The learning styles session was one my favorites. I was able to consider how different learning styles can be integrated into effective online learning. Elearning faces major challenges when it comes to reaching different learning. But, it has to be possible. That session was an excellent reflective experience for me, and a great way to consider the different learning styles when creating a completely online learning experience.
The Internet offers a more dynamic experience. Its integration into teaching and learning shifts the progression of learning experiences. The design of a lesson is drastically affected by this shift. Teachers will seek to have their students conduct learning on their own. The question becomes about how to guide an exploratory experience instead of how information can simply be imparted to the students. The Internet also offers more resources for content, interaction and exploration. Specifically, students should be learning to access and assess online content materials themselves.
I worked with the SIG DreamLMS, and I feel what we produced was one of the best examples of teaching with technology. I used Camtasia Studio to create a quick video presentation explaining the work I had done. I think this was instructive and made the content I was presenting pretty easy to digest. The experience was delivered completely online and so having video was important. I think the entire group’s work really made it a quality experience because we had multiple different delivery methods. In the end this layered approach would give the viewer a varied and interesting experience.
I feel I have progressed towards my goals set out in my Personal Growth Plan. This class has helped define a direction and a base understanding for how technology will affect my work. It is my goal that by the end of this course I will have created learning modules that are highly interactive, visually pleasing and deliver content in the most effective method possible. I do think there is work to be done still, if I am to achieve my goals. Creating truly engaging online learning is difficult, I believe this class has given me the necessary focus.
Moving forward I hope to apply what I have learned in this class, along with what I learned in CEP 811. Using creativity, thinking about TPACK and considering learning styles at all times are some of my goals in the future. To reach these goals I will be purposeful in my course design, perhaps even doing prenotes about which aspects of the content adhere to certain learning styles well and which ones do not. This strategy will help me to be more creative in the design of lessons what do not cater to some learning styles.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
Online Teaching Experiences - Ideas
For this post I have examined the Michigan Merit Curriculum Online Experience Guideline. It outlines the requirements for online learning experiences students in the state of Michigan must complete before graduation. The document ends with a great list of ideas for how educators can design online learning experiences for their students. I selected one that could possible work well in conjunction with a set of learning modules I am currently working on for Michigan State University.
I would like to use Adobe Connect (Breeze) to conduct an interactive, online discussion among students. Michigan State’s business school provides a series of learning modules called “Doing Business in (COUNTRY)”. I think the experience these modules provide could be augmented by a discussion among students, many of whom are not in the same geographic location when they complete them. This would give students a chance to ask questions about the content, which they likely have only experienced in modules. The modules alone provide some content interaction, but it would be helpful to students to have some personal interaction with the content.
One pedagogical strategy I would implement is to have a list of discussion prompts prepared for students before they enter the discussion. This would give the students a way to prepare and offer the discussion some direction before it begins. I would also like to host a shared document on which students would write their own discussion questions or comments before, during or after the discussion. I would try to guide the discussion to the key elements of the module and suggest some ways for them to further interact with the content through research and related resources.
Many of the suggested technologies could be used in conjunction with my current work. Using an RSS feed would be difficult because it would be hard to have some form of an assessment for students. I think offering some resources could be helpful, but the content is not focused on current events and so incorporation reading of an RSS feed would work more as a supplementary or individual inquiry activity than a formalized, educational one. Having students do online research may also be difficult in that I would have a hard time assessing. An inquiry task could have myriad different responses and it would be nearly impossible to develop an automated assessment function that would be able deliver proper feedback to each student.
I would like to use Adobe Connect (Breeze) to conduct an interactive, online discussion among students. Michigan State’s business school provides a series of learning modules called “Doing Business in (COUNTRY)”. I think the experience these modules provide could be augmented by a discussion among students, many of whom are not in the same geographic location when they complete them. This would give students a chance to ask questions about the content, which they likely have only experienced in modules. The modules alone provide some content interaction, but it would be helpful to students to have some personal interaction with the content.
One pedagogical strategy I would implement is to have a list of discussion prompts prepared for students before they enter the discussion. This would give the students a way to prepare and offer the discussion some direction before it begins. I would also like to host a shared document on which students would write their own discussion questions or comments before, during or after the discussion. I would try to guide the discussion to the key elements of the module and suggest some ways for them to further interact with the content through research and related resources.
Many of the suggested technologies could be used in conjunction with my current work. Using an RSS feed would be difficult because it would be hard to have some form of an assessment for students. I think offering some resources could be helpful, but the content is not focused on current events and so incorporation reading of an RSS feed would work more as a supplementary or individual inquiry activity than a formalized, educational one. Having students do online research may also be difficult in that I would have a hard time assessing. An inquiry task could have myriad different responses and it would be nearly impossible to develop an automated assessment function that would be able deliver proper feedback to each student.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Applying UDL Principles
I am creating a series of learning modules on doing business in different locations throughout the world. I created an original lesson plan that outlined the specifications of the lesson, interactions that students would have with the content, and how they would be assessed. Afterward, I learning about the Universal Design for Learning framework. The framework provides educators a way of analyzing learning experiences with regard to their accessibility to all learners. I was concerned the online format would make applying these principles difficult to almost impossible. However, the analysis proved that many times this was not the case and that the module was able to adhere often with some basic modifications.
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Google Alerts and a New Wiki!
Until this class, I had never before seen Google Alerts. It looks like a great way to follow emerging news stories, technology, topics and other content on the Internet. Google allows people to enter any keyword or phrase and then receive updates whenever new content is posted, or be sent a report periodically (once a week or daily). Classroom uses might be having students track news stories as they relate to class content. Keeping material relevant is key, and this could be a great way to have students track contemporary issues on their own.
For technology leaders in schools and organizations this is again a useful tool. Wondering when that new iPhone will release? Pop a keyword in Google Alerts and set it to send a report every time content is posted. The service could also be used to track a conference, before during or after. With a constant information cycle comes constant, consistent and immediate updates regarding the topics of your choice!
I added a post to the Idea Exchange for the EduTech Certificate Program. Hopefully it will be of use to students and readers.
I also have created my own Wiki about online presentation tools. I am not sure how far I will end up developing it, but it would be nice to get a quality resource together.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
How do I learn?
As I reflect on my educational path, I notice I have always been drawn learning conducted in a lecture and discussion format. I am an auditory learner at my core. I want someone to speak to me about a topic and then give me the chance to ask questions and conduct a discussion of the nuances of it. But, I am not simply an auditory learner. Indeed, I enjoy the introduction to any material to be in a lecture or discussion format, but I also like visuals to be incorporated. When I am listening to a discussion or a lecture, I take detailed notes, which is a characteristic of a visual learner. I need to be able to return to the content and see what I have written down. My notes include arrows, brackets, lines and other shapes that connect pieces of content in a way that allows me to reinforce my understanding upon review. As an auditory-visual learner I enjoy seeing a teacher's movements, body language and physical emotions as well as hearing their vocal inflections and emphasis when presenting material. I think this is reflected in my own approach to explaining concepts, as I will usually move about space along with changing the volume, tone and inflection of my voice to emphasize certain points or content.
When it comes to specific intelligences that I believe I exhibit, I would place myself in two categories: verbal/linguistic and interpersonal. I am a stickler for using words according to their proper meaning and in the right context. It bothers me when a word is used out of context. Recently, I read an article where the word "glimmering" was used to mean "shimmering". A glimmer is a faint shine. The author's goal was to, figuratively, describe something shining brightly. A word that may have worked better in this specific context is "shimmering".
My interpersonal intelligence comes from always trying to exercise empathy. I try to please people, and I always want to know how others feel about something. At times, this intelligence can be a fault as I become too wrapped up in what others think. I strive to clearly understand another's point of view. My goal is to find a way to communicate with each person in a way that makes them happy and is highly productive. I like to ask questions and often can understand another's perspective well without ascribing any judgement. This is an intelligence I seek to develop and exercise in all facets of my life, but it is a necessity in the field of instructional design. When creating a learning experience, each piece must be looked at from the learner's perspective.
Because learning experiences cannot always incorporate every learning style and intelligence, learning professionals must be deliberate about the ones to which they appeal. Sometimes the content or delivery method may restrict designing for certain learning styles or intelligences. If this is the case, the first step is understanding the strengths of the lesson with regard to individual learning styles. With this knowledge, a designer or educator should try to improve or broaden the experience without compromising the efficiency and effectivity of the lesson.
When it comes to specific intelligences that I believe I exhibit, I would place myself in two categories: verbal/linguistic and interpersonal. I am a stickler for using words according to their proper meaning and in the right context. It bothers me when a word is used out of context. Recently, I read an article where the word "glimmering" was used to mean "shimmering". A glimmer is a faint shine. The author's goal was to, figuratively, describe something shining brightly. A word that may have worked better in this specific context is "shimmering".
My interpersonal intelligence comes from always trying to exercise empathy. I try to please people, and I always want to know how others feel about something. At times, this intelligence can be a fault as I become too wrapped up in what others think. I strive to clearly understand another's point of view. My goal is to find a way to communicate with each person in a way that makes them happy and is highly productive. I like to ask questions and often can understand another's perspective well without ascribing any judgement. This is an intelligence I seek to develop and exercise in all facets of my life, but it is a necessity in the field of instructional design. When creating a learning experience, each piece must be looked at from the learner's perspective.
Because learning experiences cannot always incorporate every learning style and intelligence, learning professionals must be deliberate about the ones to which they appeal. Sometimes the content or delivery method may restrict designing for certain learning styles or intelligences. If this is the case, the first step is understanding the strengths of the lesson with regard to individual learning styles. With this knowledge, a designer or educator should try to improve or broaden the experience without compromising the efficiency and effectivity of the lesson.
Monday, April 9, 2012
Using Creative Commons Material
Video attribution:
Original video: "ASEAN Corporate Video - Economic Community (AEC)"
Original link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvqbWwoY3eY
by: TheAseanSecretariat
Released under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Generic Copy-Distribute-Transmit-Adapt License:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
This video was posted by the ASEAN organization itself. One of the topics in the e-learning project I am currently a part of is the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, an economic community setup to boost the business and economic standing of Southeast Asia. The video explains the goals, achievements and future plans of ASEAN. The fact that it is licensed under Creative Commons is great because I can use the video as a supplement to the content I have been provided. The video also allows remixing, so if I need I can cut some of the video and use the portions most relevant to my project and the content learners need to receive a complete education on business done in Southeast Asia.
Here is a link to a photo of Buckingham Fountain I took in Chicago, IL. It has been licensed for use by others with an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike Creative Commons license.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
RSS Page Reflection
I have been subscribing to RSS feeds using Google Reader for three years now.
Subscribing to RSS feeds and monitoring the content is something I enjoy. This project has given me the opportunity to spend time finding blogs and RSS feeds that have content based on e-learning, corporate learning and instructional design. In the past, I have not been one to comment on blogs, so this was a first for me. Just to get started, here is the public RSS page of the feeds I have written about in this post.
As an instructional designer the biggest issue for me is making e-learning more social. I want to find ways to have learners interact and communicate with each other after experiencing the content. As I perused my RSS page, I found this post by Harold Jarche. Harold explains the importance of worker and learner autonomy. The members of an organization need to take ownership of the content and then be able to share and communicate about what they have learned. A social learning network allows the learners to communicate and drive innovation within an organization. I commented on Harold’s post, asking about how he saw social learning being implemented in organization. The next day he provided me with links to three other posts he had written about the topic. Here is a screenshot of my comment and Harold’s response:
After a few days of monitoring the feeds I noticed that some aggregate the posts of other e-learning websites. Each day E-Learning Learning, which is a hub of e-learning information, creates collection of articles and posts on a range of topics about e-learning called “The Best of E-Learning Learning”. The topics include technology tips, pedagogical issues, presentations and thoughtful posts about e-learning. This is an excellent resource that I can consult daily for information about the e-learning industry.
The best thing about E-Learning Learning has been the variety of posts on the site. One day I read a good post on using Adobe Captivate (an application I am currently working with), and on another day an excellent article on visual design was posted. The post on visual design happened to be very relevant for me, as my client and I had just recently spoke about how the visual aesthetic of some learning modules could be improved.
One post about mobile learning got me thinking about how people in an organization could use their smartphones to constantly share knowledge. The end of the post provided some information about the author and her work. She is the author of the iPhone app Instructional Design Guru, which I have now downloaded. The app is a massive resource base of instructional design, cognitive psychology, social media and technology terms, just to name a few of the categories in the app.
The feeds I have followed have also given me new ideas about how I can use the tools already available on my computer. One example is a post discussing the use of iBooks Author, the new e-book authoring tool from Apple. The example in the post explained that if you work in a company that has provided its employees with iPads, then instructional designers can create e-books with the authoring tool. The iPad allows the employees to access these resources from any place and at any time. Apple’s iBooks Author allows instructional designers to create e-books that involve any form of media, so the content provided is rich and engaging.
The job market is a frequent topic in the feeds I follow. Soon I will be looking for a job and being able to read about the value of a Master’s degree, having examples of previous work and where to look for jobs is very helpful. Following these feeds will help me prepare for the job application process.
In the e-learning setting I see these resources as being something I consult daily as I create instructional content. I plan to use the RSS feeds and their resources as a way of expanding my skills with course authoring software. If there is something specific I would like to do with a course, but I am not sure how to do it, then I can consult the resource pages of the websites whose RSS feeds I have followed. The feed themselves act as idea and innovation centers. With posts coming from all different learning professionals I have access to cutting edge thinking in the field. The client I am currently working for has asked me to create documentation of the advantages and disadvantages of a piece of e-learning software. One place to check for user experience reviews will be my feeds. Just one example of the information I have gleaned, the piece of software I have selected is one of the most widely used in e-learning.
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