Reflective Synopsis

 “Where my reason, imagination or interest were not engaged, I would not or I could not learn." Winston Churchill

Technology permeates our society in a way that has never been experienced before. Our students are immersed in the online world, with almost 80% actively participating in chat rooms, blogs, multimedia, games and social networking from a young age, with no understanding of the dangers their digital footprint can have on their lives. (Brody 2006) They are in essence addicted to the instant communication and satisfaction wrought by digital interactions.

Online learning is not the next big thing, it is the now big thing.” - Donna J. Abernathy

Many teachers still express anxiety when they need to engage students through digital means (Anastasiades&Vitalaki  2011). From what I've learned of pedagogy, it is our responsibility as teachers to understand the world of our students so we may better engage them in the curriculum. Elearning is about using this digital world to RELATE to and ENGAGE with our students so that they may actually WANT to learn. And so we will investigate, vet and implement any tools necessary to generate that third space and create a positive learning environment.

 “Teaching in the Internet age means we must teach tomorrow’s skills today.”  - Jennifer Fleming

The range of ICT tools available is constantly growing. There are thousands of available resources locatable through Scootle alone. To explore others requires time to not only learn the tool, but also to consider how to apply it for learning benefits. This is all time outside of that spent in class too.

“People often tout interactivity as the great benefit offered by eLearning, yet most interactivity does nothing to either engage or instruct.” - Ethan Edwards 

In the first week of this course, we were introduced to works of Dr Judy Wills, who highlighted the importance of stimuli to bypass various brain filters and access reflective thinking. Later, we looked at multimodal learning, which builds on these and includes the concepts of convergence and cognitive overload.

With these aspects in mind, careful consideration of the use of ICT's is essential to effect digital pedagogy. The TPACK framework describes how teachers require a careful mix of content knowledge, personal pedagogies and technological literacy in order to maximize learning goals. One such method we use to categorise our tech literacy is the SAMR model.

“Teachers need to integrate technology seamlessly into the curriculum instead of viewing it as an add-on, an afterthought, or an event.” - Heidi-Hayes Jacobs

In my first post, I made a correlation between the four 'ism' learning theories and the tiered dimensions of learning (Marzano 1997), being acquistion (behaviourism), extension (cognitivism), refining (constructivism) and application (connectivism). I later made a direct link between these learning theories and the SAMR model, and have been using it as a ranking tool of various techs in relation to their improvement on traditional teaching means. However I have been rather vague on how the user benefits from generating content with these tools.

“Think about what your learners need to do with that information after the course is finished and design around that.” - Matthew Guyan

Webpages and powerpoints are primarily Substitution methods for the user to deliver ideas and demonstrated knowledge to an audience. The inclusion of multimedia makes it interesting and possibly engaging for the audience, but is only indicative of declarative knowledge by the presenter.

Devices such as Prezis, Glogsters, timelines, mind maps and images are Augmentations. These cause the user to make connections and correlations between bits of information. extending and building off a central theme.

Wiki's, videos, blogs, Podcasts (including Voki's) and Docx require input from various sources and are a sign of Modification. They are evolving entities, starting out simple and scaffolding as knowledge is focused, collaborated with others and refined into a more suitable form. This takes the form of editting in multimedia or integrating comments in online spaces.

Interactive learning objects, such as games or Google Maps/Earth are not only a demonstration of Redefinition and connectivism from a learners standpoint but also from a design one too. They require a solid understanding of content and design, which works best by observing work outside of your comfort knowledge zone. How can you tell if it works as an education tool if the only people who see it are ones that already share your knowledge?

“eLearning is changing. And, we will see new models, new technologies and designs emerge. So, let’s drop the “e” – or at least give it a new and wider definition.” 

- Elliot Masie

The trick with elearning and digital pedagogy is not thinking "how can it improve the curriculum?", but rather asking "what do we lose without it?". In this digital age, technology is everywhere and we as teachers, educators, role models and authority figures are undeniably required to ensure our students are not only literate in its use, but are able to learn new ICT's as they emerge in the future.

A NOTE ON ETHICS

"Ethical decisions ensure that everyone's best interests are protected. When in doubt, don't."

Harvey Mackay

As teachers we need to assess ICT's not only on how they can be used, but also how they may be misused in the classroom. Collaborative tools like wiki's need to be carefully monitored for harassment and arguments that escalate. New websites or resources need to be vetted for content to ensure not only is it relevant and accurate, but also does not breach any legal barriers, including school or community guidelines for appropriate content. This becomes a problem when encouraging students to engage in their own research. It is for this reason that referencing is such an important aspect of assessment, as it covers the students legally if they have breached copyright, and helps direct the teacher to understand the students research methodology. 

There are also more insidious repercussions of online interactions that need to be addressed. De-identification of all students on any material to be posted online is a policy I'd like to implement, along with ensuring any school logos on uniforms are photo shopped out of images. Clearly defined rules on what can and cannot be included need to be established early, with a chain of communication available for clarification on any resources students wish to include in their projects.

REFERENCES:

http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/Teens.aspx

Brody, M. (2006). Understanding teens in this age of digital technology. Brown University Child & Adolescent Behavior Letter, 22(12),

Moodle course notes for EDED20491:ICT's in Learning Design, obtained (2015):
https://moodle.cqu.edu.au/course/view.php?id=263

http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/cognitive-load.html

 MacFarlane, M. A. (2007). Misbehavior in Cyberspace. School Administrator, 64(9), 4-8.

C. Fadel, C. Lemke, (2008) Multimodal Learning Through Media:
What the Research Says, Metiri group, Cisco Systems, Inc.

Anastasiades, P. S., & Vitalaki, E. (2011). Promoting Internet Safety in Greek Primary Schools: the Teacher's Role. Journal Of Educational Technology & Society, 14(2), 71-80

Henderson R. (2013) Teaching Literacies in the middle years, Oxford University Press, Normansby Road, VIC.

Marzano R, Pickering D, Arrendondo D, Blackburn G, Brandt R, Moffestt, C, Paynter D, Pollock J, Whisler J (1997) Dimensions of Learning: Teachers manual 2nd ed. McREL, Parker Road, Aurora, Colorado

Marzano R (2007) The Art and Science of Teaching, ASCD, Beauregard st, Alexandria VA 22311 1714 USA

Quotes obtained from:http://elearningindustry.com/inspirational-elearning-quotes-for-elearning-professionals

.