Course Reflection EDUC 6115

   For the last 8 weeks I have been able to study a topic that I thought that I knew enough about but realized I have a lot more to learn.  In this reflection, I will look at what was new and surprising, how it has affected my learning, and then how it relates to my work in ID and as a professor. 

Prior to this class I was a firm believer that I was a Constructivist that also incorporated Learning Styles and Multiple Intelligences into my teaching and instructional design.  I still believe that this is largely the case, however, this course has allow me to expand my understanding of other theories and to bring some of those into my understanding of what makes a successful learning experience for my students.  An example of this is the incorporation of social learning theory.  It makes sense that people learn from interactions with each other, but I had not previously incorporated that into the classroom.  Thus when I do my edits to my courses for Spring, I am going to brainstorm ideas to include a way to allow for more social interaction, beyond just the discussion board. 

The lesson that I have learned from examining these theories has also effected the way I look at my own learning as I take classes toward my second masters degree in Instructional Design.  I am more open minded when it comes to the content that I will be learning and how I will embrace it and think about the assignments and their future application.  My biggest discovery when it comes to the relationship between theory, application, and technology is that it is more fluid and less rigid than I had thought and had previously incorporated.  What works for one subject or group of students may be an epic fail for others.  Thus as an instructional designer and professor I need to ensure that I am anticipating and varying the activities and delivery methods and have a back up or two in case something does not go according to plan.  There are a variety of learners and we need to embrace the differences of each of these learners and incorporate their strengths and weaknesses into our design and instruction.

Thank you for a wonderful course and a wake up call as I dive into the formal study of instructional design.

Unit 7 Questions

Now that you have a deeper understanding of the different learning theories and learning styles, how has your view on how you learn changed?

Before starting this class, I had a very certain idea of what my teaching and learning philosophy was and that is the way I designed the courses that I have taught.  After this class, I have incorporated a great deal more of the other theories into my picture of what learning involves.  Many of these represent common sense ideas such as social learning.  It stands to reason that we learn from one another in our interactions.  I find myself more willing to consider other ideas and points of view.

What have you learned about the various learning theories and learning styles over the past weeks that can further explain your own personal learning preferences?

When looking at my own learning there are some definite parallels to the theories that we have cover this term.  I am a firm believer in the constructivist approach.  I definitely find that when try to learn new material that I am trying to make connections to what I already know.  An example would be from my learning about learning styles and Constructivism.  I find myself test each of these other theories against what I know and how it fits with my current beliefs. 

 What role does technology play in your learning (i.e., as a way to search for information, to record information, to create, etc.)?

Technology has been a big part of my learning.  I earned my MBA online and am working on my 2^nd masters online.  I also have been involved in the working world of instructional design, teaching, and administration of online learning.  So many of the skills and content that I have learned in these areas have been through the medium in which I work.  Whenever tasked with a paper or project, I make use of technology in the form of the online library to find research that supports or refutes my thesis and ideas.  

How has your network changed the way you learn?

My Mind Map posted above represents the various influences as to the way I learn and the sources that I have input from and tenants experienced that allow me to introduce new knowledge.   A network, much like a computer Network is constantly changing.  Thus as I experience new education, new work experiences, and other experiences my network grows and changes to incorporate these new sources of information and inputs.  For me this network is best built by using tools that allow me explore and organize.

Which digital tools best facilitate learning for you?

 One tool that I have really latched on to for organization is OneNote from Microsoft for me the graphical aspect of it allows me to group and capture relationships.  Also software that incorporates video, audio, and hands on learning are also valuable for my personal development.

How do you gain new knowledge when you have questions?

When I have a question, I first look at what it is and then break it down into sub-questions.  From there I try to decipher what about each sub-question that I already know and what I need to find out.  Then I devise a plan to figure out where to get that information.  After researching each of these, then I gather the data and study it to determine if it answers the original questions satisfactorily or do I need to repeat the process based on what I found out that I knew or didn’t know.

In what ways does your personal learning network support or refute the central tenets of

connectivism?

This fits well with my theory of teaching and ID, as well as, my personal theory of learning.  I strongly belief learning is based on making connections between prior knowledge and experiences and them making connections between those and the new information.  

John's Mindmap-Week 5

Week 2 The Brain and Information Processing Theory

This week our course has focused around the brain and the theories that influence on the field of instructional design.  I remember these theories, although vaguely, from my undergraduate studies in Education and graduate work in the past.  

I find that as a curriculum developer and professor currently, much of what we covered this week is inherent into the nature of the job.  However, having the information processing theory spelled out helped me to think more deliberately of this process.  

Schraw in his web article "Information Processing Theory"  revisits the concepts of Sensory, Working, and Long term Memory.  In that the material needs to present in such as way that it triggers sensory memory, is processed in working memory, and submitted to long term memory.  "Automaticity makes available limited processing resources that can be used to engage in labor intensive self-regulation and comprehension monitoring" (Scraw, 2012). Simply stated course content needs to be easy to encode as there is limited capacity in sensory and working memory.   Much of what Schraw outlines as the implications of Information Processing Theory tie to my teaching philosophy rooted in Constructivism and the use of learning styles.  

Additionally,  a presentation from Professor John Pantana from Liberty University reinforces this thought process.  In his presentation in discusses the idea of brain based learning and their implications into online course development at Liberty.  He capsulizes the brain as seeking, processing, and organizing information constantly.  He reinforces this with 12 principles of brain based learning.  

• ·       All learning engages entire physiology
• ·       The brain/mind is social
• ·       The search for meaning is innate
• ·       The search for meaning occurs through patterning
• ·       Emotions are critical to patterning
• ·       Learning involves both attention and peripheral perception
• ·       Learning is both conscious & unconscious
• ·       Two approaches to memory (rote & spatial/contextual/ dynamic memory system)
• ·       Learning is developmental
• ·       Each brain is uniquely organized
• ·       The brain/mind processes parts and whole simultaneously
• ·       Complex learning is enhanced by challenge & inhibited by threat associated with helplessness & fatigue 

http://works.bepress.com/john_pantana/3/

To conclude I can simply say that I have much to learn still as I work toward a future in formal Instructional Design.  I have come a long way thus far but to effectively reach my students it is far more than just creating catchy activities and assignments.

John

References:

Pantana, J., & Deckard, S. (2007, November). Brain-based learning theory: An online course design model. Virginia association of science teachers. Retrieved from http://works.bepress.com/john_pantana/3

Schraw , G., & McCrudden, M. (2007). Information processing theory. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/information-processing-theory/?coliid=831096

Educational Blogs and their value

For this assignment we were to review educational blog sites and wed articles to find one that we really felt were valuable and that we could use and refer to on a regular basis.  Here are three that I found of particular value.

eLearning Technology---http://elearningtech.blogspot.com/

This blog is one that I have been subscribed to for several years.  This site focuses specifically on instructional technology.  I have been constructing courses that I teach for about six years, and have used many of the tips and applied concepts from this blog throughout that time.  Now as I study to do instructional design full time, this blog will become ever more important.  

The blog itself is very well laid out and easy to use.  The posts are few are far between about every few months, but what is posted is immediately useful.  One post for example, was a list of free and low cost LMS systems, this came in particularly handy when I was consult for a company picking a new LMS.  Another gave reference to eLearning conferences around the world in 2012. 

THE LEARNING CIRCUITS BLOG---http://learningcircuits.blogspot.com/  (Now moved to the ASTD Learning Technologies Blog… http://www.astd.org/Home/Publications/Blogs/Learning-Technologies-Blog.aspx)

Another blog that again I have used for some time is the Learning Circuits Blog.  Again it is a blog that focuses on Instructional Technology.  For older posts reference the learning circuits blog and for new content the ASTD Learning Technologies Blog. 

This blog offers a wider view of Instructional Technology as it looks from both a business and academic point of view.  A current focus of this blog that has produced quite a few guest blog posts is that of mobile learning.  It covers everything from considerations to limitations of Mobile Learning.  One recent article that provides an example of the versatility of this blog is a recent post called ‘Think like a product manager’.  This article focus on how as instructional design folks we sometimes do not look at the marketability of what we design.

Blogs about: Instructional Design---http://en.wordpress.com/tag/instructional-design/

This last one that I wanted to share is not a blog per say but a review and hub of educational and instructional design blogs.  It allows you to see the most recent post from many of these blogs and then provides a link to the blog itself.  Some of the examples are articles and subsequent links to articles about bad design, new technologies, teaching methods, and the list goes on and on.  This is definitely something to bookmark and refer back to regularly.  Also one may want to bookmark some of the subsequent blogs found on this page.