Hi Jane,
Thank you for your well written and honest post. I am sorry to hear you had a difficult year. Those are never easy and sometimes those years are filled with social emotional learning, as well as acceptance and strategy building lessons. There is learning, it’s just not always seen as the “curricular” or important ones. I believe they are.
You mentioned that, “with the removal of some very big personalities being in the same room, we came together and we learned.” That sounds lovely and I am glad that online learning came as a breath of fresh air for you, rather than an even more difficult endeavour. I do have a question…. were the learners who had a difficult time in class removed from online? Or did some of them begin to thrive in that type of learning situation? I wonder because, if they did thrive more online, I wonder what it might have been for them that worked? It makes me wonder that perhaps these children exuding certain behaviours, in fact need something that online offered to them, rather than the face to face lessons.
I too look forward to learning more about OER and where to find them so that I am being the most educated educator I can be. Thank you again for your post.
Jason ,
What a lovely and well thought out post. I relate to many of your ideas, especially how, “This illuminated the complications that can arise from teachers wanting to use online and computer applications in their classrooms. Many of these helpful and innovative online tools that we would use in Canada are based in the USA (and other countries), so that is where the data is stored.” Honestly, I have been caught in this dilemma numerous times and it is utterly frustrating. That being said, it is more safe and it does make sense to not have all this information in sites in the United States.
You mention, “Regan and Jesse (2019) address the ethical dilemmas that go along with data tracking. As well as more potential troubling possibilities that can arise from sorting students based on simplistic data and analysis that is ultimately dehumanizing (2019).” These are scary risks aren’t they? It is amazing how open and willing we are to put information out there, when some horrible and security risky possibilities can happen when we do so. The more I have been taking these online courses and the more I am learning about security risks and privacy concerns, the more I choose the protect myself. I have gone back into my instagram, facebook, and twitter and tightened up my settings. I have also thought deeply about the information I share on here.
We we live in a world where we are moving, if not already, online and we need to be educated about all the risks and possible outcomes of what we choose to post, write and share online.
Thank you again for your thoughtful post. I truly related to it and affirmed some of my thinking. Lisa SwanJuly 9 at 5:32 PMTopic 1: Lisa’s discussion post #1I decided to make a podcast for this post. Please see attachment.Thank you.
Topic 1 – What is Online Learning.mp3(4.5 MB): lISA’S #1 Blog
Jayne Won
July 11 at 6:21 PM • 167 Words
Topic 1: Lisa’s discussion post #1
Lisa,
Thank you for sharing your vulnerabilities and your truths. I can relate to these feelings of being overwhelmed. Your points regarding how you needed to “relearn how to learn online every time” spoke to me deeply. I have felt like this a lot. Even though we are learning in a similar way, the new tools and technologies can become overwhelming. I love how you spoke to Pinterest and Youtube as OER’s. I wonder about these places and if they are truly OER? Are they all following the policies? Are they safe to use in all classrooms at all levels? I wonder how we can check on this…
I am also very confused about terminologies. Finally, I am impressed by your question if open learning is the same as online learning, as well as your following question. I am there with you and I think we will unpack these in the weeks to come. Thank you for the different mode of Blog and the insight you provided.
Hi Jane,
Thank you for another insightful and honest post. Did I ever get a reminder of our good ol’ Philosophy days in BEd. I also noticed how, “constructivism is far more structured and based on the theories of many prominent educators of the past such as Vygotsky, Bruner, and Skinner (Weller, 2020). Where Connectivism defines itself as chaotic and doesn’t seem to draw heavily on any past educational research.” I feel like this is due to the fast entrance into the online world, in reality, Connectivism is very young in the scheme of things.
I love how you chose “videos” for your EdTech interest. I agree that, “videos also allow students to see things you wouldn’t necessarily be able to impress upon them with lecturing or books such as a tropical rainforest or how the earth revolves around the sun or what it’s like millions of kilometres under the ocean.” Not only does it hold attention and impress, but it changes the modality and allows the learners to attach their prior knowledge to the new knowledge and synthesize their thinking. I know that when my husband is explaining something in words, say how he wants to create an organizer of some kind, I always ask him to draw me a picture so that I can truly get a sense of what he is saying. Trust me, I have thought I have understood his words before and been completely thrown off by the actual outcome once it is done. We now use images for everything 🙂
Thank you for your wonderful post and I look forward to learning with and from you more.
Jason,
What a well thought out blog post. It has actually given me much more insight into how similar and different these two theories are.
I pulled this quote from your post because I connected to it from my own writings regarding an interest in PLE’s. “Learning and knowledge rest in diversity of opinions” (Weller, 2020). I cannot relate more to this, because I have enjoyed the courses which have allowed me to utilize my own specific learning tools the most. I have been able to create, collaborate and remix in a way that best suits me and in a way that I know and ENJOY!
I truly enjoyed how you refelcted on this course and how it is both connectivism and constructivism, as well as how you provided examples. I was thinking about out pods, and not only do they, “offer the opportunity to connect in text and video chat formats that allow us to discuss weekly topics and relate them to our personal experiences to learn from each other,” but they allow us to learn what each other are using as tools and allow us to potentially learn about these tools from each other. Jane just asked me about Canva and I taught her a little bit about it. We are broadening each others thinking, as well as each others ability to use certain online learning tools.
Videos will offer you a lot as a teacher. Screencastifying will too. I love these options. Learning is moving in a faster paces and more authentic, learner led way and these skills will only serve to aid you in your journey. Never stop learning the new tech. You and your learners will benefit greatly from it.
Lisa,
I like how you define connectivism as a “Connected set of principles.” You quote the chaos of connectivism and how the the learning is uncontrolled. There are so many benefits of this connectivism, but there are also privacy fears etc… I like how you speak to blog post and explain how these privacy issues. “the risk of putting it online,” as you mention, can be amazing for diversity and awareness. That being said, there are privacy issues, such as sharing assessment which will need to be addressed when using open sources.
How do you create your podcast? In which platform? I think I might try this next round 🙂
Brightspace communication
Response to: https://bright.uvic.ca/d2l/le/128243/discussions/threads/304760/View
Jayne Won
yesterday at 10:36 PM • 415 Words
Hi Anastasia,
Thank you for your post. This comment stood out to me, “To learn independently, learners must be self-ruling and confident. By placing students at the center of the process, those models require them to actively think and discuss ideas to make sense of themselves.” ABSOLUTELY they do! Connectivism allows them to do that, while constructivism guides them how to.
You say, “Additionally, the article points out that no online textbook is one of the keys to effective online learning. From my point of view, I disagree with this notion. With online learning, educators are off the stage and act as guides. Although, Learners still need to understand the fundamental concepts by reading textbooks to study effectively. The online textbooks offer basic farming so that learners can adapt themselves to acquire knowledge.”
This paragraph makes me wonder about all learners. I do not know about you, but relating to text is truly difficult for me because I cannot see, hear or truly match my prior knowledge to the new when there are only words (I read “dog” but, is it a pitbull, lassy like dog or shepard?). Videos and images really let me see the details I need to see or hear or relate to, in order to understand.
You do speak a lot to how you think learning is all about attaching new knowledge to the old, so I know you know the value of imagery and video. That being said, there are skills involved in reading and finding information in texts. Perhaps, this is what you are speaking to.
It is much like many humans’ fears about losing our ability to write because all we do now is type. Will the skill of writing one day be eliminated all together though because we will no longer need to write? How about typing… we are starting to be able to speak to our computers and phones and they write for us?
Your thinking is valuable and I agree there is value in reading and in finding information. That being said, I think that when we use as many modes as possible for our learners, we deliver information in a more concise, manageable and engaging way that aids in better retention and understanding.
Finally … study effectively for what? Exams, I know. But our assessments through examines are slowly dwindling too. Assessment is becoming much more project and problem solving based. The days of multiple choice (in some learning realms) may soon be over.
Response:
Jayne Won
just now • 223 Words
Very powerful start of your podcast Lisa. I love the reflectiveness of your thinking and the insight you have from working in places you have. I love the questions you bring up from Tara’s conversations, “Who is at the table, who is missing? who speaks a lot? Whose voice is not being heard?” These are all powerful questions for ask as educators before we are going to use materials, or create them. I feel like OERs can be truly helpful in diversity and equity. Creators sometimes do not ask these questions and it results in bias and someone missing out. Therefore, if we find these biases, we can remix the current information, thus allowing that once bias and un- inclusive object to become more inclusive and equitable. Much like WIKI edits and abilities to change the original language. Or even changing questioning to open questions or problem solving ones to place power in the learners hands, rather than the teachers. You are so right when you say there are still issues in equity and open learning for sure. I think that, when we as learning guides, use UDL mind frames when building and gathering learning materials/lessons for learners, it decreases those issues. No, it won’t always solve them, but it can decrease them for sure. Thank you for your ever insightful and vulnerable posts. Â
Response:
View profile card for Jayne Won Jayne WonTue at 9:09 PM • 224 WordsYet another very well written post Jason. I enjoy reading about how you have learned a lot more about UDL and developed more of an awareness around it. This comment stuck with me, “Moore and Chrona explain that part of decolonizing the classroom is about belonging. They ask, “how do we increase the places where kids feel like they belong…and connect?” (2021) This to me sounds a lot like how can we create spaces that are accessible and equitable for all students?” This reminds me of the purpose behind UDL and how it is absolutely VITAL in making all learners feel successful and included in the space. It is also about the learner being part of the decision-making and creation of the space that they are learning in because they are the only ones who know what is best for them. One thing that Dr. Roberts explained exceptionally well tonight, and I believe it works well with your thinking here, was how when we design for access and equity it reduces the need for individual accommodation, increases flexibility and options, thus motivation, and helps focus attention of specific course learning outcomes. When we do this, we design for all learners to be included in the space and tear down as many barriers for all as we can. Thanks again Jason for your exceptional insights.Â
Jane Mortlock
Tue at 4:51 PM
I thought I’d mix it up this time and created a Padlet with my thoughts. Here is the link https://padlet.com/jmortlock4/blkhloy3vhjs1xun it is password protected and the password is edci339 Looking forward to your thoughts.
reply:
Hi Jane,
I love how you have expressed your thinking here. What a great example of mixing it up and using a tool in a unique way to YOU! Bravo.
You note how, “privacy is a major hurdle in creating positive learning environments,” and it reminded me of the notes I just tool from Jade Davis’ conference. She mentions making an allowance for learners who are not comfortable in digital spaces by providing opportunities to show their learning or to move through their journey offline or in a non-digital space. This would mean ensuring there is always a “back up plan.” She calls this, “giving the learner and in and and out” which will create equity in the classroom.
I enjoy how you have many great wonders at the end and I hope you go one to answer them and share them with us. Thanks again!Â
Anastasia:
- Anastasia YeTue at 11:19 AMHow can equitable access to authentic, meaningful & relevant learning environments for all learners be afforded to all learners in open and distributed learning contexts? What did you already know, what do you know now based on the course readings and activities, what do you hope to learn? Open education is not without its disadvantages, as Sava Saheli Sign (selected from Bali et al. (2020)) suggests, open education is not so “open” if we take into account the discrimination, harassment, and alienation caused by social media platforms. The question above asks how do we provide authentic, meaningful & relevant learning environments for ALL learners. I believe the keyword here is “ALL”. When we consider open education, we typically assume that all can access materials, resources, information, data freely (typically no charge). However, the difficult part is to achieve all of the great things while avoiding the potential disadvantages of open learning such as inequalities created by the online learning enviroment. Sign suggested that “open” can turn to “close” if learners are not equipped with the knowledge to use digital tools, or the skills to interpret online information. Thus, I believe the teacher could intervene here and teach students to really “access” the materials, because even if the materials are available, it is in fact no use to the people who don’t know how to use them. The second thing I learned from Sign’s article is that people should also be aware of the biases that were input by the platform creators. This reminds me of an idea that belongs to Marshall McLuhan, a well-known communication scholar, who argues that the medium is never neutral. His famous saying is: “The medium is the message.” Thus, Sign (2020) recommends we push back whenever we feel injustice or discrimination ideas are prevalent on social media platforms. Sign(2020) stated that scholars will more likely to receive critics or hate comments from the net when they share their work, sometimes these comments are not targeted at the content that the scholar share, but at the publisher’s ethnicity, gender, cultural background. The teacher’s role here is to let students know that whatever platforms they are using, the medium is the message. Be careful of the messages that platforms “send” and push back when needed. Furthermore, instead of waiting for the online learning environment to be more inclusive, Sign(2020) suggested we should actively foster an inclusive environment by having a close-kin group of people that we can turn to easily online, and support members of our community members online. We also should be mindful of the content we share on social media platforms, editing out any cultural inappropriateness. Make good use of the platforms either for inviting more collaborations or creating a reputation economy for ourselves. What I hope to learn more about is the teacher’s role in fostering authentic, meaningful & relevant learning environments, I do feel that not every teacher is trained to teach in an online environment, I am curious about what are the steps that teachers need to go through in order to ensure an inclusive online learning environment. The attachment link is my reading notes for two required documents:https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Kk-jgL2zZqEz1P4AJ_JMn8_C19x91jmh8b8b0QjNVzo/edit?usp=sharingReference:Sign, S.S . (2020) “The Fallacy of ‘Open'”. Open at the Margins. Rebus Community Pressbooks. Retrieved from: https://press.rebus.community/openatthemargins/Reply
- Post has recent changesView profile card for Jayne Won Jayne Wonjust now • 177 WordsHi Anastasia, Great post. Thanks for highlighting issues and barriers that come with using social media. I just took a course with Jesse Miller and his course was all about WHY AND HOW we use social media to ENACT POSITIVE CHANGE rather than live in a cycle of angry comments and affirmations. We want to use it as a communication tool to hear from all voices at the table and to indulge in difficult conversations so that we can become as well rounded and diverse as possible as humans. I recommend his course. It brought a lot of awareness on how you can use your PLN and social media for the reasons we speak of in this class. There are some terrible things that happen on social media, but it can be used for so much good as well. Take David Suzuki for example. He is a solid leader in climate change and shares extensively researched information on his page. This informs others of problems in the world and hopefully instills change and gets people to act!