I am positively bouncing with excitement about the possibility of using augmented reality as a tool for teaching plant identification. I bet you didn't expect that!
A special thank you goes to Dr Thom Cochrane for inspiring me and Bronwyn Hegarty for making it happen.
http://thomcochrane.wikispaces.com
Monday 30 April 2012
Tuesday 17 April 2012
What is flexible learning?
The following are replies from my colleagues about what flexible learning means to them.
Reply One
What does the term Flexible Learning mean to you?
Flexible learning or flexible delivery?
Flexible delivery/ learning is a finance driven approach to delivering
education more cheaply, by not having to supply venue, materials etc to offsite
students. It enables a much larger staff/student ratio. It has its place
in making available resources and online assessments but in my opinion,
and that of students i have spoken to, who are doing “distance learning “ It is
not as effective as the hyperbole suggests as a means of .
Why is it necessary to use a more flexible approach in your work?
Educationalists are under pressure are under pressure to deliver ( what
appears to be) more for less, in order to maintain our jobs and positions and
to keep our courses open , we must be seen to be doing what the academics who
drive these trends would have us do.
The rise in the internet does make options for the presentation and
sourcing of course materials more varied and hence, presentation of those
materials can be more adaptable.
What do you need to explore to make this happen?
The internet, computers, various programmes and systems
What goals do you have for using Flexible Learning in your work?
Making more course material available through shared drives, develop
some on line assessment.
Life, the universe, everything and flexible learning
Thanks to Douglas Adams, we now know that the answer to 'Life the universe and everything' is of course 42. The key is in understanding the question.
When I think about flexible learning and what it means, I realise that my thoughts seem to keep growing. One answer leads to many more questions. So let's start small and see where we go.
In summary:
Outside the department
Inside the department
Nature isn't that flexible. In horticulture certain tasks have to be completed at specific times of the year, and only in the appropriate weather conditions. We spend a great deal of time selecting the units that we teach and putting our timetables together. Everything has to be carefully planned to enable us to prune roses at the right time of year, or have examples of leaf rollers (a plant pest) to show to the class. Wet weather alternatives are all planned in because you can't dig the soil or prune plants when it is wet. This automatically removes some of the flexibility. Nature herself (itself?) controls timing, sequencing and environmental conditions.
Theory can be delivered with relative ease using any format you choose, but what about practical skills? Most of our students choose horticulture because they are drawn to the practical component of the programme. They are often kinaesthetic learners. It is surprisingly difficult to learn a practical skill from reading instructions or even watching a video. Not all the tasks can be practised at home in the average garden.
Another big question is always going to be over practical assessment. Are photographs and video enough to demonstrate that a student is competent at a task? Students can write about their experiences, but it would not be accepted by the industry.
There are answers to all these questions, and solutions to all these problems, but they will require a great deal of work and some very flexible thinking.
This leads me to an interesting barrier - my inflexibility. I am open to new ideas, but I need a damn good shove to get me there. It all takes a lot of work, and the process of changing my mindset can be painfully slow at times. So the biggest challenge will be to explore and challenge my own boundaries and beliefs.
My longer term goal is to look at how flexible learning can become part of the classroom experience.
When I think about flexible learning and what it means, I realise that my thoughts seem to keep growing. One answer leads to many more questions. So let's start small and see where we go.
In summary:
What does flexible learning mean to me?
At this point, to me, flexible learning means the ability to study what you want, when you want.Why is a more flexible approach necessary?
I mentioned some of the reasons to become more flexible in my post 'Getting on with it', but to summarise they can be listed as:Outside the department
- Innovate or die - changing society expectations
- Otago Polytechnic the 'Brand' - institute pressures to keep up with the play
Inside the department
- Give all our students more options in study and qualification outcomes
- Increase out student base
- Facilitate learning for distance students and those who cannot study 9 - 5
- Help students to staircase into advanced or higher qualifications
- Reduce the teaching load created by teaching one to one and specialist tutorials
- Improve the experience of our in class traditional students - this is the hardest area for me to visualise at the moment and will be my biggest challenge.
What do I need to explore to make this happen?
The obvious answer to this question, is that I need to explore technology, social media, and education innovations. There are two less obvious barriers that I need to consider, and they are nature and myself, or my nature!Nature isn't that flexible. In horticulture certain tasks have to be completed at specific times of the year, and only in the appropriate weather conditions. We spend a great deal of time selecting the units that we teach and putting our timetables together. Everything has to be carefully planned to enable us to prune roses at the right time of year, or have examples of leaf rollers (a plant pest) to show to the class. Wet weather alternatives are all planned in because you can't dig the soil or prune plants when it is wet. This automatically removes some of the flexibility. Nature herself (itself?) controls timing, sequencing and environmental conditions.
Theory can be delivered with relative ease using any format you choose, but what about practical skills? Most of our students choose horticulture because they are drawn to the practical component of the programme. They are often kinaesthetic learners. It is surprisingly difficult to learn a practical skill from reading instructions or even watching a video. Not all the tasks can be practised at home in the average garden.
Another big question is always going to be over practical assessment. Are photographs and video enough to demonstrate that a student is competent at a task? Students can write about their experiences, but it would not be accepted by the industry.
There are answers to all these questions, and solutions to all these problems, but they will require a great deal of work and some very flexible thinking.
This leads me to an interesting barrier - my inflexibility. I am open to new ideas, but I need a damn good shove to get me there. It all takes a lot of work, and the process of changing my mindset can be painfully slow at times. So the biggest challenge will be to explore and challenge my own boundaries and beliefs.
What goals do I have?
As I have already mentioned elsewhere, my short term goal is to set up a course on moodle or wikieducator, using dynamic content and best practice. Long term goals include multiples courses/programmes.My longer term goal is to look at how flexible learning can become part of the classroom experience.
Thought of the moment
Not feeling that social
The interesting thing about social media is that it is designed for the socially minded. I am not that social. I like to have my own thoughts wrapped around me, they swirl and change and make interesting patterns. When I talk to people I can see their faces and the swirling patterns of their thoughts and ideas wrapped around them.I am struggling with the idea of blogging, even on a professional level. The act of sharing my thoughts and writing into the black whole of the internet makes me feel exposed. Reading the thoughts of others seems like some strange intrusion, like I have sneaked a peak at a diary.
This may not be rational or logical, but it is oddly real.
The Point?
Not everyone wants to share in a public forum. Over the years we have had students become distressed because we have asked them to tell a little something about themselves and why they want to study horticulture. For many the idea of using a blog would be helpful - it is remote and removes some aspects of social accountability. For others, that very remoteness creates a disconnect. Where is the information going? who can read it? what will people think of me? how will I know? We work hard to create a safe learning environment in the classroom, and need to work just as hard to create a safe environment for flexible learning.For some people however, the barriers will persist.
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