#UWinDig 2020

I chose to further explore the Collaborator Module for this assignment. This module stood out to me because learning through connecting with others piqued my interest. I have also heard the term PLN before in classes and online and wanted to dive deeper into the topic. The four main groups that this module is divided into are explore, engage, expand and empower. Each of these topics looks at the importance of connecting with others who are interested in learning similar topics and creating personal learning networks.

Before we dive deep into this Collaborator Module, it is key to understand what a PLN is.

A PLN, also known as a personal learning network is the people and organizations we connect ourselves with. Marc-Andre Lalande helps us to better understand what a PLN is in this module. He mentions that not all personal learning networks are online, but the online aspect is what makes them special. Using social media outlets such as Twitter create spaces for people to engage, explore and learn from one another. What you chose to learn and how you engage in learning can be personalized and created to fit your own personal needs and interests. So, in simple terms, PLNS is created for the goal of learning and bringing people together.

Let us take a better look into what PLNS are all about. Like I mentioned above, PLNS are created around the goal of learning. Connections between the people that want to learn are strengthened by sharing information amongst themselves. Dr. George Veletsianos pointed out that being part of a PLN creates long term effects that will help to improve the skills you are looking to learn. For example, when I was in my first placement this year I used my Twitter and Instagram accounts to follow different educators. Although I may have not engaged to the fullest extent I could have to reap the full benefits of these PLNs, I definitely used these platforms to create networks of learning that helped me to succeed in my first placement. These tools I learned through these communities will also help me in my next placement as well.

When cultivating a PLN it is important to remember the eight steps laid out in this module: explore, expand, follow, tune, feed, engage, inquire, and respond. In order to get everything you can out of a PLN it is important to FULLY engage in it. In my example above I have only explored, expanded, and tuned. If I were to engage with other educators, I would have gotten more out of the learning I did. It is also important to be aware of filter bubbles. It is important to allow people with challenging opinions into your learning groups as this can help us to learn and challenge our own thinking.

Connectivism means to learn as a community. Dr. George Siemens talks about how knowledge is a reflection of our connections. This is a social and collaborative activity that focuses more on the context of our learning rather than the content. This theory recognizes that we learners learn better as a group/community rather than individually. Connectivism, I believe, is important in a classroom setting. As teachers, we should be open to learning from one another on our staff and in our classroom with the students rather than taking on everything by ourselves.

Collaboration looks at exploring and sharing ideas with one another. Communities of practice are a great example of what effective collaboration can look like. They are groups of people who can share passions, concerns, goals with others who share similar interests and they can all work towards learning how to further improve. There are three characteristics that make communities of practice effective. Having others to bounce ideas off of or gain new information is a great and important way to learn. All in all, collaborations bring people together and help individuals to grow as learners.

This module was helpful in exploring the importance of learning through collaboration. Even when creating this infographic and working on this assignment I collaborated by reading others post in from the previous assignment and reaching out to others who did and infographic for their first assignment in order to know how to execute it properly. I am glad I chose the Collaborator Module since I was able to dive deep into topics such as PLNs which I have heard before, but never fully grasped.

Thanks for reading!

Citations:

Collaborator: ENGAGE: Personal Learning Networks

https://www.canva.com/

For this multimedia assignment, I decided to create a sketch note based on Chris Friend and Amy Collier’s podcast, Questioning Learning. This podcast explores topics such as learning outcomes, online learning, and student freedom. This sketch note took a lot of thought and editing in order for me to express what  I found to be important, and how I would represent this.

The first topic I included on my sketch note was learning outcomes. The header for this topic is the largest one on the page because I thought the points Collier brought up about them was important and vital for successful teaching.

Throughout my time in school, I have always come across learning outcomes that provide students with a direct, structured, and restrictive list of what teachers expect. Collier mentions that these outcomes ¨de-risk¨ learning and can become formulated. ¨Students will…” and ¨students will understand¨ are popular terms used when writing learning outcomes, but what effect can this restrive format have on students? Collier and Friend talk about how this format puts students in a box with no way of getting out. Although, neither of them is ¨anti-outcomes” they do believe that inspiring learning outcomes allow students to grow and explore in their learning. Inspiring outcomes inspire students to think and relate to the lesson at hand. Understanding should not a term used in learning outcomes as understanding is not measurable as it is ongoing, evolving and emerging. Learning outcomes should explore the bigger questions that allow students to ¨wonder at their work” and teachers should write them thinking ¨what would cause me to admire my students¨.

I found in school these formulated outcomes do not allow students to explore their own thoughts and interpretations. Obviously, it is important that students work relates to the topics at hand, but this podcast made me question why assignments and takeaways from a lesson have to be so strict. Not all students learn and think the same, so I believe using aspirational outcomes, such as what Collier and Friend spoke about, allow students to grow as learners and enjoy what they are doing.

Learnification was another term that Collier and Friend spoke about during this podcast. I had never heard this term before, and it definitely is important to know when you are questioning learning. Learnification focuses on learning rather than teaching. This term is not necessarily a negative one, but it must be questioned and used properly. This style of learning personalizes teaching and can be quite damaging as it forces students to be seen as products rather than a vital relationship between students and teachers.

This term goes hand in hand with online learning. Canned courses is a popular formula used when creating online classes, but these classes hinder students learning.

Canned courses take away the instructors/teachers ability to customize or create the online courses they are teaching. These teachers have no say in how the class is designed, how students engage with one another, or how tests and assignments are formulated. These classes are impersonal, structured and restrictive and improperly use learnification so that students are used as products rather than a relationship. These classes are designed to formulate and produce answers from students so marking can be done quickly.

Much like restrictive learning outcomes, learnification and canned courses place students in a box that impacts their learning. These types of learning are not acceptable, and should not be used while teaching. Collier mentions that canned courses seem to flourish online, but could never exist in person without being shut down. Online learning should be structured in a way that is interactive and allows learning to flourish. I have taken online classes during my time in university, and I can concur that some of these classes are dull, restrictive, and make us students feel like products just trying to pass in order to receive credits.

After I took a look at all these different learning styles and expectations, I questioned what should I take away from all of this?

I believe that when students are given the opportunity to explore their own learning, they will flourish. Risk-taking compels students learning and leads students to wonder and awe at what they are being taught. When students are given the freedom to express what they have learned, the outcome can be unpredictable, and this unpredictability is incredible. Seeing what students take out of a lesson rather than forcing work out of them will allow you to see what your class is capable of, what needs to be improved, and the different formats students use to express themselves. Using a critical pedagogy allows you to ask questions and question your own teaching without fear or shame. When we become comfortable questioning ourselves and our students, our ability to teach and our students learning will flourish.

I will keep all of this in mind when creating lessons plans and teaching on my own. What I learned from this podcast is what can restrict learning and I cannot wait to explore how to apply this in my own teaching and classroom in the future.