Q: how do you feel?

In response to comment: http://jillianpawlynoctel.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/digital-learner-this-year-i-am.html 

Hi Tracey,

"I'd be interested to know how you feel your developing as a digital learner has influenced you as a teacher."

I am a multi-modal learner (see VARK 2014 post ).

Broadly speaking I consider my development has been growth in 'empathy' and 'technical ability'. I really enjoy 'having a go' and' trying things out'.

As a digital learner I have had many great and not so great experiences but I learn from each.

I have enjoyed the diversity of resources available to me via the WWW. The global network of learners from the courses I have undertaken 'on-line' has been great, I enjoy exploring from both my own and others perspectives.

I value open collections and get frustrated when I can't access recommended or essential readings because they are not available in the 'public' domain or the 'domain of my employer'.

I have encountered a diverse range of technical challenges, resource challenges with incompatible technologies and activities taking longer than anticipated by the 'facilitating teacher' or me as a learner. I love my new Chromebook but it frustrates me that so many 'teaching technologies' don't work inside the browser. Thanks #ocTEL for the live #YouTube stream.

I enjoy the freedom to explore my learning but also recognise I have to maintain focus. I enjoy the diversions the WWW offers but know the importance of a study outline with my key terms to retain focus.

Finally as a professional I also acutely aware of my 'on-line persona' and how this presents to the public, my peers, and students. My mantra is if I don't want the world to know it then I don't put it on-line! I have work persona which is separate from my 'friends and family' this causes some challenges as the technologies don't allow for this level of security within them, or don't provide the confidence level for the security I would like, so I use #Facebook for 'friends and family' and #Google+, #Twitter and #LinkedIn for my professional self. I also value as a student the security and privacy of a closed learning environment such as an institutional #VLE. I want to explore safely and when I stuff up I don't want to worry about the mistake being 'public', I expect the VLE to be a private, safe space in the same way as my 'physical classroom.

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So from these experiences as a digital teacher, I would say I am aware of the potential challenges students grapple with when mastering new technologies or using technologies in new ways. I believe that mastering the technology should not get in the way of the real learning purpose.

I am 'conservative' in that my teaching delivery is primarily via a VLE. I believe this provides students with a 'secure and safe' place to explore and learn without fear of it leaking into the public world. It is also supported by our IT help team so the student isn't 'on their own' when it goes wrong. I test my resources across a variety of devices and browser so I can try and iron out the glitches, or at least for warn students and provide 'help' information.

In the absence of institutional student access document management systems I do use Google drive to share resources and maintain version control. I also use other web2.0 tools as 'optional' tools in my teaching, I believe students should have a choice whether they sign up to the licence and should have opportunity to consider its level of openness before use.

My teaching activities on-line always include some reading, discussion, reflection and where possible some video/audio element (often YouTube) or a resource from our streaming server.

My students are primarily on-campus learners, we regularly get together for face to face discussions. Using their digital learning activities to prepare for the discussion.

I advocate that the on-line learning time is part of the learning time for the module/course and must not be considered a 'bolt' on. I offer face to face, on-line and telephone tutorials so students can engage in location rather than always attending campus.

For me digital learning (and teaching) is a richer, more personalised, and flexible learning experience, the openness of the WWW removes many of the boundaries to learning. I love being a digital learner and a 'conservative' digital teacher. It isn't plain sailing and over the years I have felt constrained by my work environment and curriculum and my professional identity. I carry around a 'virtual soap box' to stand on!

Soapbox
Image source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/transforminggenerosity/13776713843/

p.s. as usual for me this was composed, edited, and then finally posted..... as a rather lengthy response.

I then decided to compose in its own post ....... :-)

Activity 10.3

Activity 10.3

I had two questions...

1. How will I/we/they (academics) know when/whether the technologies deployed have enhanced learning? 
2. How can we identify when learners have disengaged from learning because the technology acts as something other than an enhancer? 

I am not entirely sure I have a succinct answer for either.. yet.

Right now I think my own experience for Q1 has helped me to feel more comfortable with the learner measuring this aspect. The learner will know if it has enhanced their learning, they can tell me this through evaluation of the learning activities I present. I think my role is to ensure that the technology I utilise in my teaching is inclusive/ used inclusively and where I make recommendations or use specific technologies, that they are freely available, easy to use, and suitable for the learning activities intended.

Regarding Q2, I got to this point personally a few times. Technology, even for the confident, can be overwhelming at times. A few times I did wonder whether the blog I began was enhancing my experience or creating too much stress ( from my over scrutinisation of my writing) to be worth the effort. A brief forum post would have been sufficient! I have Twitter but didn't really use it effectively, I have Google+ 'ditto', maybe I will use it more.... maybe I won't...

It was good to have choice, in the technologies and locations to post and build my evidence for my own learning activity. But to engage in meaningful discussions one to many, there was too much choice, this lead to my feelings of increased isolation. I think this view heavily shaped by my previous experience of online learning with clearly defined groups of members and communications in fewer locations. I have learned that I am an an apprehensive Blogger, Tweeter but can now reflect on experience.

I haven't felt a member of a cosy learning community but rather a knot contributing to create a huge Network...

So which knot are you?

I have enjoyed the MOOC. I have a few more weeks of materials to work through so I will continue my learning journey.

Just stuck my first badge on my backpack

5. Platforms and Technologies

Kolb and Learning

Having read through the three key questions and considered my responses, I totally agree with Sandra's (ocTEL participant) comment.

I too try and include a range of ways of engaging my audience, my personal interaction and selection of technologies varies depending on the topic and the environment of delivery.

I start by recognising how I prefer to learn and the journey I have undertaken learning the subject matter and how I have learned to use the technology. I consider the value in the learner engagement with the technology, development of transferable skills.

In my role I am usually assisting staff to learn a specific technology for their own use in teaching and would use other complementary technologies and resources to assist.

In learning how to use the institutions VLE (Blackboard Learn), staff are exposed to the following technologies and tools, and may use them at ant stage of the learning experience depending on the outcome of the learning activity.

• Staff account 
• email 
• Web Browser 
• Tools within Blackboard (Bb) 
• content collections (text, image, video, URL collections) 
• quizzes 
• surveys 
• assignment 
• discussion 
• announcement 
• Third party tools and applications provided through Bb 
• CampusPack (CP) blogs 
• CP wikis 
• CP journals 
• CP lab reports 
• Turnitin 
• Video (VStream (Echo360) and YouTube 
• Document creation - html (Bb), Word or similar 
• PDF - Creation and Reading 
• Presentations - PowerPoint, Prezi, Notable 
• VPN - Remote access to networked drive 
• Images - VUW collection, Flickr 
• Library resources 
• Hard copy texts 
• Digitised texts 
• Dynamic content through the library collections 
• Digitised database collections (internally hosted) 
• Digitised database collections (externally hosted) 
• eTV 
• bibliography software- endnote, zotero 
• Social media 
• Facebook 
• Twitter 
• Participant response technologies - installed hand held devices and web devices 
• OER - what these are and how to find them for NZ 
• Copyright and Creative Commons NZ 
• Student submissions during class activities for for assessment, 
• Text 
• Audio 
• Video 
• Image 
• Cloud storage solutions 

Teaching space technologies - They would also learn to use the technologies in the teaching spaces, document cameras, white boards, they would also master specialist equipment and technologies of their discipline.


and more ...


Participant response technologies (clicker technologies) have the potential to be very powerful tools. With skilfully crafted questions, engaging activities and skilled facilitators/ moderators to receive 'back channel' questions and conversations, students can experience a rich and rewarding learning experience synchronously, whether face to face or on-line, and asynchronously via facilitated and moderated 'back channel' communications after the event.

Having participated in both mode of delivery and in face to face and on-line environments using web browser clicker technologies I am excited about the opportunities 'clicker technologies' provide learners.


The challenge is to choose the right technology/tool for the learning activity, the  learner and teacher and then use them well. 

What is Learning?

Designing Active Learning

What is learning?

Activity: Think about the last time you learned something. Describe what you learned? How did you go about learning it? What strategies did you use? Consider this overview of categories of learning “suitable for instructional design planning“ in the table 


My learning activity, to use Twitter purposefully.

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/opensourceway/ 

I learned about Twitter some years back, but didn't feel the need to sign up until I attended a conference last year where they really promoted the value of Twitter for live participation during the events (think).
I needed something tangible to convince myself of the need to Tweet. The conference gave me a purpose. I signed up for a Twitter account, for work purposes only (IIa, III) (plan). I think I made two Tweets during the events (do) and observed people face down in their phones rather than facing the speaker (which was weird for me) (IV) (observe). I also sough out people and groups of interest to 'follow', my motivation here was 'is what they were Tweeting of genuine interest or value to me'? (IIa, IIb, III) (think).
So knowing why I want to, need to share my thoughts, ideas, instantly with the world via Twitter (Ia) was my first challenge in learning the technology. Knowing what Twitter is, what it isn't, the benefits and limitations are and how to develop protect my personal and professional reputation are also key (IV) (observe, think, plan).
I recently created an embed code so my tweets and those of ocTEL appear in my blog page (IIb) (do), I also added instructions in my Bb course environment for those colleague who want to embed Twitter into their courses (II) (do).

I recently posted several tweets, because there was a button on the page I was on, not because I really felt it was valuable to share my activities with others (do). Although I am happy to share my thoughts with those I now and trust within my personal and professional circles, I have yet to overcome my anxieties about Tweeting, warts and all (IV) (think). I admit that I am periodically Tweeting during this ocTEL course, but don't prioritise my time to follow all the tweets of those I follow or seek out new tweets (IV) (do, observe, think, plan). Having said that when I do get round to logging in to Twitter I always find something to visit from those I follow (do).

I am confident and comfortable in explaining the value and terminology of Twitter to colleagues,  I appreciate the value in a technology like Twitter for sharing thoughts, ideas, links etc to others. I will continue to reflect  on 'why I follow the tweets of others', 'why I Tweet' and seriously would anyone really miss it if I didn't! and continue to develop my 'Twitter Literacy' .

Key: A small typology of learning types



I attempted to fit my reflection on learning within the typology of learning types identified as "suitable for instructional design planning" but found I was drawn more to David Kolb's learning styles model and experiential learning theory (ELT) http://www.learning-theories.com/experiential-learning-kolb.html  it is more fluid and feels less hierarchical.
Image : http://www.businessballs.com/images/kolb's_learning_styles_businessballs.jpg