Strategies and Tools

Learner Engagement is always a hot topic in education.  Education has allowed for the use of technology as a means for engagement in our classrooms.  We are using these tools as a way to collaborate with others world wide and this collaboration will only continue to grow.  Siemens (2007) and Durrington, Berryhill, & Swafford (2006) both agree that collaboration is essential to the growth of online learning. 

As we look to the future of education, we can see the use of these technological tools to develop 21st century learners in a world filled with technology.  Education and collaboration can only grow with the help of technology bringing us forward in educational opportunities.

References:

Durrington, V. A., Berryhill, A., & Swafford, J. (2006). Strategies For Enhancing Student Interactivity In An Online Environment. College Teaching, 54(1), 190−193.

Siemens, G. (2007). George Siemens - Curatorial teaching.”Retrieved on April 21, 2011, from http://learnonline.wordpress.com/2007/09/20/10-minute-lecture-george-siemens-curatorial-teaching/.

Individuality and Collaborative Learning

My experience collaborating in groups online has been mixed. I love taking classes and see working in groups as an opportunity but not without its challenges. Working with others creates an environment to learn from others. Each of us has something to contribute because of our knowledge and experiences. I will admit it is easier to work alone but not nearly as interesting. Often members of groups do not want to contribute for various reasons and this leaves the rest of the group questioning the finished project of the collaboration. As Seimans states, a collaborative learning community is essentially all working together. When one member of the collaboration is not contributing, a prompt by the leader is sometimes warranted to add to the collaboration. I was interested to hear Seimans use blogging as a way to collaborate but maintain a social autonomy. I love blogging and have since created two other blogs and I think because I am in control of the blog and my own destiny, I am more comfortable collaborating.

Assessing collaborative learning is not as difficult as one might believe. We do a very good job assessing our own work and work of others when it comes to collaboration. Feedback builds the scaffolding needed for the base of knowledge and this comes from feedback. As an educator that uses online educational software, I do not find the need to look critically at a student’s time spent on the assignments or the time used to take a test; the outcome is that they are learning. Assessment on the knowledge does not have to be validated in a traditional grading format but proof of knowledge can be seen as a higher level of thinking.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Learning Communities [Video program]. Available from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=4930712&Survey=1&47=8482003&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1

Engaging Learners

As I do my research on engaging learners, I stumbled on this video from TED. Ali Carr-Chellman speaks about engaging boys in education and as a mother of an eight-year-old boy in the public education system, this speech really hit home and I wanted to share.

Ali Carr-Chellman: Gaming to re-engage boys in learning

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