The speed in which new technologies emerge is just incredible. A person who is attempting to learn about any software, after a while he would need to learn about a different one. I consider, because of the amount of things to explore, it becomes difficult to be totally updated. Nonetheless, as more updated we can be, the better the results we can get from the students and the better we can use what is available for our teaching practice.
A useful manner of being updated, which I knew about during the development of the subject New Learning Environments, is to belong to communities of practice. By doing this, we could share experiences and learn from other people who can give us ideas on how to use certain tools; this practice will optimize our time and teaching procedures.
Another way to get updated is to visit the favorite webpage about the programs we use. It is a starting point to see if the program has improvements from the previous version or if it’s possible to download an upgrade to add new functions. Also try similar software in order to compare or even, to complement the programs we have in order to add more content or more functions.
Not only for the designing programs, but also for the hardware we use in our laboratories. Upgrading the software for the hardware we use in class will fix some issues given in the lab or even to provide more functions to control the class or to offer proper feedback. Using old software for old hardware can be really harmful if we don’t visit the support webpage in order to get the most recent information about which bugs have been removed or which improvements or functions have been added.
Also try to talk with your partners about the difficulties you have in the laboratory or the program you use. Talk with the people who know how to use the program to get better information about its usage. Otherwise, you have the option to visit the forums to consult other’s problems and to find – the most probable – a solution there. This can be applied from the lab programs we use in our schools and home until the hardware that can be upgraded via software.
The new learning environments imply new learning spaces, new communities, new literacies, and new generations. The tendency shows that everything will be technology mediated; for instance, every single day new relationships rise from computer interaction, business are closed, games are played, and even teaching/learning processes take place online. Does it mean that people will become machines too? Are we losing our human side? It all depends on how technology is used and the role that people takes when using it.
It is known that education is a social process in which interaction among people becomes important, but how can we make of an online language learning environment and effective but still human space? The responsibility of humanizing an online language learning environment is of the teacher who will need, of course, learners’ collaboration as well. Bellow, you will be presented some tips to help you to humanize an online learning space.
Certainly the human side of an online course cannot be forgotten because it is an essential part of people’s lives: emotions, feelings, dialogues, and interactions are aspects that make us feel alive. Hence, it is teacher’s responsibility to humanize their online learning environments, creating a collaborative environment that enhances learning processes.
Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZkvmpE50GQ&feature=related
The 21st century is full of social, political, environmental, scientific, and technological changes and innovations. All these changes affect the educational context as well. The classroom of the 21st century has to bear in mind aspects such as the space in which learning takes place, the population it addresses, and the literacies it is preparing with and for.
Before thinking in the ideal classroom it is important to think that we cannot think only in classrooms but in learning spaces. Traditionally, learning used to take place in specialized spaces such as the classroom and the library. Now, because of the multiple possibilities offered on the web and the technological devices, learning can take place anytime and anywhere (Brown, 2005). Learning can be in virtual and/or in physical spaces.
For me, the ideal classroom for the 21st century is the one designed within the category of blended community. Blended is the category of –e-learning that incorporates face to face and online sessions (Siemens, 2004). Nonetheless, that classroom has to give also room to other categories: informal and networked. In this way, learning opportunities can be broaden. It also has to be a community that have common goals and/or practices, and issues of identity, and in which members depend on each other to achieve the learning outcomes. (Palloff, Rena and Pratt, 2007)
Now, I would like to describe the ideal classroom of the 21st century, having in mind the population it addresses: the Net Geners. According to Tapscott (2009), the Net Generation has eight norms: freedom, personalization, scrutinizes openness and integrity, entertainment, collaboration, speed, and innovation. For the norm of freedom, the classroom of the 21st century has to offer learners variety of options from where to choose and allow them to make decisions. For instance, the resource they will use for a presentation, it can be a video, a PPT or even a podcast, etc. For the second norm, we can allow them to personalize the space in which they are going to sit down or even the classroom. For the norm of scrutinize, we must have network connections and internet access so that they can search any information they might need. For the norm of integrity and openness, we need to offer them what is really appealing for them and option for the future. For the norm of entertainment we only need to be more dynamic and allow them to play in the classroom, always with an educational purpose. For the norm of collaboration we need to allow them to work in groups, create blogs, forums, wikis, and even make use of facebook. For the speed, we need to offer them multiple activities in only one class and make sure activities are not too long and boring because they will get bored too soon. We also need to have high speed connection. Finally, for innovation, we need to explore all the resources offered and make constant innovations in class so that students can feel motivated for entering the classroom.
The classroom of the 21st century has to have in mind the literacies it is preparing with and for. Classrooms cannot continue with the same traditional resources: the whiteboard and the markers they are used to work with. Daley (2003) stated that multimedia language is the current vernacular and I do agree. Hence, we need to be aware of this situation and start updating our knowledge and developing multimedia skills for being able to teach learners in the way they will really learn and face their daily life. We need to start working with new technologies and teach students how to use them in a proper and critical way. We need to have interactive boards and/or virtual boards to be displayed on students screen. Students need to have headphones to be able to record their voices and listen to their teacher, as well as record all that is said in class. We also need to have a video camera or webcam incorporated in the computers. All the students need to have their own work station, preferably laptops which are easy to move from one place to another. Connections need to be wireless to allow mobility.
Although, Net Geners’ naturality is to know how to deal with technology, our responsibility, as teachers, is to teach them to be critical and to learn how to deal with all the information offered on the web, so that they can make the best decisions. The classroom of the 21st century has to develop in students critical skills. Fjeldstead (1991) said “think critically about the meanings of what you are seeing, hearing, sensing, and experiencing” (as cited in Bamford, 2003). We need to make learners to see the different perspectives from which an image, movie, song, web page, and any content can be analyzed. By doing this, we are helping digital natives to be critical and be able to make informed and assertive decisions on what they can do with the multiple options from which they can choose and start constructing meaning.
21st century classroom need to be implemented with technological devices otherwise netgeners will choose not to learn with/from us. Classes must be student centered; it means we have to be aware of and address learners’ needs, likes, interests, and learning styles. Prensky (n.d.) said “most useful education for the future is not happening at school. It’s happening after school, particularly in personal robotics clubs, etc., and on the entire Internet – it’s happening in games. It’s not on a test…So they go to what is really turning them on.” We need to make of classrooms the place where they are turned on, the place in which they choose to pay attention, collaborate, construct meaning, learn and share “(learners’) attention spans are not short for games, for example, or music, or rollerblading, or for spending time on the internet, or anything else that actually interest them. It isn’t that they can’t pay attention, they just choose not to” (Ibid). The classroom of the 21st century has to be designed having in mind learners and what they will really pay attention to.
The classroom of the 21st century needs to change the organization and resources. It needs to have enough light, comfortable and mobile chairs, desks for group work. It needs to be big, warm and comfortable. Videoconferencing facilities, wireless networking connections, Internet access, projectors, and devices to capture and spread, for further reference, what happened in class; need to be implemented in physical and virtual learning spaces. The classroom of the 21st century has to be flexible, collaborative, self-directed, autonomous, mobile, networked, interactive, and student centered. By doing this with the classroom of the 21st century, we will have motivated students learning meaningfully because “when learning is pleasurable, it can happen even more rapidly” (The New Media Consortium, 2005).
References
Bamford, A. (2003) The Visual Literacy White Paper. Adobe Systems. Retrieved from http://www.adobe.com/uk/education/pdf/adobe_visual_literacy_paper.pdf
According to the cognitive determinants of environmental preference stated above, here I will analyze and compare a physical and an online learning environment based on my personal experiences.
For the physical one, I would like to talk about my literature class at the university. I remember it was an ugly, small, cold and wooden floor classroom. The wall was painted in light green (an old color) and the light was not good. The coherence of the class was not good for learning to take place, although the teacher tried to do her best…it was impossible. Furthermore, there were not any stimuli for catching students’ attention or make them feel comfortable, all the students were looking at the clock all the time, waiting for the class to finish everything in that class seemed to be complicated, maybe because we were not interested on the class. All the classes it was the same, it became a routine and a torture.
The virtual environment I want to talk about is Wiziq. This environment is organized cognitively, it has everything we could need in a physical classroom: whiteboard, markers, pencils, notebook, highlighter, eraser, a projector (the same screen), and the most important, it allows synchronous interaction. It is an interesting environment that can stimulate participation and discussion. It is friendly user and allows to present different contents through different media. Finally, it allows recording the session, which help learners to review the lesson as many times as they want and learn in their own pace.
Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTpsQ8vxywY
USABILITY ANALYSIS ABOUT OUR MODDLE PLATFORM
The model of usability criteria stated by Jakob Nielsen has five aspects: learnability, efficiency, memorability, errors, and satisfaction. Here you will find a short definition (given in Oblinger, D., & Oblinger, J. 2006) of each aspect and an analysis of our platform.
1. Learnability
“Refers to the speed and ease with which a novice user can achieve proficiency with the system”.
The platform is easy to handle. The content of the course, the purposes and the schedule are completely available from the beginning of the course.
All contents are either in PDF or word documents that describes all elements to begin the learning process.
Documents are easy to handle and provided with enough information, so the new student can learn in a fast way.
Although Boards and forums are suitable for topic discussion and feedback, the platform lacks in synchronous interactivity. Categories are not properly classified or it needs more options to offer a better interaction between the teacher – or administrator – and students.
Although it seems easy to handle, that easiness becomes in a plane and not so attractive presentation. Documents are necessary, but also it could be in other format different from the usual documents – like flash presentations, videos, videochat conferences, and others.
2. Efficiency
“Refers to the degree to which the system supports the performance of an experienced user in the shortest amount of time and with the fewest steps”.
The platform is really easy to handle and get familiarized with.
Also efficiency refers to the resources availability provided by the teacher and they provide all the necessary for the development of the course.
3. Memorability
“Refers to the degree to which a user, particularly an intermittent or casual user, can remember how to accomplish a task using the system, the steps of which were learned previously”.
The platform seems too easy for me to memorize the proper steps to complete tasks. Documents are pretty well organized to identify class objectives and relevant information.
It is a sequential model, so it is extremely difficult for someone to get lost in the course. The system is so simple – really simple in fact – that makes easy to the student to follow the necessary steps to fulfill the activities.
4. Errors
“Refer to the number of mistakes and missteps made by users”.
The platform doesn’t offer a startup unit in which students could learn to use properly the platform, and it would be advisable to have one. Nonetheless, in some way the system is so simple that committing a mistake or error is reduced to one or two incidents.
5. Satisfaction
“Refers to the users’ overall emotional experience when using the system”.
I feel comfortable with the platform but if it is improved in the way it is presented…more colors, pictures, videos and even synchronous communication options (videoconferencing) I would be happier.
I hope you find this criteria and sample useful to analyse your platform or a software.
References
Oblinger, D., & Oblinger, J. (Eds.) (2006). Learning Spaces. Educause. Retrieved from http://www.educause.edu/learningspaces Chapter 6
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A community is a dynamic whole that emerges when a group of people share common practices are interdependent make decisions jointly identify themselves with something larger than the sum of the individual relationships and make a long term commitment to well being in terms of their own, one another’s and the group’s. Shaffer and Anundsen (1993)
For me the three most important issues of a community are:
A community is not a place-based concept anymore. (Palloff, 1996 as cited in Palloff, Rena and Pratt,2007)
Nowadays, the concept of community has changed since it is not based on a place, as it used to be. Because of technology, now we can also find online communities, who may not share the same physical space but a virtual one. The only requirement to form a (online) community is to have common goals and/or practices, and issues of identity. In our NLE class, we are all part of a community that is not necessarily place based. All of us have different skills and personalities but all of us share the same goal; learning from each other.
Members of a learning community depend on each other to achieve the learning outcomes. (Palloff, Rena and Pratt, 2007)
Since learning is a social process and meaning and knowledge is better constructed collaboratively, it becomes very important the participation of all the members in a community, especially when it is an online community. This does not mean that place-based communities do not need the cooperation of each member, it is only that when members of a community can meet face to face it becomes easier the communication because of the body language, signals and expressions. Fortunately, NLE community members are very committed and like to collaborate to each other. All of us are active members of the community because we are constantly sharing information, commenting on others ideas, giving opinions and even solving “conflicts). All this participation enhance our learning if it was not like this it would be frustrating to post our ideas and do not receive any reply instead. If there is not response, there is not community and so learning outcomes could not be achieved. Furthermore, some of the activities in the course are designed in such a way that without the help of each other could not be well achieved: wiki, mindmaps, etc.
Members’ expressions of support and encouragement exchanged between students, as well as willingness to critically evaluate the work of others. (Ibid).
In a community, support and encouragement are important to foster development. Our learning community is characterized by a constant exchange of expressions of support and encouragement that enhance our learning process. We are critical when replying to our classmates and respond to critics with maturity. We recognize when mistakes are made and correct if it is necessary. In this community we learn from each other experiences.
References
Oblinger, D., & Oblinger, J. (Eds.) (2006). Learning Spaces. Educause. Retrieved from
