Situated Learning
(Legitimate Peripheral Participation) Lave & Wenger Chapter 1 Quote: "...Knowing a general rule by itself in no way assumes that any generality it may carry is enabled in the specific circumstances in which it is relevant." Question: Is this why students have trouble generalizing what they learn? Connection: Just because a student knows a math formula or a scientific principal does not mean that he/she would know when to properly use it. I am fairly most students would remember their order of operations if asked, but not how to properly use them, many would struggle to solve something as simple as: 6÷2(1+2). Epiphany: As a teacher, I would have to find ways of addressing such problems in a way where students could work together towards a solution (once they have learned the basics). Students need the real application practice Chapter 2 Quote: "As an aspect of social practice, learning involves the whole person; it implies not only a relation to specific activities, but a relation to social communities -- it implies becoming a full participant, a member, a kind of person." Question: How would one help students in the lower grades form learning/social communities? Connection: One low tech/no tech solution that I have seen teachers use to form a learning community involves the study of different pieces of literature. Students are put into small groups and become experts at their text(s) and must find creative ways of conveying the important material of their texts to the rest of the class in presentations. Students become engaged and want to be able to share what it is that they have learned with the rest of the class. Epiphany: Reading this section I learned how to look at the ZPD (zone of proximal development) in a different way: individual, cultural, societal. Each one sets a goal for students to reach relative to their place in the world. Chapter 4 Quote: "To become a full member of a community of practice requires access to a wide range of ongoing activity, old-timers, and other members of the community; and to information, resources, and opportunities for participation." Question: How would learning to read fit into this type of learning? Connection: Total agreement with this quote, becoming a member of any community requires participation and contribution. You cannot be a member of a community and not participate. This is ironic for me, since I have long held back from participating in most online communities and groups, I have instead opted for silent observation of communities; which reflects my real world personality. Epiphany: After joining this master's program, I have become a little more willing to participate in the online communities I had been following for ages for never participated in. Were I to design a class for 4th or 5th graders, one of the components I would also add would be one where the students would participate in and create communities around what it is that they are interested in and are willing to learn. Finally, this week I will be attempting to stream music, video and pictures to my devices wirelessly from my WD My Cloud. Beginning with my phone: In order to simplify my life and hopefully not make things complicated, I installed the My Cloud app on my phone. The app is easy to use, gives me complete access to my files, at home or on the go, and I can download individual files if need be. I will not attempt to stream .mkv files to my phone since the screen is so small I will not be viewing any videos on it. Streaming music on my phone was surprisingly easy, just click on the song that I want, and I can play that song from within the app, even .flac files. Switching to a different track (in the same folder) was just like using any other music app. Success! Next is the iPad. Again, I downloaded the My Cloud app, which is easy to use, but was unable to stream .flac and .mkv files because the iPad does not natively support the format like my phone does. For music I attempted to use a previously used app: OPlayerHD. Set up was easy just like before (easier), and I had complete access to my files in a matter of seconds. .flac files played instantly: Video on the other hand, required a different app, thankfully I was able to use the Infuse app I had previously used when playing files from my computer's hard disk. Accessing my NAS was surprisingly easy, easier than accessing files off my PC's hard disk. I was able to play .mkv files, but I did hit a snag. Not all my .mkv files played. This led me on a search where I discovered that there were different types of encoding for .mkv files. 8bit and 10bit. 8bit is generally supported by most current hardware, 10bit is not, and requires powerful hardware. Unfortunately, my iPad is fairly dated and does not have powerful enough insides to power through 10bit .mkv files. Partial Success. Streaming on my TV was again easier than streaming from my PC. There was no longer a need for Plex either. For my television I was not interested in streaming .flac files. Accessing my files was easy and painless. Although I did encounter the same error I did with the iPad regarding .mkv files. 8bit files played flawlessly (even in 1080p) while 10bit files refused to even start. Overall, I would highly recommend getting a NAS device for home. Files become much easier to access no matter which computer you are using. If you buy a large enough NAS device, you even stop worrying about running out of space (initially, always room for expansion).
Research: https://www.diigo.com/list/maestroochoa/list-2014102205023250 I finally acquired my WD My Cloud NAS. The package was very simple and just had a power adapter, ethernet cable, and the drive. It came with some very simple instructions, and essentially said that I needed to install the proprietary software from WD. Being one that loathes extra software running in the background and knowing that the My Cloud software is browser based, I found it odd to have to install a program if I was going to use Firefox to access/set up the device. Not convinced, I went to the My Cloud forums and learned some additional things. For starters, my PC does not have a gigabit ethernet port, which will limit my transfer speeds, nor does my router. I will have to upgrade both those components eventually. I also learned how to map the device on my network drive: After mapping the drive I found the following folders: Knowing that my transfer speeds would be limited by my hardware I decided to find out what my speeds would be: 11.4 megabytes per second is not bad, but it's not great. In theory a gigabit router would hopefully improve speeds enough to max the drive's write speeds (I believe I max write speeds to be about 75 megabytes per second). Not a tenfold increase, but close. After managing to map the NAS drive, I was unable to find how to launch the web interface and so I relented and installed the proprietary software. During the installation process the software prompted me to select the drive, revealing the IP address of the router, which meant I did not need to install the software since inputting that IP address into the browser takes me to the web interface. In the end I was successful in avoid the proprietary software! Small win. The web interface is fairly clean, and seems simple to use. You can create additional folders, add users (the wife will be happy about that), and control cloud access. You can use it for back-ups as well, which should be great for those rare occasions when everything fails.
Hopefully next week I can successfully stream my music, videos, and pictures to my phone, iPad and TV. But first, I will have to add all the files to the drive, which could take a while. I also began to do some research on gigabit routers, but I am just browsing at this point. Research can be found at: https://www.diigo.com/list/maestroochoa/list-2014102205023250 Chapter 7
Quote: "Most traditional approaches overlook learning through hands-on activities, although it requires a deep and practical knowledge of the thing one is trying to create, and it can alter one's personal investment in learning considerably." Question: In what ways could standardized assessments be changed to better reflect the changing ways in which children learn? Connection: 'Learning by doing' is the quite possibly the best method to learn anything. Throughout the first two classes we have created videos, podcasts, and participated in a gamified learning experience. All these activities has ensured that we participate in our own learning. Epiphany: Sitting through 'tech trainings' usually means sitting through a lecture where the instructor gives step by step instructions. Break one of the steps and you are unable to complete the task. Instead, trainings should have a goal with some minor instruction, and then the rest of the time teachers should be left to tinker with the technology. It creates a much more involved lesson and the teachers learn where to find things much more easily. Chapter 8 Quote: "Geeking out asks the question: How can I utilize the available resources, both social and technological, for deep exploration?" Question: How can teachers become better at helping students 'geek out' over topics the students may not have originally been interested in? Connection: I have found that some topics are easier to geek out over, such as technology research for personal reasons (the 20% Project) than others, such as creating a podcast. That drive to want to create something is usually reserved for passion projects or because of a need (sometimes both), and it is interesting reflecting on how it is that one gets excited for certain projects, but maybe not for others. Epiphany: In the near future, finding great teachers that are also great learners will be more important. Teachers that are willing to learn new concepts and technologies will be just as important as teachers that can instruct well, as technology use in the classroom continues to expand. Chapter 9 Quote: "Only when we care about experimentation, play and questions more than efficiency, outcomes, and answers do we have a space that is truly open to the imagination." Question: Younger students tend to learn through experimentation, how can we accurately measure what it is that they have learned in a meaningful way outside of projects? Connection: Near constant experimentation and use of trial and error to solve problems will be a way in which students learn. As we have learned in our classes, we must continue to find ways in which to help our students be willing to take risks when it comes to their learning and not fear failure, but rather learn from it. Epiphany: I hope to one be able to come up with assessments that can still be valid even if they are taken more than once. Then, I hope to be able to implement that in a gamified classroom setting. That way, students are able to participate more in the classroom and not be afraid of getting poor marks on assignments. Chapter 4
Quote: "In communities, people learn in order to belong. In a collective, people belong in order to learn." Question: Since collectives are essentially the antithesis of our profession as educators, should/could we harness their potential? Connection: Doing research for the 20% Project, I have noticed that there are quite a few people interested in doing what I would like to do (maybe not in the same way) and are willing to share, thus creating small collectives of knowledge. Epiphany: Learning how to harness the power of peer-to-peer learning will be a way that I as a future educational technology leader should further investigate and learn to use. That way, future teachers that I am helping, can create learning communities and collectives to help each other and explore new ways of doing tasks using technology. Chapter 5 Quote: "Sharing something personal with a collective, therefore, is very different from taking something private and putting it into the public domain." Question: As students continue to use new technologies that teachers may not be comfortable using, what support can we provide to those teachers to better guide them so that they can find ways of using those newer technologies in their classrooms? Connection: We are creating our own digital selves through the EDL program, selves that are capable of taking part in online discussions and are able to adapt to new technologies Epiphany: Through or PLNs and our class groups on Google+, we are beginning to create digital representations of what a modern elementary/high school should start beginning to look like. Chapter 6 Quote: "The twenty-first century, however, belongs to the tacit. In the digital world, we learn by doing, watching, and experiencing." Question: Is technology necessary for tacit learning or does it help with that type of learning? Connection: Learning by doing is the best way to absorb new concepts, this is again apparent in our 20% Project. This is where we take steps to make sure that what we are doing is correct, that the goals that we set are being met, and that we can understand what we are trying to learn. Epiphany: Quantifiable evidence of learning may be efficient, such as multiple choice exams, but they are not accurate measures. Instead, we should be aiming to find ways of making sure that students are creating projects that truly reflect their learning and understanding of school material. Chapter 1
Quote: "The new culture of learning actually comprises two elements. The first is a massive information network that provides almost unlimited access and resources to learn about anything. The second is a bounded and structured environment that allows for unlimited agency to build and experiment with things within those boundaries" Question: What are some ways in which I know what type of boundaries I can set within my own classroom when assigning projects to students and still provide sufficient room for them to explore? Connection: In this chapter I saw how important collaboration can be to this new generation of students. Students need to be able to connect with others so that they can continue to expand their knowledge, just like how we are expected to collaborate and contribute in this program. Epiphany: The "Click Here to Start Learning" section intrigued me as it demonstrated the power of building a community online, no matter how small it may be, can have lasting positive impact on people's lives. Chapter 2 Quote: "Unlike the traditional sense of culture, which strives for stability and adapts to changes in its environment only when forced, this emerging culture responds to its surroundings organically. It does not adapt." Question: In what ways will teachers that grew up in the new culture of learning affect teaching practices in the future? Connection: This new culture of learning emphasizes participation with the world to create/share/distribute/modify knowledge. I have always been reluctant to participate in this type of sharing, but through EDL 630 I am slowly becoming used to sharing what I am doing. Epiphany: The 'mechanistic view' of learning is being replaced by a more organic way of learning. Granted it may not be efficient by the mechanistic standards, but it the learning is much more meaningful. Chapter 3 Quote: "…traditional approaches to learning are no longer capable of coping with a constantly changing world." Question: The cubicle was implemented in offices in order to maximize efficiency, how will the workplaces of future workers look like when they begin to adapt those places to suit their needs? Connection: In EDL 621 we learned how we could gamify our classroom so that we could appeal to the way in which students are now used to learning. Epiphany: As an educator of new world learners, I must constantly find ways of engaging students in such a way that appeals to them and covers topics in such a way that they become interested in the material. |
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