Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Collaborative Interactions

This week I will be discussing the element of "Collaborative Interaction" and how it has evolved. When looking at the progression of online education the collaborative aspect of it has progressed tremendously. Online education began as a lonely road where the only interaction that occurred was between the student and the professor but as online education as expanded so as the collaborative sides. Now, students are able to communicate with one another in a variety of ways. They are able to learn from one another based on discussion boards, wiki groups, blogs, and social networking. There are many tools that facilitate this type of learning that are more readily available now. Some of those tools are skype, facebook, twitter, blogs, wikis, and personal websites. Collaboration is key to truly learing from your cohorts and developing a deep level of understanding.






http://vidamartin.wordpress.com/2011/09/29/collaborative-interaction-in-distance-education/


http://minerclass.edublogs.org/2010/12/31/collaborative-interaction-in-distance-education%E2%80%A6/

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Module 1 Discussion

In Moller, Huett, Foshay & Coleman's articles they discuss the need for an evolution of distance education. I teach at an alternative school that serves middle and high school students so I focused primarily on article three( K-12). In this article they discussed why the need for more distance education programs was needed. Some of their top reasons was teacher shortages, funding issues, and meeting the needs of all demographics of students. I totally agree with their position because I feel that in our society not all children are able to learn adequately in the traditional classroom. Some students benefit emmensily from online education for a plethora of reasons. For example, some of our students are considered "at risk" students because they are lacking credits or have missed school because of varying reasons. Due to this factor we offer online credity recovery classes that allow them to receive credit by completing courses through this online program. They are able to access the program both at home and at school and they can progress as quickly as they can if they put in enough effort. Many of our students have said that if they were not able to use this program they would have dropped out of school because they felt hopeless. Online education can save some of our "confused" students by showing them that they still have an opportunity to be successful if they put in the hard work that is needed.

http://dx.doi.org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1007/s11528-008-0199-9 

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Week 5 Blog

Describe a situation in which you have encouraged people to use a new technology and have been met with resistance or disappointing results.

Two years ago my principal asked me to train the middle and high school ELA teachers on using the ELA program Teenbiz. Teenbiz is an online program that generates a new article each day that the student reads, answers questions on, and submits a short essay. I used this program primarily for my special education students  and they loved it and were reaching more gains in reading comprehension by doing it. The teachers were hesitant about the program because they were worried about learning to use the program themselves and they did not want to teach their class to use it. I conducted a three day, afternoon only training and they did not truly comply and "buy" into it until the second day. It took some time and much work but eventually they began to love the program and the students loved it as well.

What attitudes did these people exhibit?

They were angry about having to attend the trainings or use the program. They were resentful because they had to change their lesson plans to adapt to this program. Lastly, they were uninterested in the idea of incorporating the program.

What behaviors did they demonstrate?

They complained about having to use the program and voiced their opinions about how unfair it was that they were being forced to attend and comply. The teachers were at times unfocused because they did not see the usefulness of the program. On the flip side, as the training continued they became more compliant and even began to enjoy the program.

Use Keller's ARCS model, describe how you could change the motivation of these people.

I would incorporate activities that allowed the teachers to feel successful while learning the new material. I would also find activities that showed the success level we could achieve by using this program.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Connectivism

1. How has your network changed the way you learn?

My network has extended my learning by allowing me to experience new people and new things. The new wave of technology has allowed me to learn through people that I would have never before encountered. Also, by exploring various websites I have been able to learn more in a personal matter.

2. Which digital tools best facilitate learning?

I believe that blogs, wikis, photo bucket, powerpoint, and webs are all great digital tools to facilitate learning.

3. How do you learn new knowledge when you have questions?

You learn new knowledge by exploring and searching on your own. We have become so accustomed to having things just handed to us when we are struggling that many are not able to find their own answers. By being a self-learner the learner is able to learn in a more distinct way because they are navigating the learning.


Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Module 1

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

    I believe that people learn through a combination of learning styles. In my opinion the best way to teach anyone is to combin different learning styles in your delivery. Most students are not good at rote memorization, they need to be able interact with the material and become actively involved in the educational process.
         Learning theory and educational technology mesh well together because the various learning theories make way for the interactive techniques used in educational technology. Many of the educational theorists of the past noted the importance of allowing students to become actively involved because it aids in retention. Educaitonal technology allows for an interactive and creative avenue for students to learn.