Post date: Dec 5, 2016 10:28:38 PM
Recently, I have started work on my own business. I started applying many of the skills I have been teaching students for years, but all of a sudden, so many things clicked into place. I always thought I understood the why of my activities, but doing it In Real Life made a huge difference. This really highlighted for me the importance of real, not just realistic, learning experiences for students.
For some reason, we expect tasks involving technology to just be automatically exciting...because...technology. Unfortunately, this is not the case. In the same way just asking kids to "write a paragraph about anything" is usually met with eye rolls and groans, asking kids to create a website for no particular reason is pointless and uninteresting.
This is particularly highlighted in vocational education programs. Kids in these classes are used to practical learning. Then we shove empty theoretical examples at them and expect them to be enthralled.
The standard argument for this is that students need to be taught the basics before they try it out in the real world. I disagree. The beauty of the online world is that you can learn as you do. There is no need to waste weeks learning skills for building a site, or creating a video, or editing an image. If students jump in feet first, they learn to find, assess and rectify problems organically - instead of waiting for feedback on assessment and then editing a draft. They learn to save as they go. They learn about safe online editing. They learn by making mistakes.
Another common argument is that it is hard for teachers to track learning if it happens in this way. Tough. Change the way you track learning. Change the way you assess. Don't change the way students learn simply because it makes your administration easier.