Synopsis

E-Learning. Is it purely a growing fad or an emerging necessity?

Snowman (2009) state that, under the right conditions, computer based learning can effectively increase classroom instruction. I believe the challenge of today's world is not finding technology to use in classrooms, it is finding ways to use this technology to the benefit of students.

Whilst it is becoming apparent that the students of today are becoming reliant on technology, does this mean technology is becoming an essential tool of the teacher? Technology can certainly help in a classroom environment, however it can also be detrimental if used incorrectly, or when it isn't required. As such this synopsis of my learning journey will focus on specific 'e-learning' tools, and how they could be implemented in a high school environment to the benefit of the students.

Blogs and the classroom don't seem to fit together when the idea is first introduced to most people, however this could change. In my first blog, I mention how the idea of a 'journal' was used during my schooling years and how I wish it could have been approached differently.

Depending on how a blog is used, it could be used to focus on multiple Habits of Mind, as defined by Art Costa:
Thinking about thinking: To have the students blog not necessarily their thoughts, but more how they think they came across their thoughts would increase their ability for metacognition, allow them to understand how it is their mind works and then increase their efficiency in the classroom.
Taking responsible risks: To some, writing their thoughts on something, regardless of how impersonal the thoughts are, is regarded as a huge risk. This is definitely true for adolescent students, who according to Snowman (2009) are going through a stage where self-esteem and their self-image is of great importance. To openly write something for anyone to see, no matter the context, becomes a very personal and sometimes frightening experience, however if the students can learn to take responsible risks such as this, perhaps it is possible to help students "be prepared to be wrong", as Sir Ken Robinson stated in his 2006 speech at the TED conference.

Concept Maps can be a curious tool. When I first started the topic of E-Learning I had used concept maps before, although not very effectively I must add. During classroom time and lectures, when the teacher would instruct us to construct a concept map, without much more instruction then that, was essentially my only experience. As such I was stuck with one idea of how to use a concept map, which was to plan, or to organize what was going to happen and how it was to be approached. It wasn't until I had studied the task, and consolidated with other students (two examples - of this) that I truly realized the true potential of this tool.

It could be used as a tool to revise a unit of work as well as plan, which is an idea that personally appeals to me, because this can then demonstrate to the students precisely how their frame of minds might have changed.


During my high school years I genuinely wish a teacher had introduced the concept of The Big 6 Skills to me. As stated on The Big6 website, I would generally go through the stages when working through a work task, however had I been consciously been working through this list then my work could have been completed with more efficiency.

Persisting is a habit of mind the majority of today's students seem to have a problem with, and if this list is presented to them it could help change that. To have something to tell them what stage they should be on, or guide them through any task can help redirect their learning to what they need to be doing.

The Big 6 is a rare commodity in teaching in that I don't think a learning manager could go wrong in introducing and refining this with a class. This list also working well with Marzano and Pickering's (2009) Dimensions of learning 2 (Acquire and integrate knowledge), 3 (Extend and refine knowledge) and 4 (Use knowledge meaningfully). Skills 1 (Task definition), 2 (information seeking strategies) and 3 (location and access) focus on Dimension 2, allowing students to consciously learn how to use this dimension to their advantage and encourage the use of it in their future. Skills 4 and 5 assist students to use dimension 3 in their learning and their assessed work, to establish relevant information instead of attempting to place as much information as possible to give the impression that their work is of a high standard, and to focus on organizing their work in a way to effectively communicate it will refine their knowledge, creating a habit that could help them for the remainder of their lives. Finally 5 and 6 instructs students to use knowledge meaningfully. Yes there is an overlap for synthesizing the information, and essentially it could be argued that there are many more overlaps throughout the skills, but I feel it is essential to point out this particular incidence. Before students can meaningfully use their knowledge the information must be organized, and from looking at students work I think this is a basic piece of knowledge being overlooked by this new generation.

Alas, I digress from the use of technology. A Wiki, which, as it turns out is more then just using Wikipedia to find more references, can be a great tool for collaborative learning. Prensky (2001) suggests that there are digital natives, and digital immigrants, and for the digital native, the idea of setting up a week for collaborative work will not phase them. However this does not mean a digital immigrant will find them self in troubled waters should they come across this task, a wiki is simple enough to make and/or use that the newest digital immigrant should have little trouble either setting up, or using a wiki to coordinate a group work effort.

If, as a learning manager I find myself in a classroom of digital immigrants, I could easily set up enough easy to find Wiki's that the groups need only access, instead of create. As a learning manager I also see a wiki as a great way to see how a group is progressing, and if there are particular group members doing all the work, whilst others contribute a minimal effort. As McMillan and Weyers (2009) point out, it can be essential that the workload be distributed evenly when working in groups, and if this is not encouraged and enforced through a fair marking system, then student morale and attitude towards a topic can decrease to the stage where they no longer want to learn.

The final ICT tool to be spoken of here will be video. I leave this last because it has the potential to be a great help, but also the greatest danger. It is easy to show students a video in relation to the topic and believe it engages them, it can be easy to instruct students to film something of interest, and make an assessment based on this; However it can be even easier for this type of pedagogy to fail.

To show a video clip in the classroom effectively, then the clip must not only be related to the task, but it is my belief if should only introduce, or reiterate information already given to the students. A video clip should be insightful, encourage questioning, be thought provoking instead of thought providing, otherwise the learning manager runs the risk of encouraging students to blindly follow what they are shown.

To have the students make a video can be even riskier, asking students to demonstrate creativity in a public forum can almost be like asking them to make a speech on world affairs without any time to study the topic. Some students will thrive at the challenge whilst others will constantly worry about what others will think if they do something 'wrong', and it is this type of thinking that many secondary teachers must address in a lot of tasks. Once this issue has been dealt with however, the learning manager must focus on time management of the classroom; when given the task of creating a video, students can easily become focused on the non essential/assessed items of the task because they are more interesting and engaging. A lot of time is wasted during the class time ensuring students are on task and where they should be in regards to the assessment items due to the task being, perhaps too engaging.


So finally, is E-learning a growing necessity? I believe the answer is yes, however the reason it is still a growing necessity lies only with the way ICT is implemented in a classroom environment. Teachers and learning managers alike need to be aware that because they are using a PowerPoint, this does not mean they have stopped using 'chalk and talk' methods of teaching; or just because they encourage students to use concept maps, this is no way means they have used them effectively.

If ICT is implemented correctly, then students learning can be enhanced, their desire to learn will be increased, and their entire view on education could be transformed. However if ICT is used, purely for the sake of using ICT, then the complete opposite effect could occur.

Incorporating technology into existing pedagogical techniques is the true growing necessity, unfortunately a growing fad seems to be the idea of using technology as a pedagogical technique.


References:

Costa, A, what is the habits of mind. The art costa centre for thinking, viewed 25 August 2010, http://www.artcostacentre.com/html/habits.htm

Eisenberg, M., & Berkowitz, B. (2001). Big6 Skills overview. Retrieved August 20, 2010 from http://www.big6.com/

Snowman, Dobozy, Scevak, Bryer, Bartlett & Biehler 2009, Psychology applied to teaching, 1st Australian edition, John Wiley & Sons, Milton.

Marzano, R & Pickering, D 2009, Dimensions of learning, teachers manual, 2nd edn, Hawker Brownlow education, Victoria.

McMillan, K & Weyers, J 2oo9, The smarter study skills companion, Prentice Hall, London.

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. 9(5), 1-6. Retrieved from http://marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf

TEDtalksdirector 2006, Do schools kills creativity?, viewed 28 July 2010, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

Video educated the radio star?

Making a movie, to me at least, is very much a double edged sword.

As a student of Film and TV during my high school years, I know just how well it can be used. To anyone that did it, it was almost certainly their favourite subject of all. Creating our own movies, coming up with story lines, using different formats to make different (or even the same) outcomes.

It wasn't so much that we were thinking about how to use the equipment, it wasn't so much that we were thinking about how to make a good story line, it wasn't even that we were thinking about how to be the funniest movie maker in the class.

It was that we were thinking how to. We could spend all of our time thinking how to, constantly creating, imagining, discussing ways that we could do things, personally it was my brain's heaven. creativity would win out over all else, and I loved it.

However the reason it worked, is purely because we had the time to do it. an entire subject was devoted to it, and that was the bare minimum amount of time required for it. For students to make their own movies, there needs to be an adequate amount of time available, otherwise it will severely detract from their learning.

However when there is limited time, simply watching a movie could increase learning immensely. it can be something the students can reflect upon, discuss and evaluate certain aspects, how they relate to the student and their work. Show students a new perspective, or reinforce their own.

Which is why YouTube can be great. Showing students a video that is readily available on YouTube allows them to view it easily when they get home. If they are to reflect upon the video, then no longer will they either be required to do it by memory alone, or in the short amount of time offered in class.

...Of course problems may occur when the distractions of YouTube are taken into account... have you see that dog running into the wall?!?!

The imagery of Pods

Imagery can be a powerful tool. It can elicit emotions, generate ideas, tell a story.

However imagery can also be a powerful distraction. if an image isn't use correctly then the minds of students can wander.

I've seen an adolescent attempt to give lessons, and his interpretation to the advice of 'keeping the kids interested' was to include 'cool' pictures of cars in his slides, because this kept their attention on the slides, instead of wandering

He genuinely didn't understand that the photos were taking away their attention from the lesson.




This is a photo of an odd plant along the Kokoda Trail. Due to it not being very common, for the high school context it could be an example of how different plans have developed to meet their different needs.

PODCASTS:

unfortunately mypodcast.com is no longer accepting new members. However I have used podcasts before.

As a flex(read: external) student for some of my subjects, these can be very helpful in my own learning. When I don't have time to watch a lecture, or I want to revise a lecture I've already seen, the audio can be downloaded as well, and this lets me listen to the lecture on my mp3 player.

As a future learning manager the importance of pod casts has the potential to be tenfold of this. To be able to record extra notes to go with a lesson, and allow the students access to this either if they wish, or as part of their required course homework, to refer to them professionals podcasts to which they could then refer to, to give the students an opportunity to record their own, something they can reflect on, to... well, I believe my point has quite possibly been made.

There are a lot of ways to which a podcast could be useful, and a lot of advantages to them, provided they are used responsibly.

The Point of Power

PowerPoint. you'd be hard pressed to find someone that doesn't know what you're referring to when you mention it. However add the word 'interactive' in front of it, and people will think you're talking about something entirely different.

PowerPoint in today's age comes with a stigma, and seemingly false representation of it's capabilities. If someone tells you they will be doing a PowerPoint presentation in today's world the image of endless words, charts and a droning speech instantly come to mind.

However PowerPoint is often used in the classroom, quite commonly a uni lecture will be accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation. However because it isn't made a point of, and because it's (normally) used effectively, it can become a tool, not a hindrance.

The concept of making moving images in PowerPoint is not a new one to me, in fact in grade 10 we were given a task to make a powerpoint that incorporated a movie. Most people made a powerpoint about some sort of video, and embedded the video into a slide, however there were a group of us that decided, 'heck.. lets just make a movie ourselves'. so we did.

The concept of making a moving image through PowerPoint however, I did not know about. Knowing that such a basic thing as a moving image can hold such great potential in the world of technology, this is a piece of information I'm glad to now hold.

oint. Is it just me or is "interactivity" all the rage now? Years ago if teachers were told they should make activities to be interactive, a common response could simply have been 'why?'. But then it started to become more and more popular, and now it's becoming harder and harder to find anything that isn't interactive. Which I think is great!

Interactive Powerpoint.

Is it just me or is "interactivity" all the rage now? Years ago if teachers were told they should make activities to be interactive, a common response could simply have been 'why?'. But then it started to become more and more popular, and now it's becoming harder and harder to find anything that isn't interactive.

Which I think is great!

This task in particular is a great help to my own personal teaching experience. It's going to take me a long time to make it to the standard I would like to make it, and will most likely require updates as time goes on, but I'm attempting to create an interactive PowerPoint I can use long into the future. (The topic is biology: adaptation in plants. specifically 'form meets function' the idea will be to design a tree based on function. so the students will go through the PowerPoint, selecting a function, this will choose the form. preferably each option will result in an actual tree example)

Weebles and wobbles.

whoa! it's a site!

A website designed by a learning manager and accessible by the students could be a great tool in a classroom environment.

It could be used to organise their learning, with links to things they should be referencing, to how they should be referencing.

Links to things they should be reading, or viewing, or making.

Most of all, links organised in a way so the students know when they should be looking at these things.

A website could be used as a term, or even year planner, made easily accessible to the students when they are at home.

In a classroom environment items for viewing in class could be added, to avoid relying on an outside website with possibly unreliable links.

A website doesn't have to be a distraction to the students, not when it could be a positive pedagogic tool!

You know... unless it's FaceBook.

Wiki Wiki Wah?

My first Wiki

When using a blog, the work is yours. Only you can edit it, only you can change it. People may comment on your work, but they cannot change it.

This all changes when you start using a wiki though. Suddenly it can be changed by outsiders. This is when the concept of 'your work' ends, and the reality of 'our work' can begin.

As a learning manager that knows that when I am in a classroom, with ever changing technology around me, some of my students will be more of a digital native then myself. As such however, this means it is easy for those students to create a wiki, to collaborate easily on their work. This will also allow me to see how they've been collaborating, what they've been up to and how they work together.

From a personal point of view, in regards to how useful a wiki can be, just recently a friend of mine, who is normally fairly hopeless when it comes to organising things, has organised a surprise party for this girlfriend. He did this by creating a wiki, sending out an initial invitation to look at the wiki, add your ideas and availabilities, and allow everyone input as to how they could best surprise her.

The planning of the party ended up being a great success!

As for the implementation of that planning... well, I'm still yet to see that.

Bigger than 5.

There are quite a few reasons I think the big 6 approach appeals to me, but the largest is naturally my personal experience.

When I was in high school I recall feeling a lot of information overload, and I got through that by two main techniques:

1: organise what I needed to learn, follow it through logically and work through my tasks

2: (the most used technique, I'll admit) to put my head in the sand and generally ignore the workload. which naturally meant a lot of catching up was in order.

As a future learning manager I feel this would be a great thing to incorporate into my classrooms. To have the students consciously working through and ticking off these skills as they work through them, until they become a habit to the students.

The Concept of Maps

I'm not usually one to use concepts maps. Which is odd, I love organising things, when I clean my room I become stuck when at the end, everything is organised into draws, shelves and wardrobes, but I am always left with an assortment of misc. items that belong to no group.

(and I will use this as my reason for normally employing a 'floordrobe' method with my room. as this is normally what happens within a week of cleaning my room anyway.)

But I digress, I genuinely seemed to enjoy working with this website (bubble.us), largely because I find it easy to work with, especially be able to simply press tab/enter to create another bubble (I personally don't really like using the mouse for general computer use, so keyboard shortcuts are a 'win' in my opinion).

This is something I know a lot of students would be able to use effectively, and I genuinely believe that during my free time, I will use this site to print out something that can help organise my uni time for me. But I also recognise that between now and that time, my opinion of how useful it is could change. Not how useful it is in general, just to me, personally.

As I hinted towards earlier, I love organising things, my problem is sticking to that organisation. I'm working on it though.

(although I'm still slightly distracted by upper case letters appearing more bold then lower case in the editing page...)

intelligence multiplied.

Now, as some of you may have noticed, I've put the same sort of information twice.

I found it interesting that the results would be different, but still similar. In my last post I mentioned points of view a couple of times. This is because I believe everything is essentially relative to your point of view. A single question can mean two entirely different things to two people, it can even mean different things to the same person, depending on their mood.

The same questions, worded differently, could result in the same answer, or not. depending on how you view the question. Take for example the 'visual' aspects of these charts, the first tells me this is my weakest point, but to the second it is one of my strongest.

There would have been a time I would look at that difference and think, 'this proves that these charts mean nothing', but now my point of view has changed.

Now I think, 'well, that's correct. because there are times that I can visually remember the tiniest of things for years, and there are times that I can't'.

I recognise now that not only to people think differently to each other, but the individual also thinks differently to them self. We generally approach questions in more then one way, and this is a good thing! It is something learning managers should be encouraging throughout school, so that the students encourage it within themselves.

This tells me that one technique that has successfully engaged a student, may not work the next day on the same student. But this doesn't mean it won't now engage their neighbour, who yesterday ignored it.

It is impossible to keep up with the ever changing moods, opinions and points of views that our students will have, but it is possible to have them understand that even if they don't see the answer now, they can adjust their view, approach the problem from a different angle and learn from the experience.

(Also, I was rather happy with the 'logic' results being similar, but of course I'm too modest to point that out)

Blogger of the blogs?

Blogging is not a new idea to me, however the idea of it being a tool within pedagogic strategies is.

I admit, during my high school years I had a blog, along with a few of my friends. Naturally it was mostly filled with idealistic ideas that could never be and the annoyances of teenage life, with the odd addition of examples to my being awesome (in my own point of view at least).

After much thought on the matter, I do recall in grade 8, we were tasked with keeping a journal, with time giving in our form class to add to it. That was mostly filled with a detailing of the days events, and no real opinions were properly given in case our teacher disagreed with them on the off chance they actually read it. This really was a rare occasion, and as such most of the students became confused by the idea of it, we had enough on our plates, and if it wasn't to be assessed, we didn't particularly care.

Looking back I can't quite decide if I wish they had explained it better, or actually assessed us on them. For this task the assessment seems a very reasonable idea, but I can't help but think this is only because my point of view has changed so much from that 13 year old boy I was. Back then we didn't know why we had to write them, what they were really meant to be about or what our teacher was looking for.

However even as I write this I am thinking of ways to use that in my future classes. Knowing that I would need to be clear in what I would be looking for, that it would be ok for the students to state opinions, that the specific way they wrote isn't what I would be looking for, I would be looking for the ideas they generate, the thought patterns that pop into their minds when they put thoughts into writing. It would be a tool to not just see what is important to them, but also to see how they think!

But then, as I write that, I should point out how distracting I'm finding that capital letters also appear slightly more bold than lower case. But maybe that's just me?