Module 3: Constructivism

Do you believe that humans have a basic instinct to “interact and work as a group,” as Rheingold proposed in his discussion of the evolution of Wikipedia as a collectively developed encyclopedia?

I feel that human interactions and collaborative work are so obvious throughout all of human history that I find it a little hard to narrow down the evidence into a simple, direct argument. I would be very interested in hearing from anyone who has the opposite point of view, because I find it so difficult to believe that anyone would feel otherwise. Humans are social beings; since pre-historic times we have found ways to extend our capabilities by working with others. People in small villages took on different tasks, whatever they learned from their parents or were otherwise suited for, and everyone worked together to make life in the village possible. Nowadays, in big cities, it can feel at times like we are more isolated in our daily lives, but most of us work in jobs where we come into contact with others and work together to achieve certain goals in the workplace or in our private lives. Even at home, we collaborate with our families to create a home environment  that is mutually satisfying and beneficial.

How can technology facilitate collaboration among learners based on constructivist principles?

Technology brings people together who are united by interest, even if separated by location. To collaborate on a project, people can use such great tools as Google Docs or Wikispaces. They can communicate over Skype to have brainstorming sessions. These tools allow people to share new ideas and respond with helpful feedback.

A study that supports the use of collaboration as a tool for learning was completed by Yasemin Allsop and published in The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology. This study examined the ways students in an elementary school class worked collaboratively using a wikispace to create a dictionary of interesting words.

Click here to see the study.

References

Allsop, Y. (2011). Does Collaboration Occur when Children Are Learning with the Support of a Wiki?. Turkish Online Journal Of Educational Technology – TOJET, 10(4), 130-137.

Module 2: Cognitivism

Let me start by saying that when I finished reading the 4 Driscoll chapters and completing the worksheet, I texted my best friend, who just received her PhD in psychology, and told her, “I just want to be a behaviorist. It’s so much simpler.” Her immediate response was “Never say that!” It cracked me up. I can see why Behaviorism is looked down on- I picture dinner at a behaviorist’s house like this: Mom cuts the kids’ food into pieces and toss a bite into an open mouth every time the kids can accurately answer a math problem or recite an amendment to the Constitution. Just like how my brother trains his dog to shake hands, sit and stay. I can see how many people would prefer to think of humans more as thinking, rational beings and not as stimulus/response creatures like dogs. Still, when Bill Kerr writes that “actions which are followed by rewards are often repeated,” I think he makes an excellent point. It’s not that humans never think, of course we do (sometimes) but when we don’t stop to think, when we act impulsively, I think that room opens up for us to act in accordance with behaviorism, to respond unthinkingly to stimulus. I loved Karl Kapp‘s post, in which he describes how different learning theories can account for different types of learning; I thought his post was really well-written and sensible. We have to take a little from all learning theories to explain the entirety of the experience of human learning. Someone who can recite all their times tables can’t necessarily come up with mathematical theories (on their own, or in collaboration with other mathematicians), so we need to emphasize cognitive learning to help students to develop new ideas, not just regurgitate old ones.

Module 1 Comments

Comment #1: What a great breakdown of different learning styles! I agree that educators need to be sensitive to individual learning styles, but I think learners also need to try to adapt and try different styles as well.

Comment #2: Great post! I liked your summary of the different metaphors and the way you see them all as necessary components of great teaching! By the way, do you know how to embed a video in your blog? You just need to get the embed code from the original youtube page- it’s under “Share”- and then put the embed code in your post.

Module 1: Learning and Instruction in a Digital World

What are your beliefs about how people learn best? What is the purpose of learning theory in educational technology?

I think that people learn best when they are engaged and motivated to master the topic or skill being taught. Since people have different learning styles, it is incumbent on instructors to find multiple means of presenting information so as to produce the necessary engagement, while motivation, in my mind, is more intrinsic to the learner. With children, of course, some extrinsic motivation might be necessary, and even some adult learners need a little instructor encouragement now and then. Some individuals learn best when they are working in a more social setting; others prefer to lose themselves in their own thoughts and work things out on their own.

Learning theory can help us determine the best method for sharing or creating knowledge. My personal opinion is that different skills or content areas lend themselves to different learning theories. Some facts need to be memorized- times tables, important historical dates, the elements of the periodic table- and we can rely on Behaviorism and its attendant tools to help us practice these facts until they are memorized. There are a number of games that my students play online to practice their math skills that spring from this learning theory. But not all learning is about rote memorization, of course, and in future modules I will discuss other learning theories.

 

Final Project: Podcasting

Module 6: Best Practices In Discussion Forums (Final Project!)

My Bibliography

Module 6: My Comments

On Jackie’s blog: “I don’t know when I am going to be free to Skype, so I wanted to go ahead and write to you. I can tell you worked really hard on your video! I don’t know how you got those people to say exactly what you wanted; you must be a really skillful questioner! I know this was your first video, so I hope you don’t mind if I give you some suggestions. I am not at all an expert, so you can feel free to ignore them or whatever! Ok, so my idea is that you might want to think about using a program like iMovie to create your movies. Programs like this allow you to make fun transitions between your scenes, add images and voiceovers, or even words on the screen super-imposed over the video. Like, when those two male students are talking, you can have key words that they are saying float across the bottom of the screen. iMovie also allows you to edit tiny clips of your videos, so you can break up longer clips and keep things moving along. If there is an Apple store near you, you can ask them for a tutorial, assuming you use a Mac, which I guess I shouldn’t assume, I am just blinded by my love of iMovie! Anyways, you look lovely in your video and it was very well-researched and congrats on finishing it!!”

On Kasey’s blog: “Your accent is sooo pleasant, I could listen to you all day! I know, you have no idea what I mean, you just talk normal, right? 🙂
I love how you roped your friend or co-worker into talking in your video; I made a lot of my friends and family members sit for mine, but I only recorded them for a few seconds and did all the talking myself. I think i would have a lot fewer helpers if I made people talk!!
I have one teensy suggestion: that video clip at the beginning of your presentation, with the mountains and clouds and the music, was SO pretty! BUT I am a busy person, you are a busy person, we are all busy people and unless I am retired I can’t spend 57 seconds watching clouds and mountains at my computer. 10 seconds, tops!!
Sorry to nitpick, overall it was lovely and well-researched. You obviously worked so hard! Thanks for sharing!”

On Cynthia’s blog: “Nice work, Cynthia! Love the animation and graphics, they were so engaging! Just a suggestion- how did you record your voice? You might want to try different kinds of microphones or different computers until you find one that records your voice without any static in the background.”

I actually had to email the following comments because their blogs wouldn’t let me leave comments, I don’t know why!

On Julonda’s blog: “Oh, those kids are super cute! Check out some video editing software like iMovie or animoto to make your videos a little more polished and maybe add some fun transitions or music! Also, I noticed that there is an embed code for your presentation- do you know how to embed it in your blog? Email me if you don’t know, I will be happy to tell you, or just google it! This is a great way to put your presentation right in your blog and not have to ask people to cut and paste a link!”

On Rodney’s blog: “What kind of computer did you use? What program did you use to make your video? Maybe we can figure out why your sound didn’t work.”

Module 5: My Comments

My comment on Jacquelyn’s blog: “I’m not sure I agree that static technologies have “no impact” on the learner. I think the point is just that dynamic technologies encourage participation and additional creative thinking on the part of the learner. But one can still learn a lot from, say, reading a book or watching a podcast.”

My comment on Michelle’s blog: “OMG I would have had a heart attack if I had gotten a phone call like that. Were they mad at you?

I totally understand what you are saying about liking to figure things out by pressing buttons. I have taught myself how to use so many programs and devices that way. I am most proud of figuring out iMovie- the first time I made a short video, it took me all night to put together 2 minutes worth of clips. “

Module 5: Media and Technology – Resources

I am sad to say that I have relied mainly on more static technologies as an educator; I guess I am more of a traditionalist than I realized. But now that I am looking at technologies through this static-dynamic framework, I can see how possible it is to update my teaching methods with twenty-first century tools.

Module 4: My Comments

I don’t know what is going on with the blogs today, but I could not get my comments to post at all! So, here are the comments I would have left…

My first comment: “I used a lot of the same tools for my graphic organizer that you did! But one thing I did not really think about was second life. Do you know a lot about it? I’ve heard about it, but don’t know anyone who uses it.” (On Cynthia’s blog)

My second comment: “I love the graphic organizer too! That seems like a really useful website and I want to use it myself in the future. Good call on the youtube videos too, I hadn’t thought of that one” (On Kasey’s blog)