Moodle as a tool for Innovation

Hi everyone

I thought I could talk about moodle as a tool for an innovative teacher as well as a tool for a teacher to innovate. I’d like to look at how a learning management system like moodle figures into the 13 codes for pedagogical roles of teachers.

T1 – Explain or present information – moodle is used as a digital cupboard for useful readings, interesting videos, guiding presentations. In fact, information organization lends itself to automatic understanding on the part of the student, with little explanation required from the teacher on how information is organized. The teacher can focus on the content and on encouraging debates since moodle handles the task of presenting the information.

T2 – Give task instruction – in my class, the teacher sets a central weekly reading and discussion questions around that reading. Task instruction is very simple, straightforward and the teacher doesn’t spend very long on explaining the tasks to the students. Again, moodle seems to afford great convenience to a teacher in terms of managing the more administrative tasks related to teaching.

T3 – Monitor students’ task progression – because the discussion forums are so well set up and embedded inside moodle, students upload all of their individual as well as collaborative work onto moodle. The teacher can scan through the discussion forums to see that students are on the right track. Also, the use of bush graphs to show connections between student performance (grading is also possible on moodle) and student activity can help a teacher identify which students are doing badly and why.

T4 – Assess students – Moodle allows for peer assessment, so the burden for part of the grading can definitely (and personally I feel like it should) be delegated to the students. Using a standardized rating system, students can rate each others’ work. The teacher obviously still does the majority of the grading but this system makes students more conscious of each others’ work.

T5 – Provide learning support to students – Moodle allows for private dialogue between students and teachers so that students who are lagging can be supported separately from the rest of the class. In general also, constant monitoring of student responses to discussion questions allows the teacher to provide support to students who may not be doing as well as they should be.

T8 – Select ICT tools – Obviously moodle allows for a range for ICT apps that can be used in education. RSS feeds – subject related news from around the world on same page as course, videos, images, pdfs, charts, tables, links – everything in one space.

T9 – Support students’ inquiry process – Wikispaces on Moodle: students collaborate on drafting answers together. Discussion Forums: students ask each other questions to deepen their understanding. Glossary and definitions – students come up with definitions for words/phrases used in class.

T10 – Co teaching – Moodle allows for collaboration between teachers – same subject teaching (like Peter and Bob for instance). Both teachers can provide their inputs and make the experience generally richer for all students.

T11 – Support team building of students – Since moodle is available 24/7, students can work together outside of class, Forums like notice boards, discussions, chatrooms are meeting points for students and teachers. Especially the quieter students will often participate more in chatrooms than they would out loud.

Using Electronic Games in Classroom

(I will use T1-13 to indicate the 13 pedagogical rules in the following)

Electronic games(e-games, video games, online games) are always attractive to children. Especially these days, lots of portable devices are released, says, smartphone, tablets, etc. It lead to a rapid development to the electronics entertainment industry.

Though children/teenagers love electronic games so much, most parents and teachers usually do not like it. One main reason is that they think that e-games would distract children from study and make them be so isolated from the real world. Is it really true? The answer, of course, is No. In Hong Kong, there are certain schools do not be reluctant to e-games, instead, they provide e-games and encourage students to play the e-games. Teachers would ask students play the "RPG"(role-play game) provided by the schools network.(T5) The RPG may include several subjects, using MC, matching, pictures, etc to ask students to finish some "quests".(T1, T2) If students can accomplish those quests(T4), their avatars in the RPG will be level-up. So that students can have more accessories for their avatars. It encourages students to self-learn and teachers can also check students' progress.(T3)

In this kind of learning, teachers change their role from assessor to facilitator. In the past, teachers might encounter a problem that students did not have the motivation to learn or teachers could not find a better way to draw students' attention in the class. But with e-games students can be excited when playing games; they can also interact more with their classmates and teachers, as a result students can also gain social skills. Moreover, students can get information from different topics. Teachers can easily provide any content they want in the e-games. In such case, teachers do not the only one who teach students, but students also teach themselves from the games. It is a good example of self-learning.

There are some examples showing how electronic games(T5, T8, T11) are adopted in classroom and what teachers would do.

1. Nintendo DS Plays It's Part In The Classroom

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-_7c1VOMT4

2. Schoolteacher Ananth Pai Brings Video Games to the Classroom

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6KCgZY-7HU

3. Wii Fit Class of 30 doing hula hoops together in new PE class

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA6u5vCot_o

(T6, T7, T11, T13)

Further reading:

1. Eric Klopfer, Scot Osterweil, and Katie Salen (2009), moving learning games forward
2. Elaine Pearson and Chris Bailey (2007), Evaluating the potential of the Nintendo Wii to support disabled students in education
3. http://www.ted.com/talks/johnny_lee_demos_wii_remote_hacks.html (turn a $40 video game controller into a digital whiteboard, a touchscreen and a head-mounted 3-D viewer)
4. http://www.kinecteducation.com/ (open-source community using Kinect, a motion sensor gaming device, in education)

Transformer QR code

Innovative Practice - Mobile learning

Posted by Kevin Tsang

In definition by MOBllearn., Mobile learning is: Any sort of learning that happens when the learner is not at a fixed, predetermined location, or learning that happens when the learner takes advantage of the learning opportunities offered by mobile technologies. In the recent years, mobile phone becomes more and more popular and mobile technologies had been developed very fast. In Hong Kong, about 99% of people carried at least one mobile phone and about 70% of Hong Kong people have a smart phone that the mobile phone can access internet for multipurpose. Those users can use their mobile devises to interact with portable technologies and learning that reflects a focus on how society and its educational institutions can accommodate and support users. An advantages of mobile learning is that it is accessible anywhere, it can be collaborative and constructive, we can share a huge of information to others, teacher act their role as facilitator which can be give instant feedback and evaluation. Moreover, mobile learning can also provide learning materials in very small boxes that can be easier to create innovative practice in school, learning materials including text book, presentation materials, animation, simulation and internet search.

QR code

One innovative practice by using mobile learning is the application of QR code. QR is the abbreviated from Quick Response, which is similar to bar code but QR code is much more fast readability and comparatively large storage capacity.

One example of using QR code is an international school teacher which is teaching mathematic in Grade 7 students. The lesson is about cardinal direction, teacher prepare QR codes in somewhere of the campus, and ask students form a groups to finish the task. The task is like orientation, At the starting point, students have to scan the QR code by using mobile devices, some questions about Cardinal direction will be asked, if students answer correctly, next check point will shown. Students than have competition to see which group is faster.
I think this is very interesting for student and motivate them to learn.



There are two more innovative practice examples in youtube:

Using QR Codes in the Classroom

QR Codes: Applications in Education


MLearning can create new ideas of teacher to think more about teaching and learning and generate innovative practices.

New Collaboration Platform

We created a google site for our group project and discussion. Please take a look:
https://sites.google.com/site/icttransformers/home

Use the edit button (top right hand corner) to make changes.

Interacting with students through FB

FB is a new thing to myself, mind you but I really started 'actively FBing' for just a little bit more than one year. I never thought of FBing with my students, due to the privacy issues and well, students sometimes post things on FB that as a teacher you'd rather not see it.

This idea of FBing with students was actually suggested by the students of my class, they created an FB group for the class and invited me to join. I didn't want to reveal my 'real' FB account to them, so I registered a new one. The students also know that, but they didn't mind.

Since I am also teaching them science, I decided to occasionally upload some interesting pictures, videos and links to useful websites that may help them learn. The students welcomed what I did and I am also glad to see from their comments that the links added motivation to their learning.

Therefore starting from last month, I decided to make FB groups for the other subjects that I teach, compared to groups for class, less activities happen in pure groups for subjects. Students seem to prefer asking me questions through private messages instead of posting their questions in the group, if a question that is worth discussing came by, I will put the question into the group and invite for some discussion, however this usually doen't work very well and I eventually had to answer the question myself.

I think the FB idea changed my role as a teacher in the way that I became more accessible to the students, it also granted me a very convenient way to share resources with my students, which used to be quite tedious and even paper-costly before we had FB. Students are also more willing to ask questions because doing so in FB seems to be less threatening to them, compared to that you have to wait for the teacher outside the staff room.

In order to be able to utilize FB in a better way, I am thinking of using it as a formative assessment tool to several of my classes, I think the idea works somehow similar to what we are doing now in this MITE course, which is to ask students to post something related to their learning on FB regularly. Some self-assessment and peer-assessment tools can also be posted on FB so that the students can try making use of them out of the classroom setting.

NEW Blogging Platform

We created a google site for our group project and discussion. Please take a look:
https://sites.google.com/site/icttransformers/home

Analyze case study in exploring challenges and success factors for innovation in Education, reflect the issues and make references to Joyce’s comments:

I looked at this case study in terms of three questions: 1. What was innovative?, 2. Why it worked and 3. What were the issues? - Through a bubbl.us 'map'. Please let me know if this is difficult to read...and I am happy to post text.

What do you see are the major reasons for innovation failure and success in education?

What do you see are the major reasons for innovation failure and success in education?

I agree with Dennis and Zachary that whether innovations in education fail or succeed depends a lot on the actors involved - teachers, administrators, parents and students.

Often teachers get so caught up in finishing the curriculum that there is little time for them to think of innovating. In a traditional classroom (the ones I have seen in Indonesia/India) people are suspicious of 'new-fangled' ideas. They just want kids to score well on exams and not be 'distracted'. While creativity is encouraged in the younger classes, as children get older, the education system 'streamlines' them, conditions them for the world. Of course the interesting thing to note is that in today's world, Innovators are doing well, and the rest are just following them. To change the way we educate, there has to be a collective buy-in from all actors involved. This is really hard to get. Perhaps because schools are naturally more democratic than private businesses, that change is slow to take root.

In terms of successful innovation: I can't think of a school. But someone I know started a business. In Jakarta, Indonesia, there is a massive traffic problem - to the extent that it can take you 2 hours to cover 10 km!!! My friend started a motorbike taxi business, but he didn't buy his on motorbikes, he just organized the already existent motorbike taxis under his company's umbrella. He started GPS tracking and a call center to take orders (just like ordering a cab). The motorbike taxis also deliver groceries and other items. His company was recently recognized in the Global Entrepreneurship Program conference in Bali and I know he's got angel investors who want to invest in his business. It's a case of him solving a problem in a simple way, with existing resources. It's also a small company, all friends, and they think alike.

Group Blog activities Session 2

Analyze case study in exploring challenges and success factors for innovation in Education, reflect the issues and make references to Joyce’s comments:

Key Reference:

Wycoff, J. (2004). The big ten innovation killers and how to keep your innovation system alive and well. Retrieved on 29th September, 2011 http://www.innovationnetwork.biz/library/BigTenInnovationKillers.htm

Case Study: DE014 Promoting Team Potential in the project "Economy and Schools" and Acquiring Key Qualifications for Entering Jobs

Background Infomation

The Innovation is carried out in the senior grade of a grammar school of a small town. The school with its approximately 730 students and 56 members of the teaching staff has a large catchment area due to the area's rather rural nature. The majority of the students come from families without any social problems. A special emphasis is laid on the new media in the school. Computers and the Internet are frequently integrated into the normal lessons. In addition, the "multimedia centre" with the "Open Channel", the library and the "district's education centre" are located on the school premises as well. In the school much emphasis is laid on the globalisation of the school, which can be seen in the several projects progressing during and outside the lessons. One of these projects is the economy project, which provides not only an insight into economic relationships but also some help in dealing with the new media.

Group Project

Assessment Task :

Group Work (50%) Ongoing assessment. Final submission 6 December, 2011

Individuals within a Group select a case from the research-based SITES-M2 study to analyze innovative practice at the classroom and the school level. Groups then identify recent examples of IT-based innovative practices (eg the use of Facebook to teach science classes in secondary schools). Case analyses in each group will then be combined and compared to address and discuss a selection of the following questions:

1. Nature of the innovation
   • Why are these practices considered innovative?
   
2. Similarities and differences
   • How are these practices similar and different from one to another?
   
3. Success criteria
   • To what extent have these practices transformed aspects of learning and teaching?
   
4. Contextual Factors
   • What contextual factors are associated with these innovative practices?
   
5. Sustainability and transferability
   • What practices appear to support more sustainable and transferable change? And why, at the classroom and school levels?

Each group will develop an e-portfolio of work associated with their case studies. The e-portfolio should include analysis of the case studies, links to research on innovation and relevant resources in a repository as well as engagement in activities online to address questions about innovative practices.

Students will be marked on the quality of their contributions in the e-portfolio to:

(a) Individual and group completion of weekly activities

(b) Individual and group case study analyses, links to related research, models and resources, presentations and feedback on the case study work and those of the group;

(c) Critical reflections in relation to the integration of innovative practice and change concepts and models; and

(d) Demonstration of active individual participation in group work as well as engagement in reflecting on other groups’ work.

MITE6310 Key References and Resources

1. Anderson, R.E. (2002) (Ed.). Special Issue: International case studies of innovative uses of ICT in schools, Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 18(4), pp. 381-502.
2. Christensen, C. M. (1997). The innovator's dilemma: when new technologies cause great firms to fail. Boston: Harvard Business Press.
3. Dowling, C., & Lai, K. (2003). Information and Communication Technology and the Teacher of the Future, Kluwer Academic Publishers.
4. Hargreaves, A., & Goodson, I. (2006). Educational change over time? The sustainability and nonsustainability of three decades of secondary school change and continuity. Educational Administration Quarterly, 42(1), 3.
5. Kozma, R. (2003) (Ed.). Technology, Innovation, and Educational Change: A Global Perspective, ISTE.
6. Law, N., Pelgrum, W. J., & Plomp, T. (Eds.). (2008). Pedagogy and ICT in schools around the world: findings from the SITES 2006 study. Hong Kong: CERC and Springer.
7. Law, N., Yuen, H.K., Ki, W.W., Li, S.C., Lee, Y., & Chow, Y. (2000) (Eds.). Changing Classrooms & Changing Schools, Hong Kong: CITE. Retrieved on 6 September, 2011 from http://sites-old.cite.hku.hk/index_eng.htm
8. Law, N., Yuen, H.K., & Fox, R. (2011). Educational Innovations Beyond Technology: nurturing leadership and establishing learning organizations. New York: Springer. Retrieved on 6 September, 2011 from http://www.springerlink.com/content/v12347/#section=841804&page=1&locus=0
9. Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108, 1017-1054.
10. Rogers, E.M. (2003). Diffusion of Innovations, 5th Ed., NY: Free Press.
11. Rowe, A.J. (2004). Creative Intelligence: Discovering the Innovative Potential in Ourselves and Others, NJ: Pearson-Prentice Hall.
12. Shavinina, L.V. (Ed.) (2005). The International Handbook on Innovation, Oxford: Pergamon.
13. Spence, W.R. (1994). Innovation: The Communication of Change in Ideas, Practices and Products, London: Chapman & Hall.
14. Technology Enhanced Learning at HKU. http://tel.cite.hku.hk/
15. Venezky, R.L., & Davis, C. (2002). Quo Vademus? The Transformation of Schooling in a Networked World, OECD. Retrieved on 6 September, 2011 from http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/48/20/2073054.pdf
16. Zhao, Y., & Frank, K. (2003). Factors Affecting Technology Uses in Schools: An Ecological Perspective. American Educational Research Journal, 40, 807-840.