I have been able to stay on the same AR topic for over a week now so I think I am committed. My action research question is:
Will the incorporation of wikis as a teaching methodology increase students’ knowledge and ability to critically think?
I have been busy this week starting a literature review. At this point, I'm trying to find as much evidence on the effectiveness (and limiations?) of collabrative learning with the emphasis on wikis. I'm happy to have been able to find quite a bit of research on this. (I see that Dan has chosen Wikis as will and will be sharing my resources with him).
Today, I am at Panera Bakery with Miki and we are going to set up RefWorks - Sonja cadre gift. I believe this will be a huge help for me as I try to organize my references. This coming week will be more literature reviewing and presenting my thoughts to "key" people at my work to get their thoughts on my AR project.
So it's Saturday night and I find myself at home... so I thought I should blog. It is amazing to me how much my life has changed since July 15 (I'm at home on a Saturday night for one). I find myself constantly thinking about OMET. I see it everywhere. I over hear random people talking about technology and I can't help but listen. It has changed the way I view the world. I find myself being even more patient with people, considering they are still "in process". I am looking to see how I can make little changes at home, my workplace and daily life. I absolutely love it. I am also feeling very overwhelmed as I am sure others are. The summer went by very quickly! It also did not end as I had hoped due to a very sad event in my family. I finished the assignments, but I was not as thrilled with the work that I did as I think I could have been. I definitely know I was distracted. I have decided not to dwell on it and look forward to this new semester. I'm having a hard time remembering to look at all the different sites we have to go to. It was definitely easier when everything was in Blackboard. I know I will get the hang of it soon; we're only about a week in. I feel like Gary's class is hard to follow in Google groups because I do not feel that the posts are organized. If someone replies to a post, it does not go underneath the post it goes to the very last post. I feel like I jump around a lot and sometimes miss posts. I'll be sure to ask others how they are organizing the posts or if they have any hints. I'm STILL waiting for my books to be delivered and I'm anticipating how much reading I will have to do to catch up. I am looking forward to it though. I have never enjoyed learning this much in my life! It should be interesting to see how things smooth out this week!
The Man Who Cracked the Code to Everthing by Steve Levy Dijlah Benjamin [Cadre 11] - 09/06/2008
After reading this article about Wolfram's book "new kind of science"
few thoughts came to my mind. I don't know why but I kept on thinking of the movie the "Matrix" and the computer generated codes,
in reference to Wolfram's theory that there is a single rule at the
heart of everything -a single simple algorithm that in effect generate all the rules of physics. how everything in this world can be explained by codes.
the book sound very interesting , lots of time was dedicated to it, I
am not in the field of science but I can see how Wolfram's encourages anyone in his book to view nature from a different angle.
He is using simple programs to answer any questions and help
understand things about nature. This article made me think of the use of technology and how much it impacted our lives in every aspect. Simple example would be the internet use (technology) I can learn about any topic using my computer and accessing the internet.
I found the book on the internet by the way if any one is interested to read it, I know I will dedicate time to explore it's chapters:
This was a nice read and intriguing, I’ve tried similar mazes, so I can relate. I would like to apply the “simple rules” when trying to navigate a maze, I wonder if that would really work.
Using new programming and computers to take on the maze challenge was a great idea. What Brian Silverman did not highlight is he was helping pioneer some of the earlier Logo and LEGO computer technology and programming. By creating a new challenge to be solved, he did a little User Acceptance Testing (UAT), and could report back data on how to enhance the blocks.
Having their first run take one hour and twenty minutes is not too bad, but to go back and complete it in twenty two minutes following their rules is great. That’s without technology.
Skipping ahead to the end result and going through the process of video recording and using the blocks, Brian and his MIT friends were able to map out a time conducive plan to complete the maze and they did a great job.
When they started using technology to solve the problem I felt as if they were cheating a little bit, but I justified that by stating, they are taking a technology approach to the maze. When I read the last part of the article, where the time keeper implied that they must have cheated in order to get the task complete in eleven minutes, I smiled. Not only at his comment but with Brian’s thoughts, as that’s similar to the way I justified it. I believe that using technology as an enablement tools is fabulous and of course I’m pro technology, but to a point. In this case I think it would be great for the maze people to have two time champions displayed, one for non technology and one for technology. And lets face it, it wasn’t all technology, they also used some human interaction (passing the cards through the wall) to reduce time. What would’ve have been interesting is the time it would have taken had they not done that. If they can complete the maze in twenty minutes without the technology, using technology (in theory) should allow them to complete the maze faster, without breaking through the walls and breaking into groups.
I’m still a firm believer in using both, but I think its imperative that students don’t completely rely on technology nor should teachers, or anyone else, the technology is a tool. If we take the tool away we should still have a general / fundamental understanding on how to solve problems.
The Man Who Cracked The Code To Everything… Malika Viltz [Cadre 11] - 09/06/2008
The Man Who Cracked The Code To Everything…
By Steven Levy
<a href='http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.06/wolfram_pr.html' >The Man Who Cracked The Code To Everything</a>
What was interesting about this article was learning the background to the Software Company and person who created Mathematica. I recall this software from years ago from a friend’s older brother who talked about at University of IL and my dad’s former IBM colleagues at dinner events.
I’ve come to know it because it paved the way for many software companies alike. SPSS which creates a lot of statistical software and McGraw-Hill with their new math software, which is based on algorithms and equations. Which I guess Stephen would disagree with the way the software is developed as he states “the algorithm is mightier than the equation.”
The article is the conversation Steven had with Stephen early on and how he did not value his mother or fathers line of work nor their opinion, and yet later on he found himself referencing one of his mothers books in order to assist him in writing A New Kind of Science.
The article was not easy to follow; there’s a gap for me as it pertains to programming and the complexity involved with the software development or the science and research for his book. Would like to read the book at some point, to me I leave “Wolfram law” as more theories.
I just have to share this out. I received this from a colleague on the western slope here in Colorado. She recieved it from some friends in Dallas. Here is what she sent:
... this video of a fifth-grader from the Dallas Independent School District delivering a back-to-school keynote to Dallas ISD employees is worth, in my opinion, eight minutes of your time.
For the Dallas ISD communications team, Dalton Sherman, their "mystery keynote speaker," has spurred a phenomenal response and brought home the fact that we're living in an era of new media. What started as a local inspiration now has the power to reach across North America and around the world.
“ The right to ignore anything that doesn’t make sense is a crucial element of any child’s learning- and the first right children are likely to lose when they get to the controlled learning environment of school” (Smith 19).
Lately it seems that no matter where I am at or what I am doing, reading, listening to, I am confronted with the unpopular images associated with schooling. It is really hard not to take these things personally. Our Google Group discussions for Gary’s class have been looking at how traditional school kills the idea of studying, that school has made studying a “bad thing.” Listening to the Republican and Democratic National Convention speeches regarding schooling, they are trying to diminish any positive light of public schools. Our readings about learning, about make believe lands students have created because school has provided that outlet, all seem to portray school as nothing more than a place to destroy children’s hopes and dreams. If you haven’t seen it, check out Sir Ken Robinson’s talk to TED about schools killing the creativity out of kids. I guess what I am trying to write about while reading all these things, is where is the positivity in school? Why aren’t we talking about all the good things? Why are we focusing on the negative? I understand the importance of examining the problems with our current education system, but for once, can someone stand up and talk about the good. I am the first to say that usually with blogging and especially with reflective blogging that I tend to focus on the questions, the problems, and my frustration. I find that I don’t often celebrate the good long enough or remember it for long enough. If I played a psychologist on TV I would say that means that I am always looking for more, trying to do more, that I am not satisfied with the results of the past. But, I think if what Smith is saying in “The Book of Learning and Forgetting” is right, than we as educators, are becoming our own worst enemy. We are showing society and our students that through our grumbles that school is bad. It doesn’t serve them well. And these students learn from our actions and words. When I sit down at home to grade papers and my kids here how much I hate/loathe/would rather do anything than grade a set of papers, I am contributing to their understanding about school and learning.
Here’s my disclaimer to all I am writing: I love my job. I can’t imagine doing anything other than what I am doing. I wake-up pretty much everyday of school ready and excited to see my students. I actually miss them when I am not with them, I love to watch and hear them learn. I love to see them grow over time into wonderfully, conscientious, educated citizens who feel like they can change the world. I love challenging them, working with them side by side, sharing my life with them, and with all of this, I am always excited to do more. To expose them to more, to show them there are endless possibilities for them. I guess I just want my kids and myself to change the world. And that all starts with me….
I am currently at a Workforce Development Conference in Birmingham, AL. Because of the hurricane Gustav many evacuees from Louisiana have come here. I am staying at the Sheraton and there are about 600 evacuees that have checked in at this hotel alone. As I study behavior in the brain and learning processes it hurts me to see so many people not take advantage of the state educational programs available to them. I have been able to catch up on my reading here I finished the Cognitive Style of Power Point: Pitching Out Corrupts Within, I will never look at a Power Point presentation the same. I like the points brought out by Tufte, that state, “Power Points’s convenience for some presenters is costly to the content and the audience. Power Point comes with a big attitude. Other than video games, not many computer programs have attitudes.” To end the book with a Power Point presentation of the Gettysburg Power Point Presentation was hilarious. I am reading the articles for the second life class my favorite was Learning Theory by Mark Smith. That one for me was personal have a 3rd grader I want him to learn, not just know. I will finish Experience and Education tonight, that one looks very interesting. All of this reading and theory is new to me, but I see how everything I do relates to my new point of view.
In last night’s class, Paul asked each attendee if there was anything specific we wanted to talk about regarding our Force Field Analysis. I had plenty of time to reflect on my response, as I was one of the last students to take the microphone. Recently, I have been reading additional articles and books about Action Research Projects and, in particular, how to avoid or deal with anticipated pitfalls. When my turn came, I spoke of an oversight, a bulleted item that should have been on my Forces Against Change list. It didn’t even occur to me, when crafting the negative forces, which action research participants might be leery of being involved in my project because it might expose a weakness and therefore be considered less than effective by our organization. I will have to factor this in as a possible objection, assigning a rating of one on a one-to-five scale. Although this could be a threat in the back of someone’s mind, it is highly unlikely that WestEd would chastise an employee for trying to improve his or her work performance.
It’s hard to admit, but I wasn’t looking forward to doing this assignment, in fact, I put it off as long as I possibly could. What value could doing this routine analysis help me gain insight into my intended project? As it turns out, the activity was extremely helpful in taking an honest look at whether this project had any chance of success. It was an excellent exercise that enabled me to think through the process in order to determine if my action research would be a worthy endeavor. The Force Field Analysis template brought back some special childhood (and young adult) memories for me. Whenever I had to make an important decision, my mother would always tell me to make a list of pros and cons and which ever was the longest would end up being the deciding factor. In much the very same way, I followed the familiar format with my potential action research project. I made a list of pressures to aid me in understanding the forces for and against change, weighing each bulleted entry with points instead of length to help determine the outcome.
As a result of this activity, I have (hopefully) developed a fairly good idea of what kinds of opposition I might encounter as my action research project unfolds.
I am at the point with my action research that I need to start narrowing down my topic and I am really struggling in doing so. I like the ideas that both assessment and motivation entail. I am intrigued with the idea of students creating their own rubric, holding myself and themselves accountable to this rubric. Now I don’t think the rubric they created is the end all by any means, but I do think it provided them with a lot of structure and guidance into grading. It provided them with some control that many have never felt over their grade. And with the idea of kids having control over their grade, would that grade then be a better reflection of their learning and understanding? I mean they have set the standard that they need to achieve so there seems to be no mystery behind the grading.
With the idea of motivation, I think this ties in so well with the assessment piece. If kids have to motivation to succeed as a result of having control of something in the classroom, then how can the two not go hand in hand? I understand that I just won’t have time to study both. Also, I want their motivation to succeed to continue and so I want kids to have the opportunity to redo assignments until they have achieved their desired grade. But I worry about this with grading. How do I keep up while encouraging them to keep going? Margaret commented early that grad school is like a race. If you stay on top of things, you will be able to stop for rest breaks and an occasional drink of water; if you fall behind, you just have to do that much more to catch –up. I think both my students and I can live by this idea by not letting their work or mine (whether grading or grad school) to get far behind.
When deciding whether to pursue motivation or assessment, I am still torn. The spirit behind NCLB is definitely something to look into when considering the issue of motivation so that none of my students are left behind without demonstrating their true understanding or learning. When they leave my classroom, they are intrinsically motivated to succeed knowing that they have control over their learning. On the other side, after spending a few years on our grading pilot committee with our school district, I am intrigued with the prospect of assessment and grades being true reflections of students’ learning. If they kids create the rubric that measures their learning, is that assessment a better reflection of their learning and understanding. Also, if students have the opportunity to redo their work to better demonstrate their learning, then is their new grade a better measurement of their learning as well. Looking forward, it seems like I need to start researching the two areas of motivation in learning versus assessment and see what tips the scales.
Action Research Reflection - Context and Forces Dan Wood [Cadre 11] - 09/02/2008
Note: This information was originally posted in Blackboard on 8/20/08. I am placeing it here as well to keep my AR work in one location.
Action Research Context and Forces
For my action research project I will be working with adults in a corporate setting. Within the corporation there are multiple business units which my team supports in terms of learning and development. I will be working with both direct colleagues - other members of my learning and development team - as well as various business leaders and employees at all levels of the organization. One interesting aspect of my context will be the involvement of corporate partners with whom my company contracts for most of our ‘front-line’ support positions. The actions that I have will involve and impact all of these populations in some way.
My current plan is to focus on collaboration techniques that I can apply to my work and increase productivity, reduce redundancy, improve quality, and introduce a level of transparency to my work that I believe will have a positive impact on my work environment. Many individuals on my team have expressed a frustration with many of these areas and a desire for a change. In particular I want to explore how the use of Wikis can reduce much of the redundancy within our process for developing learning materials for support representatives.
While Wikis are very simple and there are certainly more advanced tools for creating engaging and interactive learning I feel strongly that much of our time is spent writing and rewriting documents for instructor-lead training (ILT) only to need to update them a few weeks later. A Wiki is a live document that can contain links, widgets, and media. It can also be updated by any user as appropriate. This can carry a risk, but I feel the rewards far outweigh the risks. I will get more into risks and rewards in the future.
For the most part I will have a strong partnership with most of the teams and individuals that I have included above. My belief in this support stems for the positive long-term relationships that I have forged with most of the individuals that I interact with in these teams. That being said I am also aware of forces within many of the teams that will, as Margaret mentioned during our TI session this week, “need convincing” or in some extreme cases actually be outspoken against my actions.
This week alone I have had the opportunity to engage with at least two individuals in my organization that need convincing and it was a great experience. The resistance that they provided during our conversations created a structure for our discussion and allowed for deeper thinking about how the use of Wikis would impact our team and those whom we work with and support. I also lead sales training for my company from time to time and liken this to resistance within a sales conversation. If there is no resistance in the conversation it is difficult to know where to take the discussion and what is important to the customer. Resistance can be a very positive force in driving and shaping a process.
I have at least one individual that I work with that is very resistant to my ideas in general and has already expressed a dislike of the idea of using Wikis. This person is also resistant to the ideas of others and overall will need to be shown the advantage to the plan before agreeing that it has any value. I am intrigued to work more closely with this individual and in terms of those whom I will invite to be a part of the process I will be certain to reach out specifically to this individual. While much of the work falls outside of what they may perceive to be their role, I see where they could be a great resource to enhancing the work and bring a life to it that it would otherwise lack. In this way I am hoping to see this individual feel some ownership in the process and not feel as if it is being ‘done to’ them or ‘done without’ their input and ideas.
In terms of permission I will need to work closely with both my direct and next-level manager. In both of these cases I have strong support and guidance for my efforts. I anticipate encouragement from these individuals as well as thoughtful questions to assist in guiding my process. This is an area of my work for the past three years that I have felt is amazing - it is one of the first places I have worked that is extremely open to new ideas and to pushing to innovate and improve processes. There are certain cases where failure is desperately avoided, and at the same time we are always encouraged to try something new and learn from both failures and success equally. There is not a stigma attached to admitting failure and sharing the learning from that experience.
I will continue to reflect on my context and the forces within my research setting and the groups with which I will interact. I am planning to also create a graphical representation of the forces as well. Overall I am happy with the openness that exists within the context of my research and I am looking forward to moving further into the project.
After completing my force field chart, it helped me to have clarified vision of what I will need to take action on initially.
When I first envisioned my project, the concept of action research as a modality to start the project was unwittingly built in. Though I had heard the term action research, I had not defined it as thoroughly as I/we now have.
The idea of bring to fruition a project that would benefit society and required the collaboration of those who found merit or benefit in the project was compelling and has imbedded benefits. Some of those benefits might be reduced restriction, reduced start time and shared benefits/onus in the outcomes.
I was deterred from the traditional path of project development as this path might restrict how and when we might start. A traditional path might be to seek private or government capital investment to develop and start the project. Some of the pitfalls of start up monies from these traditional sources is that the oversight comes from an entity who’s focus in not on the project success but the protection of the funds, even at the cost of project failure. While some of the applied restrictions may show fiduciary responsibility, the contradiction is that the success of the project should insure the integrity of the funds. So, the buy in, and the oversight should be diligently applied to both the project and funding management.
In some instances the funding oversight might direct the project in an entirely different direction, ending in a project that was not originally planned for.
The pros and cons were revealed further when we completed a Grant Research Opportunity Report (GRO). This does not mean that we might not use grant money. However, there are litany of great projects that have not been brought to fruition because they do not fulfill the stipulations outlined by the funding groups, and so they fail to start. So, in bringing this project to fruition without traditional lenders may help establish new methods of project launching.
I am amazed to see how far I have come, as I close this summer session. It seems ironic, you think life will go one way and then it completely changes course. First of all, in my mind, I thought I would be starting school in the fall and I would have the summer off to complete some projects. Virtcamp changed that… Wow, Virtcamp changed everything… swooooosh…. Learning Blackboard, Distributed Learning, Distributed Cognation, Second Life, Action Research, and Ethics in Research. While listening to the online course regarding ethics and research and I wondered why this is important to me, in educational technology? Then I realized the importance of data collection, ethics and respecting others privacy. Well, fall semester starts tomorrow. It is hard to believe that I am already 1/3 closer to receiving my Master Degree in Educational Technology. I am looking forward to what my instructors will place before me this semester.
My contribution to DC/DL was to edit the reference page. This project turned out to be a better opportunity than I thought for us. The corrections where not easily rectified nor sources easily found, but this made for a robust learning opportunity. Janet, the librarian at the Irvine campus was able to spend an uninterrupted three hours guiding me through the correcting of the reference links. Janet did comment that the correcting process was very difficult and required patience, patience which she had lots of. I have not yet finished all the corrections and will let the cadre know when I have. Moreover, I was able to share jing with the librarian and she was thrilled.
Next, I plan to contact the Writing Support Center (once all the links are corrected/leading to their articles) to help me correct any APA non-compliances.
I will conduct this process with the reference lists for both of our collaborative documents, as part of my contribution.
After speaking with the librarians, there is a possibility that we will use jing to present an overview of the corrections to the reference page and some of the things we discovered about library searches. This way what I had the opportunity to discover/learn may benefit others in the cadre in regards to their future writings.
As I was unable to determine who's references belonged to whom, I noted in red next the two references that the librarian suggested may have been references from another writing's reference list. We found some possible sources for links to the full text for these two, but the PU library does not subscribe to the databases that contain the articles. Hence, we could not access the doc/link without membership/fees. However, the person who submitted the reference may have access to the database(s).
Once I have completed the correction to the reference pages I plan to add to the content in addition to monitoring and tweeking the reference pages.
In reflection, through the assistance of the PU resourses staff I have also had a major learning experience. Moreover, I have discovered as many of you may have that the PU staff are as gracious as they are skilled. (Servant Leaders!)
So, I picked up my copy of A Whole New Mind, on Friday afternoon on my way home from work. I figured I would get a jumpstart on this semester's reading considering I am world's slowest reader. And I probably have some form of adult ADD because I get bored really quickly when I am reading books. Don't get me wrong, I love to read, but I struggle because I can't focus.
Anyway, I was realy exited about this book because I had read a little about it and it was on my list of books to read. I finished the book last night after only 2 days. I could have finished it sooner, but grocery shopping got in the way of my reading. I couldn't put it down. It was intriguing... I have already recommended this book to 3 of my friends and had extensive conversation about the content of the book. I think this is a must-read for EVERYONE... no matter what their profession or where their career path is headed.
Here are some of the things I found intriguing:
The explanation of why some languages are read right-to-left and others left-to-right.
The process that the brain goes through during interpretation (the left intreprets logical, sequential, and literal ideas, whereas the right interprets the "big" pictures, fills in the blanks and picks up on all things figurative)
The Conceptual Age and the idea of a WHOLE new mind. The subtitle "Why Right-Brainers Will Rule in the Future" may be slightly deceiving. I don't think it is the purely right-brainers that will rule in the future, and part of me thinks that the book doesn't present that arguement that right-brainers will. The title itself and a sentence straight from the book suggest otherwise. It is those who work to develop a marriage of both their right and left brains working together- thus explaining the whole in A Whole New Mind.
Each of the 6 senses was fanscinating. Here are a few examples from my own life that demonstrate evidence of these sense and how they are influential.
Design: So true... I think about my website experiences. I refuse to shop on a website that is poorly designed. Even if the product is nice and the price is right. If the website looks like crap, I instantly click the back button and go back to find somewhere else to get my product. (Love the toaster example)
Story: I am a sucker for story telling. I must admit that I am not an avid news watcher or reader- well at least not your typical morning and afternoon news programs. But, I love to watch 20/20 or Dateline. I don't like listening to the facts as much as I love the story behind the facts.
Symphony: I feel like I am a boundary crosser. It is my nature to be good at alot of "stuff". I would rather be good at alot of things, rather than to be expert in one thing. I am a teacher as my day job, but I love photography, website design, french, scrapbooking, and outdoor sports. I think there are many things I am really good at and I enjoy developing those skills. I have found the greater range of my skills, the more marketable I become. I also have a dyslexic brother who is one of the most creative people I know. He is 22 and completely remodeled his house that he bought, designs cars and is an amazing pencil artist. Completely right-brained.
Empathy: As I was reading about empathy in health-care, I was thinking about my own experiences. One weekend, I noticed my eyelids were swelling up. I had no idea what was going on, but I knew I had to see a doctor. I drove to the ER and sat down in the room waiting to be examined. The doctor came in and listened to what was wrong with me, hardly took a history, and without even coming close to me, diagnosed me with pink eye, and gave me a Rx for some pink eye meds. After $50 copay (and $200 visit after insurance) and $150 in meds, I realized the meds weren't working. I went to another doctor (not the ER) and the doctor listened to my story, asked many questions, and determined that my eye makeup remover was causing me to have an allergic reaction. After the correct diagnosis... I was healed and continue going back to that doctor. (For those of you wondering about the ER visit, I wrote up a complaint letter with an earfull to the Head of ER and got all my money back).
Play: I am all about Play and sense of humor. It makes what could potentially be a bad day at work or the dull and drugery of day to day work... it makes it fun and exciting. The people I enjoy working with are those full of life and excitment. They are happy and have a great sense of humor. My students relate to me most and learn most is when I bring humor into the classroom.
Meaning: I am a very religious individual. I could not make it through each day with all the trials and tribulations throw at me, without my faith that there is something "greater than myself". I find myself happy and enjoy my self-searching.
I loved reading this book and discovering where I fit in. I think I am a very well-rounded person, but still have much to let go as far as my type-A, left-brained side. I need to work on empathy. That is something with which I have always struggled. Love love love this book!
There are so many forces around me right now. Those that are saying, go out and have fun, stay in a save money, finish your work and just do it, enjoy the process and do it right... So as you can see I stayed in and finished my Force Field Analysis. I used gliffy to create the structure. This was my first time working with this tool and I liked it. I was really frustrated at times because I felt like I didn't have a good view of the top of the page or I would pick up things I didn't mean to. I kept reminding myself that it was the process and to think about all I was learning in that moment. I finished and am happy to say that I think all of the negative forces can be worked on. Also, all of the positive forces are very encouraging and exciting. School is starting this week and I can't wait to meet all of the new students! It is going to be a really fun and exciting year this year, I can just feel it! I have a few blogs I need to post that I wrote on my other computer in Word. I was out of town the last few days due to my 16 year old cousins funeral and I didn't have internet access, so I'll post those as soon as I can. I'm looking forward to our classes this coming fall and am so ever thankful for the wonderful experience I have had so far.
As I was scouring the internet and found Chris Dede's 2007 FETC podcast on Web 2.0 tools which I have to say was excellent. I found it to reinforce the distributed learning concept. In his speech he also talks about the concept of distributed thinking which he illustrates with a Microsoft marketing video which pretty much sums up today's workplace and the motivation of why we need to bring Web 2.0 tools into the classroom. Chris Dede's definition of distributed work, cognition and learning is "Cognition is distributed across human minds, tools/media, groups of people, and space/time --dispersed physically, socially and symbolically." Chris Dede podcasts continued to expand my understanding of DL as I knew it because prior to this, looking back on it my understanding was a bit limited. Now I that I have this expanded notion of DL it will help me not only in the OMET program put I think I have a more meaningful understanding of DL and its far reaching implications. I only hope that I can bring the tools to help my organization teach our kids the tools of tomorrow, web 2.0 tools and more..
My field of Action Research seems to be in a constant state of fluctuation. Focusing on Technology Equity is a key driver for me, but it needs to encompass other aspects of technology and learning and not just the under privileged.
Who’s really looking at the schools systems and their technology, is there one single group / organization looking at the over all process and capturing lessons learned to introduce better process and procedures. And ensure the technology is viable? Really need some guidance on narrowing down a specific issue as there are several that intertwine.
It does seem like the last few weeks went at whirlwind spend. It started off so slow that I felt there was significant time to do all the tasks and get things done without any stress. Then reality hit - how do I really get out of this program what is intended as well as what I want while completing all the assignments and tasks? Taking the concepts that were introduced to us at VirtCamp is the key.
The bound that was formed with my VirtCamp group is very strong. I am so happy when I see thier names appear in TI sessions. I feel like my family is there with me. I also can hear Dan's voice in his postings. I enjoyed listening to him explain things at VirtCamp with so much patience (I was at the table next to him). I have enjoyed building a new bond with LC 5. It was more difficult because we had to make it happen as oppose to VirtCamp when we were placed in an environment designed to faciliate bonding.
Finding a balance between work and OMET has been a difficult task. I have not mastered it yet, but I'm closer to this than I was four weeks ago. I work 15 hour day as I am sure many of my Cadre peers do. Finding time to do the readings, research tools, discussion board postings and such has been a challenge. What works best for my schedule is what they warned us not to do - wait until the weekend and do all your work. I had one week where I just could not find time to get on-line (for OMET) on Monday through Thursday. When I finally logged into Bb, the discussions were winding down and I saw immediately that I missed out on many very good learning opportunities. I felt like a spectator and not a participant in the discussion.
The number of technology skills I have acquired this summer is amazing. Working on a wiki and getting to understand its impact on learning was truly amazing to me. I had never blogged until OMET.
The highlight of the summer for me was the Cadre gifts. What a great experience. I hope that I can find the time to try each of the gifts. And, I plan to print out all the gift descriptions and activities and put into a folder that I will keep at work. I want everyone I have contact with (students, faculty and staff) to have them as a reference and learning tools. I hope they get out of them as much as I have.
I'm looking forward to the fall. I'm sorry that I will not be working with Margaret this fall. I have enjoyed her constant encouragement and thought provoking (and often frustrating?) questions. Yes, she has pushed me to think more than I have in many years. Which is a good and positive thing. I have learned many lessions on how to faciliate and guide learning by participating in her discussion boards and TI sessions. I watched the TED video today and found it very entertaining. And, of course there was the "Web 2.0" UTube video.
I feel I am at the first stop of a life long journey. The first leg was great and I can't wait to see what the next leg of the journey has in store for me.
641 - Distributed learning and collaborative writing Assignments:
I will do my best expressing my thoughts about this class. Challenging is a good word to describe it. The discussions on black board, the wiki work and the production of a document by more than person (its a LIVE), the arguments of why your name is on this section, I own it, I am scared of editing, the debates from Dr. Rile and the process of gaining new knowledge, and then realizing there is so much more to read and write about. were all examples of Distributed learning.
I will paste some of what I consider my best discussions here to give you an idea on how it all went down:
Distributed Learning - is learning through the use of distributed resources, using technology as the main medium such as the Internet. As we all know the Internet is the most popular source of learning and teaching.
The Promise and Perils of Technology:
Dr. Rile Asked: Is collaborative learning the same as distributed learning? Took me 2 hours to write this, I was thinking okay!
I had a tough time answering this question, I would say they are not the same but they support each other in the learning development; distributed learning process supports collaborative learning.
I feel like the Promise and Perils editing has a lot of information on it already. I find some info. redundant. I would like to comment on some paragraphs but then I read that some one else had stated that same thought.
looking at the Wiki assignment from a different perspective might be helpful, it's not the quantity it's the quality of the work you are sharing with the group.
I never worked on a Wiki before, I enjoy the research process I am reading so many articles that I normally would not have red prior to this assignment. Enjoy the process and as long as you know you are giving us your 100% quality work then I will be grateful for that.
This is what I learned from all of this:
To have an open mind to learning, it might be intimidating at first but very rewarding at the end it might opens doors to new opportunities you never knew existed.
After reporting being in a dilemma with my Action Research not knowing which topic to pick from I THINK I am starting to worm up to one topic, Well I still have not set my heart on one specific topic yet, I am still research all my three options, I just have more to report on this one for now -
I plan to work with LA Unified School District main office through my employer UPS and their sponsorship to United Way. The initiative is to help reduced high school drop out rates among Black and Hispanic students by providing creative alternatives to earning a diploma.
I was introduced to United Way representative last week while in a meeting I was able to learn about my company's involvment with United Way and the initiative they are involved in. Being part of this committee requires meeting twice a month to discuss their progress.
The main concerns discussed are increase teacher quality and promoting the use of technology in relation to having a successful future. Coming up with action plans that will help and support would be a key. Any one is welcom to join in local companies, the city, and volunteers are welcom as well. I wish to recieve more knowledge of this topic and hope to report to you soon.
To me an action research is to select an issue that I would like to explore, describe it, and research on ways to improve up on it. Conduct research on the issue through asking questions, reading and analyzing your findings. The research part will be a challenge but a great learning experience at the same time.
I feel this week was a big turning point for me. As is my nature, I tend not to be at the same place at the same time from day to day, even in my home town. This had led to a feeling of "I'm not ready to really get down to work just yet, I need to get settled first." I'm sure many in this cadre can relate!
My summer has been very very hectic and the most productive I ever felt was when I was in a Muncie, Indiana Starbucks just chilling for a couple of hours, sipping my coffee and blackboarding away.
Then again when I was in Chicago.
And again in San Francisco.
And again in Los Angeles.
There's a pattern in here somewhere...
Anyway, when I returned home to start the new semester here at Santa Barbara City College (one of the most beautiful college campus's in the world), I found it hard to dedicate time to OMET, always putting off the work to when I really "got it figured out" and "felt settled." And that really didn't happen, even when I dedicated an hour or two to just read and get into things.
But lately I've been getting into the habit of going to the Starbucks near my work a couple hours early for a caffeine jolt and some OMET time, and then again after work. And this has been the most productive time so far - a standard location, where my brain knows what it is supposed to do (actually work) and my coffee flooded bloodstream makes that happen.
I can chill here, listening to good background "thinking music" on my laptop (streaming from home, naturally), and just immerse myself in the program.
I'm sort of annoyed that it has taken me this long to figure it out, but I'm also thankful that I have turned the corner and made it work.
Jing is the story of a new Web 2.0 tool on the verge of hitting the big time.Jing is suddenly faced with the prospect of great success all the while fighting off the end-users penchant for sharing knowledge to one person at a time, rather than distributing the learning to multiple parties in a clear and concise recorded manner. (My apologies to Vy Higginsen of “Mama, I Want to Sing!”)
I was extremely excited to share Jing with Cadre 11.Jing has changed the way I interact with people at work and has allowed me to be a far more productive and happy Technology Specialist.Jing has been a phenomenal find on multiple fronts.First , it was introduced to me by one of my 6th grade Computer Application students.Secondly, it has allowed me to become more efficient; offering instruction to multiple users at their pace not mine. Finally, and most importantly, it’s a free Web 2.0 tool.
I decided to use Jing rather than a different tool because I use it on a regular basis.In reflecting on the why, I began to understand how I go about doing business on a daily basis.Much of my time is spent correcting a problem for one individual, often repeating the same instruction a few days and sometimes a few hours later. Not nearly enough time is spent being proactive with my colleagues.I know they have questions and activities they wish to accomplish but either they don’t yet have the tools or the knowledge.Jing has been a god-send for showing students step-by-step tasks.
Jing allows all three types of learners to be engaged.Visual learners are engaged by the on-screen full motion video, auditory learners are engaged by the recorded human soundtrack, and kinesthetic learners have the opportunity to work along with the video and be completely hands-on. Jing is s three dimensional tool, and a fixture in my Web 2.0 toolkit.
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