Meaningful Learning With Technologies

1. Meaningful Learning With Technologies Session II January 16, 2012

2. Lesson Objectives • Shaping Tech for the Classroom (Marc Prensky) • Review main ideas in chapter One • Characteristics of meaningful learning • Learning from technology • Learning with technology • Using technologies to foster meaningful learning • Go over the QEP • Cross curricular competencies • Subject matter competencies • Progression of Learning • Go over the Constructivist Unit Form

3. Shaping Tech for the Classroom Four steps in technology adoption: • Dabbling • Doing old things in old ways • Doing old things in new ways • Doing new things in new ways

4. Barriers to integration • Tech barrier: One-to-one • Social barrier: Digital immigrants • Physical barrier: School design So what can be done? • Consult the students • Combine what we know about education with what we know about technology

5. Characteristics of Meaningful learning • For meaningful learning to occur, the learning task should be Active manipulative/Observant Constructive Articulative/Reflective Intentional Goal-Directed/ Regulatory Authentic Complex/Contextual Cooperative Collaborative/Conversational

6. Active For meaningful learning, the learners must be actively engages in a meaningful task where they are manipulating objects in the environment and observing the results.

7. constructive • Activity is necessary but not sufficient for meaningful learning. • Learners must articulate what they have learned and reflect on it. • By explaining what they observe, learners construct their own mental models-internal representation of reality • The reflective process allows for the integration of new knowledge with old one.

8. Intentional Cooperative • Collaboration with other learners allow for the reliance on each other’s knowledge to solve problems or perform a task. • Conversation among learners allow for social negotiation a common understanding and ways of accomplishing it. • When learners are actively working toward the achievement of a goal, learning is strengthen. Authentic • Situated in real-world context or problem based learning allow for better understanding, remembering and transfer to new situations.

9. Using technologies to facilitate meaningful learning • Learning from technology - technology as a teacher • Production of what the teacher requires using word processing, data based tools and graphic tools • Drill and practice (http://pbskids.org/games/reading.html) • Learning with technology - technology as a partner in the learning process

10. Learning with technology • Technology is more than the hardware and consists of the design on the instruction and the environment (system approach) • Learning technologies is any environment that engages the learners in active, constructive, intentional, authentic and cooperative learning • Technologies are not conveyors of meaning • Technologies must fulfill learners needs • Learners and technologies should be intellectual partners • Help learners articulate what they know • Help learners reflect • Support negotiation for meaning making • Support the construction of personal representation of meaning

11. System approach to lesson (unit) design

12. The Quebec education program Progression of Learning

13. Cross curriculum competencies The QEP contains nine Cross Curriculum Competencies • Intellectual competencies To use information; To solve problems; To exercise critical judgment; To use creativity • Methodological competencies To adapt effective work methods; To use ICT • Personal and social competencies To construct his/her identity; To cooperate with others • Communication competencies To communicate effectively

15. Subject matter competencies • Each of the subjects has its own competencies outlined in the QEP which may be general to all cycles or cycle specific • For example: Mathematics, Science and Technology • To propose explanations for or solutions to scientific or technological problems • To make the most of scientific and technological tools, objects and procedures • To communicate in the languages used in science and technology

16. Progression of learning • http://www.mels.gouv.qc.ca/progression/science/index_en.asp • Explains in details the knowledge and skills that the student must acquire for each subject matter competency

17. Last week task • Look at the QEP science curriculum • Look at the progression of learning under the section “Earth and Space” • Use the Inquiry Unit Form to complete the first two sections

18. Using the Constructivist Lesson (Unit) Form QEP • Cross curriculum competencies: To use ICT • To use ICT to carry out a task • Science specific competencies • To make the most of scientific and technological tools, objects and procedure • Earth and Space - Energy • Source of energy • Transmission of energy

19. Progression of learning Student construct knowledge with teacher’s guidance Student apply knowledge

20. Guiding Question • A guiding question is the fundamental query that directs the search for understanding. Everything in the curriculum is studied for the purpose of answering it. Guiding questions help provide focus and coherence for units of study (Traver, 1998)

21. Characteristics of Guiding questions • Good guiding questions are open-ended yet focus inquiry on a specific topic. • Guiding questions are non-judgmental-there is no right or wrong answer, but answering them requires high-level cognitive work. • Good guiding questions contain emotive force and intellectual bite. • Guiding questions are succinct. They contain few words but demand a lot.

22. DEVELOPING GOOD GUIDING QUESTIONS • Determine the theme or concept you want students to explore • Brainstorm a list of questions you believe might cause the students to think about the topic but that don't dictate conclusions or limit possible directions of investigation. • If the unit is multi-disciplinary, the question must allow for multiple avenues and perspectives. • Consider the six questions: who? What ? When? Where? How? and why?

23. Assignment 2 • With your partner, develop the guiding question and write it down in the Constructivist Lesson (Unit) Form Unit Form