Here you will find the thought provoking activities undertaken in Week 1.
Learning Style
Felder and Solomon created an online instrument used to assess a person's learning preference and style on 4 dimensions. This Index of Learning Styles profiles learners as either:
Active or Reflective-------------------------- Sensing or Intuitive Visual or Verbal------------------------------- Sequential or Global
This typology has its critics but lessons designed with elements to cater for the 8 types will ensure that all learners are engaged. The use of ICTs allow for managing this diversity by providing the tool to deliver the learning and efficiency of delivery making it a less onerous technique for the teacher.
"Can you imagine a learner, one who prefers to work alone or one who enjoys group work, being able to access a page via the internet, then choosing whether to read, or listen to the page. This same page can cater for learnerswho like to read in stages, or browse through to the end, before getting into the detail. The content of the page will be concise, teasing with possibilities and relationships, linking the reader directly to facts and real world situations."
Knowing your own learning style will help you develop effective learning techniques. In my case its a little disheartening, as I am:
Reflective - I like to think things through first before committing to knowledge and write short summaries of reading and class notes; Intuitive - I prefer discovering possibilities and relationship and get bored with repetitive tasks. That means I'm likely to make mistakes in exams by not reading the entire question before answering. Visual - It takes me longer to take notes as I'm always looking for a different coloured pen and drawing very abstract representations. Global - It takes me longer to get started on each piece of course work as I need to see and understand the big picture before commencing.
My challenge - to fit 8 of my learning years into 4 real time years. Your challenge - click here and discover your learning style.
Multiple Intelligence
Psychologists, Howard Gardner and Robert Sternberg, are leading proponents of multiple intelligence . This school of thought believes that there are different types of intelligence rather than the established view that intelligence is derived from one factor. Gardner's and Sternberg's views slightly differ on the types of multiple intelligence.
To learn more and test your multiple intelligence click here.
My multiple intelligence wheel looks likes this:
This typology is important to learning design. Activities should be designed to stimulate each of these types allowing all students the opportunity to be engaged and experience success.
My result was not surprising: Kinaesthetic = 19 Linguistic = 16 Logical = 17 Interpersonal =17 Intrapersonal = 19 Musical = 8 Visual/Spatial = 18 Naturalistic = 9
I am athletic, self aware and can read maps, charts and graphs. I am tone deaf and do not consider myself green. The learning for me is to acknowledge and recognise those students who are Nature and Music smart.
21st Century Learners
Marc Prensky's paper on Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants and his article on Engage Me or Enrage Me asks serious questions about the curriculum and teaching techniques. The amount of stimuli, through technology, that children are bombarded with and need to process is far greater than that experienced by the educators of today when they were children. Prensky refers to modern day children as digital natives. They are naturally adapting to this fast paced stimuli and have a continual need for it. Teachers carry an "accent" when it comes to the digital world and Prensky refers to them as Digital Immigrants. This accent hinders a teachers' ability to create learning environments that engage students who view going to class as downtime. Prenskys' view is teachers who cannot drop their accents and find innovation in creating exciting game based lessons to engage students are just being lazy.
Prenskys' generalisations have received criticism from authors such as Thrupp (2009). Thrupps' research shows that whilst modern children have access to various forms of ICTs they do not use or are not engage with all aspects of the ICT. Thrupp views ICT as artefact and processes. Simply because a child has access to a computer (artefact) does not mean they use it for such things (processes) as; communication, education, entertainment or data storage. The child also has control over the context it would be used. A child's use of a computer at home does not translate to their desire to use it in the classroom. A diversity exists among digital natives rather than the broad brushed generalisation made by Prensky. If teachers accept the digital native generalisation their classroom will not cater for the diversity in use ICTs. Further, the acceptance of the digital immigrant generalisation is likely to discouraged the incorporation of ICT in their pedagogy.
What is clear by all parties is that teachers need to develop their understanding and skills to incorporate ICTs in pedagogy.
The faced paced information world of the 21st century will challenge educators to keep learners engaged.
Learning Theories Activity
This week was my first collaborative approach using a wiki. Stephanie and I joined forces to conduct a PMI scaffold on constructivism. The PMI is located on the Learning Theories wiki. My reflection of this activity can be found in my blog. Undertaking this task modelled many aspects of the constructivist approach.
Thought Provokers
The key questions to consider:
What is the contemporary world of ICTs?
It's a fast paced information world where learners are bombarded with stimuli from many devices; mobile phones, mp3 players, netbooks, note books, laptops, desktops, digital cameras, GPS, scanners, printers, televisions, and many more artefacts. Each one of these devcices may be used for multiple processes including; email, data storage, blogs, wikis, social networking, instant messaging, communication, games and file sharing.
How do children learn with ICTs?
ICTs are an integral part of contemporary life. Children grow up with them and learn to understand and use them as the norm. Socio economic factors and how a person elects to use an ICT contribute to the diversity in usage of ICTs (Thrupp, 2009). The familiarity with ICTs helps to engage children in the classroom and importantly ICTs are useful tools to manage the diversity in learning styles within the classroom.
How do I need to teach within that world?
I need to have a sound working knowledge of ICTs. Not just the technological knowledge but how it can can be integrated in pedagogy. How it can be used to address the diversity in the classroom. ICTs such as wikis and blogs lend themselves to adopt a collaborative constructivist model for learning.
What do they need to learn?
In utilising ICTs children need to learn how to learn. Collaborating and reflecting are key aspects that the teacher needs to facilitate and develop amongst learners.
Design considerations:
technology versus ICTs?
e-Learning is about computers?
all young people are comfortable with ICTs?
all people use all ICTs?
Teachers need to develop their understanding and skills to incorporate ICTs in pedagogy. It is not simply about using the latest technology, it is about using the correct ICT to achieve a specific learning outcome. Teachers also need to create a multi stimuli environment to keep students engaged. This is not achieved by simply saying that e-Learning is about using computers. There are so many artefacts and processes in the contemporary world that could be used for the same learning outcome. This array of ICTs also creates a divide in the classroom. Not all students choose to use the same ICT and not all are comfortable with ICTs (Thrupp, 2009). Design needs to address this diversity and it is diversity that ICTs address best in the classroom.
Table of Contents
Learning Style
Felder and Solomon created an online instrument used to assess a person's learning preference and style on 4 dimensions. This Index of Learning Styles profiles learners as either:
Active or Reflective-------------------------- Sensing or Intuitive
Visual or Verbal------------------------------- Sequential or Global
This typology has its critics but lessons designed with elements to cater for the 8 types will ensure that all learners are engaged. The use of ICTs allow for managing this diversity by providing the tool to deliver the learning and efficiency of delivery making it a less onerous technique for the teacher.
"Can you imagine a learner, one who prefers to work alone or one who enjoys group work,
being able to access a page via the internet, then choosing whether to read, or listen to the page.
This same page can cater for learnerswho like to read in stages, or browse through
to the end, before getting into the detail. The content of the page will be concise, teasing with
possibilities and relationships, linking the reader directly to facts and real world situations."
Knowing your own learning style will help you develop effective learning techniques. In my case its a little disheartening, as I am:
Reflective - I like to think things through first before committing to knowledge and write short summaries of reading and class notes;
Intuitive - I prefer discovering possibilities and relationship and get bored with repetitive tasks. That means I'm likely to make mistakes in exams by not reading the entire question before answering.
Visual - It takes me longer to take notes as I'm always looking for a different coloured pen and drawing very abstract representations.
Global - It takes me longer to get started on each piece of course work as I need to see and understand the big picture before commencing.
My challenge - to fit 8 of my learning years into 4 real time years. Your challenge - click here and discover your learning style.
Multiple Intelligence
Psychologists, Howard Gardner and Robert Sternberg, are leading proponents of multiple intelligence . This school of thought believes that there are different types of intelligence rather than the established view that intelligence is derived from one factor. Gardner's and Sternberg's views slightly differ on the types of multiple intelligence.
To learn more and test your multiple intelligence click here.
My multiple intelligence wheel looks likes this:
This typology is important to learning design. Activities should be designed to stimulate each of these types allowing all students the opportunity to be engaged and experience success.
My result was not surprising:
Kinaesthetic = 19
Linguistic = 16
Logical = 17
Interpersonal =17
Intrapersonal = 19
Musical = 8
Visual/Spatial = 18
Naturalistic = 9
I am athletic, self aware and can read maps, charts and graphs. I am tone deaf and do not consider myself green. The learning for me is to acknowledge and recognise those students who are Nature and Music smart.
21st Century Learners
Marc Prensky's paper on Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants and his article on Engage Me or Enrage Me asks serious questions about the curriculum and teaching techniques. The amount of stimuli, through technology, that children are bombarded with and need to process is far greater than that experienced by the educators of today when they were children. Prensky refers to modern day children as digital natives. They are naturally adapting to this fast paced stimuli and have a continual need for it. Teachers carry an "accent" when it comes to the digital world and Prensky refers to them as Digital Immigrants. This accent hinders a teachers' ability to create learning environments that engage students who view going to class as downtime. Prenskys' view is teachers who cannot drop their accents and find innovation in creating exciting game based lessons to engage students are just being lazy.
Prenskys' generalisations have received criticism from authors such as Thrupp (2009). Thrupps' research shows that whilst modern children have access to various forms of ICTs they do not use or are not engage with all aspects of the ICT. Thrupp views ICT as artefact and processes. Simply because a child has access to a computer (artefact) does not mean they use it for such things (processes) as; communication, education, entertainment or data storage. The child also has control over the context it would be used. A child's use of a computer at home does not translate to their desire to use it in the classroom. A diversity exists among digital natives rather than the broad brushed generalisation made by Prensky. If teachers accept the digital native generalisation their classroom will not cater for the diversity in use ICTs. Further, the acceptance of the digital immigrant generalisation is likely to discouraged the incorporation of ICT in their pedagogy.
What is clear by all parties is that teachers need to develop their understanding and skills to incorporate ICTs in pedagogy.
The faced paced information world of the 21st century will challenge educators to keep learners engaged.
Learning Theories Activity
This week was my first collaborative approach using a wiki. Stephanie and I joined forces to conduct a PMI scaffold on constructivism. The PMI is located on the Learning Theories wiki. My reflection of this activity can be found in my blog. Undertaking this task modelled many aspects of the constructivist approach.
Thought Provokers
The key questions to consider:
What is the contemporary world of ICTs?
It's a fast paced information world where learners are bombarded with stimuli from many devices; mobile phones, mp3 players, netbooks, note books, laptops, desktops, digital cameras, GPS, scanners, printers, televisions, and many more artefacts. Each one of these devcices may be used for multiple processes including; email, data storage, blogs, wikis, social networking, instant messaging, communication, games and file sharing.
How do children learn with ICTs?
ICTs are an integral part of contemporary life. Children grow up with them and learn to understand and use them as the norm. Socio economic factors and how a person elects to use an ICT contribute to the diversity in usage of ICTs (Thrupp, 2009). The familiarity with ICTs helps to engage children in the classroom and importantly ICTs are useful tools to manage the diversity in learning styles within the classroom.
How do I need to teach within that world?
I need to have a sound working knowledge of ICTs. Not just the technological knowledge but how it can can be integrated in pedagogy. How it can be used to address the diversity in the classroom. ICTs such as wikis and blogs lend themselves to adopt a collaborative constructivist model for learning.
What do they need to learn?
In utilising ICTs children need to learn how to learn. Collaborating and reflecting are key aspects that the teacher needs to facilitate and develop amongst learners.
Design considerations:
Teachers need to develop their understanding and skills to incorporate ICTs in pedagogy. It is not simply about using the latest technology, it is about using the correct ICT to achieve a specific learning outcome. Teachers also need to create a multi stimuli environment to keep students engaged. This is not achieved by simply saying that e-Learning is about using computers. There are so many artefacts and processes in the contemporary world that could be used for the same learning outcome. This array of ICTs also creates a divide in the classroom. Not all students choose to use the same ICT and not all are comfortable with ICTs (Thrupp, 2009). Design needs to address this diversity and it is diversity that ICTs address best in the classroom.