Learning Outcome 8
- Demonstrate the ability to make informed decisions regarding the use of technology in support of learning and leadership.
Virtual Classrooms
Program
Learning Outcome 8 states “demonstrate the ability to make informed decisions
regarding the use of technology in support of learning and leadership”. The
activity redesign simply added hyperlinks to various PowerPoint slides to
enable the learner, in this case teachers, with the opportunity to explore and
discover information about virtual classrooms and tools for themselves.
Understanding
that all students have varying learning styles (Program Learning Outcome 3),
one must also understand that teachers and administrators are no different. , “No two students (or teachers) enter a
classroom with identical abilities, experiences, and needs. Learning style,
language proficiency, background knowledge, readiness to learn, and other
factors can vary widely within a single class group,” (Willoughby, 2005). This
lesson on virtual classrooms was designed for teachers and administration and
with multiple learning modals in mind. The PowerPoint is a visual lesson, the
lecture would be auditory, and the hyperlinks would be kinesthetic for those
viewing the presentation after the initial lecture.
“The most
profound impact of the Internet, an impact that has yet to be fully realized,
is its ability to support and expand the various aspects of social learning,”
(Brown & Adler, 2008, p18). By giving the
information about synchronous and asynchronous learning to teachers and
administrators, these people who make decisions about technology used within
the classroom or school site can make an informed choice about how this
technology would or would not fit into their classrooms. Looking at this teacher lesson through
constructivism allows for the viewers of the presentation to “build personal
interpretations of the world based on experiences and interactions…in
meaningful realistic settings…and by ‘assembling’ knowledge from diverse
sources appropriate to the problem at hand (flexible use of knowledge),”
(Dabbagh, 2006).
The
redesigning challenges experienced were minute compared to the challenges faced
when originally designing the presentation. It was a struggle to determine what
to include in the presentation, what to highlight and what not to beat the
audience in the head with. The redesign was fairly simple. This writer aimed to
use as many learning modalities as possible, even for teachers and wanted to
give those in charge as many chances and ways to learn about virtual
classrooms. The challenge for this writer was merely how to include a modality
other than auditory, visual, logical, and social. By adding the hyperlinks both
individual and kinesthetic approaches were added, garnering six of the seven
modalities.
In conclusion, the changes needed to expand the classroom
walls are simple. The largest obstacles are teachers with open minds willing to
learn new technology. Many students are already using the digital technology
which schools and staff members are just now getting acquainted with. This PowerPoint
allows for teachers and administrators to make informed decisions regarding the
use of technology in support of learning within or outside of the traditional
classroom setting, by using the addition of virtual classrooms. “Many organizations are packaging the virtual classroom as
one element of a larger program that incorporates various delivery media,”
(Clark, 2005). Results of the innovation of virtual classes, there are
more online charter schools and continuation schools today than ever before. “Imagine a world in which every single
person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge.
That's what we are doing," (Richardson, 2010, p55)
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