Joe McConda on Technology, Education, and Culture

Every state has educational standards that are tied to national standards in any given content area. I teach in Ohio and use the Ohio core content when planning lessons for my students in the juvenile correctional facility. Because of the nature of the environment, I have many different levels of math instruction going on in the same classroom. There are about fifteen students in each class with some students who are in algebra I, some in geometry and still others in algebra II, so basically each student has his own individual plan. The standards for each area are listed and I must see where the student is and plan accordingly to make sure the standards are taught. I have to be honest….I do the best I can, but it seems that the main goal in my classroom is just to maintain order. Very sad, but true. One would think that in a correctional facility, classroom management would not be a problem. It is a problem. They don’t have guards in each room and even if they did, if students act up, there is no real recourse other than taking away privileges. The only technology we have is paper and pencil, so trying to engage them with games and simulations is a moot point.

There are some who truly want to learn and once they reach the objectives, we move on to the next….

In thinking about designing an online course and reading the Design and Development post, I decided to focus on what was said about equilvalency.  My experience with recipes is very limited, but my wife and I talked about it (she’s a home ec. teacher) and she said that the term equivalent to her means the same, yet different.  I can echo those thoughts from my math background as well…..the same, yet different.  As far as designing an online course, I would think that the very nature of distance education would indicate that the course is to be different, yet it should be the same in terms of learning objectives and outcomes.  Okay, I haven’t said anything different from what has been posted, but I thought I would try to take components of regular classroom and draw anaologies to online courses and see what I come up with.

There are some things that could be the same, for example the course syllabus.  This document handed out at the beginning of a class is also presented at the beginning of an online course and states objectives, policies, activities, due dates, grading, etc.

In a regular classroom, a student has the opportunity to talk to the teacher one on one at various times…..during class, before class, after class, passing in the hallway, etc.  In my mind this would be analogous to IM.  The student has the ability and is encouraged to chat one on one with the teacher anytime the teacher is online.

Class discussions are often a big part of regular classroom routine.  In an online class, the group chat would be the equivalent to this.  Just like in the classroom, the teacher would guide the discussion and pull it back to the course content when needed.

Learning activities such as reading and writing, in a regular class, the text or other materials would be read and students would have writing assignments.  This could be designed in an online course to include a variety of reading materials, including text, online readings such as blogs and other feeds.  Student receive feedback from comments on their papers in a regular class, as well as direct comments from the teacher.  Grades are also a form of feedback.   In an online course, the teacher is able to comment directly on a students’ blog post and also gives grades and can comment through e-mail or IM.

Class interaction, in a regular classroom, is dependent on the students in the class.  The same is true for online classes….the makeup of the class determines to a large degree how much voluntary interaction there is.  In online classes,  the opportunity to IM each other  can be a design feature of the class when the teacher builds that into the plan.  Students can also be encouraged to comment on one another’s writings.  This is a definite plus to online classes because in the regular classroom, students don’t often read others’ writings.  They probably do have the opportunity to listen to classmates present their ideas in class, but they don’t usually read it.  But the class presentation and the  student blog post could be equivalents in the sense that they both give students the opportunity to present their ideas to the teacher and their classmates and receive feedback.

These are the main equivalencies that I would use in designing an online course.  The goal is to set forth the objectives of the course and decide which tools one will use to accomplish those objectives.  The process is the same in both venues, the tools, however, are different.  There are variables , such as stated by Lowell in Recipe is a Bad Metaphor And just as many factors  can affect the classroom climate as the “bread baking” environment.  The designer of both types of courses needs to be aware of the “possibilities” and plan for these.  Students are individuals, whether they are actual bodies in a classroom or bodies in front of their computers at home and they bring many different qualities to the “classroom”.  The teacher needs to be flexible enough to see these differences and adjust when necessary.

When I first saw that we needed to read about and comment on lectureware, the first thought that came to mind was Power Point. After reading various sources and stopping at one entitled Reflections on the State of Educational Technology Research and Development by Robert Kozma, I found that lectureware involves many tools to make lectures more meaningful, easier to follow, and interactive.  One of the tools is a One Minute Paper which is a way for instructors to receive and display a student response.  There is also something called a Feedback Meter through which students can electronically indicate whether they are following the lecture or if they are confused.  I see these tools as support tools for the classroom.  He talks of this primarily for college professors, but these are tools that could be used in the high school setting as well.  According to Kozma, these tools have helped classes move from a predominately stand up lecture format to a more collaborative, small group and individual learning environment.

In my advanced toolbox, I would like to be able to use…..

A feed reader…that is I would like to have my students set one up and be responsible for reading from it. Students could read instructions from me, the teacher, on how to work and apply math problems, etc. This was a tool in my basic tool box, however, it was from the perspective of my own use of it as a student. It goes to a different level when I, as the teacher, require it of my students.

Blog sites…again, each student would have a blog and contribute to it just as we do in this class. With math as my content area, students could show how they arrived at solutions to problems, etc. Same rationale as the reader….managing it as a teacher.

Games and simulations…I would like to have games that students could play that teach math concepts.

Teleconferencing….It would be neat to have students be able to interact with students around the globe. Math is a universal language! Students could see what students in other states and countries are doing. It could be very motivational. By the way……a light bulb just came on for me ………SKYPE (which I said in my blog was not a priority for me at this time) could be used to teleconference…..is that right? I really am asking here because I’m not sure. But I was thinking about the blog I wrote about a newscast I saw where students were interacting long distance and it occurred to me that a tool like SKYPE must have been used for that. So, I guess, if I’m right in thinking that teleconferencing could be accomplished using a tool such as SKYPE, it would be a priority for me. I’m still learning and trying to make connections. Please correct me if I’m wrong on this.

These are just a few tools that I would like to be able to use with students. I saw a wikispace that a math teacher was using and while I think it has many possibilities, I don’t think I would want to use it at this time. A blog and feed reader would be enough for me in that regard.

Okay, just one other thing…I meant to add a site like Tapped In to my advanced toolbox.  I want to learn more about the k12 version.  I think this would be a good tool for students to interact in groups and chat as a class.

All of these seem to be “cousins” . When I first began trying to find something to read last week from “The Lost World of Moo”, I was totally confused because I had never seen anything like that site. I finally found something that was readable, but it didn’t seem relevant to what we were doing. Actually, it was a masters thesis. This week in trying to find out what MOO and the like are, I went to Google as a starting point. I found that MUD is Multi-user dungeon or dimension, or domain. It basically started as a way to play the role playing game, Dungeons and Dragons in a virtual world.  MOO is also a virtual environment with the M standing for MUD and the OO standing for object oriented.  The MOO, as I understand it, is what teachers should probably use.  Students can interact as their virtual self in a virtual world.  I found what I think to be a very good site,

http://web.syr.edu/~lmturbee/ericedmo.html , where I  learned that it is important for teachers to monitor and assess students as they interact in this virtual world.  The advice was to make sure students have specific goals before entering the MOO.  For example, when they are interacting with characters in the MOO, what are some specific questions they will ask of them?  After the experience, students can relate the experience in class or in writing.  A caution also was that teachers should be aware of each students reaction to the MOO.  It was stated that students tend to have a positive emotions or negative emotions related to the experience.  Some of this is based on their ability to interact.  Students’ experiences with technology are vastly different  and their skill (keyboarding) may be limited as well.  I can certainly relate to that because my knowledge of technology is even smaller than I knew coming in to this class.  Yes, I have learned much, but I need to have more practice at these things before I could implement them with students.  MOO really does sound like a great tool to use with students.  It would be motivational.  It could provide experiences they would not have otherwise.  I think it would be something I would really like to try.  My concerns in addition to my lack of knowledge and experience would be TIME.  If there were sites already developed for my content area, it would be much easier…..and maybe those do exist.  I can’t see myself developing something like this myself to use with students.  I would WANT to, but the skill and time involved would hold me back.  I would, however, be willing to invest the time to learn how to USE a MOO with students, but even that seems overwhelming to me at this point.  I’m just being honest, here.

I am still amazed at all the new vocabulary I’m learning. Skype….who knew? Another internet tool that can be useful for learners and teachers as well as for those who want to communicate with anyone around the world at little cost. The website www.c4lpt.co.uk/recommended/top100.htmle lists 100 tools for e learning. I somehow found that site (I really don’t know how I got there). Skype is one of the tools listed there and since I wanted to know what it was, I checked it out. It seems to me that those who use skype, do so primarily to conference with other professionals. Video can be added to the audio and text communication. It can be downloaded at no cost, but there are upgrades available that do cost.

I can see Skype being very beneficial to teachers who are planning and implementing online courses. I can also envision it being a way for graduate students to collaborate from a distance. As a high school teacher, I don’t feel that it would be something I would use with my students (even if I taught somewhere other than a correctional facility high school). It would take me awhile to become comfortable with all the things I’m learning before implementing them. Skype would not be high on my list at this point.

The world of 3D virtual reality is available at active worlds.  A site such as this allows players/learners to experience various worlds and chat with others as well.  Students would be able to create an environment and interact in that environment with people from different parts of the world.  I can see this tool being used in a variety of ways.  Students could be given certain characteristics to include in the simulated world, giving them the opportunity to create a virtual world or visit a world created by someone else.  By playing virtual games, learning can be reinforced.

This is a new tool for me and one that I would like to become more familiar with.  I can envision great potential in setting up these virtual spaces for specific objectives of learning.

Looking into a wikispace was my goal for today.  For the last hour, I have been familiarizing myself with wikispaces.  It is a wiki for educators and seems to me to be quite a bit like a “My Space” page.  Once again, I didn’t know spaces like this existed until now.  I can certainly see how this would be beneficial……you have students who are online often, so it would be very easy for them to check out the wiki and see what they need to do or read a selection, etc.  Rather than a teacher calling out at the end of the period (just as the bell is ringing)…”Do the problems on page 170 for homework…even numbers”, students would be well-versed in the procedure to check out the wikispace for assignments and help in the subject.  As has been acknowledged several times, using a medium with which kids are familiar engages them and keeps their interest.  The wikispace would also provide parents (those who care enough) with a connection to the classroom and insight into the learning process.

A wiki is different from a blog in that you can make it look like you want with pictures, video,  and basically have a web page of your own.  It can be updated and changed to meet specific needs.

There are some things about it that I didn’t understand.  For example, it appeared that the wikispace sites could be edited by someone other than the owner/creator of the site.  I’m not sure if that is the case, but that’s how it looked.  I looked at one page that encouraged all those who had contributed to the page to post a picture.  There were several pictures and I just wondered how that worked. When I clicked on those pictures, the content seemed unrelated.

As a teacher in a correctional facility, I would not be able to link my students to anything like this. They don’t have internet access at all, not in school nor on their living units. My wife, who is also a teacher, seems very interested in the wikispaces.  I can see how they would be very useful in the public school setting.

As I was watching the evening news in my hometown this evening, my attention was drawn to a feature story on a local middle school.  Local Middle School Experiences Distance Learning.  The students were able to cooperate with students in other states and listen to an author who was speaking in Virginia.  I was immediately struck with the thought. ….I’ll never be able to do those kinds of things.  Yet, the masters on which I am working should give me the knowledge I need to implement things like this.  Before this class, that news story would have escaped my radar.  The connections I am making because of this class are remarkable.  Awareness is the first step on the road to becoming proficient. My Distance Education class has already given me much awareness of what is being done with technology in the classroom.  I want to become proficient in using it.

The past few weeks have consisted of “technology overload” for me and I’ve felt like my circuits are about to melt.  However, I find as I’m reading from my gator that there are still more tools that I can learn about.  Who knew there was so much out there for educators?   In Planning with Google Docs, Clarence Fisher discusses his move from the paper planning book to the Google Documents planning tool.  Using word processing instead of paper and pen, one can easily make adjustments to the plan as needed.  The plans can also be made publicly available.  It seems to me that once a person got used to planning this way, it may be easier.  Students who miss class, can access the plans and be able to stay on track.  Once again, it seems that these web based tools make it much more possible for students to learn.  I am just starting to learn about all of these tools, but I am amazed at what I’ve learned so far.   Online planning is another new tool that could be utilized to make life easier for the teacher and give students an advantage as well.  Again, old habits die hard, but die they will…if not for me, then certainly for my younger colleagues.