daily lives.
The values that are most frequently worked on are the following: responsibility, respect for others, punctuality, being orderly, perseverance, empathy, self-control, collaboration with others, and non-violence.
Although it contains many concepts, This activity is easily moldable and can be used to teach any value that is considered relevant, depending on the framework in which the dynamics is applied. Not all people have the same needs, and this activity is easily adapted to the requirements of the participants.
How does this technique work?
Although the technique can be practiced in various ways, depending on the convenience of the facilitator, it must always consist of three fundamental parts so that it can be well applied. Let’s see what they are.
1. Exposure of behaviors
In this first part The facilitator proceeds to show the participants the range of values available, based on a series of behaviors. That is, they are not given a direct explanation of each value, but rather they are shown a situation in which each of the values to be worked on is involved.
Secondly, after they have listened to the facilitator’s stories regarding each of the values to be worked on, the participants must be responsible for clearly identifying which value has been the protagonist in each of the stories and examples given by the instructor.
Generally, it is done jointly, between several of the participants. Depending on the size of the work group, small groups could even be made where they compete with each other to guess more values correctly.
3. Visual classification
Finally, once all the participants or groups of participants have explained the values behind each story, we proceed to make the visual representation of said values, which is done in the form of a tree.
This last phase of the dynamic consists of the participants They must use their artistic resources to draw a tree, in which all the values that were previously worked on must be seen
Normally the values are represented by the leaves of the trees, or among the foliage of the tree. They must be arranged hierarchically, where the most important values for the subject are located at the top Values that are not so important will go towards the bottom of the tree.
Although this part of the dynamic can also be done jointly, maintaining the same groups from the previous phases, it is important that the facilitator clarifies that each of the participants must make their own tree.
Expected results
The results expected after applying this activity have to do with young people generating a code of values on a personal level, which allows them to feel comfortable applying these principles in their daily lives. The value tree is a technique that It greatly helps to establish adequate moral development in children
In the case of adults, it is advisable to apply this technique to show them the benefits that they will begin to have from the moment they begin to implement these values in their daily lives.
Typically the value tree It is used in the adult population when they are subjects who are participating in some type of rehabilitation regardless of what the case may be, or also for those who are in the process of being reintegrated into society.
