A picture can say a thousand words.....



Above is a photo that I uploaded to Flickr and have now decided to embed into my blog. With Flickr, by copying and pasting the HTML code into your blog posting you are able to insert images. This is a great activity to have your learners do. However, be aware that if the image isn't your own you need to make sure that you reference appropriately and give credit to the person who actually owns the image.

Learning Management Systems (LMS)

Before starting university, I had no idea of what a LMS was or its potential, but now I do.

CQU uses the LMS moodle. It seems to work ok for what it is needed for. In a school environment different LMS may be used depending on the context.

A SWOT of Moodle:

Strengths:

• Great communication for distance students. They can just log on and access notes that have been put up, powerpoint slides etc.
• Assessment can take place on the moodle site. Online quizes that can assess all sorts of knowledge plus submission of assessement items can take place online.
• You can send a message to other users who are enrolled in the moodle site. For distance ed students this can bridge the gap and stop students from feeling isolated.
• Usage and time spent on the site can be monitored by the teacher (or lecturer) and whether or not a learner is spending enough time engaging with materials can be assessed.
• Other users can post profiles to the site which can be viewed by other members and this can form networks and partnerships between learners.

Weaknesses:

• Some learners may view a moodle site as being fairly static in regards to communication when they compare it to a social networking site such as twitter or facebook.
• It can take a fair amount of time to set up a moodle site that is usable for learners.
• Face to face communication may be preferable to learners.
• Learners may feel that if everything is on the moodle site then they don't need to attend classes or go to school. Face to face contact (where possible) is IMPORTANT.

Opportunities:

• has the potential to make distance learning more easier

Threats:

• Some learners may not have internet access and therefore disregard using the site as important for their learning

Powerpoint in the classroom


Powerpoint... Now there's a term that practically everyone would know. But what about the potential that it has for classroom learning?


Many people (myself included before commencing the eLearning course) think of powerpoint as a way of presenting information to aid a presentation. Ok so it can be used in this way, but wait....it can do much, much more.


Forget static boring presentations with powerpoint, you can create interactive powerpoints.


There is nothing worse (my opinion here guys so you can totally disagree if you want) with sitting through a boring presentation where a person is speaking and there is a powerpoint in the background but it's static and nothing interactive or interesting is happening. So sometimes this may be an effective way of transferring information, but it doesn't require the viewer to think much nor does it give the person much of an opportunity to apply their own ways of thinking to the information/konwledge they are acquiring. Where's the constructivist learning?


I must admit that I have seen a few presentations on powerpoint, that if you asked me what they were about I would not be able to remember, they just did not hold my attention. Was the learning then effective?


On the other hand using powerpoint in an interactive way can be very effective. For example you could create a powerpoint (interactive) that allows the viewer to click on items in the slide that take them to different slides depending on what they are interested on learning about. That way you give the learner the control and allow constructivist learning to take place. Keeping in mind that for learning to be constructed the knowledge learnt is not a mere transferrence of facts (Mergel, 1998).


Other interesting things that you could use powerpoint for that are not boring:

• Powerpoint can be used as an assessment item. You could create a click and drag on your powerpoint and have your learner show you what they know about something. This could be tied into a science topic of classifying the learners would be able to classify items on the screen. This is a great way to assess lower and possibly higher order levels of thinking.



• It can be used to create mind-maps. Concept mapping is a great thing for learners to be completing and has many advantages for learners. See an earlier post on concept-mapping for a list of advantages. Cognitive learning benefits a lot from this kind of task (Lein, n.d)



• The powerpoint slides can be saved as jpeg files and imported into windows movie maker so your learners can create their own movie.
  

The list can go on. It's practically endless. But the main thing is that powerpoint has endless uses for the classroom. A bit of creativity and fiddling around and it's amazing what you can come up with. Powerpoint is a tool that all learning managers should be using in their classrooms.

References

Lein, K. (n.d). Elearning pedagogy. Retrieved from http://elearningpedagogy.com/index.html

Mergel, B. (1998). Instructional design & learning theory. Retrieved from http://www.usask.ca/education/coursework/802papers/mergel/brenda.htm

Webpages

I explored the use of a webpage. You can create one yourself at http://www.weebly.com/ . They are relatively easy to create and you're able to customise them to suit the needs of your learners.

I created one http://managingelearn.weebly.com/ and in it have outlined some of the things that you can do with a website in an educational context. There is even an online poll on there which poses the question which is best a website a blog or a wiki. Feel free to vote.

SWOT of a static webpage

Strengths:

- Only the owner of the webpage has the opportunity to edit the content.

- It can be used as a notice board for students

- Images, text, sound, and other media can be uploaded for viewers to access

- A webpage can be made by learners to show not only what they know about a topic but also what skills they have acquired using ICTs.

- Remains avaliable(online) forever

Weaknesses:

- Teachers will have to try to make the page very engaging as it is not interactive with the learner

- If it just has questions for students to answer or a homework exercise on it it is not a very effective way of using this particular web tool.

- No collaboration of learners.

Opportunities:

- A webquest can be designed for students to complete

- Something like a student forum can be added to gauge the thoughts of the learners

Threats:

- Like any web tool simply having a webpage does not necessarily mean that learners will learn. The learning has to be scaffolded appropriately and ensure student engagement.

- Static webpages may be becoming a bit of the past. They have not got the interactivity that newer web applications have to offer.

Links to frameworks:

A student could create a webpage scaffolded correctly under the learning engagement theory. They could RELATE the webpage to a real life application or something that holds an interest to them. They could CREATE the webpage by using images, sound, media showing their level of ICT competence. And they could DONATE their webpage, that is create it for a purpose. For example they may choose to create their webpage as a way of trying to convince the council that their town needs recycling bins in the street. (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1998).The creating part of the webdesign could also (if scaffolded correctly) be linked to higher order thinking and Bloom's Taxonomy (Teachnology, n.d)

References:

Kearsley, G., & Shneiderman, B. (1998) Engagement theory: A framework for technology-based teaching and learning. Retrieved from: http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm

Teachnology. (n.d). Bloom's taxonomy verbs. Retrieved from: http://www.teach-nology.com/worksheets/time_savers/bloom/

Glogs

While constructing my wiki (you can view my wiki at http://managingelearn.wikispaces.com/) I discovered another online tool that would be brilliant for use in an educational context. Its a glog. A glog is kinda like a blog but its more of a poster type thing.

You can register to make a glog at

http://edu.glogster.com/

Its free and a great way for students to express ideas in a creative way.

Here's a glog that I quickly put together:

http://s0170003.edu.glogster.com/krystals-elearn-glog/.

It's also at the bottom of this post.

You can edit your glog, create as many as you like and then send them to people. Basically its just an online poster board. You can also comment on another person's glog so this would be great for teachers to add comments to student work.

SWOT of a Glog

Strengths:

- fun and engaging

- free to make

- have the opportunity to add images, sound, text, links, upload files etc

- can be made collaboratively

- fast and no mess (previous ways of poster making could be disastrously messy - think glitter and paint)

- the ability to comment

Weaknesses:

- I haven't yet figured out how to save a glog to desktop and upload it elsewhere. (If anyone else finds this is possible let me know.)

- Just a space - without direction this could just be placing items on a page

Threats:

- Not well known yet, a find out how to use it yourself

- Hard to find (I stumbled onto the site accidently)

Opportunities:

- Collaborative learning

- Teachers can see what students are thinking

- great possibilities of activities this could be used for.

Links to Theory:

If constructed well a glog could promote constructivist learning approaches as well as collaborative learning. The reason that I believe that it is good for constructivism is that the teacher has the power to write a comment and then the learner can go back and improve on their original work. It also helps aide cognitivivism because the learner is using their own mental processes to decide how to put the work together. In elearning, cognitive thinking involves using thought processes to construct ideas (K Lein, n.d).

Links to Frameworks:

This tool could be used using Bloom's Taxonomy (Teachnology, n.d). It could be used to promote higher order thinking. This tool could be part of the create process if constructed properly. When using this tool, learners are creating a poster that displays their thinking processes.

References:

Lein, K. (n.d.). Elearning pedagogy. Retrieved from http://elearningpedagogy.com/index.html

Teachnology. (n.d). Bloom's taxonomy verbs. Retrieved from: http://www.teach-nology.com/worksheets/time_savers/bloom/

Wikis

Below is the link to my wiki

http://managingelearn.wikispaces.com/

A wiki is a space online where groups of people can share ideas and content. I created my wiki using the website: http://www.wikispaces.com

SWOT analysis of a wiki:

Strengths:

- great for collaborative learning

- accessible anywhere (as long as there is internet access)

- can upload text, images, sound etc

- easy to edit

- can be blocked so that only members of the wiki can edit it

- engaging

- everyone has the opportunity to contribute

- digital portfolio

-develops communication between students

Weaknesses

- the teacher does not have complete control of the site so it needs to be scaffolded appropriately to ensure that learners achieve the best outcomes from it.

- some wiki sites may be blocked on school computers

- awareness for teachers

- in some instances face to face communication would be more appropriate.

Threats

- a wiki is just a space, it is useless unless scaffolded and used in a meaningful context.

- a wiki allows for a member to wipe the ideas of someone else and put new ones in - the teacher would need to make sure that the wiki is fair for all users.

Opportunities

- to brainstorm ideas

- the teacher knows what each learner is thinking

- if used correctly can promote higher order thinking.

Links to theory:

If constructed properly the wiki could be a way of utilising a constructivist approach. All the learners have the potential to build upon their own ideas and learning with the assistance of others.

Learning Design frameworks.

Above is a mind-map that was created using the online concept-mapping tool bubbl.us. The mind-map is an outline of a few different learning design frameworks. Included are the TELSTAR model of inquiry (Marsh, 2008, p.153), Dimensions of Learning (Marzano & Pickering, 1997), Productive Pedagogies (Department of Education, 2002), The Technological Pedagogical Framework (TPCK) (Mishra & Koehler, 2006), Learning engagement theory (Kearsley & Shneiderman, 1998), Bloom's Taxonomy (Teachnology, n.d), and the Big 6 (Eisenberg, Johnson, & Berkowitz, 2010).

The learning design frameworks that I have decided to focus on for assesement 2 and 3 are a mixture of the TELSTAR model of inquiry, Learning engagement theory and Bloom's Taxonomy. I have chosen these particular three, because I believe that they link closely to one another and if used together could help create well developed learning experiences.

They can be used when intergrating technology into a lesson and they have collaboration elements. This is something that is essential when communicating in an online environment. Bloom's Taxonomy also has the two types of thinking - lower order thinking and higher order thinking- (Teachnology, n.d).



References:

Eisenberg, M., Johnson, D., & Berkowitz, B. (2010) Information, communications, and technology (ICT) skills curriculum based on the big 6 skills approach to information problem-solving. Retrieved from: http://moodle.cqu.edu.au/file.php/4034/LMC_Big6-ICT_Curriculum_LMC_MayJune2010.pdf

Kearsley, G., & Shneiderman, B. (1998) Engagement theory: A framework for technology-based teaching and learning. Retrieved from: http://home.sprynet.com/~gkearsley/engage.htm

Marsh, C. (2008). Studiesof society and environment- exploring the teaching possibilities (5th ed). Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Education Australia.

Marzano, R.J.,& Pickering, D.J.(with Arrendondo, D.E., Paynter, D.E., Blackburn, G.J., Brandt, R.S.,...Whistler, J.S.).(1997). Dimensions of learning teacher's manual (2nd ed). Alexandra, VA. ASCD.

Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record 108 (6), p 1017-1054.

Teachnology. (n.d). Bloom's taxonomy verbs. Retrieved from: http://www.teach-nology.com/worksheets/time_savers/bloom/

The State of Queensland (Department of Education). (2002). A guide to... productive pedagogies classroom reflection manual. Retrieved from http://education.qld.gov.au/public_media/reports/curriculum-framework/productive-pedagogies/pdfs/prodped.pdf

Multiple Intelligence Testing

Everybody learns differently. In 1975 Howard Gardner came up with a theory which included eight different intelligence types. They are linguistic (word smart), logical (number smart), interpersonal (smart), intrapersonal (myself smart), musical (music smart), visual/spatial (picture smart), naturalistic (nature smart) and kinaesthetic (body smart).

Below is the link to the multiple Intelligences site where you can take a test (online questionaire) to see what levels your multiple intelligences are currently at:

http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks1/ict/multiple_int/what.cfm

My multiple intelligences are:

As you can see, I completed the multiple Intelligence test and as a result was able to see both strengths and weaknesses of my intelligence. The results are useful in determining which modes you predominately work best in, as well as establishing areas for improvement.

I was curious (typical me) as to know what other people's multiple intelligence levels are, so I decided to compare my multiple intelligence results with the average results of other females my age who had taken the test.

My test results differed considerably from what is considered to be average. Not one of my intelligence coponents match those of average.

Looking at this from a teaching perspective, I came to the realisation that when teaching a class would be made up of learners of varying levels of multiple intelligences. This difference needs to be catered for adequately and thought of when planning learning experiences.

Technology is a means of bridging the difference. Mark Prensky (2005) states that ICTs and the use of them in meaningful contexts engages almost all learners. Finding the right technology - one that matches a student's interests and builds upon both the strengths and weaknesses of their multiple intelligences - would improve a learners qualitity of learning whilst making them want to learn.

References:
Prensky, M. (2005). Engage me or enrage me what today's learners demand. Retrieved from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0553.pdf .

Images:
Birmingham City Council. (2010). Multiple intelligences. Retrieved from http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks1/ict/multiple_int/what.cfm

Online Concept Mapping:

The idea of an online concept/mindmap caters for both visual and kinaesthetic learners. This week, I explored both bubbl.us and text2mindmap.

bubbl.us

text2mindmap.com

SWOT Analysis of a online concept map.

Strengths:

- Caters for a variety of different learning styles.

- Is interactive and can be seen by learners as a fun way to organise/sort information.

- Can be easily uploaded into a blog or wiki.

- You don't have to worry about running out of room, items can be easily moved around.

Weaknesses:

- Not all learners organise information in a concept map way - some learners may prefer lists or tables.

- Some types are hard to be used collaboratively without an interactive whiteboard.

- Saving and then coming back to the map does not work on a site such as text2mindmap

Threats:

- Which one is best??? Bubbl.us, text2mindmap or just powerpoint which is not connected eto the internet at all???

Opportunities:

- Building upon knowledge of topic content as well as ICT knowledge at the same time.

- Pictures and text can be used in a variety of customised colours and fonts.

Links to theory:

An interactive mindmap ties in closely to a cognitivist approach to learning because cognitive theory involves using schema or mental maps to organise content (K Lein, n.d). An interactive mindmap helps a learner achieve this, as well as having concrete evidence of their thought processes and learning.

Learning Theories:

Constructivism

Definition: "Constructivism is the view that meaningful learning is the active creation of knowledge structures rather than a mere transferring of objective knowledge from one person to another" (Snowman et al, 2009, p.28).

Theorists: Dewey, Piaget, Vygotsky, and Bruner (K Lein, n.d).

Information:

- Constructivism teaches learners to pose questionsand find the answers (McInerney & McInerney, 2006).

- Knowledge is constructed from experience (B Mergel, 1998).

- "Constructivism is often applied in an elearning context through real world simulations, collaborations with other students, and by giving the learners access to point-of-need knowledge and responses" (K Lein, n.d)

Behaviourism

Definition: Good and Brophy, 1990 (as cited by Mergel, 1998) state that behaviourism focuses upon studying observable and measurable overt behaviours.

Theorists: Watson, Thorndike, Skinner and Pavlov (K Lein, n.d).

Information:

- "... based on the fact that organisms respond to their environments in particular ways to obtain or avoid particular consequences" (Snowman et al, 2009, p.227).

- Using behaviourism in elearning involves the implementation of small steps, and the integration of feedback- both positive and negative (K Lein, n.d).

Cognitivism

Definition: Developed in response to behaviourism, deals with the thought processes behind the behaviour (Mergel, 1998).

Theorists: Gagne, Briggs, and Bruner (K Lein, n.d).

Information:

- Focuses on the development of schema to aid learning (Mergel, 1998).

- In elearning, cognitive theories involve using schema or mental maps to sort and organise content or materials (K Lein, n.d).

Blogs:

Not being very tech savvy, the concept of a blog is a new one to me. It's intriguing. The idea of having an online tool (accessible almost anywhere) that you can use as an online journal or diary to express ideas, thoughts or concepts is impressive. Others are able to comment, however only you have the power to edit posts or create new ones.

From having a quick look at some other people's blogs, I have discovered that different people use them for different purposes. Some people use them to comment specifically to comment on a certain topic or focus, others as a news source and some as personal journals. Educational blogging is also a new trend that is emerging.

Educational blogging is basically just setting up a blog in a classroom context. Stephen Downes (2004) states that setting up a class (or school) blog is relatively easy. The classroom teacher can add class times and rules, assignment due dates and information, readings and homework exercises. If the learning is scaffolded correctly the blog can become not only a powerful form of communication but also a powerful reflective tool.

Blogs fit well into most learning contexts. I think that they have the potential to guide student learning well in a middle to upper primary learning environment. However, I would be surprised to see them in use in an early years learning environment.