Activity 6: Using social online networks in teaching and/or professional development

First, there was the Internet, and from this there was information. Currently, we have Web 2.0, and fast approaching is Web 3.0. Our world is changing and the way that learning occurs is changing too.

“Professional learning for educators is a lifelong endeavour, sustained through one’s career and evolving largely as a result of practice-based experiences” (Melhuish, 2013, p. 20).

Living in a siloed education system is not enough.  We as educators need to collaborate not only within our school but also nationally and internationally as well. With the rise of easily accessible Web 2.0 tools that can follow us wherever there is a networked device, this is now becoming easier and easier. Siemens (2006)and Downes (2012) describe this as connectivism through the use of Communities of Practice (Learning-Theories.com, n.d.; Wenger, 2009) where there is a community, a domain and a practice (Wenger, 2009, p. 1).

I, myself, am not as connected as I should/could be.  It’s not to say I am not learning in a digital way but there are times where I struggle to see the purpose to have social media consume every moment in my life.  Maybe because the school I was employed at didn’t actively encourage it either.  In saying this, in recent months I have become more attuned to the benefits especially when it comes to learning for my students. Especially as I know that many of our students are connected to many forms of social networking at the ‘hip’. It would be interesting to experience the shift from using such tools as communication tools to ones that are also used for learning.

Image Source: http://www.cybersecurity.hk/en/learning.php

I love professional development, especially those that focus on increasing engagement and achievement of my learners.  I have attended Google conferences based on digital technologies and met some wonderful like-minded people from throughout New Zealand. Furthermore, finally making a Google+ account has not only connected me with Mindlabbers but also to other communities like Google Apps in Education. I thoroughly enjoy learning about new ways to achieve a task and see further potential.

I have made a start, and it is only a start, so I look forward to utlising my learning, becoming more active in my ‘networked communities’ and extend my learning even further. 

Downes, S. (2012). Connectivism and Connective Knowledge: essays on meaning and learning networks. National Research Council Canada,. Retrieved from http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&btnG=Search&q=intitle:Connectivism+and+Connective+Knowledge+Essays+on+meaning+and+learning+networks#0

Learning-Theories.com. (n.d.). Communities of Practice (Lave and Wenger) - Learning Theories. Retrieved May 15, 2016, from http://www.learning-theories.com/communities-of-practice-lave-and-wenger.html

Melhuish, K. (2013). Online social networking and its impact on New Zealand educators’professional learning. The University of Waikato. Retrieved from http://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10289/8482/thesis.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y

Siemens, G. (2006). Connectivism : A learning theory for the digital age. International Journal of Instructional Technologyand Distance Learning, 2(1), 3–10. Retrieved from http://202.116.45.236/mediawiki/resources/2/2005_siemens_Connectivism_A_LearningTheoryForTheDigitalAge.pdf

Wenger, E. (2009). Communities of practice: a brief introduction. Communities, 1–5. Retrieved from http://www.ewenger.com/theory/

Contributing to others Blogs - MindLab

Week One:
http://untroddenpathapc.blogspot.co.nz/2016/05/my-community-of-practice.html#comment-form


Week 2:
http://likeahoginmud.blogspot.co.nz/2016/05/current-issues-in-my-professional.html#gpluscomments



Week 3:

https://plus.google.com/u/0/108254026317727011759/posts/X59NqzgJwBz



Week 4:
https://siobhanmindlab.blogspot.co.nz/2016/06/indigenous-knowledge-and-cultural.html



Week 5:

https://plus.google.com/116097140838837278633/posts/6k2GtuED5hQ

Activity 5: Legal and ethical contexts in my digital practice

The legal and ethical considerations are an important part of any teachers practice. There are so many to consider and the use of digital technologies both provides opportunities for learners and teachers alike.

At our school we are at very early beginnings to understand the legal and ethical considerations in an eLearning context.  Management has made the decision that social media is filtered via Network 4 Learning. So unless you choose to use your own data, there is limited ability to use Facebook or Twitter in a learning context.  This may change as a greater understanding of the power of such tools for learning occurs.

One also has to remember that our parents of our akonga are still learning about these tools. They themselves are not always adept in thinking about the consequences of their own social media use. As a school that has year 7-13 students the most common issue we deal with is the inappropriate use of Facebook. It is often a shock to the parents to realise that Facebook age restriction and that most of the inappropriate use occurs outside school hours. I have also seen irst hand the bullying by adults through such means. Therefore, we should be teaching our akonga about such behaviours.

Within this move towards a more 21st Century learning environment careful considerations will need to be made to the safety and security of the use of such tools.  This current generation are still learning about how they work and the impacts of postings on digital media like Facebook. One also has to remember that Facebook has an age restriction, as does Google+.

Furthermore, not long ago there was hype about our digital footprint and being careful about creating a larger one.  This appears to have changed. Which then provides food for thought. As does the following images



So what does this mean in a classroom context? Careful consideration needs to occur about what is posted on line and keeping parents informed.  Parents do have the option to opt out of any digital forms of media that includes their child. A blanket consent form upon enrolment may provide consent, but I think that it is important to check.

I also think it is important to educate students about digital citizenship in a purposeful manner.  This is also supported by the NZ Teachers council (2012) where they support the use of social media if it is used in a purposeful manner.


Teachers Council and social media from Education Council on Vimeo.

As I come from a school which is still learning about such tools and the potential that they offer education. Through MindLab I have started to see the potential of some social media and how they can add to the learning of our akonga.

New Zealand Teachers Council (2012). Establishing safeguards.[video file]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/49216520

Activity 4 : Indigenous knowledge and cultural responsiveness in my practice

"Education is serious business" are very wise words from Professor Russell Bishop.  It is a very serious business for each and every akonga that passes through our schools.


A culturally responsive pedagogy of relations from EDtalks on Vimeo.

So what is culture? A long time ago I learned that we all have our own culture (I have also heard of it being called discourse) that becomes our own identity.  It is what is within us, not always explicit to us (we see it from one lens), in fact, it is innate, but it impacts on our experiences of the world through our interactions, our responses, and our interpretations of situations and experiences.

So what does this mean for education? What are the impacts of culture within the education system, or down to the very grassroots.... my kura and my classroom?

Our akonga, all akonga, have the right to an education that acknowledges and embraces the rich culture and vast experiences that our akonga bring to our classrooms.  From this starting point relationships can florish and as The Ministry of Education (2013) clearly points out that through the development of learning relationships that affirm individual identity, language, and culture empowers akonga to achieve education success. This is afterall what we are in this profession for.

http://www.wellbeingatschool.org.nz/inclusive-practices-next-step-links#extra-curric

I agree that the agentic positioning of the teacher is vital to inclusive practice and this fits with the message of Carol Dweck (2014), who argues that growth mindset is paramount for effective learning. What has been my experience is the lack of understanding of deficit theorising. We have Kotahitanga in our school and is referred to as "Building on success", being part of this journey has been somewhat interesting.  Make a negative statement, you are deficit theorising.. Are you really? Is it not important to understand the positioning of the akonga as a starting point? I believe all students can learn and achieve their potential.  As a classsroom practitioner it is my role to take them from where they start to a position that demonstrates growth.  Therefore, I think having an understanding of the holistic child is important. This isn't deficit theorising. From this starting point, relationships can be built and from this student agency can be increased. 

The most interesting expereince I have had is one student who struggled with the fact that I cared about his education, that his learning was important. I stood strong on my agentic positioning. One day he made a connection to my Aunty who lives in the same area as him.  His attitude changed instantly, his words "I understood where he was coming from".  What I found really interesting about this, was I never changed my position about him and his learning.  He changed his persepctive about me and therefore was more receptive. Oh the joys of teaching... But this experience does remind me that it is about connections, it is about culture, it is about relationships and from this agentic positioning of both the teacher and student can create wonderful learning opportuntities where all akonga can achieve success for who they are.

Alton-lee, A. (2012). KA HIKITIA a demonstration report Effectiveness of Te Kotahitanga Phase 5 2010-2012. wellington.

Bishop, R. (2012). Pretty difficult: Implementing kaupapa Maori theory in English-medium secondary schools. New Zealand Journal of Educational Studies, 47(2), 38–50. Retrieved from http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84873669809&partnerID=40&md5=82b3e99bd5909939a7bcbe5460bde93a

Bishop, R., & Berryman, M. (2009). The Te Kotahitanga effective teaching profile. SET Research Information for Teachers, 27–33. Retrieved from http://ptc.nzcer.org.nz/system/files/set2009_2_027.pdf

Bishop, R., Berryman, M., Tiakiwai, S.-J., & Richardson, C. (2003). Te Kōtahitanga Phase 1: The experiences of Year 9 and 10 Māori students in mainstream classrooms. Retrieved from http://tekotahitanga.tki.org.nz/content/download/275/1284/file/te-kotahitanga+(phase+1).pdf

Dweck, C. (2014). Carol Dweck: The power of believing that you can improve | Talk Video | TED.com. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/talks/carol_dweck_the_power_of_believing_that_you_can_improve?language=en

Gutschlag, A. (2007). Some Implications of the Te Kotahitanga Model of Teacher Positioning. New Zealand Journal of Teachers’ Work, 4(1), 3–10.

Ministry of Education. (2013). Effective governance: Supporting education success as Maori. Retrieved from http://www.minedu.govt.nz/~/media/MinEdu/Files/Boards/EffectiveGovernance/SupportingEducationSuccessAsMaori.pdf

Activity 3: Contemporary Issues or Trends in New Zealand or Internationally

There is a misconception that education is fine as it is, however, education needs to change to prepare our akonga for the requirements of life. 

We come from areas (towns or rural), and those areas are part of a district, who in turn is part of an island and our three islands make our God Zone - Aotearoa - New Zealand. I could stay closed minded to the outside world, just stay in my bubble, after all, it is safe to live in a world of ignorance.  Then the question arises, what am I missing out on? What are the students I teach missing out on?  New Zealand is part of a wider context, Australasia, the Southern Hemisphere, and the whole world.  New Zealand has talents, skills, innovations and products that are world leaders. So despite being a small country, we cannot let that stop us and education is a key part of that process.

The question arises are we as educators providing our students with the best opportunity to succeed at their highest level? Whatever that maybe? Or are we collectively as educators still stuck in the 19th century? Where there is this "knowledge" that students’ must have before they are able to leave school? We must move on from this stance, our students are leaving us behind.  They predominately live in a world of "now", with the development of Web 2.0 tools and social networking at their fingertips the novelty of using digital tools for ‘publishing’ is wearing thin.

We are in the cusp of moving from the Anatomy of a 20th Century Classroom

https://sites.google.com/a/ccpsnet.net/anytime-anywhere-learning/curriculum/21st-century-learning

To a more responsive akonga centred blended learning environment.  This is not without issues however, education needs to change and the integration of meaningful learning experiences are essential.

https://sites.google.com/a/ccpsnet.net/anytime-anywhere-
learning/curriculum/21st-century-learning

As the 21st Century Learning Reference Group (2014), describe it

“the emergence of ubiquitous connectivity, increasingly mobile digital technologies and the power of the internet pose the most profound challenges and opportunities the education system has ever faced”

The New Zealand Education Office (ERO) (2012), has released a report that identifies the learning needs of our priority learners and calls for a change in the education system.  This is nothing new; educators around the world have been saying this for years.   It does need to change, our system needs to change, our teaching needs to change and policymakers and budget holders need to allow this change.

According to Gibbs & Poskitt (2010), which also supports the ERO's (2012), finding that our students are disengaged, that their learner agency diminishes as they hit middle school years (Year 7 - 10). As stated above the traditional pedagogy of the teacher as the "fountain of all knowledge", is not meeting our students' needs.  We need to involve the learners in their learning journey, they cannot have learning happen to them they must participate in the process or as Sfard (2015), so eloquently puts it, we must move from the Acquisition Metaphor to a Participation Metaphor. 

Gibbs & Poskitt (2010)

G

We as teachers need to provide an environment that actively encourages students to engage on a cognitive level through redesigning our teaching and learning programs, redesigning what teaching looks like in the classroom.  Spark their interest and light their fire for learning. After all, the intention of our New Zealand Curriculum is to create confident, connected, lifelong learners equipped to live a full and active life, and contribute to a thriving and prosperous economy (21st Century Learning Reference Group, 2014; Ministry of Education, 2007).

21st Century Learning Reference Group. (2014). Future focused learning. Wellington. Retrieved from http://www.education.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Ministry/Initiatives/FutureFocusedLearning30May2014.pdf

Education Review Office. (2012). Evaluation at a Glance : Priority Learners in New Zealand Schools August 2012, (August). Retrieved from http://www.ero.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Evaluation-at-a-Glance-Priority-Learners-in-New-Zealand-Schools-August-2012.pdf

Gibbs, R., & Poskitt, J. (2010). Student engagement in the middle years of schooling (years 7-10): A literature review. Wellington, NZ: Ministry of Education.

Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum (Vol. 116). Wellington: Learning Media. Retrieved from http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/the_new_zealand_curriculum
Rotherham, A. J. & Willingham, D. (2009) 21st Century Skills: The Challenges Ahead. Teaching for the 21st Century, 67 (1), 16-21. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/sept09/vol67/num01/21st-Century-Skills@-The-Challenges-Ahead.aspx

Sfard, A. (2015). On Two Metaphors for Learning and the Dangers of Choosing Just One. Educational Researcher, 25(4), 4–13. Retrieved from http://edr.sagepub.com.ezproxy.massey.ac.nz/content/27/2/4.full.pdf+html

261.766 Narrative

261.766: Teaching for e-Learning

Learning outcomes:

Students who successfully complete this course should be able to:

1. Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the central concepts, theories, and current areas of debate in the study of teaching in online environments; 
2. Identify, discuss and analyse the roles and responsibilities of the teacher in E-Learning situations and demonstrate their application in practice; and 
3. Define teaching challenges arising from the use of educational technologies for distance and distributed teaching in their own educational setting and develop, discuss and implement ways of meeting those challenges in that setting 

This is one of three eLearning papers I have chosen to undertake this year. I have always had an interest in eLearning and the opportunity arose where I am in a position to extend my learning through completing a post-graduate diploma.

This blog represents my learning throughout this paper and the artefacts that are included help provide evidence. I have included the poster from Vensipred as ultimately I would like my eLearning environment to fit squarely on the right side, as classroom B.

I come to this paper as a learner and Module One is about What’s behind my teaching?  After establishing what I wanted to get out of the course as shown in Artefact 1 considering the perspectives I hold as a teacher as shown in Artefact 2 is important. As Pratt (1998) argues that without careful and critical analysis there is no change in practice. My TPI results show that I am strongest in Developing and Nurturing. Artefact 3 involves me reflecting on my views of teaching and recognising the similarities and differences between my views in teaching and my teaching practice.  This was a good exercise to complete because it made me think about what I have been doing in the classroom and if they really are what I believe should be happening. Further to this, I also reflected on whether my teaching practice requires revolution (extreme change), evolution (gradual change) or leaving it as status quo as shown in Artefact 4. As demonstrated in the artefact, I believe that my teaching practices are always requiring refining and improvement.

Links with Learning Outcomes:

1. Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the central concepts, theories, and current areas of debate in the study of teaching in online environments.
2. Identify, discuss and analyse the roles and responsibilities of the teacher in E-Learning situations and demonstrate their application in practice.

Module 2 focuses on the theoretical foundations of teaching for e-learning and provided the theoretical foundation for the entire course. This module was the most interesting and most powerful for me.  It really made me think about what programs I provided in an eLearning context. Artefact 5 focused on the aspects of the Howland, Jonassen and Marra (2011) reading and making a choice on which was the most relevant.  This reading I found was a reading I referred to quite regularly once I understood the focus of the reading whilst I didn't quite understand at the time, and it has hit me right now, it is focused on student engagement through providing meaningful learning. Choosing whether it was pedagogy first or technology first was a challenging task as shown in Artefact 6.  For me, this is because I have always loved using technology in the classroom because I have seen the potential. As a final task to the module, I reflected on my learning journey through a Synthesis Discussion as shown in Artefact 7.

Links with Learning Outcomes:

1. Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the central concepts, theories, and current areas of debate in the study of teaching in online environments.
2. Identify, discuss and analyse the roles and responsibilities of the teacher in E-Learning situations and demonstrate their application in practice.

Engagement with eLearning was the focus of Module 3 this had a focus on the learners perspective which is an important aspect of the purpose of education is to educate students. Our online discussion lead to being asked to rank the recommendations.  This was not an easy task and I am sure that if I were to spend more time on this it would look quite different than shown in Artefact 8.  I was more focused on the course design, as this is an important factor of providing meaningful learning and encourage active engagement, I suppose it could be said that I had my teacher hat on through this exercise. Readings such as Zepke and Leach (2010) and Gibbs & Poskitt (2010) made suggestions for improving student engagement.  One of these focused on self-efficiency. This reminded me of Carol Dweck (2014), and her Growth Mindset theory which is very pertinent in our education today.  

As part of being a critical practitioner identifying where there are failures in our teaching and learning program are important and my reflection of a lesson plan that didn't work out as intended is shown in Artefact 9.  This is only one example of when it did not turn out as intended.  There have been others and I am sure that there will be more in the future.  Reflecting and identifying where there is room for improvement is part of the process.  Learning not to repeat such failures is the key.

Links with Learning Outcomes:

1. Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the central concepts, theories, and current areas of debate in the study of teaching in online environments.
2. Identify, discuss and analyse the roles and responsibilities of the teacher in E-Learning situations and demonstrate their application in practice.

The focus of Module Four was the roles and responsibilities of teachers teaching in eLearning environments and some of the issues that arise through the adoption of eLearning. Many of these I have experienced first hand in my teaching position.  Zaka's (2013) reading was easy to relate to, as shown in Artefact 10 as the school I was employed in is currently in this position. I have learned first hand that the role of leadership is crucial when implementing a blended learning environment.  I am hoping that the school I am employed in next year has a different  perspective that I have previously experienced. Artefact 11 is about the eLearning competencies. I have chosen to include this reading because the spirit of the New Zealand Curriculum (2007) is based on the front end of the document and this is where the Key Competencies lie.  I have always felt that the Key Competencies are the ultimate goal of education.  Looking at the eCompetencies seems more prevalent as we move forward into eLearning and they compliment the Key Competencies.

As a conclusion to Module Four and the conclusion of this paper, it is then time to reflect on this learning journey, as shown in Article 12 and Article 13 and it has been a journey.  I have started to find answers to questions that I have had for a long time and now wish I had sourced earlier. eLearning is a way forward for education and I am looking forward to implementing what I have learned next year in my own classroom.  I believe that readings like Howland, Jonassen and Marra (2011), Bonk & Khoo (2014), and Gibbs & Poskitt (2010) are going to be part of my pedagogical library for a long time coming. It is a teacher's goal to provide actively engaging learning experiences to our learners and through a well planned eLearning environment our learners have the potential to become the very best that they can be.  The final artefact that demonstrates my learning journey is this narrative and I hope that I have given this course justice with the artefacts chosen. 

Links with Learning Outcomes:

1. Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the central concepts, theories, and current areas of debate in the study of teaching in online environments.
2. Identify, discuss and analyse the roles and responsibilities of the teacher in E-Learning situations and demonstrate their application in practice.
3. Define teaching challenges arising from the use of educational technologies for distance and distributed teaching in their own educational setting and develop, discuss and implement ways of meeting those challenges in that setting.

Bonk, C. J., & Khoo, E. (2014). Adding Some TEC-VARIETY: 100+ Activities for Motivating and Retaining Learners Online, 367. http://doi.org/978-1496162724

Dweck, C. (2014). Carol Dweck: The power of believing that you can improve | Talk Video | TED.com. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/talks/carol_dweck_the_power_of_believing_that_you_can_improve?language=en

Gibbs, R., & Poskitt, J. (2010). Student engagement in the middle years of schooling (years 7-10): A literature review. Wellington, NZ: Ministry of Education.

Howland, J. L., Jonassen, D., & Marra, R. M. (2012). Meaningful learning with technology (4th ed., pp. 1–19). Boston, MA: Person Education, Inc.

Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum. Wellington: Learning Media. Retrieved from http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/the_new_zealand_curriculum

Pratt, D., & Associates. (1998). Alternative frames of understanding. In Five perspectives on teaching in adult and higher education (pp. 33–53). Malabar, FL: Kreiger.

Zaka, P. (2013). A case study of blended teaching and learning in a New Zealand secondary school , using an ecological framework. Journal of Open, Flexible, and Distance Learning, 17(1), 24–40.


Zepke, N., & Leach, L. (2010). Improving student engagement: Ten proposals for action. Active Learning in Higher Education, 11(3), 167–177. http://doi.org/10.1177/1469787410379680