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EDCI 572-Documentary Creation part 1: Mental Planning

Photo by Trent Szmolnik on Unsplash

When considering the blogs and reflections for this course, I found myself wondering what I should focus on. Is it the new tech I am learning? The full details of the tech I use to make digital stories? There are so many options that I found myself flip-flopping on the best method. I have decided that my blogs for this class are going to be based on the journey of creating our final group project for this course. I am going to take a deep dive into how we as a group; plan, storyboard, record, edit, and polish the film. In this case, the course project is going to be an introductory mini-documentary for our group’s final MEd project on Truth and Reconciliation. 

Mental planning, pre-storyboard.

The first step is to decide the length and what we need in it. The length is key, as we do not want it so long as to dilute the message; nor too short and leave a lack of clarity. We as a group have decided on 7-10 min (that is not as much time as you think). Next, you have to decide what is included to tell the story. We have decided ours will contain interviews, music, and b-roll footage as a visual enhancer. After we have decided this, we start to put it together in our heads.

I have learned from past experience that more footage is better, as it allows you some wiggle room in what makes the composition come together.  With the interviews, we have decided to interview elders from the communities around us, district staff, former students, and ourselves. We are going to ask a series of open-ended questions and just go with the conversation. This will ensure that we are getting the essence of their voice on the subject. We will let the people we are interviewing know that there will be edits, and they will be able to see the final piece before publishing to ensure they are not misrepresented. With the time restraints on the piece, we have to make cuts. However, that doesn’t mean that we cannot share the full conversations as a podcast, attached to the piece, highlighting interviewees’ stories further, while at the same time, letting others know we are staying true to the conversations in our edits.   

I tell my Visual Arts and Media students when they are designing their projects, “start with pretending you are watching it and visualize what it will look like on-screen. How will it start, what is the middle, and what note does it end on, what music/mood do you want to create, and then start planning it out.” When I am planning a project like this, I watch it in my head and keep tweaking it until I get to that moment where I know it feels right. Though I have filmed nothing towards the project, and have 0 content, I can look at the feel, style, and structure I want to incorporate (that is my base). The main way to operate like this is to acknowledge the inevitability that how you envision it going is going to change with the content. Being honest with the footage, and allowing that footage to tell the story, is the MOST important thing. As a storyteller, it is important that the product is authentic, not forced. Our idea as to how this will look must be fluid, however, that does not mean we ever go into a project like this without the structure, the mental planning, and the storyboarding in place.

Next week Gary, Deidre, and I will be starting the process of confirming interviews and storyboarding the mini-doc. 

 

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EDCI 569#4- Digital and Media Literacy

 

 

Photo by Ari He on Unsplash

What?

Law 12 class:

Student-“Thank God I deleted that old photo of myself doing …………..!”. 

Me- “Did you?”

Student- “ Yup, after we talked in class about the use of peoples social media (SM) accounts as tools for future employers, school admin, ETC to look us up, and how our data is sold,  I cleaned up my Facebook and Instagram”

Me- “Good start, did you increase your privacy settings?”

Student- “Yes”.

Me- “Good, now did you look at the tag setting for your photos?”

Student- “ Yup, set those as well”.

Me- “Wait a minute, you didn’t mention cleaning up your SnapChat?”

Student- “I don’t need to, it disappears after 10 seconds.”

Me- “Sit down and let’s talk about data-permanency.”

So What?

How do we make that connection with cell phones and not only their addictive potential but the data-proliferation and ownership of your data? Phones and tech are a great tool that has reinvented and will continue to reinvent, the way we process and disseminate information. We should not fear this. That would be counter-productive. How do we embrace this in an informed manner? We should teach it! 

Now What?

The new curriculum does lay-out how to teach media literacy. I have looked it over and it is good. Nieve but good. It is my opinion that teaching the students about what implications their digital footprint may have on their lives has to be more organic. It needs to be more conversation-based, tied to a real-life scenario that is happening. In the Law class mentioned above, we were talking about the suicide cases in the east and the contributions of SM in those cases in terms of bullying ETC. We talked about whether someone should be responsible for the results of their online behaviour and they said yes. I asked if there should be laws in place to make you responsible for that behaviour, and they paused. I asked if an employer should be able to make employment decisions based on their SM information and they said no. I then asked them how they believed what happens online does not correlate with who they really are? They said social media is the place that they can be who they are at the moment, but maybe not who they actually are. That led to a great conversation about intent and privacy that lasted 40 minutes. It was all organic and non-lecture based. Just a conversation in a place where they were safe to express themselves and their thoughts. That, in my opinion, is how we teach digital footprints and SM. We talk about it. We talk about the value it has on our planet and in our lives. We talk about its benefits without ignoring its drawbacks. We talk about our responsibility in societies both outside, and on the web. 

By: Andrew Vogelsang

 

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EDCI 569#3-Different Worlds: The Distance Education Experience from a Classroom Teacher.

Photo by Lena Bell on Unsplash

What:

This week’s class discussion was widely based on Online Learning. With the advent of the internet and the proliferation of access to information and knowledge, distance education was a clear next step in the genesis of education or at least a viable option. For the purpose of this blog, I am going to call it Distance Learning (DE). According to an article by NĂ­ ShĂ©, Farrell, Brunton, Costello, Donlon, Trevaskis, Eccles, they say that,  “[t]oday many providers of distance education have become fully online where all teaching and learning materials are made available to students online, generally via the institutions Virtual Learning Environment (VLE)” (2019, p 18). Though the article is based on findings for university and higher education settings, I believe there is transferability. DE affords the option for parents to school their children, or have their students educated, in their home for a variety of reasons, be it health (both physical or mental), values, or proximity to a physical building. There are those who are weary DE, those who say that it is robbing the student of the valuable social aspects a public school provides. Others will counter with the schools cannot protect the values that the students’ families want them to be raised with. Both are valid points. But if we are going to talk about the efficacy of DE, we must look at the technology involved and what makes a good DE Teacher.

I work for a school district with a thriving DE program. It is called E-Bus. E-Bus has been operating for 25 years and has an enrolment of approximately 4500-5000 students (from around BC and beyond, with about 1000 being full time enrolled (FTE). The numbers are hard to calculate exactly as they have students taking one course while enrolled at another school, or just one course to reach graduation. In DE, the numbers always fluctuate. Beyond the numbers, there is a massive amount of technology involved, both by the school, and the student, to make this enterprise work.

So What:

I had a sit-down, well… a stand in the hall, chat with a teacher from E-Bus, and I asked him some questions about his job, and the tech they use to deliver their courses. Though this teacher is in my school and I see him every day, I have very little knowledge of his daily routines, as I am sure is common in schools that have DE teachers. We are in different worlds, even though we share a physical building. We had a fantastic talk that was enlightening.

First of all, this teacher suffers from a chronic physical ailment and teaching at E-Bus allows him the flexible hours that will fit his schedule. He is always in on the weekend and works his hours, just not in an 8-4, 5 day a week fashion. This is fantastic accommodation that DE affords. If we are to be inclusive to all students, which we should be, then we have to be inclusive to all workers if possible. 

Secondly, his workload is interesting. I have asked many E-Bus teachers about how many students they teach at a given time. As you can imagine, with the fluctuation in course starts and finishes, that number changes often. As I understand it, the teachers in elementary have 25 families they look after and give education to in all disciplines. High school teachers can have as many as 200+ students at a time. As a classroom teacher, I find that number to be astonishing and in a classroom that would be 50 per class. However, DE is different in a way, as this teacher explains. He says that there are self-starters who he never really has to interact with as they complete their assignments without prodding and can fly through the course. However, there are students that may take 2 years to finish a course, and DE allows for that flexibility too. I cannot speak to whether this number of students is manageable, as I have never taught DE. Furthermore, with a lack of provincial class size limits for DE, the point is moot anyway. So how does the learning happen? How are all reached? Tech.

E-Bus runs off Moodle. Moodle is a Learning Management System (LMS) and it is open source. Through Moodle, the units are delivered. They also rely on Office 365 from Microsoft to deliver all their software needs through an online platform (cloud-based) and therefore not requiring the students to have the software on their physical computer. They also use a video recorder/editor called Camtasia. Though Social Media Platforms, like Facebook, are a viable way to communicate with students, it is frowned upon as it is a great way to get viruses, along with other confidentiality issues. The tech is allowing for the potential of a good online experience for the students and the teachers. But is it different being a teacher online vs. a regular school?

Now What:

To the question of DE and in school education being different, I would say it clearly is. However, the skills required to be a good teacher in this platform seem to match up well with regular schools. According to Ni She et al., the main factors important to successful online teaching are: presence, facilitation and supporting students (p34). When one looks at the descriptions of these (Table 10, p34) it discusses all the things that are effective in OE, but they are the same as good teaching in a classroom. Words like support, facilitation, presence, timely feedback, ETC. all play a role as an educator no matter the venue. I feel that I, and others, tend to try to differentiate what something is based on its mode of delivery. Yes, they are different, but the ideals are the same: Education. There are ways to create a tie between DE and conventual education through technology.

Overall, I was truly ignorant of the daily duties of a colleague that works in the same building as myself. We are together but in different worlds. There is a lot that I can learn from him as to how to incorporate the software he uses in my classroom. This has been a fantastic week of learning, and growth, and I am better for it.

By: Andrew Vogelsang

 

References

Shé Ní, C., Farrell, O., Brunton, J., Costello, E., Donlon, E., Trevaskis, S., & Eccles, S. (2019). Teaching online is different: Critical perspectives from the literature. Retrieved from Dublin City University website: https://openteach.ie/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Teaching-online-is-different.pdf

 

 

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EDCI 569 #2- OERs-An Emerging Trend

Photo by Alex Holyoake on Unsplash

What:

In this week’s readings and classroom discussions, we discussed the use of Open Education Resources (OER). In my opinion, the largest and most impactful OER to date is and will be for a long while, YouTube. According to the United Nations, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO),  “Open Educational Resources (OER) are teaching, learning and research materials in any medium – digital or otherwise – that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions” (Downes, 2019). OER’s are a fantastic emerging phenomenon in the educational field. In teacher’s college, they emphasize the importance of sharing resources, and to make sure we try not to, “reinvent the wheel”. That is a very important tip as the sheer workload commitments on new teachers, and teachers in general, are immense. Therefore, it is great to see sites like Teachers Pay Teachers, and the BC OpenEd, where teachers can help one another move forward in their field. OERs are also growing in the Post-Secondary field with places like MIT OpenCourseWare as an example. These sites allow me to get ideas that are from people in my field. As the only computer teacher in my school, I find collaboration with others hard as they, most of the time, have little idea of what I am talking about. That is in no way a slight on them, they just don’t teach computers. I have reached out and discussed many ways of teaching software, or units, with the Tech Teachers in my district and that has been helpful, however, we all have such different teaching styles that sometimes it is more work to change their ideas to fit my classroom than to just do it myself. OERs are opening up many doors for both my students and myself as a life long learner.

So What:

Being able to find resources that are specific enough for the students in my class is a challenge. Having split away from the traditional stand-and-deliver pedagogy for the grade 9-12 students in my class and switching more to a passion-driven independent style of learning has been amazing for engagement, but hard for resources. I, at any time, have 10+ different software programs going in my room and that requires some quick resources I can find that the student can use to move forward. I have one student using AutoDesk Fusion, an immensely complicated piece of software that he wants to learn to help him understand and work towards his goal of being an engineer. I was able to get educational copies of this software and he is creating amazing things. That is more on him, as this is his passion, I just had to get him started and get out of his way. But where does he get the information to learn this software? OER. This student went on the software website, spent an hour finding the tutorial he wanted and started making the product. His work on Fusion has inspired another student, who wants to learn AutoCAD like his father. The benefits are great and the learning intense. This process has been many hours scouring YouTube and other online forums to get the information to the students. However, due to these class readings, I was introduced to  MIT OpenCourseWare which is a blessing to those who teach programming.

What Now:

MIT OpenCourseWare is a tool I would have never thought about, or heard of, if not for this course. It has changed my expectations, and understanding, as to what OERs could be. This is mostly due to my ignorance of the platforms and their uses. I have a student that is learning Python (programming language) and has had some good resources to aid him in that. However, there is a Python training course, with full lectures and class script and learning modules on the MIT site. Also, the Directory of Open Academic Journals (DOAJ) has been very helpful to my Senior Humanities students when they are looking for research on their various courses, be it Philosophy, Psychology, Comparative Religions, ETC. These sites are a game-changer for me and my students. Furthermore, I have a student designing assets (3D models) for her house in Google Sketch-up. She has decided she wanted others to use her work so she uploaded her asset to the 3D Warehouse for others to use, free of charge, which is adding to the repository of assets available to those who use the program. 

I know the examples above are small samples of what can be done, however the willingness to share with others is the greatest part for me to witness. This group of learners, and this generation, is less interested in ownership than they are of getting their stuff out there and, possibly, helping others. It is this idea of sharing that may change the monetization of resources in future generations.

 

Reference

Downes, S. (2019). A Look at the Future of Open Educational Resources. International Journal of Open Educational Resources, 1(2). Retrieved from https://www.ijoer.org/a-look-at-the-future-of-open-educational-resources/

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EDCI 569-Stuck in the Middle

 

Photo by Hutomo Abrianto on Unsplash

In the modern, litigious, and ownership-based society in which we live, one must ask if education could ever be truly open? How do we recognize the achievement of higher education? How do we structure a system where knowledge supersedes credentials? What are credentials actually? Does someone with a Master’s degree in a subject, have the knowledge, or the performance in that subject, more fully than someone with a high school diploma, but a voracious appetite for that subject matter and has read everything available on the subject? Does knowledge even need to be formally acknowledged by an institution, that we have paid money for the privilege of having that institution give us a piece of paper for our completion? Therefore, do credentials mean qualification?

UNESCO fights for access to education as a right. They discuss human rights around free and accessible education. Furthermore, one could say, if the whole educational, and social, structure of our societies is based on not what you know, but what an institution says you know, and that acknowledgment is the defining factor in your progression in both status and financial security, then we will need a true paradigm explosion in not only education but what society values. 

It is clear that most people, and countries, know the value and the essential nature, of having an educated and informed population. The very nature of being informed is that you can take part in society and try, though not always successfully, to move that society forward. However, we only guarantee an education to a certain level (high school) and that will supposedly get everyone to one playing field. Furthermore, only having a high school education will get you only so far. If one is interested in following their dreams and becoming a doctor, lawyer, teacher, etc, then one will have to have the resources to do this: And so begins the proliferation of wealth and equity gaps. Those who can afford the education can reap the rewards, where those who can’t, cannot. Moreover, this goes to the heart of the issue of ability versus credentials. Our societal structure dictates that status is achieved through education, or at least financial status and security. That is not true in all cases and we have all seen, or know of people, who have made a great success of themselves, in terms of status and security, with little to no education but those cases are few and far between. Therefore, access to knowledge and education are not linked.

I will bring this idea out with an example. I worked in the restaurant industry for a greater part of my working life, 17years. In a kitchen, there are chefs and there are cooks. One difference is that the chef has gone to Culinary School and the cook has worked in actual kitchens. The Chef runs the kitchen and gets paid more, based on his/her paid education. The cook works under the chef, makes less, and in most cases, that I have seen, are better at working with, and cooking, food. Thus, the disparity in the kitchen is based on what someone is certified in, knot what they can do. This is true in the front of the restaurant too, where the person who started out as a host, has worked there for years, rose to the top as head waiter, and knows how a restaurant should run, is working under a person who has 12 months of Hospitality schooling and a certificate, but is not effective in the actual work beyond book learning and classroom scenarios. Can the chef and the manager learn and get better? Yes. Is it the cook or ex-host that is invariably training and bringing the skills to their superiors? Yes. Thus, is the status and financial security achievement of the chef and manager not based on the fact they paid someone money for a piece of paper? 

Before I go any deeper into this rabbit hole, I will end with this. Do I think that a person’s actual abilities be “worth more” than a person’s certificates? Yes. Do I know how to make this happen on a societal scale? Not a clue. How do we reward those who research and write books, educate the public with a formal education? How do we recognize the skills of those who lack formal education with recognition of their abilities based on experience and not letters after their name? This course is talking about the equity of information access and how we as teachers, and professionals, can take that information we learn to better our classrooms and develop intrigue and self-dependance in our students and in their abilities to find knowledge, to help further themselves, and their understanding, on a topic. So is it not time to redefine what education is, and what it is for, other than receiving marks and latent gratification towards security and financial independence? Welcome to my brain! You’re welcome!

 

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EDCI 571- Assignment#1D- Videopalooza

 

Photo by Steven Van on Unsplash

First of all, I would like to commend everyone in the class on some amazing videos. I truly enjoyed seeing the different avenues every group took towards creating and disseminating their ideas and learning areas. I will look at the videos, and group write-ups, on a case-by-case basis:

Trevor and Emily:

There were a couple of points on your presentation that resonated with me, but none more than the idea that the new technology incorporated in the classroom has to be compatible with the teacher’s pedagogy, abilities, and beliefs. This is imperative for the tech, in my opinion, to be functional and well incorporated in a meaningful way, into the classroom. Thank you for looking into this and providing a great synopsis.

Sean, Jeremy, and Clay:

“Often, educators feel that presenting information in varying forms is more advantageous (or at least neutral) to having only one. This assumption has been proven incorrect by current research into students and the cognitive loads they can handle during the learning process.” I agree with this statement as there can be disadvantages to too much tech. I loved the way you decided to film outside (though you looked quite cold). This was a valuable learning experience for me and I appreciated the video very much.

Tracey and MacKenzie:

Thank you for the look into the world of maker spaces. I agree with the idea that the reason that we are doing these things must meet most of the list you presented, to have relative validity in our practice. I find that the new curriculum in BC lends us to go into these spaces more freely. 

Joanna, Nicole, and Hayley:

I love a good debate. I agree digital equity needed to layout the black-and-white issues before coming into the more gray area that is the reality of the situation. I believe that the issues are more based on the school and their resources, as you said. I would also like to put forward, that the administration in a school/district can have a huge impact on the level of tech in the school based on its perceived priority. 

Jerry and Rhyanon:

Distance learning and accessibility/flexibility are huge concerns moving forward. With the internet, the idea behind access to education is growing. I would like to look at the way that Tech is affecting my classroom. In my Senior Humanities class, the students being able to share their projects with me, using google docs, has afforded them the ability to work on the bus on the way home or in the car on the way to tournaments. They are loving the idea that they have access to all their work and don’t need the actual computer programs we offer to work on assignments. In that vein, I try to use as many open-source programs as possible in my lab so the students can get them at home for no cost and continue to work. Thank you for the presentation.

Heidi, Lawrence, Dale, and Rene:

The award goes to you. A great way of making learning fun and accessible. I truly enjoyed the whole video. “The pictures and posts that people put into their profiles or news feeds are constructions, and these constructions most often do not accurately represent their true selves.” That is a very important aspect of the new digital age. As tech increases and access to information increases exponentially, we are struggling to teach students not only what is true, but in fact, what is actually real. When I am teaching my Grade 8 students the Liquify tool in Photoshop, I make sure that I bring up the picture of Jennifer Lawrence and explain how media distorts what is real to create an unattainable reality.

Faune, Leanne, and Rochelle:

I think the following quote from your pamphlet, “The next generation must be taught how to use technology positively and how to be critical when given an abundance of online information”, says it all. As I have mentioned previously in this post, we are in an information-rich world. How do we teach discernment and not blind faith in the information presented?

Cheryl, Heather, and Ben:

I love how you presented as you were exceptionally hindered by the 1000’s of km that separated you. I appreciated what you were discussing. “ Teachers need to get involved in developing and designing assessments and developments need to be shared through Open Educational Resources so progress can be made more quickly”. I echo this sentiment. Teachers PLC is not defined by buildings anymore and the desire to engage online and create positive change to assessments, in real-time (relatively), would increase the efficacy of what is seen as assessment among like-minded classroom needs and goals. 

Great job everyone and thank you for the knowledge. I truly enjoyed this project and hope to see more like it, in my humble opinion.

Andrew Vogelsang

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Assignment #1C 571- 2 Models and 1 Vision

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Technology is key in the modern classroom, that much is clear. The ability to engage more learners in a more diverse way is fundamental in the classroom today. There are many theories out there, as to how technology could be used in the classroom, and the efficacy of these theories are up for debate. However, if we believe that technology can enhance learning, and we believe that technology is becoming more prevalent and essential in modern education, than we must look at the ideas behind these 2 models, and their ability to help each of us, as both learners and teachers.Students learn in different ways, that has always been clear and this understanding has led to the differentiation of learning. Furthermore, teachers styles, and technological abilities, are just as diverse, and must also be taken into account when implementing tech in the classroom. I have told first year teachers in my building, that the most important thing, in my opinion, is that they be themselves and teach the way they teach, not how I, or others, teach. Authenticity is very important in teaching. Therefore, the key is to find a model that works for you.

Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) is a very interesting take on the idea of separating content, technology and pedagogy. I, as a tech teacher, generally look at this triad  through a tech vein. Let’s look at an example from my class on making a poster for an event. I look at the new and older tech and see its possibilities and downfalls. I will then look at the content that I am trying to teach, poster creation. After that I look at how I am going to teach that content to a whole class of diverse learners,  where they get to complete the project at their own level. If I allowed myself to be stuck to one software, I would be in trouble, as the abilities of learners and the software I choose may create challenges for some and limits for others. Therefore, I generally offer different software (Adobe In-Design, Microsoft Publisher, and Microsoft Word) as options for the students. The content as to what makes a good poster (see here for ideas) is the same, however my pedagogy, and technology use, changes based on the students individually. Increased numbers of technology options creates choice, and affords me the ability to reach all my students with the same content outcomes. 

The Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition (SAMR) model is based on a more Taxonomological ideal. There are different levels, that are more transformative the farther you move up the Taxonomy.  There are the base levels that are categorized as “enhancements”, those being substitution and augmentation. The upper levels are seen as “transformative” and are represented by modification and redefinition. The basis for, and the problems with, SAMR as a tool, are well laid out in the critical review by Hamilton, Rosenberg, and Akcaoglu. The idea of, “Product over Process” (Pg. 438), is one that we all face. My response would be, if the product is transformational, creating and editing a newscast on an issue of today, for example, that in most cases there has to be great learning, not only in terms of content, but also software, to create that newscast. Therefore, it is my pedagogy that would have to adapt to allow for this different process and product to take place. 

I do not see SAMR and TPACK as competing theories, but instead 2 ways in capturing a diverse classroom. One does not exist in-spite of the other, as most theories don’t, but can both be used simultaneously, as I believe we all do. I am in an enviable position in that I am teaching in a technology rich room as the tech teacher. I also realize that as my job is teaching tech to classrooms with different abilities and needs. I see the validity in both these models and believe we all strive to have our learners create individualized, informative, and differentiated products that meet their understanding and ability. The possibilities for demonstrating learning are only hindered by software availability and the learners’ vision.  

By Andrew Vogelsang 

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EDCI 571 Assignment #1B- Is it Really a Debate?

 

man and woman sitting on chair

Photo by Wei-Cheng Wu on Unsplash

Remember when the earth was flat? Remember when the sun rotated around the earth? Remember when we used cocaine to treat psychological issues? The idea that new media, or media in general, has NO effect on learning is ridiculous. If the argument was, to what degree media aids in education? I could see some validity in this. However, to just have a stance, and then deny any meaningful attempt (through obvious data) to change that stance, is really representative of where we are as people right now, and oddly enough, media allowed for that (but I digress). I agree that when Clark was initially writing in 1983, his view had some validity. The technology, or vehicles, maybe was not as reflective to the learning of students at that time. The “book” used in teaching poetic devices, for example, would have little to do with the teachers actual ability to teach poetic devices. These are valid arguments and it seems to me that Clark’s irritation comes with the fad of the next-big-thing. It reminds me of what we deal with in schools today. One year it is “reading power”, and now it is “PM Benchmarks” or “corrective reading” or “SRA (Student Reading Assessment)”. Do they all help with reading? Yes. Does it depend on which is used, based on the teacher using it? Yes. Are these just vehicles? Yes. Therefore, one could argue, that Clark has a point. In my example, if a teacher can, and does, teach students to read, it is therefore not as important what vehicle is used, but the fact that the teacher is successful. Point for Clark. Unfortunately, this is where Clark goes off the rails. It is his clinging dogmatically to an idea, that is constantly shown to be not relevant anymore, that leads to people frustrations.

Just because something was “true” in the past, becomes untrue or less relevant, with the advent of new technology and knowledge, does not diminish what was once true. At the time Clark wrote, maybe media was not the reason for student success. However, to fully deny the implications, and gains, that technology and new media has on the learning of today’s students, is just asinine.  As Katrin Becker’s 2010 article states, “…discussing the effectiveness of media, potential or otherwise in 2007 using reports from more than 10 years ago is like discussing today’s traffic issues using data from 1820” (pg. 2). I could list all the ways new-media changes have helped students of various abilities, access the same knowledge in my school. I won’t (because who has time for that on a Sunday), but I could.  Kozma’s argument was, by-far, the easiest to make. It is obvious that both technology and media have a drastic effect on student learning and access to that learning. For example, students with life threatening illnesses, who for their own safety cannot attend school physically, can learn from a school online. Therefore, media has affected that student’s learning. Kozma wins. Thus, the basis for this debate, because Clark made it a dichotomy (either/or), is therefore laughable; the idea should be, that media use itself is not as effective as the teacher’s use of that media. That is, if a teacher is being forced to use a platform, or resource, that they are not comfortable with, than the students learning will not be better. 

Though Kozma acknowledges that, at the time of writing his response, the data needed to show the value of media was constrained by acceptable scientific practice. Kozma states in his 1994 article that, “[m]issing in these studies are the mentalist notions or descriptions of the cognitive, affective, or social processes by which learning occurs” (pg. 2). That issue speaks more to how science was run than what is effective. It is plain to see that the “debate” is really not a “debate” at all, but merely a moot point. The idea of what a good teacher is, and what an effective lesson is, greatly depends on the teacher’s ability. It would be as much a mistake to say that textbooks are bad, as it would be to say all media is good. The need to “pick a side” is so pervasive in our world, but one thing is clear; students need support, and not all students learn the same. Furthermore, not all media is the same. Therefore, to lump them together is non-functional. There are many different ways to access information today and it is incumbent as the teacher, and learner facilitator, to help students find the pathways that work for them. 

 Andrew Vogelsang

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571 Assignment 1A- Technology: Lessons for the Future

 

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In Holland and Holland’s Article, they reference a quote from Willard stating, “To have mobile learning work well, power has to shift from instructors and managers to the learners themselves” (Pg. 19). As a technology teacher, my classroom is structured towards personal discovery by tapping into their passions for software and/or a possible future vocation. It is essential, in my opinion, that the students are engaged in their work, and that is enhanced by choice. My classroom is based on the ideas of: problem-solving, work ethic, adaptability, and working well with others. I have spoken to people in the technology fields and they have all said to me that the skills I mentioned earlier are more important to their success than learning a certain programming language or software. They further explained that each of their companies have software they design and use. This means that a new hire will have to use the software and they are willing to teach them that. 

As a teacher, having that interaction with the industry people, really shaped what and how I taught computer classes at my school. I stopped the “stand and deliver” mode of teaching as I realized that I was teaching to the 25% of the class that was actually interested in that software, or area, of computers in general. It is my mission to acquire more software options that they can delve into, if it meets their interest and, for some, their future goals. This means I have to release full control over my students’ learning and become a facilitator. I do this by helping to guide them towards their own goals, through design phases and creation, while teaching time management. With all this said, the students are challenged with the same issues we as educators are challenged with, the short-lived relevance of any particular software.

There are always the standards in software, Adobe and Microsoft, being a few. However, I get frustrated, and so do my learners, with the ever changing new-big-thing in technology. It makes designing learning for the future problematic when the field always changes. Instead of allowing our frustrations to get the best of us, we are working, as a class community, to not look at the software itself but in the growing trends of technology and areas of growth. 3-dimensional printing and graphic design are growing fast in my class, as is architecture and interior design. We use a variety of software to meet the learning outcomes, as they advance. Designing on Google Sketch-Up leads  some students to move on to CAD programs through Autodesk. All of these enhancements could not be possible if the students are not engaged and passionate. 

Holland and Holland state, “the current workplace knowledge-based economies are requiring more high-level creative thinking skills with workers adept in problem-solving…” (Pg. 18). The technology industry is exploding, and so is the need for the employees ability to persevere and problem solve. Most jobs will require some form of computer literacy and in my opinion, computer literacy is more than the ability to type and navigate search-engines and folders (though that is very important). Computer literacy involves understanding why something may not be working, and the ability to rectify this situation by problem-solving. Software and Hardware glitches happen, what do you do now? Software updates can lead to a totally different user-interface (see Blender 2.7 to 2.8) and you will have to learn and adapt. Even Adobe can throw some curve-balls when they update to a new version. We are in a world that is as technologically dynamic as ever before, and we would be remiss to think this is going to slow down anytime soon. 

Andrew Vogelsang

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Concepts and Reflections: The Journey Begins

 

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What I have learned this semester is a huge question. To be honest, I, like most of my students, thought I would enter class and “do” the courses. I am not sure if that comes from a place of arrogance on my part, or if it was uncertainty. As the classes moved forward, I was finding myself meta-cognating on my practice. I found myself engaging on the possibilities of researching my own practice, with the aim of improving myself as an educator. I found myself embracing the ideas, and possibilities, of networks beyond my own jaded views of the social mediums. I found myself listening to my colleagues, and their diverse experiences and fields; learning more about what I could gleam from them. From Kindergarten teachers to high school, north and south, east and west, we are all struggling with how to open our ideas of learning, instead of trying to protect our classroom bubble. We, as educators, struggle with our practices, whether semi-retired, or 3 years in. We, as educators, can all learn and adapt our classrooms for the good of the students, ourselves and our schools. This is just the start of our journey as a cohort, but we are going to grow together as a community. The following are some thoughts I have, as to what I have learned this semester.

I heard, many years ago, that I should look at inquiry as a teaching tool. As I looked at the classroom I was running, with the individualized learning and streamed software, I realized this was, in fact, an inquiry classroom. Mic drop…. I win. However, when the idea that there are different levels of inquiry, was brought to my attention, I was forced to pick the mic back up, as I was not doing it very well. That is not to say that students were not successful in my class, it is just that there was not as much success as there could have been. I went too far at the start, and did not properly incorporate all the scaffolded levels of inquiry. I jumped right to guided inquiry, which left some students behind. I had to adapt on the fly. That is to say, I had to, as the researcher of my classroom, redefine the method, and try the next cycle again.

In the ideas of research in the forms of diary-based research, action research, and phenomenology, are all valid. For me to move forward in my practice, I must reflect. I must see, in real time, what is happening and act on rectifying, or enhancing, a situation to allow for movement forward. Furthermore, I need to reflect on what is happening in the class, and adapt my ways of facilitation: that would be action research. Education is beyond numbers, and counts, as each individual learner is different. There needs to be more than one way for them to see and react to their learning. To do something well with one student, may also work with another, later on. When learning becomes more individualized, the ideas of how to educate each person must be adaptable. Phenomenologically speaking, I must help the students to share their lived experience, as learners, by allowing them to share their lived experience with a project. I think group-talks between classmates about a project will allow for a shared experience and deeper level understanding of their own thoughts, and the thoughts of others. This process will, hopefully, help them to see the project in different lights and lenses of understanding. Furthermore, there may be an overarching struggle with the assignment, that are seen by the groups of students, and that group and I may come up with, a great way to move themselves forward. This should be documented by myself, and allowed as an exemplar to future students. The more tools that are in the kit, allows for an increased ability to reach a myriad of students and their needs. As I have alluded to in a previous post, our practice is, in essence, research. Moreover, when doing research on our practice we become both the researcher, and the researched.  

There is a desire to reach the level of depth in inquiry. In the 568 class, run by Trevor MacKenzie, we took a look at the levels of inquiry, shown using a diagram of the pool (see above). There are many levels, or depths, of inquiry. They range from: starting with structured, controlled, guided, and ending with free inquiry.  I know, ideologically, that I can not just throw the students into the deep end (free). That would be a huge mistake. However, we must not keep them in the shallow end due to our comfort. The pool metaphor is apt because if one were to go into a public pool, they would see that there are people in all the depths. Some shallow, some deep. In my inquiry classroom, the ideal situation would be to have that “public pool mentality”. Have the kids swimming everywhere based on their abilities. I would strive to move the students from the shallow to the deep through structured, and controlled inquiry. However, once in the free inquiry, it is not good enough to just tread water in the deep end, we should aim to be diving and grabbing objects off the pool floor; we should always push our ability. How would I move them through different depths? Observation, journaling, and revision through the natural flow of action research.

As inquiry evolves in my classes, and my school, choice will be even more valuable as we are exiting the age of teacher as “dispenser of all knowledge” and moving towards having them acquire the knowledge through personal preference and passion. It is essential that the experiences of inquiry are built, or scaffolded, through previous inquiry knowledge, and attempts, on both our parts, as educators, and on the part of students. Every swimmer starts in the shallow end with water wings and feet on the floor. That is essential because we are teaching them a new skill so they don’t drown. To put a student in the position of “drowning” is not acceptable. Furthermore, putting ourselves as educators in a position to drown is equally unacceptable. Assumptions of a student’s abilities can lead to problems. There are students who may max-out at the guided stage, or controlled stage, and there are others who will excel at the free stage way faster than we anticipated. That, as an idea, sounds like a diverse and functional inquiry based classroom to me. 

In my Photography 11 class, in the past few years, I have taken a criteria assignment, inquiry approach, that is teacher led, but with a lot of freedom in execution. An example being, with fast vs slow shutter speed. There is a requirement as to the number of each type of photo that must be handed in, with a personal reflection attached. However, what students take pictures of is up to them. Freedom is very important and allows for a vast variety of work. However, when they get to Photography 12, the way in which they move themselves forward, in the class, is deep-end, free inquiry. I have exemplars, that I show the class at the beginning of the year to help them see how much work is involved to get to the end project. I conference often with the students, and pull many back to the shallower ends of the pool, if needed. I have had 3 students actually complete a totally unguided, free inquiry project, and the results were outstanding. It was great to see the students fully immersed in their learning, by challenging themselves in their work. The buy-in was huge. Furthermore, the buy-in is still very high, even in the shallower end inquiries. It is the idea of choice that is driving the success in my classes.

My goal, as an educator, is to put this into effect in all my classes. I am making strides, but have a long way to go, in creating a cohesive practice. Every step forward is movement towards 

the end goal of true inquiry, and I am realizing that steps are enough. As I mentioned earlier, to try to make the shift in one leap was not efficacious, to either myself or the students. I have to create a space of comfort and understanding to allow my students to be willing to step out of their comfort zones. I appreciate all that the students have given to me, and my practice, in terms of trust and work. I know that, together, we will keep growing our abilities, as people, to become truly engaged life-long learners.

Andrew Vogelsang