Saturday, March 26, 2011
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Objectives, Feedback, and Recognition
This week's reading deals with three related topics. All of these work together to give students a road-map of their learning. Objectives let the students know where they are going, feedback lets them know if they are getting closer to the goal, and recognition rewards those who have done well on the journey.
Objectives should start with the learning benchmarks and goals that you need to achieve. These will include the basic concepts and skills that the students should master. But there are other learning objectives that can be incorporated into lesson plans. We have brought up 21st century learning skills a number of times in this course. Problem solving, creative thinking, and collaboration are all secondary skills that need to be incorporated into objectives in addition to the pure sharing of facts. The classes that I have designed and taught are for adults. It is very important to get adult learners involved in the instruction, so I always make sure to create objectives that speak to that, such as "Students will be able to use the knowledge of X to classify and differentiate Y". It is in these areas that technology can help the most, but it can also hinder. We need to be sure not to lock students into simple question and response type exercises, but to allow them the freedom to come up with new ways of answering an assignment.
Feedback is an especially critical component when dealing with adult learners. There are two major differences in the classes that I typically teach. First of all, there is usually not a grade awarded at the end of the class. They are designed to provide knowledge and impart ideas, but not explicitly measure the retention of those ideas. Secondly because I work with adults feedback has to be handled with extra care. With students there is an expectation that the teacher is the leader and the class will follow, although of course it doesn't always work that way. With adults however the class will bring a range of experiences and expectations. They will look at the instructor as service provider, and will expect good service as part of the instruction. If feedback is not presented in a positive and constructive manner, and bad feedback can color their experiences for the whole course. The ideas in the article Feedback that Fits are doubly important. I have found it best to present feedback as a question, such as "What do you think about this conclusion?" I also like to have the class reflect on each other's assignments.
Recognition is the capstone of the process. When a student has completed a major milestone in the class, or has done exceptional work on an assignment, it is important to reward that achievement. I am also a strong proponent of the praise in public concept. It is important to show the class that good work will be appreciated, and to use that work as an example for others. I do not subscribe to the idea that everyone must be rewarded, but I do look for opportunities to spread the recognition to as many class members as possible, once they have demonstrated some achievement.
The last part of our blog assignment is to reflect on Electronic Student Response technologies. This is an area where I have had very little experience. Although I am familiar with the concepts, I have never had the opportunity to design a class that would use these tools. They certainly would provide a good way of getting immediate feedback on the learning of the class. I look forward to being able to incorporate them into the future.
Objectives should start with the learning benchmarks and goals that you need to achieve. These will include the basic concepts and skills that the students should master. But there are other learning objectives that can be incorporated into lesson plans. We have brought up 21st century learning skills a number of times in this course. Problem solving, creative thinking, and collaboration are all secondary skills that need to be incorporated into objectives in addition to the pure sharing of facts. The classes that I have designed and taught are for adults. It is very important to get adult learners involved in the instruction, so I always make sure to create objectives that speak to that, such as "Students will be able to use the knowledge of X to classify and differentiate Y". It is in these areas that technology can help the most, but it can also hinder. We need to be sure not to lock students into simple question and response type exercises, but to allow them the freedom to come up with new ways of answering an assignment.
Feedback is an especially critical component when dealing with adult learners. There are two major differences in the classes that I typically teach. First of all, there is usually not a grade awarded at the end of the class. They are designed to provide knowledge and impart ideas, but not explicitly measure the retention of those ideas. Secondly because I work with adults feedback has to be handled with extra care. With students there is an expectation that the teacher is the leader and the class will follow, although of course it doesn't always work that way. With adults however the class will bring a range of experiences and expectations. They will look at the instructor as service provider, and will expect good service as part of the instruction. If feedback is not presented in a positive and constructive manner, and bad feedback can color their experiences for the whole course. The ideas in the article Feedback that Fits are doubly important. I have found it best to present feedback as a question, such as "What do you think about this conclusion?" I also like to have the class reflect on each other's assignments.
Recognition is the capstone of the process. When a student has completed a major milestone in the class, or has done exceptional work on an assignment, it is important to reward that achievement. I am also a strong proponent of the praise in public concept. It is important to show the class that good work will be appreciated, and to use that work as an example for others. I do not subscribe to the idea that everyone must be rewarded, but I do look for opportunities to spread the recognition to as many class members as possible, once they have demonstrated some achievement.
The last part of our blog assignment is to reflect on Electronic Student Response technologies. This is an area where I have had very little experience. Although I am familiar with the concepts, I have never had the opportunity to design a class that would use these tools. They certainly would provide a good way of getting immediate feedback on the learning of the class. I look forward to being able to incorporate them into the future.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Two Articles on Improving Student Outcomes with Technology
A Meta-Analysis of the Effectiveness of Teaching and Learning With Technology on Student Outcomes
In reading this article, I was stuck by their assertion that education has previously been a "soft science". It never occurred to me that much of education practice is based in theories and techniques that are used just because they are familiar, rather than those that have been reviewed and proved by scientific methods. I think the practice of analyzing and summarizing various studies is a great way to collect some common themes and check education practices against against them. The most significant finding of the studies was that the application of technology was significant in improving the learning outcome of students. Many people might have an opinion of how effective computers are in learning; many people probably consider them more of a distraction. These studies verified that students will remain on task longer, and that the transition from a teacher centric to a student centric learning environment will improve their ability to retain information.
My other conclusion from this article is that I need more background in statistical analysis.
Principles for Teaching and Learning
This article was much more applicable than the first one. The 7 learning and 7 teaching principles listed in these articles are definitely items to keep in mind when designing technology based classes. For the 7 learning strategies, the one theme that seemed to exist in most for the strategies was that students must be involved in the learning for it to truly be successful. Student's prior knowledge, organizational skills, and motivations will all determine how well they can learn. Also their ability to set goals and monitor their own progress against those goals will provide additional motivation to learn.
The teaching strategies also had several elements that involve understanding the students, and especially their motivations. They also stress that teachers will need to change the role that they play in class, depending on the reactions of the students, and that teachers will need to keep refining their classes as they learn more from different groups of students.
In reading this article, I was stuck by their assertion that education has previously been a "soft science". It never occurred to me that much of education practice is based in theories and techniques that are used just because they are familiar, rather than those that have been reviewed and proved by scientific methods. I think the practice of analyzing and summarizing various studies is a great way to collect some common themes and check education practices against against them. The most significant finding of the studies was that the application of technology was significant in improving the learning outcome of students. Many people might have an opinion of how effective computers are in learning; many people probably consider them more of a distraction. These studies verified that students will remain on task longer, and that the transition from a teacher centric to a student centric learning environment will improve their ability to retain information.
My other conclusion from this article is that I need more background in statistical analysis.
Principles for Teaching and Learning
This article was much more applicable than the first one. The 7 learning and 7 teaching principles listed in these articles are definitely items to keep in mind when designing technology based classes. For the 7 learning strategies, the one theme that seemed to exist in most for the strategies was that students must be involved in the learning for it to truly be successful. Student's prior knowledge, organizational skills, and motivations will all determine how well they can learn. Also their ability to set goals and monitor their own progress against those goals will provide additional motivation to learn.
The teaching strategies also had several elements that involve understanding the students, and especially their motivations. They also stress that teachers will need to change the role that they play in class, depending on the reactions of the students, and that teachers will need to keep refining their classes as they learn more from different groups of students.
Tracking our Tools - Technology and Classroom Instruction that Works
We have started a new course this week, called Enhancing Learning Materials Through Technology. What I am most excited about with this class (so far) is the textbook, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works. All of our previous classes have introduced a wide variety of tools and technologies that could be used to enhance the classroom experience, and to help students learn more. This textbook has finally given us a good framework that can be used to organize the tools we have used. Based on that material, I have created two spreadsheets that I intend to use through out the rest of this program. The first is just a slight variation of one of the charts from the book. It lists the 9 instructional strategies that can be enhanced with technology, and the types of software that are best able to do so. I have added the specific recommendations that are presented in each chapter, so this spreadsheet is a one stop reference for the key ideas of the text: https://spreadsheets.google.com/a/wolfmail.stritch.edu/ccc?key=0Auyl8fgWt9e5dEgtcGJEWmNiS3dodk9pWUNjbVJjR2c&hl=en&authkey=CLiw6bkH
However the text also gave me another idea. One issue that I have been struggling with is how to keep track of all of the tools that we have used. By using the seven categories of software identified in the text, I was able to go back through the lesson plans from the previous classes and group the tools into those categories where they will add the most value: https://spreadsheets.google.com/a/wolfmail.stritch.edu/ccc?key=0Auyl8fgWt9e5dE5XNm50eEwwRWtrSHFkSXNFNE11YkE&hl=en&authkey=CM2gtfAI
This will be a reference that I keep growing as we go through the rest of the program.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Internet Learning Resources Part 4
For the last week of this class, we addressed some of the darker issues involving the use of the Internet as a learning resource, namely copyright, privacy, and child protection issues. The internet has always carried with it risks, and as with any new technology, some of the early adopters are people who see a way to use it to further their illegal activities. From pornography to identity theft, part of our role as educators will be to protect our students from these risks, while still using the tolls of the internet to provide the best possible education experience.
The key in this case will be to plan in advance what internet resources will be used in class, and make sure they are safe for the students. We have already talked about ways to use custom search engines that will only return desired results, or ways to filter results based on reading level and age group. Teachers can also direct the class to specific research sites, rather than just letting the students search blindly and stumble across possibly hazardous sites.
We have talked in earlier classes about the need for educators to plan the resources they are going to use in advance, not just to assume that students can find appropriate information. The risks of the Internet make this doubly important.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Internet Learning Resources Part 3
My first experience this week underscores the usefulness of distance learning. I am submitting this blog from Taos, NM. My wife had a business trip, and I accompanied her to visit the town. Even though I am remote I can still continue to work on assignments and team meetings. The only issue is winter weather. I am not sure when we will make it back due to the storm that is hitting the Midwest.
This week's assignment was to work as a group and review a number of sites that educators might find useful. Some of these sites have shown up in previous classes, but many of them are new to this class. Some of the highlights for me were the Google for Educators site. This is a group of links that cover all subject areas, but that all have some connection to using technology for education. This will be a great resource, and a constant source of new ideas for teachers. Another tool that we have used before is Google Sites. This allows a user to quickly create a web page that links other Google documents or information. It will be a great way for classes to organize data while still making it available online.
The one other tool that we were to review was tokbox. We have used this in previous classes as well, but recently we got a note saying that the service will be discontinued as of April 5th. This demonstrates one of the dangers of Internet Learning Resources. All of these tools are run by companies who may or may not succeed. When a company goes under, a tool that may have been extremely useful to your class might suddenly not be available. Teachers should always stay up on the current events that affect the resources they use most. They should also have other ways of achieving the same results. The good news is there are many tools available on the Internet, and it is almost always possible to find another option that provides a similar service.
Internet Learning Resources Part 3
My first experience this week underscores the usefulness of distance learning. I am submitting this blog from Taos, NM. My wife had a business trip, and I accompanied her to visit the town. Even though I am remote I can still continue to work on assignments and team meetings. The only issue is winter weather. I am not sure when we will make it back due to the storm that is hitting the Midwest.
This week's
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