Group Learning Environments

The models that we'll be looking at today are 1) Guided Design, 2) Cooperative Learning, 3) Problem-based Learning and 4) Situated Learning or Cognitive Apprenticeships.

Similarities and differences:

One of the main similarities I noticed is that most of the models fall back on or directly rely upon a problem-solving based curriculum. Guided design and cognitive apprenticeships seem to particularly focus on teaching particular methodologies, which can then be used in realistic situations. Problem-based learning also includes teaching the method of solving a problem, but is or, at least, can be more focused on the actual problem than the methodology. Cooperative learning seems to be a very broad group of learning plans that involve teamwork and usually, but not necessarily, problem-solving, often through group discussion and teaching. All of these methods tend toward a constructivist model of learning, meaning that students are supposed to construct their own understandings of the content rather than being told how content fits together. This seems to be naturally true of the problem-solving and analytical focus of all of these models.

Initial reactions:

The Hope - The great advantage to these models centers around the development of two skill sets: decision making and interpersonal communication. These are two skills sets that students will most definitely need in their future jobs and lives in general. Decision making is one of the toughest things to teach students, but by putting them in self-directed learning situations, they must decide how to react, approach material, communicate with others, which sources are appropriate (etc ad infinitum). This may be difficult for students at first, but with appropriate coaching and scaffolding, students should be able to get the hang of it relatively quickly. The second skill set they will be developing will not come as easily. Interpersonal communications that allow for real group learning to happen require a certain level of maturity and mutual respect among group members. This can be harder to achieve. Modeling and reinforcing appropriate interpersonal skills is necessary, as well as the mediation process. Though these skills may be harder to teach, they will be infinitely helpful to students in life. With mastery of these skills, students will be more confident and take more ownership of their actions.

Another advantage is the motivation and interest level of the activities that most of these models call for. It is much more interesting to try to figure out what a culture is like by digging through artifacts and figuring out what they mean or design your own trebuchet than to memorize facts without context. These activities tend to be highly engaging, therefore keeping students on task and in the material.

The Concern - One of the problems I think could be the development of critical thinking skills. Group members provide a certain kind of scaffolding for each other. If there are students in a group who are better at decision making or critical thinking they can provide a model and help for their fellow group members. On the other hand, it may also be true that the students who are better at the processes may dominate, rather than coach or help other students. Weaker students may learn the problem-solving process well, but not necessarily become better critical thinkers. I think that these group projects would need to be supplemented with appropriate individual activities that would illustrate acquisition of critical thinking skills.

The most obvious potential problem is the group dynamic. We come from a culture believing in the power of the rugged individual and many school situations have become highly competitive.That mindset is part of what creates the interpersonal problems and breakdown of group dynamic. Part of the commitment to group work is the commitment to teaching students about how group dynamics work and the interpersonal skills they need to make a successful cooperative learning environment. I think gaining this commitment from the students is much harder than the group work, in and of itself. 

Group work really requires less focus on the self and more focus on a community. Methods like the Jigsaw method try to use a self interested position (you will be graded and have to be the expert) to get students to work well in groups (teaching other students and acting as a group expert). I am not sure if I am convinced that this kind of ultimatum will work, particularly not at the primary or secondary level. The assumption made by all of these models is that the students will be motivated to work toward group success. A practical downside of this is that if you give your students a "group sink or swim" ultimatum, the motivated students might do all of the work, while the under motivated students will ride their coattails or bring the group grade down. The downside of giving individual participation grades within the group is that each student might still be motivated only to do the work for themselves (and their individual high grade), rather than working together to achieve an interactive learning situation. I think it is a complicated balancing act, one that could create hostility in students if not kept in check.

One last issue I have with the majority of the readings, particularly for cognitive apprenticeships and problem-based learning, is that most of them are based on data at the higher education level and more specifically applied engineering and medical schools. These are excellent settings and material types for PBL and cognitive apprenticeships, because students are learning trades in which you gather information, analyze it and then act upon it. Medical school is a trade school, so it is easier to put students into problem-solving or even simulation type situations. This is not as easy in primary and secondary education - not impossible, but not easy. The concerns about transferring problem solving skills to real life are less problematic when the problem students are solving are a simulation for the job they hope to have. When you are trying to get students to pretend to be mathematicians or archaeologists or economists, none of which may be in their future, it is harder to accept that they will be able to extrapolate the skills and be able to apply them generically across curriculum.

For my classroom?

 I would certainly like to try to implement some of these models in the classroom I think group work tends to work best when students are given clearly assigned and clearly defined roles within the group. This way it is clear who is responsible for what and accountability is a cut and dry issue. I also think it makes it easier for students to understand what they need to do to make their group work successful (i.e. complete their role). 

One of the ways that I think helping a class (as a whole) to perform better collaboratively is to make it a part of the classroom culture as a whole. If students are assigned one project as group work, it is different from the normal interaction routines that they experience in the classroom. If the whole nature of the class is to work together in groups (for common disciplinary goals/rewards, for group participation, etc), then a transition into a group project will not be as alien.  Johnson et al. give a great overview of how to create a positive interdependence between group members, promoting this kind of learning community outlook. I think they make clear that only by teaching the appropriate social skills and values will cooperative learning really work.

Possible Web Resources:

Google Drive - Students can share and work collaboratively on documents. 

Google Hangout - Students can have meetings outside of class from their homes or anywhere with an internet connection. The screen sharing capabilities are particularly nice for certain kinds of projects.

Simple Machines or Forumotion - Two free forum hosting sites, which could help students have thoughtful discussions about their group work - more time to think or prepare a researched response, which may lead to new hypotheses or solutions to problems.

Individualized Learning Environments

This unit we examined two types of individualized learning environments: Personalized System of Instruction (PSI) and the Audio-Tutorial Approach (A-T).

What are key similarities or striking differences between the theories/models in a given unit? Do the theories/models in a unit share any common foundations or principles?

Both of these models want to focus on allowing the student to move through material at their own pace, mostly independent of the traditional classroom or lecture/discussion setting. Both models seem to try to maintain some connection between the students and the faculty, such that students are always provided with the assistance they need and to create some sort of faculty presence within the learning experience.

One thing that struck me was that the PSI model is a mastery-based model, which requires students to be able to demonstrate their knowledge before moving on to the next objective. The A-T model does not require mastery before students move on, but in its traditional form does require more contact with faculty for review and quiz sessions, in which students may be asked to present or recall any of the course material studied. I tend to be in favor of mastery-type models, because it helps to remove the fear of failure, which allows students to be more at ease in the learning environment. That being said, this is not always an option, given the time and resource constraints of most educational environments.

What are your initial reactions to these learning theories/models? What are barriers to their use? What benefits might be expected for those who overcome the barriers?

My initial reaction to both models in their traditional forms was that they would be very time intensive and require a lot of time scheduled during which the teacher observes students doing their work, in case they need help. Given the technological advancements since the birth of these models, I think there are better ways of handling those issues. The one barrier that I do not foresee being eliminated is the time it takes to develop these kinds of programs. Gathering materials, creating coherent curricula and then creating all of the necessary digital materials for these programs will just take time. I think the benefit to spending that time is that teachers (hopefully in groups) will create databases of resources that can be used in and out of the classroom. I thought of many ways of incorporating these ideas into classroom style teaching, as it occurs in most primary and secondary school settings. Using the A-T style approach, teachers can provide the lecture style material outside of class, while using in class time for review, guided practice and group/collaborative learning. My favorite parts of the PSI model are the focus on mastery (as opposed to merely testing) and the clear statement/testing of objectives. Letting students know what is expected of them and then having a guiding process through to demonstrated mastery is important in any classroom.

Would you attempt to use any of these theories/models with the students you are currently teaching or hope to teach in the future? Why or why not? Could elements of the theories/models be modified so that they would work with your current/future students?

I wouldn't (couldn't?) attempt to use any of these formats in their original forms in a public high school classroom - it's just not set up that way. There are many facets of each of these models that I feel would fit nicely into that learning environment. I would be in favor of delivering material A-T style to students outside of the classroom. This would combine short podcasts, videos, text and short assignments that students would complete out of class, so that they could come prepared to engage the material in the classroom. I would also try to incorporate the PSI-favored explicit objectives, mastery and tutored (as opposed to lectured) style of in-class interaction. Rather than lecturing material to students, they could engage the material in guided and independent practice, either independently or in groups, with teacher assistance for a more student-centered approach.

Since we're taking learning theories/models that were not necessarily created with the Web in mind and turning them into Web modules, what Web-based tools or resources could be leveraged to carry out these learning theories/models online? 

For the PSI model, I think that LiveBinders would be a great resource for this type of program. It could be a great way to organize different units and objectives for completion. Also, any website creation programs like Weebly or GoogleSites would be useful in creating a platform and organizational tool for material where students can easily access it.

For the A-T model, the first tool I thought of was VoiceThread. I can't think of a better way of putting audio-visual material together in a way that is so accessible for students. Podcast hosting sites would also be super-helpful with this model, so Podbean or Blubrry are options. Also Audacity is a great open source audio recording tool. 

Students on Steroids

No, this is not a controversial sports post, but about what Thomas Friedman, author of The World is Flat 3.0: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century, calls the technological "steroids" that are creating a "flatter" world. Friedman writes:

        "I call certain new technologies the steroids, because they are amplifying 
         and turbocharging all the other flatteners." (Friedman, 187)

By flatteners, he means the technologies that are making it easier for everyone to be more connected and have a more equal chance to participate globally. The "steroids" he mentions are the technologies that speed up connectivity, allow for transfer of more data more quickly to anywhere in the world. He points out that "year after year we have been able to digitize, shape, crunch, and transmit more words, music, data and entertainment than ever before" (Friedman, 188). So the question is: what does this mean for students and teachers?

The students of today are natives of this technological wave, they are the people who will most easily navigate and adapt with the technology that is already shaping their lives in so many ways. This inundation with technology in our everyday lives has spread to education already with the prospect of many schools moving towards ubiquitous (or 1 to 1) computing. While bringing technology to the classroom has been an ongoing process for a while, this kind of transition will force a change in the way that teaching and learning are viewed. Rather than having some teachers believe that project-based and student-centered learning are the key to continued success, teachers will be forced to see that traditional, lecture-style teaching methods will no longer be appropriate in ubiquitous computing settings.

While many students are familiar with the "steriods" Friedman refers to and would love to use them in the school setting, they may not particularly understand what changing to a student-centered learning style will entail. This is not just a change for teachers, but a major change for students. They can no longer rely on sitting and half listening to a lecture and asking a few questions in class to cover their grades. Student-centered learning requires students to take initiative in their own educations. While this involves more choice (usually seen as an advantage to the students), they will also have to help drive themselves and be more ambitious if they want to succeed in school.

So are these steroids, which will allow students to engage their peers and information in new and exciting ways, going to help them by relieving some of the academic pressure of studying and finding information? Or is it going to make their jobs as students much more difficult with every higher standards of presentation and engagement?

The answer may be "both".

Projects

So the first of September has come and gone. I missed posting. Oops.

Since I last posted here I have had several creative pursuits which have taken up my time. The first was a cowl shirt. I first saw one in REI, but it was $60! Crazy, I told myself. It looks sorta like this, but with a more subtle pattern. I could not get it off my mind after I saw it in the store, so I decided to make one. I bought a black t-shirt and used the body of it to make the long neck, which I attached to a black long-sleeved shirt I already owned. I will have to see about getting some photos up. There are things I would do different if I were to do it again, but isn't that always the way of projects? I'll have to see about getting some photos up.

The other project I worked on was for my Emerging Technology course. I created interactive PDFs! It was a pretty fun project in the making. I used Adobe InDesign to create PDFs that have audio and video clips built into them. While this isn't going to be your normal PDF for printing off, it is a really great tool for digital communication. Adobe InDesign allows the user to create PDFs that use several technological mediums (audio recordings, video recordings, podcasts, images) to create multi-level learning tools that appeal to learners of all kinds. Through the creation of interactive PDFs, teachers can adapt and supplement curriculum to the needs of the individual learners in their classrooms. Now, auditory and visual learners have the ability to interact with curricular material through experiences which help them form lasting memories of classroom lessons.

The content which interactive PDFs can communicate to students is infinite. Audio clips are useful for language learning, ESL, literature, literacy, social studies and music. Video clips may be equally important in all of these courses as well as science and mathematics. Through use of the available material from sources such as podcasts, iTunesU, YouTube and Khan Academy, teachers can augment their lectures and keep student interest. Another advantage of using interactive PDFs is that not only can they be used during lectures, but teachers can make the resource available to students and parents through email or classroom
websites for continued access and use of the resources that support in-class materials.

21st Century Skill Sets and Beyond

“Information and communication skills, thinking and problem-solving skills, interpersonal and self-directional skills” This list has become the mantra of teachers reciting the skills they should be helping students acquire. Unfortunately, what students need to learn is much more than a list of skills. Beyond these skill sets, students will need to understand their own learning process. Many of the above skill sets are a part of that learning process, but each individual learns in a unique way. By mastering the learning process and, therefore, knowing how to research, study and retain knowledge, students will be equipped to face the challenges that will emerge in the 21^st century. This means that rather than learning particular or specialized skill sets, which individuals will then take to work and execute, students will need to be able to learn the emerging skill sets that are required of a dynamic work environment. In order to help students achieve this in the classroom, teachers will need to focus equally on making the awareness and development of a learning style a part of the curriculum. This is partially a metacognitive approach to learning and teaching, but it must move beyond that into the development of good learning habits and how to adapt one’s learning style to the material. This process seems to also necessarily involve ownership of the learning process. It seems that to help students become good and life-long learners, we must help them to understand what we know as teachers.

To be skilled workers in the 21^st century means that not only do individuals have to have niche knowledge and skill sets, but the ability to learn new skill sets and adapt to emerging innovations and technologies. It is this ability to learn that is required now and will continue to important in the future. Teaching, in and of itself, is a perfect example of the kind of career that requires specific knowledges and skill sets, but also requires the worker to adapt at every stage of the process and learn how to flourish in each new situation. New students, new technologies, new curriculums, new requirements and the ever changing state of the material that we must teach all require teachers (and I would like to argue that have always required good teachers) to be adaptive, to understand their own learning processes and to be able to help others learn to be aware and adaptive individuals.

Much of the focus, when it comes to new and emerging information and skills, lays in technology. The technologies that students must be competent in, in my opinion, are the ones that are going to make them good learners and performers. One could easily do research at the library with piles of books and, sometimes, one still must do just that. With the internet being a fairly open resource for the sharing of information, however, much of the information necessary to students now resides in servers accessible from almost anywhere. Though all of the information on the internet is not completely reliable, more and more there are becoming sites dedicated to reliable information recording. When these reliable resources (reliable websites vs. piles of library books), the internet takes the advantage for one simple reason: expediency. Not only will students have to be able to find, learn and retain knowledge, but they will have to do it concurrently to fixing the problems that they are working on. In the 21^st century, the speed at which events occur makes the internet a necessary resource and the skills sets to use the internet appropriate equally necessary. As I write this, I know that I am referring to “the Interwebs” and the skills sets necessary to use them as though they were one cohesive skill set. I know this to be absurd. This, however, is the world that our students face IN SCHOOL, let alone what they will face in their future workplaces.

Building a Lego Bridge... without the Legos

So I wanted to post some pictures from my first assignment in my Emerging Tech class.

Lego – Building a Bridge Debriefing

When tasked with building a Lego bridge, the first problem I encountered was my lack of access to Legos. In search for an acceptable alternative, I found a local church had children’s building blocks that I could use for this assignment. I altered the pricing based on the size of the blocks I had in the following manner:

-          Small square blocks = $150

-          Large square blocks = $250

-          Rectangular prism blocks = $350

-          Large flat blocks = $450

The entire process of planning and building the bridge the first time took me approximately 10 minutes. The end result was a 6 in. tall, 14 in. long bridge, which held a heavy textbook. I used 2 flat blocks ($900), 4 small blocks ($600), 8 large blocks ($2000) and 2 rectangular blocks ($700). My total expenses added up to $4200 for the project. I did not use any resources (except my brain) in the planning of the bridge. Mostly, I focused on using at least one of each block type and making the measurements conform to the requirements provided.

Phase 1 Bridge

For my second bridge, I spent about 10 minutes looking at some of the sites suggested, but I didn’t find the Lego sites very helpful, as they referred to a different building material. I used the Ohio Department of Transportation site (http://www.dot.state.oh.us/Divisions/Communications/BridgingtheGap/Pages/ BridgeTermDefinitions.aspx) to learn a little more about the terms and structures of bridges in general. I then searched sites about building bridges with blocks. I found a website in which some very young bridge builders had built a block bridge strong enough to hold their combined weight (http://earlylearningcentral.ca/?p=511). Looking at their photos, I noticed that in some cases they used multiple blocks as abutments to hold up the deck of the bridge, while other times they used single blocks. This made me rethink my design in a way that made it more cost effective. My second bridge consisted of 2 flat blocks ($900), 4 small blocks ($600), 4 large blocks ($1000) and 4 rectangular blocks ($1400). While the change in the building was not significant, the cost saved was (a total of $3000 for the second project, saved me $1200).

Phase 2 Bridge - with room for a boat or any vehicle that wants to pass under it

Planning Diagram for Phase 2

(sorry this last one is sideways - I can't for the life of me figure out why it won't turn)

I found the second phase much easier, because rather than trying to merely fulfill the requirements, I looked at what other collaborators have done, combined their ideas with my own and applied them to the materials I had. I found searching on the internet to learn the technical terms much easier than trying to find a book in a library (none of which I had access to). I think for the time-constrained learning opportunities that we have in classrooms today, the second phase, in which technology is available for research, to be more appropriate.

While I understand the purpose of this assignment, I felt I had the skills I needed to complete the activity – with or without the technology backing me up. On the other hand, it would have taken me longer than 20 minutes in the second phase if I had not had the technological resources available to me. I think the skills that students will need to learn in order to participate in activities like this are flexibility in brainstorming, critical thinking, knowing how to use the resources available to them and understanding how the creative process works. These skills are exceedingly relevant to the workforce and to problem-solving in life more generally and are 21st century skills.