Open Education

According to Michael Mcnally Open Education Resources “Are digitized materials offered freely and openly for educators, students and self-learners to use and reuse for teaching learning and research” (Mcnally, 2012).  I believe overall this is a fantastic idea and one that can help eliminate financial, location based, and academic barriers for students looking to better themselves and gain knowledge.  It also provides a great resource for parents and educators to collaborate, find and share educational tools that and ideas.   I think the fact that it is open and growing, is the most exciting part of the movement. The idea that people are working and building resources to provide free classes and resources to those that seek them restores hope for the future. The thought that anyone could take classes and use this information to teach themselves and learn from institutions like MIT and other world renowned universities is almost philanthropic.

Problems arise when you consider who are aware of these resources, have access to them and understand them.  The citizens of the world that are uneducated and would benefit the most from free materials and classes, may not have access to these resources, they may not understand them, and may not even realize they exist.  The free classes are great for those that are interested, but they provide no ‘college credits’ or translatable skills in the real world, other than the value of the knowledge itself.  They are still great resources, but they may not make an impact on the world at large.  Mcnally listed several other problems: the tendency for resourceful corporations or individuals to capitalize on free research in order to profit from it, the need for scrutiny to avoid misinformation, and the opposite train of thought that research is a valuable resource that should be capitalized on.   Then there is also the cost of creating, maintaining, and sustaining these resources.

My overall conclusion is that these open education resources are great tools for those that seek out knowledge on their own for its intrinsic value, or for educators or parents to share tools, applications and information to help teach children or students.  The internet or the library, themselves are open education resources, they have a near endless supply of knowledge, yet despite how much knowledge you gain, it does not translate into real-world applications.  The users of these tools also must be able to discern fact from rumor or fiction in order to gain any value at all. I think that the idea behind free education, resources, and research is wonderful, but unless these resources can make evolve further, they will just be what they are another resource like the internet, research databases, libraries, and the like.  Overall I think Open Educational Resources are fantastic tools.  The whole idea of free education is a fantastic idea, and its great that its actually gaining traction and producing results.  Now if we can just get the masses to participate and become lifelong learners…

This was a great learning activity. It brought a set of tools, resources, and a movement to my attention that I was previously unaware of.  I explored the OER commons which had a vast library of tools for educators, parents and students to use to learn.  The discussion we all participated in was engaging and informative. I gained a lot of insight from reading my fellow students’ posts and responses. This website we have created and are blogging on, is also a great resource for ourselves in the future.

What do you think the next step is to really take Open Education to the next level and continue the movement?

Face-to-Face, Hybrid & Online Classrooms

Face to face classrooms are the traditional classrooms everyone went to from kindergarten until college. Everything is completed here except homework, which teachers hope is completed after class. Classrooms require that the students be engaged in the activity, as there is nothing else they can focus on except distractions, here the teacher has to be a manager as much as an educator. Constructivist learning theories apply well here, if the teacher can create student-centric activities where students can really get involved and gain a deeper understanding.

Hybrid classrooms provide the use of technology with the benefits of a physical classroom.  They provide the strengths of having a teacher available to guide the students, ensure that they are working towards their goals, on track, and understanding the material.  “Inservice teachers face immense barriers in their attempts to integrate technology in their classrooms” (Doering, Veletsianos, 2008).  Budgetary issues and lack of proper training on creative uses of technology in the classroom can lead to a lack of technology or the underutilization of available technology.

Online classes do not have the benefit of students working together in person, but they provide an unmatched flexibility and a connection of vast distances instantaneously.  But the positive aspects of working from home can also lead to negatives as well.  “In a totally online course, a student feels isolated with just their course materials and the computer screen” (Bates, Watson, 2008).  Communication may not be as personal online, as when it’s conducted in person in a classroom, but online discussions allow for a more in-depth dialogue, allowing students to think more deeply before posting a comment or response.   Other issues exist with the lack of a classroom as well. “Online testing presents several problems. A serious problem is cheating” (Bates, Watson, 2008).  Verifying students are doing their own work is almost impossible.  Testing can be substituted with other forms of assessment, but it still proves difficult to prove the student is the one completing the work.

Adventure learning seems like a great way to make use of a hybrid classroom.  “Adventure Learning (AL) is a hybrid distance education approach that provides students with opportunities to explore real-world issues through authentic learning experiences within collaborative learning environments” (Doering, Veletsianos, 2008).  It provides a way to bring the class together and keeps them engaged in the activity.  It may not work for every subject but it proves to be a great way to integrate technology successfully into a traditional classroom.

Online classroom activities such as action learning projects serve as successful teaching techniques.  These action learning activities require collecting data from internet searches, discussing the data, and designing a solution, alone or with a group” (Bates, Watson, 2008).  I think this is an effective learning activity for this setting.  It allows students to improve their writing, collaboration, researching, and problem solving abilities, which all translate directly to the workplace and is student-centric in nature.

I was surprised to learn about all the interesting ways technology is being used in the classroom and in teaching in general. The idea that the second life video game is being used in teaching activities is some really innovative thinking. I think as teachers become bolder and try new things we will really see some great ideas that will work, not only to engage students but to really help them learn material. I remember when I was young there were these adventure games that involved historical information “Age of Empires” where the player would build a civilization and engage in warfare based on historically accurate information. I still remember a lot from those games, what a ‘trebuchet’ is, who Saladin was, and a lot of other information that I probably would not have read about, but that I recognize to this day when referenced almost ten years later.

What other new and innovative ways can we use technology to enhance learning both online and in hybrid classrooms?

This video provides interesting perspectives on Hybrid learning, and how its used.

Professional Learning Communities & Communities of Practice in Education

Professional learning communities are structured groups that allow people in the same profession to collaborate, share ideas, problems and points of interest.   Communities of practice are less organized forums that allow people working towards similar goals to collaborate and work together.

PLC’s can foster learning among professionals working in the same field, and allow them to share ideas and learn from each other’s experience. It creates a forum that can provide professional support, real-life feedback and trusted information.  Educators are responsible for the learning and development of dozens of students; problems that arise in this environment are specific to this field and cannot be solved with universal or simple solutions. “One of the most exciting things about a PLC is that you can share problems you are having in your classroom and find solutions without having to reinvent the wheel. The idea is that you have this collective intelligence-more than one person working by themselves” (Adams, 2009).

Communities of practice allow a group of individuals working towards the same goal to collaborate and use the community to learn. “Thus, rather than being an individual event, learning becomes a process distributed across person, time, place, and activity” (Donnell, 2007).  This is a great tool for education as it allows students to use others’ interpretation, understanding and questions on materials to further develop their own thoughts and understanding of the topic or project.

Technology may reduce the personal connection of these communities but by connecting people over great distances, it enhances these communities drastically.   Online communication provides an informal forum to discuss topics helpful to each other.  It not only connects people separated by distance instantaneously, but also provides members, who may be hesitant to participate in person, a way to do so from the comfort of their home.

Adams, C. (2009). The Power of Collaboration. Instructor, 119(1), 28-31.

Donnell, V. (2007). The Transition of Adult Students to Higher Education: Legitimate Peripheral Participation in a Community of Practice? ADULT EDUCATION QUARTERLY, 57(4), 312-328.

We are asked each week to read several articles from academic sources and to answer short questions about the central theme or topic.  After that, students reply to the answers I have submitted and I reply to three of their posted answers. I find it thought provoking and engaging and it serves as a community of practice on the overall topic of the class.  Many times I read other students’ interpretation of an article, or their perspective on a topic and it gives new insight to ideas I had not realized.  Many times reading others posts and responses, provides a new avenue of thinking I can expand on to gain a fuller understanding.  I enjoy doing it, I think it works well, and it can be done on each person’s individual schedule, as it is all online.

Professional Learning Communities and Communities of Practice both thrive with active participants, what are some ways to encourage growth and trust among members to ensure they remain actively participating?

Here is a link to a video I found helpful on a student-centric community of practice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl9M1VRsUaA

Here is a link to a video that provides a great real-life example of an in-person Professional Learning Community and its benefits: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T083KikcVzY

Welcome!

The goal of this blog is to share information related to education in the US. This Blog is part of the Master’s Program at Post University and will organize my classes and information regarding 21st century higher education.  I hope to gain the knowledge throughout the next two years to become a teacher myself and create positive change.

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.“

Henry Adams