A high school with more clicks than cliques
A Stanford University program offers gifted students an online education. They log on to class from all over the world. Read more
I like watching online education evolving.
dotedu
blogging about .edu stuffArchive for distributed learning
Mobile Learning – Are you ready for it?
Are you Ready for Mobile Learning? a recent article in Educause.
The idea of mobile learning has been circulating for several years now. It’s one of those catch-all terms, like e-learning, or podcasting, that has a dozen descriptions. It’s a phenomena; it’s has instructional, institutional and strategic implications; it’s the future; it’s here; it’ll pass, etc, etc.
One of the ways to talk about these things with each other is to describe our experiences and share our opinions.
Using the digital native/immigrant descriptive framework, we forget that business people have been working and learning mobil-ly for more than a decade and that many young people are very bound to traditional methods of learning, which for purposes of this post, are not the kinds of learning strategies, skills and characteristics a successful mobile learner would need. I’m thinking of self-direction, independent as well as interdependent, motivated, manages time well, is organized, technologically literate and connected (involves tools and money). None of these ideas are new but exist in the literature of distance and progressive education dating back to the early 1900s.
If we draw a bit from the corporate world, we see that mobility, tele-commuting and similar ideas stemming from the ubiquity of ICT, have not delivered as expected. For all but a few progressive companies, whose business plans designed teleworking, such as Jet Blue, organizations want to keep an eye on most employees. People I’ve spoken with have said they couldn’t and wouldn’t want to work at home because they “don’t have the discipline;” going to a workplace with co-workers and colleagues provides a structure.
Mobile learning provides little structure, or so it appears from an orientation stemming from traditional, time/place specific, teacher-centered learning. It’s not for everyone nor for all kinds of learning.
I can’t read a dense passage for deep understanding in a noisy airport nor do I believe a “digital
native” can either.
E-text books in action
I’m really excited about having a chance to use an e-textbook. The text for my 820, educational research class, is available at http://www.safarix.com/0131185349. I’d stumbled on information about the e-text version in the print version. I looked over the site, the service, (a 150 day license for $50) and thought ok, I’ll try it out.
Notation, highlighting an bookmarking are included and I’m curious as to how that works in general and for me as a learner. The price only partially drove my decision, it was more that the print textbook is as they typically are, heavy and dense, and full of stuff you’ll never get to. I won’t schlepp it around; I would and do schlepp a laptop around, which is a completely different overall experience. The companion website to the text, offered by the publisher, is also good. Whether at home, work or a conference I always have access to the resources, along with the course materials Blackboard.
Groups vs. Networks
Groups require unity, networks require diversity. Groups require coherence, networks require autonomy. Groups require privacy or segregation, networks require openness. Groups require focus of voice, networks require interaction.
From Stephen Downs via George Siemens. I get alot from their thinking, from being a part of their distributed network and as much as I don’t reap benefits from grouping. I’d add though that I think groups do require interaction and well developed groups know how to orchestrate that.
When I think of the people I work with from various entities, we are in fact a network and function like one. I still have a sense of wanting to unite sometimes. I think it’s in fact a longing the things groups provide–coherence, privacy and focus of voice. These are comforting and the same time often stultifying.
When I think of the ways in which I function best, they are in networks. Groups often feel emcumbered.
What are personal learning environments?
This paper is chock full of ideas nicely pulled together:
informal/formal learning, bricolage, peripheral participation/lurking, social software/learning management systems to name just a few. I’m increasingly intrigued by conversations that distinguish issues of learning from issues of teaching.
Comments off
