Designing an Online Discussion

Context for this prompt:

Last September, 43 WUSD Mobile Device pilot teachers read Alan November's Who Owns the Learning? with follow up and support delivered through Schoology. This was the prompt used to guide teachers in connecting the content from the book to their actual classroom practice.

Welcome to the Digital Learning Farm - Discussion

In the Introduction, Alan November introduces the idea of the "Digital Learning Farm" in which the role of the learner becomes one of a contributor, collaborator, and a leader in the learning culture. Students are engaged in purposeful learning experiences in which they are expected to contribute and collaborate to their learning community as well as the global community. As a result of this process, the essential skills of problem solving, critical thinking, creative collaboration, and global communication are developed, better preparing students for college and careers.

Chapter 1 distinguishes how the Digital Learning Farm can change the culture of learning and compares this model to the traditional educational model most prevalent in public education today. This model calls for a shift to a student centered learning environment with more control given to students over their own learning and where technology is simply part of the educational process, not the focus of the educational process.

Reflect on the concept of the "Digital Learning Farm" presented in the Introduction and further described in Chapter 1 and respond to the following prompt:

Given the current state of technology in your classroom, what first steps might you take in building a learning community where your students take on more responsibility for contributing to the learning of the class? How might your learning community change once mobile devices are introduced in your classroom?

Guidelines/expectations for responding:

Your initial response should be:

- 300-500 words
- use standard academic language
- be respectful of all readers

Initial response must be submitted no later than Saturday, September 27. At least two follow up responses to colleagues must be submitted no later than Wednesday, October 1.

Grading:

Initial Response

Complete

Incomplete

Posts idea(s) that show a clear connection to the assigned readings and a thoughtful reflection on these readings.

Response to Colleagues

Posts responses to at least two other students that encourage the conversation and add original insight.

Reflection:

The Power of Twitter as a Professional Network

Unlike most of my colleagues, I was not a huge fan of Twitter. I've had an account for some time, but the disjointed, short busts of @ signs did not appeal to me until I started in my new position at a school district 18 months ago. It was then that I realized how stagnate I had become in my own learning and that I needed Twitter in my life to stay connected and learn from others. Although I am not an expert Twitter user, it is a huge resource for me to stay current on what is happening in the world of educational technology and has become essential in my professional learning network. I've come to look forward to the bursts of @ signs and what I might learn from my colleagues, often finding myself exploring topics that I did not anticipate learning more about and finding relevance to my daily work.

As stimulating to the mind as going "down the rabbit hole" can be, it can also be very intrusive when time is limited. Because so much information is coming through the Twitter feed, it can become very distracting and following all of the resources becomes an inefficient use of time. What I find myself doing is retweeting or favoriting those tweets that I want to see again so that they show up in my own Twitter feed.

Twitter provides an opportunity for a great breadth of content depending upon the people I choose to follow. Clicking the links within the tweets takes me into much more depth on topics that I choose to learn about. Students have a similar experience in exploring their own interests and do not always start at a Google Search page. For example, YouTube has become a search engine for many students who are gathering information about topics that they are assigned or want to learn more about. Rather than reading a lot of text, students prefer to watch a video and learn visually. Because of the abundance of material available on YouTube, teaching students how to effectively search for relevant content and use the information from the content is critical in avoiding passive learning. Using the Subscribe, Share, Like/Dislike, and Add To playlist features within YouTube helps student organize their content and build their own personal learning space. Students will need to be supported in understanding the impact of their digital footprint on the future through activities around digital citizenship.

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse