EDEL 20002: Reflective Synopsis

Introduction

As we begin or continue our learning journey, we want tools that can enable us to learn. Ones that help us to learn, that work side by side with our learning, and can enable us to do more than we ever could before in this new eLearning environment we find ourselves in. There are tools that will help us to do this – and these are what I will be analyzing. I have chosen a range of tools to analyze and review its learning potential, particularly in my context of adult learning.

The items I will be analyzing are:

Wikis

Blogs

YouTube

Mobile devices

I believe that these tools are powerful in their own way, and enable learning. To analyze these, I will be using my own personal framework, which contains and explores my own ideas of learning – located within my blog http://myedel20002.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/week-5.html . When creating my framework, I also considered an article shared in Stephanie’s Scoop.it! account. was a very interesting article, http://www.teachthought.com/technology/12-principles-of-mobile-learning/ which looks at the principles for mobile learning, learning in these new times. The ideas include that of transparency, being always on and connected, and having access to everything all the time, needs to keep us focused as educators, and embrace new technologies as they appear.

I will also be using the TPACK Framework, the sums of Technical Knowledge, Content Knowledge and Pedagogical Knowledge overlap, and combine to bring innovation in technology and new ideas. As Koehler states “Newer technologies often afford newer and more varied representations and greater flexibility in navigating across these representations. Teachers need to know not just the subject matter they teach, but also the manner in which the subject matter can be changed by the application of technology”.

I will also use the ideas of 21^st century pedagogies to explore these tools. Technology will keep changing, so we will need to do so as well. Whilst it is believed that our teaching methods and pedagogies are outdated, and we are scrambling to catch up, we must move our teaching forward, so as to embrace this change. If we want to teach students to be collaborative, innovative and creative, then we need to embrace this as teachers, and reflect this within our teachings. We need to help and enable students to learn in a fashion in which this is realized – to help them think for themselves and to learn for themselves… and keep pace and utilise technology to do this.

In my context of adult learning, I believe that two ideas are very important – adragogy and heutagogy. Adragogy is generally associated with adult learning. Adult learning is self-motivated, independent and have a sense of collaboration with the teacher. However, as we move forward with technologies, I believe a sense of collaboration with other students, and allowing students to have more direction in their studies is beneficial – which aligns with the idea of heutagogy – which is self determined and collaborative. I believe a mixture of the two is needed to move forward with new technologies.

In exploring the ideas of pedagogy, I was very impressed with the diversity within the forms. It encapsulates so many ideas – one of the most interesting views of this I found with Tracy’s Scoop.it! account http://www.scoop.it/t/e-learning-a-time-for-embracing-change – The Pedagogy Wheel -https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3138780/padwheel/assets/fallback/index.html . To me, it expresses the many ideas, activities, actions and technology that can be used. There are so many different pieces to the pedagogy wheel, it keeps us mindful that there is always something new and interesting on the horizon, and to ensure that we challenge ourselves as teachers.

Wikis

I believe that Wikis, including both Wikipedia and personal wiki spaces, are an amazing tool to use, particularly for that of adult learning. From its most humble origins as an encyclopedia, to its current form today where knowledge is created, changed and updated every single day from all over the globe. My knowledge and work with Wikis has taken place over a range of time – I have used personal Wikis within my work environment, to document problems, supply fixes or possible fixes, and as a general knowledge sharing tool. I believe that within education, particularly that of adult education, it is a tool like no other to share and learn information.

An example of the diversity and innovative ways Wikis can be used can be found at http://www.scoop.it/t/wikipedia-in-the-classroom . It demonstrates the versatility of Wikis and the variety of uses they have.

Affordances Positive	Affordances Negative	Pedagogical Implications	Legal, Safety & Ethical Implications
Easy to use Free (wikipedia) Readily available (internet connection) Easy to search	Incorrect material May not be concise or well written Can be edited easily which can lead to false information	Promotes collaboration Constructivist learning Individual and/or group learning abilities	Unsafe practices can be available (car maintenance, electrical work) Illegal content or unsafe material may be able to be viewed

Blogs

My own personal skills with blogs have been rapidly developed in the last few months. I have never previously written a blog, or even investigated a blogging tool. Using Blogger, the tool I have used to set up and write my blogs, including this reflection has been an eye-opening experience. The ease with which to use it, the ability to have it look very professional, yet customized for my tasks have given me a far more positive opinion of blogs. Not only would I now use blogs in my life, I would encourage others to use it, and I can see that as a learning tool, it is very effective. It allow for collaboration, organization of ideas, a quick history of your ideas since you began blogging, and an outlet for your opinions. This lends itself to learning, and it is a great tool for adults to use to consolidate their learning ideas and to collaborate with others.

Affordances Positive	Affordances Negative	Pedagogical Implications	Legal, Safety & Ethical Implications
Easy to use Free Readily available Information on all topics are published Forum for ideas and opinions to be shared	Opinion based so material may not be correct Negative opinions or negative topics can be easily shared	Constructivist approach – learning is dictated by the writer, who directs the blog and their learning Allows for adragogy Collaboration between the writer and the readers	Allows for personal attacks on others Slanderous, hurtful or untrue material is easily published Forum for personal attacks

YouTube

A tool I have felt that should be included in a review of technology for learning is YouTube. Originally used for uploading videos and not serious learning, it has become a tool to enable learning. Not only can you view, watch and learn on a variety of topics from multitudes of users, but you can also partake in serious learning

One such example comes from a link taken from Ben’s blog, http://edel20001.blogspot.com.au/#!/2013/04/edel20001-assessment-task-one.html mentions Khan’s Academy. Khan’s academy is about using YouTube, and incorporating additional software, to create learning http://gigaom.com/2011/05/04/khan-academy-youtube-online-learning/ . It incorporates a popular tool that is well known and used on the web, to create a new idea, and create a new way of learning. It is important, as adults, to use technology that is new and interesting, but also important to make sure that we are comfortable and have the ability to learn.

I feel that YouTube exemplifies heutagogic learning – it can be self-paced, but largely self-determined. It allows for the learner to choose their path of learning, at their own rate. As such, it is a powerful technological tool for learning.

I feel that YouTube, as evidenced in Khan’s Academy, highlights technical content knowledge. It is defined in the TPACK framework as “best practice with technology is to consider the way it can be used alongside the content to enhance the way students learn. This is technological content knowledge.” It incorporates learning, but learning as developed and used with the technology itself.

Affordances Positive	Affordances Negative	Pedagogical Implications	Legal, Safety & Ethical Implciations
Can upload own musicial, theatrical or any other type of work Can create own videos from music, video, games, and anything besides Easy to use Fun and creative	Content can be taken from other sources and not credited Content can be inaccurate Content can be of poor quality – sound/video	Creative learning Allows for collaboration Constructivist learning Heutagogical learning	Beware of copyrighting – popular music in videos will breach copyright Videos of people doing dangerous activities could encourage this behavior in others

Mobile Devices

Mobile devices have changed the way we work. You are connected to the internet 24/7, so long as you have your device with you. Phones and Ipads have changed the way we learn. The apps that are available to download have enormous learning potential. The availability of these apps is amazing – a simple search will find apps that relate to the type of learning you wish to do – from simply downloading an ebook to an app that can hold, store and share a portfolio.

One such app I have previously explored is called Evernote. http://notanotherhistoryteacher.edublogs.org/2013/03/29/evernote-as-a-portfolio-promotes-lifelong-learning/ In this instance, Evernote is explored as a learning tool, by creating notebooks, which can be shared between learners. This collaborative approach to learning is one that I find very interesting in my context of adult learning, and one I believe to be of great value. A search of the Apple iTunes store reveals literally thousands of different apps available for learning. From quizzes, to poems, to apps teaching and testing geography or different language, mobile devices have a fantastic base for learning.

Affordances Positive	Affordances Negative	Pedagogical Implications	Legal, Safety & Ethical Implciations
Easy to use Allows access to the internet – being connected constantly A huge range of apps means the content for learning is great! Capability to use drawing, video creating, instant chats, video conferencing, all online and in real time	Expensive to buy Expensive to buy apps Requires charging or power frequently	Andragogical and heutagogical implications Self-constructed learning Individual or collaborative work Constructivist learning	Technology may not be affordable for all – leaving some behind if they or their parents cannot afford it If it is stolen, works may be lost or used unauthorized by others

Scoop.it!

After mentioning it here in so many other forms, I decided to add a brief review of Scoop.it! I feel it is a very powerful tool for eLearning and learning in general, particularly within my framework. It keeps people connected, and daily updates with documents, articles and other things that are of interest to the learner. It helps to keep the learner learning, without the hassle of searching all the time for the information that helps them to learn.

It also affords them an opportunity to collect, scoop, and curate information, so that they can keep track of topics of interest to them. I have used this software previously in EDEL20001: Learning theory in the digital age, and felt it a useful tool for my context of adult learners.

Affordances Positive	Affordances Negative	Pedagogical Implications	Legal, Safety & Ethical Implications
Captures information and presents it in an interesting way Topics can be linked Easily searched for Can add material to your own ideas easily Can show the source for the material	Material doesn’t always have a purpose A lot to search through	Constructivist approaches Collaboration in real time Creative learning Individual and/or group learning	Copyright – taking other people’s work and putting it under your own Collections could be on distressing topics Collections could be created for negative ideas and purposes

Collaboration

I feel that my own collaborative experience is one that I have not only sincerely enjoyed, but one that has helped me in a multitude of ways. I feel that the openness

My own practice has benefited from so many different points of view, coming from a range of contexts that are miles away from my own. Some of the contexts are to do with real world problems, training others or helping those in impoverished countries have a better future. It focuses my own practice, but also helps me to reflect and learn about other learner types I might not have thought of before.

The collaboration between students also helps me in my own work, besides a different point of view, to help me think of new ideas. Often I will be reading a blog entry from another of the learners in this course, and something I will read will bring a spark of light in my head – which leads me to a completely different idea that I was currently thinking of. It is not a copy of their idea, but a comment, a technology that they review, a link to an interesting article that they post, that gives me new and interesting ideas that I incorporate in to my own work.

I feel that while I may not have had as much time for collaboration as I would have liked, due to my own time constraints, it is a huge part of my own work, and my own research as I work through each week in this learning environment. It also helps me to stay focused and positive that I am not alone in this course, that others have feelings that I do, and that helps me to know that I have the ability to do it, and that I can! The collaboration in the course, whether through blog entries, Scoop.it! ideas, Wikis, and even speaking to them via voice or typing in blackboard has helped me greatly, and I hope to continue this and improve upon it, throughout the rest of this course and beyond.

Conclusion

I have analyzed technologies for adult learning: Wikis, blogs, YouTube, mobile devices and Scoop.it! They are technologies that I believe are very useful to the teaching within my context of adult learners. While no technology is without negative affordances, the positives of these technologies has great implications for learning. Ethical, legal and safe practices need to be considered and observed when using these technologies, particularly in the areas of legality and copyright, but with mindfulness to these, the technologies can be used in a positive and collaborative way to aid learning.