Colette Cassinelli’s edtech VISION

I am pleased that my Action Research project from Pepperdine University was selected to be uploaded to the student archives as an example of Action Research.

“These projects have value in directing the work of the next generation of students in the Online Masters in Ed Tech Program at Pepperdine. The sites listed here are under review for the Center for Collaborative Action Research. A number will be published on the Center.”

My research paper was titled, “Engaging Students with Authentic Technology Projects” and the final paper and documentation can be accessed at http://cadres.pepperdine.edu/ar/

I spent last week as a Graduate Assistant for the Pepperdine Master’s of Arts in Educational Technology [online] program in Malibu (yes, Malibu!) California. VirtCamp is a chance for the new cadre members to meet face to face and learn the communication tools for their online year ahead. The excitement in the air was contagious and as I sat there and reflected about my 13-month journey through OMET – I was struck about how much I learned this year and how my community taught me most of what I now know.

I admit – I had to hold myself back from gushing all kinds of advice like: You’ve got to learn about del.icio.us and other social bookmarking sites. If you work on multiple computers like I do you will love having all your bookmarks in one place (plus it’s fun to snoop through other people’s bookmarks!). Wikis? I love wikis. I use them all the time. Whenever my cadremates and I were discussing a situation I was always to first to suggest, “Let’s add a link to our wiki and add our ideas there”. Wikis are so great for collaboration and giving each person a voice. Oh … and you must post all of your pics on flickr and play around with flickr toys! I found myself proclaiming the wonders of blogging – even though before this program I could barely keep a diary for more than a week. Now I find that I have so much swimming around in my head that I have to write it down so I can digest it slowly, let it mull around in my brain for awhile and then come back to the idea later on and discuss the idea some more.

I was so busy during the week that I didn’t have time for much blogging and realized how much I missed it. Now that I am finally reflecting on what happened I am realizing that blogging is so much more about the process of my thinking and actions – and less about “what happened”. I definitely missed a golden opportunity – oh well – next time.

During the course of VirtCamp, class members are thrown into social learning activities where they share how they learned what they know and are asked to complete activities in groups where they are given little direction of how to complete the project. It is basically organized chaos. Some people love the open-endedness and interactions and others crave some written directions. There is no better way to reflect on your preferred learning style than to be thrown into a situation where you are challenged to grow and be a learner again. Most of the people in the program are K-12, Higher Ed or corporate trainers and I am sure they are used to being the experts and “knowing how to do it all”. Being placed back in a position of a learner is good for educators. I think it is critical to experience and remember the feelings of nervousness, fear, frustration, exhilaration, and sense of accomplishment. It will make each of use more sensitive to the learners in our environment.

My main role was to assist the new students when they needed help with communication tools, setting up blogs, designing websites or answering basic questions. The students were eager to learn and there was A LOT to learn in a short amount of time. After teaching someone how to set up a template in Dreamweaver or how to add tags to a blog entry I found myself saying to them, OK now, pay it forward. Teach this skill to at least one other class member”. I am happy to say that after two or three days I observed many new Dreamweaver templates, lots of interesting blogs and many new skills being shared with classmates.

Just think. Individually we know a lot – but what if each of us really takes on the theme of “Pay it forward”. Collectively we know so much more and we can accomplish a great deal together. The OMET program embraces social learning at it’s best. Educators can learn a great deal from each other if we take the time to share best practices and be open to learning.

Pay it forward!

Tonight our OMET Pepperdine cadre hosted a “Give Education a Second Life” event at the NMC Campus on Teaching2 in Second Life. The event began with a keynote address by Melissa Anderson. Then a video that discusses the theme of choice was shown. Next, we listened to an interview between edtech blogger, Steve Hargadon and Gary Stager. The “Give Education a Second Life” website URL was shared as well as the contest requirements to win an iPod. The two evenings ended with lively discussion among participants.

My favorite quote of the evening was by Gary Stager: “I would suggest that without choice there is no ownership; without ownership there is no engagement; and without engagement there is no learning.” To me this quote speaks directly to what I have been trying to accomplish in my computer classes all year – engage students to increase learning. Another thing Stager mentioned was that we need to give kids more varied, deeper, richer, and more personally meaningful long-term sustained experiences. It is through these experiences that students construct knowledge – not through access to information or “interaction with the content”.

Both evenings challenged me to articulate my vision of choice and why I believe it is essential to create a learner-centered environment. Thanks to all who attended.

My year-long Action Research project was titled, “Engaging Students in Authentic Technology Project”. The full pdf of the report can be found at my Pepperdine student website . Some final thoughts …

Planning: In order to be successful in using a thematic project-based approach I must carefully plan out curriculum and skills integration. It doesn’t just happen on its own.

Student Engagement: Engagement is present in the classroom if the student sees value in learning the new technology skill.

Authentic Audience: One of the most compelling factors in engaging students in technology lessons is to design projects that have an authentic audience. The difference is that the students are making innovative projects that are seen by real people and content that is authentic and interesting.

Best Assignments: The best assignments are related to “real world problems,” used real world technology tools, are built on life experiences and require in-depth work.

Challenges: The challenge for any teacher is to balance teacher-directed instruction and student-centered learning. I need to vary the nature of assignments and whether students worked by themselves or in groups.

Give Student Choice: Choice empowers students in their learning but also gives students options to choose projects that are more suited to their learning style or personality.

Assessment: This new type of curriculum planning required me to rethink how I assess skill knowledge to make sure students are learning the technology skills required. The focus is on the process of learning – not the end product. My job as a teacher is to discover whether students are learning and understanding the material.

Continue to grow: I need to continue to evaluate which skills should be covered in my computer classes. The world is flat. Change requires new ideas and new teaching strategies.

Go Global: I should continue to integrate newsworthy and global topics as a way to maintain the authentic feel of student projects.

Feedback: I also need to find a way to give valuable feedback to students about their learning and progress. Portfolios can provide an area for reflection and another authentic audience for their work.

Organization: I will continue to use Moodle for organization and journal entries. Having the ability to access the class site and handouts from home was a huge advantage for the students this term.

Let go: I need to let go of controlling all of the aspects of direct instruction and teaching. It is essential to give students opportunities to “learn how to learn”.

Finally: There must be a real purpose to learn technology skills and then opportunities to demonstrate their use. No longer will I stand in front of my computer lab and drill students on isolated technology skills when students don’t have a reason or purpose to learn them. Projects that have authentic audiences raise the quality of performance on projects and also provide students with purposeful motivation to do their best work.

One of my favorite quotes is “We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself ” (Lloyd Alexander). This blog represents my vision and quest for NOT discovering the answer – but probing the questions about the power of educational technology which hopefully will lead to newer and more fascinating questions to ponder.

I’ve just finished by Master’s of Arts in Educational Technology at Pepperdine University. This past year I have been challenged in so many different ways … how do people learn … what are the most effective instructional practices to engage students in learning … do teachers stifle creativity … how do students construct meaning through learning … how can I create an environment that is conducive to learning … what role does technology play in that … how can I influence the educational community … how can I lead … and many more.

Meaningful reflection is a key factor is deciding which course to take. I hope to use this blog as a place for conversation and reflection on my journey towards leadership in the educational technology community. I am constantly inspired by my fellow educators who share their insights and hope that I can do the same.

Thank you for taking the time to visit. Please comment if you feel so inclined. Some wise words to think about, “We cannot hold a torch to light another’s path without brightening our own.” Cheers!

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