Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice
My assignment for this week is to give my thoughts on how instructional strategies correlate with the principles of social learning theories. I get it and understand the idea behind social learning. After watching a real quick video called “The Networked Student… in plain English by Steve Dembo I totally understand. “It did an excellent job of explaining what a truly networked student looks like. And more importantly, what the teachers’ role is for them”. (Steve Dembo) Students now and day are looking for more ways to learn. Teaching today’s students are very hard because information changes so rapidly in today’s world. The best solution is to use the technology that is out there and give the students what they are starving for and to help succeed in life. Students while using the technology can be paired up with one or two other students. This way the students are socially asking each other questions and helping each other out. The students are learning how to work with one another just like the real job situation. Students now understand what they can say to each other and also how to encourage each other to do well with their studies. Many older strategies that are in the classroom that are instructional studies do not have the depth as the new way of teaching. Social learning is the key to the future of all classrooms. We are not getting rid of instructional studies, we are just tweaking them to fit our needs.
References
Steve Dembo http://www.teach42.com/2008/12/06/the-networked-student-in-plain-english/
My Voice Thread is http://voicethread.com/share/1191354/ I hope you enjoy it.
June 2nd, 2010 at 1:41 pm
James,
I like what you concluded with. Yes, we are not totally getting rid of methods that have served education for decades, we are simply adding to. Social learning has clear benefits and we would be foolish to not implement a healthy dose of such practices. However, we also would be foolish to throw away other effective methods. Thanks for making that point. So often we have the tendency to get tunnel vision and forget what our focus is–to teach students in the best way possible. This cannot be accomplished by a strict adherence to any one method of teaching, regardless of what the latest and greatest craze is.
Kenny
June 2nd, 2010 at 7:35 pm
James,
I pair my students for many of the different activities I use in my classroom daily. When using technology it is helpful to group the students because they have different levels of experience with using these types of tools. The students with a lot of knowledge of certain things can help the students that have no or little knowledge of the tools. However, I pair or group my students on non-technology lessons as well. Using my students as teachers is a very effective technique. Also, you are absolutely right about the students working together helping them to create good collaboration skills which they will need in the future.
Allison
June 5th, 2010 at 9:21 pm
Kenny,
Thank for the comments. I feel that all teachers really need to be open minded in how we teach from year to year. There are too many teachers out there that use the same lesson plans from ten years ago and think this is okay. I just feel that in today’s society we need to be flexible and to teach the students the best possible way whatever it is.
June 5th, 2010 at 9:25 pm
Allison,
I really liked you saying that you paired up your students by the stronger ones with the not so strong in technology. Students can really teach each other and it seems that the students do work harder for their classmates. Maybe they don’t want to be embarrassed or maybe they just like their partner, whatever it is I keep pairing them up. It really works in the classroom.
June 6th, 2010 at 4:20 pm
James,
I do believe it is important for us to be lifetime learners, and to constantly explore and develop our skills, but I also worry about how easily we slip into the ideas that everything that is new is good and everything that is old is bad. I also worry when I hear teachers criticizing other teachers. Your comment to Kenny about there being “too many teachers out there that use the same lesson plans from ten years ago” feeds the myth that too many people have bought into — that teachers are what’s wrong with education today. We just can’t afford to continue attacking one another.
I also worry when we feel that “giving students what they are starving for” should be a priority. My goal is to educate my students so they will be successful in their futures, and sometimes that means teaching them there is a difference between what they want and what they need.
June 6th, 2010 at 6:17 pm
Miyeun,
I am sorry that you feel that I am criticizing teachers. That is not what I am saying. The teachers that are using the same lesson plans for ten years might make it work for them. All I am saying is that teachers need to change to what works for the students. I have been in classes where it was taught that teachers have to teach to the students not the students learning how to learn the way the teacher teaches.