Sunday, February 10, 2008

Second Life

I really enjoyed using Second Life this week. I only got frustrated when I got stuck underwater, but after while of pulling my hair out, I finally figured how to get out. Once I figured out how to click on the world map to find EduIsland, it was easy to transport and find the class. I like the virtual environment very much. I would like to use Second Life for an activity for an online course that I want to develop for my dissertation. The topic of the course I am going to design is multicultural literacy instruction training and cultural identity development for teachers that work with minority students. It would be very interesting to see how students would design their avatars to represent themselves. This could be very valuable in cultural identity discussions.

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Sociocultural Instructional Design

February 6, 2008 Blog Entry
CECS 6100

Duffy & Kirkley pages 49-60

Polin’s sociocultural instructional design places the student at the center of instruction. She respects her students’ maturity, independence, and learning needs. As an instructional design student, I think back on the countless memories of instructors putting themselves at the center of instruction. This is a major reason why I am pursuing this degree so that I can be the type of instructor that really cares about students’ learning! Not the type of professor that only likes to brag about the books he/she has written. As a classroom teacher, I design my instruction with the students at the center. Many people think that it is crazy to allow students to think and problem-solve. They think learning is dictating information and testing students on that information. In my opinion, it is the most pleasurable experience as a teacher to guide students through an experience of learning where they problem solve and share their work with their peers. Students like to share when given the opportunity.

I agree with Polin when she says that adult learners are very goal driven and that their time is valuable. Adult learners want to engage in activities that are meaningful and will help them achieve their goals. I can testify to excelling in graduate courses that allow me to think and problem-solve in regards to my own research agenda. As a graduate student, I appreciate assignments that will allow me to build and expand upon my existing research agenda. I feel that sociocultural instructional design not only places the student at the center of learning, but it also helps to build identity. With this approach to learning, I feel confident about my research. I feel like I am given the opportunity to do scholarly assignments that will amount to something valuable to me. A sociocultural approach does not eliminate the need to incorporate different types of learning strategies, but it does shift the attention from the teacher to the student. In this type of approach, learners can add something meaningful to them to the conversation as they decide what they need rather than what the teacher decides they need.

I will definitely add Polin and others from this section to my bibliography so that I can read more about sociocultural instructional design.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Distance Education

According to Duffy and Kirkley (2004), the quality of distance education depends on the design of and the students’ engagement in the learning environment. From a design stand point, and instructional designer must create a learning environment that shifts learning to student centered discussions and learning tasks. Students must be able to clearly understand text in the learning environment to accomplish learning goals. I once took an online course where the learning environment was cold because students had too many tasks to complete without deep understanding of difficult material. My frustration with this particular course caused me not to fully engage in the learning environment because my peers and I felt rushed and confused about key concepts and our discussions lacked depth. I think that many instructors feel that giving loads of work in an online learning environment is necessary. I feel that an online environment should give students clear directions and constructive tasks to accomplish learning goals. I feel that portfolio assessment is crucial in this type of learning environment so that students have record of their growth as a tool of reflection. This would help students stay interested in the online learning environment in which they are participating.