Course Syllabus

From Hc Edtech

Technology... is a queer thing. It brings you great gifts with one hand, and it stabs you in the back with the other. - C.P. Snow, New York Times, 15 March 1971

Contents 1 ED 5164 Learning with Technology in Adult Education 2 Course Readings 3 Instructor Contact 4 Course Resources 5 Course Goals 6 Course Schedule and Readings

[edit] ED 5164 Learning with Technology in Adult Education

January - April 2006

Instructor: Patrick Ledwell

Course Outline

This course will take an applied approach to technology as a support for teaching. It will focus on the use of accessible tools-- on-line resources, visual presentations, web pages, and audiovisual media-- in creative and sustainable ways. Seminars will involve demonstrations of technologies, discussions of their educational potential, and shared strategies for incorporating them into the learner’s own educational environment.

Through project-based learning, class participants will mentor one another in different applications of computer-supported instruction. Readings will draw from educational and popular sources to frame not only the how, but also the why, behind the technologies considered. An important theme will be the use of social software to support learning communities within, and outside, the institution.

[edit] Course Readings

On reserve at Holland College Resource Centres (Charlottetown, Slemon Park, Tourism and Culinary)

[edit] Instructor Contact

Patrick Ledwell, MA MSc CAE (UNB) Learning Manager, Interactive Multimedia Second floor, Atlantic Technology Centre, 90 University Avenue (902) 566-9661 pledwell@hollandc.pe.ca

[edit] Course Resources

An important resource throughout the course will be the course collaborative web page, located on Weblogs@HollandCollege. This weblog page is designed so that all members of the class have a common access point to find out course news and items of interest. More importantly, the blog is collaborative, and will allow you to login and post your own questions and ideas. You can attach files to share your resources, and even post comments on what others have contributed. http://weblogs.hollandcollege.com/hcedtech

If you have a question or observation on the course readings, or on a technological point, chances are that you are not alone. The instructor strongly supports shifting these conversations to the blog. If the question or concern is of a more individual or private nature, e-mail is the best channel.

[edit] Course Goals

The goals of this course are to:

• facilitate and enhance collaboration between instructors, building an informal ‘edutech’ group that can resources and support
• support the development of technology-based resources immediately relevant to your present teaching
• encourage instructors to look critically at the technologies they incorporate, and to use the available tools in a creative and confident way
• build a perspective on how the media we choose can affect the message we convey, and how new media change the way some students learn
• invite instructors to reflect upon and articulate their individual philosophies of education and technology, and where students fit into this equation

[edit] Course Schedule and Readings

All classes are face-to-face on Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., at the Atlantic Technology Centre

A note on the readings: With a group, you will be presenting on one of the listed readings. For the other sessions, you can either read or photocopy the articles from reserve, based on your available time and interest. I hope that they’re interesting enough that you will both want to read and keep many of them.

Session 1- January 14 Battleground EduTech Gates, Bill (2000, March) Enter ‘Generation I’. Instructor. Retrieved January 1, 2006, from website: http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ofnote/03-00instructor.mspx Gates, Bill (1999, October) Everyone, Anytime, Anywhere. Forbes ASAP. Retrieved January 1, 2006, from website: http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ofnote/10- 04forbes.mspx Gates, Bill (2000, December) Shaping the Internet Age. Microsoft.com. Retrieved January 1, 2006, from website: http://www.microsoft.com/billgates/shapingtheinternet.asp Birkerts, Sven (1994). The Gutenberg Elegies: The Fate of Reading in an Electronic Age. New York: Fawcett Colombine. 3 Session 2- February 4 Who is the Digital Student? Negroponte, Nicholas (1995). Being Digital. New York: Vintage Books. Excerpts retrieved January 1, 2006, from website: http://archives.obsus. com/obs/english/books/nn/ Seely Brown, John (2000, March/April). Growing Up Digital: How the Web Changes Work, Education, and the Ways People Learn. Change, 10-20. Retrieved January 3, 2006, from website: http://www.usdla.org/html/journal/FEB02_Issue/article01.html Session 3- February 11 The Medium is the Message

Johnson, Steven (1997). Interface Culture. New York: Basic Books. Postman, Neal (1985). Amusing Ourselves to Death. New York: Penguin. Session 4- February 25 It’s a Visual World Parker, Ian (2001, May 28). Absolute Powerpoint. New Yorker. Retrieved January 3, 2006, from website: http://www.physics.ohiostate.edu/~wilkins/group/powerpt.html Postman, Neal (1985). Amusing Ourselves to Death. New York: Penguin. Tufte, Edward (2003, September). PowerPoint is Evil. Wired, 11(9). Retrieved January 3, 2006, from website: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/ppt2_pr.html Session 5- March 11 The Learner-Centred College O’Banion, Terry (1997). A Learning College for the 21st Century. Westport,CT: Oryx Press. pp. 19-80. Session 6- April 1 Collaboration and Technology Petraglia, Joseph (1998). Reality By Design: The Rhetoric and Technology of Authenticity in Education. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum and Associates. Pea, Roy (1996). Seeing What We Build Together: Distributed Multimedia Learning Environments for Transformative Communications. In T. Koschmann (Ed.), CSCL: Theory and Practice of an Emerging Paradigm (pp.171-186). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum and Associates. 4 Course assignments 1. Creative presentation on reading description The aim of the presentation is to capture and convey the major points of the one of the readings, using technology as a creative means of expression. The presentation should last approximately 15 minutes. Within that time, the group (either 2 or 3) should outline the article’s major points and ideas verbally, but also enhance this discussion with a visual or media technology of their choice. In the presentation, plan your efforts so that the visual and media technology contribute something additional and different to what you’re saying, rather than echoing it. Some examples/possibilities might include: • use digital pictures, rather than text, to accompany the verbal message with a visual one • create a visual diagram, or mind map, of the article’s main arguments • create a set of web links offering further information on the topic (either introduced in class or after) • find/make a short video or audio clip that reflects the points under discussion; could be either delivered via the computer or other media • use non-digital methods (overheads or flipcharts) to respond to class feedback, and compare their merits to digital presentations Evaluating and criticizing technology is a theme of the course. You should look critically at the technology you choose and how it enhances the discussion. Do not feel second-rate if you think your technology skills are not on par with other course participants. Be ready to positively state the merits of your present methods, rather than their shortfalls. requirements The requirements for the presentation are: • prepare a half- to full- page outline (single-spaced) of the article’s main points for the Thursday preceding the Saturday class • if you select key quotations, please note their page number (if available) • post the outline to the class blog under Educational Technology, either as an attachment or as a posting, so that fellow students can familiarize 5 themselves with the main points • deliver a half-page discussion (single-spaced) on why you selected your particular instructional technology for your presentation. The discussion should mention: > why you selected the technology > what you see as its advantages and drawbacks > address the cone of experience (learning styles) to argue the benefits of your approach N.B.: Please contact the instructor previous to the Saturday session if you have particular technology/media needs, outside of a laptop and LCD projector. note on technology Please take advantage of the early check-ins for your technology resources. All files, disks, and media that you bring for a presentation should be tested before the scheduled start time. We can re-schedule your presentation if there’s an issue. 2. Technology presentations description One of the core ideas behind the course design is to provide you with a set of educational technology strategies, which you can take directly back to the classroom. The technology presentations will be the engine behind an educational archive which we can build and share during the course. Designed so that you can develop and exchange instructional materials on technologies that you know, the presentations will allow us to mentor each other along the technology learning curve. No matter how inexperienced you feel with technology, it’s almost a guarantee that you can teach something about a tool or process you use often. You can also devote the time to collect resources other instructors can use, either for their own learning or for their classes. In the course, you will be able to choose the subjects of your technology presentation from a spectrum of possible topics, focusing on those areas you either already use or want to hone. Technology only makes sense when we have an immediate need for the techniques. No one needs to be learning web design when he or she is still mastering good searches for web resources. As a result, you will be able to select the presentations that you attend from several happening concurrently. In other words, you will design your own learning path each Saturday. By allowing you to self-select your sessions, the groups will be smaller and the topics more relevant to where you find yourself technologically. 6 Before the course, respondents to a course questionnaire indicated a set of technologies that they’d find most relevant to their immediate classroom use. The initial sessions proposed are based on that feedback. If you want to present on a topic not there, or take a different approach to the same subject, please consult with the instructor to clear the topic. During the course, you will be responsible for two 40 minute presentations. Some of the topics will repeat themselves once within the course. With this design, you will have a second chance to attend a session that you either missed, or didn’t feel informed enough about, in the first half of the course. Also, if you take a session and are really interested in that technological area, you should consider actually delivering that session in the second half, as a way of advancing your learning. Please note: If you’re presenting in an area already delivered, your presentation should differ in its materials, approach, and direction from the previous delivery. Develop something to complement the existing material. Use the accessible resources for learning purposes, but don’t simply repurpose them. The instructor will consult with students to encourage them to present on one topic they know, and one topic which they do not know, but find relevant. Please keep this idea in mind when selecting your topics. instructions The goal of the technology presentation is threefold. The aims are to provide other students in the class with: • an overview of an educationally relevant technology • a short working demonstration or hands-on activity, and • some resources to support them (and yourself) in successfully implementing the learning To help achieve these goals, the presenter is asked to prepare and deliver a 35-40 minute presentation on the technological topic. The time may be used differently for different presentations. A general guideline would be to spend 10 minutes in an overview, 25 minutes in a designed activity, and 5 minutes outlining the resources. The requirements for the technological presentation are: • prepare a properly formatted and clearly written learning plan for your activity, including a topic or theme; a set of objectives; a set of activities with times; a list of materials and equipment required; and a note on any accommodation to learning styles • please submit your learning plan to a blog posting under ‘Holland College Educational Technology,’ no later than the Thursday before the Saturday session when you present, to ensure that you have the media aids you need 7 • prepare a one-page handout (double-sided if necessary), including information on the technology, steps for the activity, and helpful graphics • after your presentation, attach your handout to the blog posting on your learning plan (the same posting) • also attach any digital files (Powerpoint, pictures, Word) you think would be helpful to anyone working with this technology in the future note on assessment Because of the number of people presenting concurrently, most of the assessment on your presentations will be peer assessment. Those who attend your presentations will be given access to an on-line rubric (see model) to provide feedback, in both numeric and comment form, on how beneficial they found your presentation. The assessment on the presentation itself will be the average of all submitted rubrics. The instructor will provide written feedback, and a grade, for your lesson plan and submitted materials. During the course, you will be able to access all feedback via a student login unique to you. note on technology Please take advantage of the early check-ins for your technology resources. All files, disks, and media that you bring for a presentation should be tested before the scheduled start time. We can re-schedule your presentation if there’s an issue. 3. ‘My Educational Technology Credo’ reflection paper In the readings for this course, you may discover that many commentators about technology (and technology in education) speak in large, unchecked terms about change. Even when they talk about the future, many of the writers proclaim how things will be, whether they feel positive or negative about these changes. In education, we’re constantly making decisions about learning. It’s challenging to make choices in this climate when we hear— almost daily— that technology is going to completely change what we do. However, we’re not the first educators to live through times of technological shift. The late 19th century educational thinker, John Dewey, lived through times when there were increasing pressures for education to begin responding to the demands of an industrial workplace. In response, he wrote many detailed essays about what changes could happen in the classroom, immediately and realistically. 8 He also wrote one of his most famous pieces, “My Pedagogic Creed,” which has a significantly different tone. In this piece, he clearly declares what he thinks education is, what role he thinks the school should perform, and how students can best learn. The purpose of the piece, as a credo, is not so much to answer those with different opinions. The purpose is to declare and clarify his own operating principles, so he can make good choices within times of change. The goal of your reflection paper will be to write “My Educational Technology Credo,” after having considered the readings and discussions of the class. You can use Dewey’s example to the extent that it helps you as a model. It is his tone, more than the exact content of what he says, that you can emulate. In a credo, you state your philosophy as clearly and responsible as possible, and do not necessarily have to answer to the many possible alternate positions. Writing this statement should help to articulate your present outlook on educational technology, and offer some basis against which you can make good choices in times of change. In other words, it’s a declaration of your standpoint, for future action. due date The reflection paper is due on March 11. Papers submitted by March 11, and returned with feedback, can be re-submitted for April 1. April 1 will be the last day the papers will be accepted. requirements The requirements for the reflection paper are: • the paper should be at least 4 pages (1000 words) in length, and printed double-spaced • Dewey divides his credo into 5 sections: what education is, what the school is, the subject-matter of education, the nature of method, and the school and social progress • your credo should be divided into 5 sections, addressing 5 key questions in times of technological change: > What is educational technology? > Who is the ‘new student,’ and who does that exclude? > How does technology change learning? > What do students need to know about technology? > How will technology change your classroom? • in each, write to define your clearest, most succinct answer to the question; feel free to use the first person: it’s a credo • your responses should reflect an understanding and engagement with the discussions that surround educational technology (i.e. no Luddites— who just reject technology automatically) 9 • refer to at least three course readings that you found relevant to points you address; the readings you use should be properly referenced using APA format • please write in complete, grammatical sentences, rather than point form • use correct essay formatting (numbered pages, cover page) and pay careful attention to spelling Course evaluation The course evaluation will be based on your completion of 4 assignments, and the quality of your contributions to class conversations and peer feedback. 20% Creative presentation on reading (group) 50% Two 40 minute technology presentations (25% each) - peer and instructor evaluation 20% ‘My Educational Technology Credo’ essay 5% quality of class contributions (on-line and off-line) 5% quality of peer feedback on presentations A typical course day 8:30 morning presentation tech check-ins 9:00 Presentation on reading (30 m.) 10:00- 11:30 two sets of 3 presentations (40 m.) 11:30 peer evaluation on presentations 11:45 afternoon presentation tech check-ins 1:00 Presentation on reading (30 m.) 2:00- 3:30 two sets of 3 presentations (40 m.) 3:30 peer evaluation on presentations 4:00 wrapup: questions and answer session 10 Course information and policies Please review the following guidelines and information: • Saturday, April 8 is the last day for the acceptance of course material for marking. • The Atlantic Technology Centre provides an ideal setting for this class. That said, the building is a security building, and on weekend, these policies will not create the freest access into and out of the building. Please arrive at the Fitzroy doors before 9:05, or give notice of your prospective arrival time. At lunches and breaks, we’ll share the responsibility for making sure people get out and back in. The instructor’s Smart Card will be the primary means to access into—and out of— the building. It can be loaned to anyone who needs to leave the building. There is a security guard on duty from 8 AM until 1 PM, but ATC policy dictates that they should not be regularly admitting people from street level. The instructor will have a cell phone on, if anyone is left outside. The number is 393-3220. • Please provide notice via e-mail when you know you will miss all or part of a class session. • In cases on inclement weather, listen to local radio (CHTN or Magic93) after 6 AM for news about cancellations. • Please review the enclosed notes on grading criteria for papers and plagiarism. 11 Sample Instructional Plan Topic or Theme: Objectives: 1. 2. 3. 4. Activities: Activity Time Handouts: Materials/resources needed: Accommodation: 12 Answers to questionnaire At this point, what do you think is the one most significant way in which technology might assist your educational involvements? > I'd like to be able to incorporate technology in a variety of learning activities or provide alternate delivery methods for content > Enhance the delivery of the lesson by making it more interesting and interactive. > It will give some visual stimulus to the classroom setting, and it is a lot better than my drawings on the board. The students this year will be doing on-line testing for the resources. > To gather up to date information, and to speed up my daily evaluation records. > I feel pretty comfortable with technology, and find it fun… so I would like to enhance my knowledge further in the areas of using digital audio and video primarily. > The internet would be a very significant factor > I would like to teach some on line components in my courses > The development of web based distance modules would be of great benefit to our program in preparing us to expand our distance offerings and enhance training. > Organization, I would like to develop an on-line documentation system that will allow students to keep records of their progress in the laboratory and allow me to track multiple projects they will be working on. I would also like it to become fairly effortless for them to submit progress reports. > digital pictures > time management; timely communication with learners; > keep current with the fast and ever-changing technology that effects industry and jobs. 13 What is the one most significant drawback, obstacle, or frustration with the technologies that you currently use? > Lack of knowledge, support, equipment, time > Like any technology, only good if it works right. > No traiining provided for new teachers coming into Holland College on the different programs that are used in the facility. We are dropped into a class and told to make due with no understanding of the new systems that are out there. > I know there is so much more I can do with technologies, but I don`t have the time or patience to figure them out. > That we don't have our own LCD projector in the program which means we don't always get the same one each time. I'd like to be able to problem solve better with the LCD machines. > Nothing other than the occacianal server problems. > Technology has assisted and frustrated me at the same time. Our lack of equipment for power point usage and computer lab time are barriers in course delivery. > The ability to modify images for training, evaluation purposes is difficult due to a lack of appropriate software on the HC server. I had to purchase my own lap top and soft ware to try to get past this obstacle. > Lack of compatibility, the movement of material from power point, to document, to web often requires reformating, tables and equations are difficult to work with. > lack of knowledge > periodic wonkiness > out dated and buget restraints to update equipment and software In one sentence, how could you express your goal in taking a class in educational technology? > To learn how to use technology in education, to engage students and involve them in the content, and to enhance the content that I'm trying to deliver. > To become more aware of the latest technology tools out there. 14 > To learn how to better use the programs, find the learning resources that go with new programs so that I can learn how to use them properly, to become better aquainted with the programs that are used at the college so that I am better able to do the things that I want to with the programs. > To become more computer literate, and be able to use this tool in the classroom. > To enhance and expand on the knowledge that I already have. > Learn how to use current technology available to me better and to greater capacity. > My goal is to be more comfortable with technology and learn how to get around our limitations at TCC and incorporate technology into some of my classes. > My goal is to expand my abilty to use web based teaching capability through such things as webct, whiteboard, Blog set up etc. I have already had a good deal of training in powerpoint and use of media in instruction from my seven years of teaching at an Ontario medical school. Whooops two sentences! > Efficient use of computer technologies so that they actually become labour and time safers and also to improve documentation and record keeping (to assist with certification of program). > to become comfortable using digital and computer technology in the class room > to remain open-minded (minor luddite) and gain useful tools for my work as an adult educator > learn and develop methods to organize and teach technology so it is at a level comprehensive to all students and at the level they understand 15 Proposed presentation topics Choose one or the following topics, and sign up for an upcoming technology presentation. Write your name and the number of the presentation you’re requesting in the available session. 1. Improve your web searching techniques 2. Using, evaluating, and collecting web resources 3. Writing for the small screen: web, e-mail, powerpoint 4. Wrangling e-mail attachments 5. Tech gear tricks: LCD projectors and other AV issues 6. Better file management on Windows 7. Open Windows: 5 useful things about the operating system 8. Broken Windows: when your system crashes 9. When computers attack: spyware and viruses 10. Getting the most out of Microsoft Word 11. Graphical layouts in Microsoft Word 12. The 5 most useful spreadsheet maneuvers 13. Creating get-to-the-point Powerpoint 14. Including rich media in your Powerpoint 15. Managing Powerpoint: importing and exporting content 16. Digital pictures: camera to computer 17. Preparing digital pictures for the Web 18. Creating simple digital graphics: text 19. Creating simple digital graphics: diagrams 20. Basic web page: formatting and displaying text 21. Intermediate web page: including pictures and links 22. Advanced web page: developing a small site 23. Knowing your courseware options: Moodle, WebCT 24. Developing a course blog 25. What is RSS (syndicated feeds) anyway? 26. Finding affordable software: freeware, shareware, opensource 27. Filming with a digital video camera 28. Capturing digital video on your computer 29. Basic editing for digital video: cuts 30. Intermediate editing for digital video: titles 31. Compressing digital video 32. Recording digital audio 33. Basic editing for digital audio 34. What is podcasting anyway? 35. Teaching using simple video games 16 Presentation schedule Session 2: Feb. 4 People Topic number 10:00 to 10:40 1. 2. 3. 10:50 to 11:30 1. 2. 3. 2:00 to 1:40 1. 2. 3. 2:50 to 2:30 1. 2. 3. 17 Session 3: Feb. 11 People Topic number 10:00 to 10:40 1. 2. 3. 10:50 to 11:30 1. 2. 3. 2:00 to 1:40 1. 2. 3. 2:50 to 2:30 1. 2. 3. 18 Reading presentations Session 2- February 4 Who is the Digital Student? AM Negroponte, Nicholas (1995). Being Digital. New York: Vintage Books. Excerpts retrieved January 1, 2006, from website: http://archives.obsus. com/obs/english/books/nn/ Group: PM Seely Brown, John (2000, March/April). Growing Up Digital: How the Web Changes Work, Education, and the Ways People Learn. Change, 10-20. Retrieved January 3, 2006, from website: http://www.usdla.org/html/journal/FEB02_Issue/article01.html Group: Session 3- February 11 The Medium is the Message AM Johnson, Steven (1997). Interface Culture. New York: Basic Books. Group: PM Postman, Neal (1985). Amusing Ourselves to Death. New York: Penguin. Group: Session 4- February 25 It’s a Visual World AM Parker, Ian (2001, May 28). Absolute Powerpoint. New Yorker. Retrieved January 3, 2006, from website: http://www.physics.ohiostate.edu/~wilkins/group/powerpt.html Group: PM Postman, Neal (1985). Amusing Ourselves to Death. New York: Penguin. Tufte, Edward (2003, September). PowerPoint is Evil. Wired, 11(9). Retrieved January 3, 2006, from website: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/ppt2_pr.html Group: 19 Session 5- March 11 The Learner-Centred College AM O’Banion, Terry (1997). A Learning College for the 21st Century. Westport,CT: Oryx Press. pp. 19-80. Group: PM O’Banion, Terry (1997). A Learning College for the 21st Century. Westport,CT: Oryx Press. pp. 19-80. Group: Session 6- April 1 Collaboration and Technology AM Petraglia, Joseph (1998). Reality By Design: The Rhetoric and Technology of Authenticity in Education. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum and Associates. Group: PM Pea, Roy (1996). Seeing What We Build Together: Distributed Multimedia Learning Environments for Transformative Communications. In T. Koschmann (Ed.), CSCL: Theory and Practice of an Emerging Paradigm (pp.171-186). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum and Associates. Group: