Flight Path

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My journey as an educator over the past couple years has been the most rewarding and enjoyable of my career. Three years ago I was seconded as a Technology Mentor for the Southern Anglophone District in New Brunswick. In that role I was a part of numerous initiatives, most notable was the development and retrofit of a middle school library learning commons.

I was lucky to have spent most of my career at that school, so the design, purchasing, and planning were all things I had personally discussed with the administration for several years prior to the grant we received. Working collaboratively with the Province (who were footing the bill), the local IT department, the school administration, the teaching staff, and the district assigned carpenters was definitely a challenging endeavor. However, I would not trade what I learned from that experience.

One of the things I was most excited about was being able to implement some of what I had learned from the MET program thus far. Working with the Principal I was given carte blanche to use the Bates and Poole SECTIONS model to create a summation of the process and the vision for moving forward (I have attached it below for those that are interested).

That entirely aside, the one thing that was missing from this proposal was a comprehensive plan for the implementation of a robust LMS and analytics system. I have personally used Moodle within a school wide solution in a Canadian International School in China, and found it very useful. However, as I started to look into it more I discovered the Common Cartridge certification standards that permit the interoperability of different programs like TurnItIn. The most interesting aspect of all of this to me, is the integration of SCORM packaging and TinCan API. I would love to sink my teeth into this a little more and discover the true potential of a customizable analytics system that incorporates a Learning Record Store.

I know there are companies like Watershed LRS that use the Tin Can API system and would love to see if we could attempt as a class using one of these systems on a trial basis to get more comfortable with it. Both the SCORM and Tin Can API systems intrigue me because they are so customizable, and I would love to field test them to get a better sense of what some of the weaknesses and limitations are.

I have heard of various other analytics systems, and feel that the true power of an LMS is the teacher and student dashboards that provide both users (as well as admin) with the kind of feedback necessary to make intelligent decisions moving forward. I know of other companies that have garnered a lot of attention because of the executive teams that include the likes of Warren Buffet, and former Kaplan executive’s like Jose Fereirra.

Both Amplify and Knewton provide offerings for K-12 and post secondary institutions with learning systems that work alongside with the school IT department and technology implementation specialists to create these systems. If there was any opportunity to speak with the founders, or some of the data scientists and architects I think it would be a great learning opportunity that would be advantageous for myself, my colleagues and the companies themselves, as most of those enrolled in the MET program will have some insights to share on these systems and what makes them successful.

During my tenior in the New Brunswick Education system I have been restricted by the use of only Microsoft based products. The main platform for secure sharing as well as for our public facing school sites is sadly Microsoft Sharepoint… Working as a mentor it was my direct responsibility for the creation and maintenance of these sites and I personally have to say it is the clumsiest, most ineffective system a school system could possibly use and am unsure why it is still in place. That being said I would love to find more literature and gain experience using these more innovative solutions, so that when it comes time for the department of education to re-evaluate there current online infrastructure I will be better able to make a case for trying something different and much more effective.

As for the other technologies out there I would love to try, I feel that there is an opportunity out there to start bringing in coding programs at a younger age, so that we can steer more people into those programs (especially girls) and show them that it’s nothing to be afraid of, and that there are a number of great careers waiting for them if they have a basic understanding and proficiency at coding. Coding is somewhat of a hot topic at the moment and although, flashy multimedia projects seem to garner a lot of attention and funding in high schools, a strong and innovative computer science program is something that needs to gain more attention.

Currently in my hometown, the local IT companies (of which there are many) are looking at making partnerships with the local high schools to bring to the forefront the opportunities that are there for them right at their doorstep. If there is any opportunity to look at this in depth I would really be interested in doing so.

I am really looking forward to this class and can’t wait to dive into to it.

Phil Sweezey

 

FOREST HILLS LEARNING COMMONS: Assessing technology using the SECTIONS Model (Bates and Poole, 2003)

 

1. Define:

The objective will be to develop a deeper understanding of digital literacies for both students and teachers. With the pervasiveness of mobile computing and the ubiquity of the Internet, a greater focus must be placed upon the enhancement of digital literacies:

A shift towards a more self regulated learning approach, or heutagogy, will help to equip  digital citizens with the skills necessary  to discern and decipher what material is relevant and applicable to what they are learning while manoeuvering the Internet. If students are given more choice in their learning they will become more interested in the material and engaged in their learning.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xoy6lLRAnkU

http://steve-wheeler.blogspot.ca/2013/05/learning-theories-for-digital-age.html

“Are the old theories still adequate to describe the kinds of learning that we witness today in our hyper-connected world? Do Vygotsky’s ZPD theory or Bruner’s Scaffolding model still cut the mustard? Or can they work together with the new theories to provide us with a basis to understand what is happening. How can we for example describe learning activities such as blogging, social networking, crowd sourced learning, or user generated content such as Wikipedia and YouTube using older theories?”

http://steve-wheeler.blogspot.ca/2013/04/active-learning-spaces.html

“The idea that students should be able to move freely around the learning space whilst remaining connected is a powerful one. The possibilities of learning through collaboration with other students, and the potential to manage their own pace of learning are also very powerful. Students who can connect to online resources, social spaces and content also have freedom not only to search and discover, but also to create, revise, repurpose and share their own content.”

 


2. ASSESS:

In order to use the Bates and Poole’s SECTIONS Framework for assessing technology integration into the Forest Hills Learning commons, the following questions must be answered.

Students:

  1. Are transferrable skills being developed?
  2. Does the technology allow for an appropriate degree of openness to the community, beyond registered course of participants?
  3. Can students show their work via web link?

 
  1. Critical thinking skills and digital literacies are being taught to enable more student-directed learning.
  2. Students will be creating content that can be shared and published on an open platform or blog. Parents and community stakeholders can view and comment on any created content.
  3. Students will be posting pre-determined work online, on both private and public sites .
Ease of Use:

  1. Is a major time investment required on behalf of the students in order to learn how to use the technology?
  2. Will I need to make a major investment in time to learn this technology?
  3. Am I comfortable enough with the technology to guide students?

 
  1. The switch to Apple products, such as the iMacs and iPads, must be carefully planned out, including a proper implementation strategy. During the iPad launch week, students will develop the knowledge and skills necessary to use the tools and products with comfort and ease.  . With the prevalence of mobile devices and smartphones steadily increasing, many students have already established a basic comfort level using these devices.. Math and literacy apps will be easy to use, but other products, like keynote, pages and skydrive, will require training.
  2. Once the iPads and iMacs have been installed, the end users (students), accompanied by the assistance of a technology mentor and technician, should pick up the technology smoothly.. Once a basic backup of the iPads and iMacs has, been established, including installation of all necessary programs,, teachers and students will have the opportunity to become comfortable with the technology overtime. In order to aid with the early adoption phase, the technology mentor will be accessible to assist or lead lessons with teachers For the most part, iPads themselves are user friendly devices as they  do not  require logins or contain difficult navigation settings. The interactive touch screen component also makes it very easy to learn or become comfortable with.
  3. The technology mentor and technician have developed an easy to use system that allows  teachers to simply select a backup and email requests for apps that they are interested in.  Thus, self-installation of applications and/or managing iPad configuration settings will not be performed by teachers.
    Teachers can request assistance during the first few months, however it is recommended that an FTE be present in the room full time for the upcoming year to ensure that students and teachers are at ease with this new technology to allow its use to reach maximum potential. As defined above in Steve Wheeler’s post on Learning Theories in a Digital Age, blending  traditional learning theories with new technology has not proved to be a simple transition.

 
Costs:

  1. See budget above

 

  
Teaching and Learning:

  1. Does this technology support the learning goals that I have identified?
  2. Will students be engaged in authentic, real-world learning as a result of implementing this technology?
  3. Does this technology support peer/self assessment as well as instructor assessment?

 
  1. 1.      “As a response to the problems of learning in homogenised, regimented environments such as classrooms and  lecture halls, Technology Enhanced Active Learning (TEAL) came into being. It is one of several approaches to moving away from tedious and passive learning environments where students are expected to listen, take notes and remember what is being said and presented. TEAL spaces feature several characteristics, including flexible learning spaces where furniture can be moved into many alternative configurations, technology enriched contexts (wireless and untethered, web enabled and personal technologies) and a shift from teacher led lessons to student centered learning, where the learner can take control, and the teacher facilitates. One argument is that simply having access to personalized technologies creates conducive conditions in which active learning can occur. However, the role of the teacher is also paramount in the success of TEAL approaches. (Steve Wheeler, 2013)

With the role of the teacher being of the utmost importance, of providing the proper training and scaffolding for them is of the utmost importance.. A 1.0 FTE teacher facilitator is an integral aspect to the success of the Learning Commons’ endeavour.

  1. Transitioning to more interactive and responsive technologies should engage students and offer them opportunities to work on ill defined problems that encourage them to use critical thinking skills and apply knowledge that will make learning more meaningful.
  2. This technology allows for real-time feedback, using apps like Socrative, that gives real time results. Other evaluation systems or forms can be easily integrated using web-based forms.
Interactivity:

  1. Does this technology support interactions with peers, instructors and others associated or contributing to the learning tasks?
  2. Does this technology allow for sharing/collaboration with learning communities beyond registered course participants?

 
  1. Using the Apple TV, students can share their work on SMARTBoard and discuss it in small groups or as a class.
    The use of skydrive and it’s web-based application will also allow students work on the same documents simultaneously. Other online programs like Prezi can also be integrated to allow  multiple editors on the same project..
  2. Keynote, Pages, Prezi, Word, PPT are all easily shareable and publishable on class websites, blogs or other forms of online broadcasting networks for the community to view.

 
Organizational Issues:

  1. Are the support structures in place to maintain and update this technology?
  2. Is there help available for me or my students if we need it?
  3. Is there a way for me to retrieve my material if this technology fails or is replaced?
  4. Does this technology work with the SIS?
  5. Will students need to manage their own accounts?
  6. Will I nee to add students manually into the online environment?

 
  1. The setup process has definitely taken time, due to the fact that it was a new organizational system. With the reduction of technicians and the Technology Mentor being spread out amongst 13 other schools, teachers and students will require more real time access to Teacher/Facilitator to answer questions and provide support.
  2. As of now the support is provided by the Technician and Technology Mentor. More human resources are required to fully implement the Learning Commons properly.
  3. If the technology is lost or replaced, the material can be easily replaced as the students work is saved on the web-based programs themselves or via SkyDrive which is accessible on any PC, Mac, tablet or mobile device.
  4. This technology allows students to access their web-based NBSS email, MySite and other school based sites but does not require them to login using their NBSS credentials or give them access to their U: Drive.
  5. Students will need to setup the accounts themselves, a directory of their passwords and usernames will be saved and held on the Shared School Drive in case they forgot or misplace them.
  6. Students will not need to be added manually by a teacher. The Technology Mentor and Technology Teacher will facilitate the process of account creation.

 
Novelty:

  1. a. Will this represent a new approach to teaching for me?

b. Will this provide a new and (novel) learning experience for students?

 

 –        With the access to this technology the following areas should become a primary area of focus:

With access to this technology teachers should be moving more towards more of a facilitator role where a constructivist model is followed. Teachers should encourage students to take on ill-defined problems, inquire, explore, and discover new learnings. Given time and support a transition to a more connectivism model would be possible. Allowing students to create their own knowledge networks that they can reference to help them solve and discover new learning opportunities.

 

 
Speed:

  1. Can I make changes to content and learning activities on the fly?
  2. Is this a new (beta) technology or “tried and true”?

 
  1. Depending upon what platform is being used to facilitate the learning. However, with a focus on moving the teacher into more of a facilitator role, the students will be directors of their own learning.
  2. iPads have become the most commonly discussed tablet integrated into the 21st century classroom. With the number of Educational Apps far surpassing its competitors, and an ever-growing catalogue, it allows teachers to keep up to date with new trends and learning tools right at their fingertips.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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