EDEL2002 Assessment 1: Foundation Technical Knowledge

 What i have learnt that pedagogy has three models which are, Transmission, Generative and Transformative. Pedagogy is centred on elementary education. If one has adult learners it is beneficial to take the andragogy approach since adults learn in a different way as compared to elementary scholars. I paid attention to a few technologies that can help students to reach their full potential in learning.I acheived this by exploring blogs, Wikis, Images, Audio and Video to facilitate learning.

Blogs
A few case studies were undertaken to analyse the affordances of blogs and the details can be seen in my preceding blogs. Affordances of blogs can be best summarised in the table below

It is interesting to note that multiple images can be uploaded at the same, for the purpose of this assignment i have chosen to upload one, a link to upload images is found at the top of the page and simply use the prompts to insert or upload images

The educational affordances of blogs offer the opportunities for students to become self directed learners in a supportive social environment. Blogging activities can assist groups of students and their teachers in the development of cognitive, social and self directed learning skills.Blogging is a useful tool in elearning as teachers we need to be fluent in how it works so as to manipulate blogging to pedagogy and andragogy.

Students can use blogs to complete an assessment, in a class of say 12 students if one comes up with three different points and share it on the blog a total of 36 points will be covered in a session, this is extremely difficult in a classic classroom setting whereby the teacher has to draw on the whiteboard and explain everything, that has the disadvantage of one way communication and time becomes the main focus.

Images,Videos and Audio  

 I have also explored affordances of technologies in learning which are images,audio and video in scoop.it, follow the link below to have a read:

http://www.scoop.it/u/hazel-kuveya

Wiki

The functionality of wiki for uploading and embedding information on wiki is found in the link below

https://hazelkuveya.wikispaces.com/My+Home+Page


The function of editing is the biggest advantage of using wikispaces, however it falls short from the blogs because it does not show the chronological set up and time for postings. Wikis can be used in a setting whereby the students are required to google videos or images of say principle of operation of an Residual Current Device(RCD), these artifects will need to be embedded or uploaded on their wiki and comment on their findings, they can also comment and edit their peers findings. The use of this technology results in students having an indepth knowledge and problem solving skills due to the vast amount of information being exchanged amongest themselves. Facilitators can also use the wikis to assess the students' comprehension of given tasks and see who requires help in the subject field.

A summary of the affordances of wikis are shown in the table below

Although the example points to health professionals it can be applied to electrotechnology students by simulating the case studies in the preceding blogs.

The affordances of echnology have vast applications, as facilitators as well as students manipulating these technologies has empowered the 21st century learners and facilitators like never before.

References

http://www.slideshare.net/taylorbrett101/wikis-affordances-analysistable

J. H. Jung, Christoph Schneider, Joseph Valacich. (2010) Enhancing the Motivational Affordance of Information Systems: The Effects of Real-Time Performance Feedback and Goal Setting in Group Collaboration Environments. Management Science, Vol. 56, No. 4, April 2010 .724-742

Samuel K. W. Chu, Alvin C. M. Kwan, Peter Warning (2012). Blogging for Information Management, Learning, and Social Support during Internship. Educational Technology & Society, 15(2), 168–178

(Wheeler, 2013)_(Knowles,M 1984)_(Knowles,M 1975)

The Wiki

The affordances of wikis are best summarised in the table below, although the example points to health professionals it can be applied to electrotechnology students by simulating the case studies in the preceding blogs.

I have explored the functionality of wiki for uploading  and embedding information on my wiki, click the following link that will take you to my wiki homepage.

https://hazelkuveya.wikispaces.com/My+Home+Page

The function of editing is the biggest advantage of using wikispaces, however it falls short from the blogs because it does not show the chronological set up and time for postings. Wikis can be used in a setting whereby the students are required to google videos or images of say principle of operation of an Residual Current Device(RCD), these artifects will need to be embedded or uploaded on their wiki and comment on their findings, they can also comment and edit their peers findings. The use of this technology results in students having an indepth knowledge and problem solving skills due to the vast amount of information being exchanged amongest themselves. Facilitators can also use the wikis to assess the students' comprehension of given tasks and see who requires help in the subject field.

References

http://www.slideshare.net/taylorbrett101/wikis-affordances-analysistable

Exploring the Functions and Features of Blogs Part 2

Another feature to use when uploading a video from youtube is to use the share function and follow the prompts.

Exploring the Functions and Features of Blogs Part 1

The purpose of this blog is to explore the functions and features of blogs and using the affordances to facilitate learning.

Case study

Using videos and images during lessons

The image below shows the constructional features of a miniature circuit breaker (mcb).

Triple pole siemens mcb

Notice on the image the brand of the mcb, students were asked to go online and explore different brands of mcbs and choose one that they will use to complete a particular job. Included in the task was an analysis of the brands eg advantages and disadvantages, the cost and location of the object for purchase.

After the exploration and reasearch the students were to upload their findings and conclusions onto a blog and also embed a few images of mcbs that they found to be relevant in this task, comment on peer blogs was encouraged as well. 

The outcome of this activity would be a better understanding of the constructional stucture of the mcb. Students will also compare and contrast the different brand available on the market which is beneficial for the practical activities they will have to accomplish using the object.

Conclusion

Students can use blogs to complete an assessment, in a class of say 12 students if one comes up with three different points and share it on the blog a total of 36 points will be covered in a session, this is extremely difficult in a classic classroom setting whereby the teacher has to draw on the whiteboard and explain everything, that has the disadvantage on one way communication and time becomes the main focus .

Use of Video in Learning

The video below shows the constructional characteristics of an mcb, the above activity can be used for the video as well, this time it's a single pole circuit breaker.

Another example of uploading the same video is shown in the next blog.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=0irr82xHsYc

I have also explored affordances of technologies in learning which are images,audio and video in scoop.it, follow the link below to have a read:
http://www.scoop.it/u/hazel-kuveya

The Educational Affordances of Blogs

The educational affordances of blogs offer the opportunities for students to become self directed learners in a supportive social environment. Blogging activities can assist groups of students and their teachers in the development of cognitive, social and self directed learning skill. A group of students was asked to analyse the use renewable energy in the generation of electrical power. Students used commenting feature of blogs effectively for the purpose of praising and encouraging their peers, and also giving hints and tips for solving problems, they however did not coach each other on higher order skills therefore blogging requires a higher education value within the electrotechnology students. Blog is a tool used in the learning process, t can be evaluated from three aspects that is social affordance, cognitive affordance and motivatioal affordance.

Social Affordance

The blog is a kind of environment for people to write, learn, and to share the knowledge, information, and anything else. When students reread their articles published on the blog, they can modify some inaccurate perspectives and reflect it to deepen their feeling. At the same time, the blog is a platform which is convenient to communicate with each other. To the interesting topic and viewpoint, students could talk about and make comments with teachers, exchange their different ideas to get more new information and strategies. With the linkage, they could read other students' blog, which is another way to learn.This results in new understanding and point of view which help improve learning. In addition, the blog is a social media for our collaborative learning. To the same target, students can discuss and interact with other group members on the blog, present opinions and views, which is useful for students to broaden trains of thought and make them accomplish the task better. At the same time, it is in favour of fostering and proving the student's abilities of problem-solving.

Cognitive Affordance

  The design feature of the blog is to help, support, facilitate and enable person to think and know about something. It is easy to apply a blog on the internet, for example, I apply for my blog on the www.blogger.com. After getting my account, I can design my blog with the “dashboard”, which is the place for decorating, setting, writing, editing, and so on. In “dashboard” menu, I could use option “user” to invite other people to update my blog, use “theme” to choose different theme and tune it, use “links” to link URL which I am interested in, use “widget” to choose various items showed on the blog (categories, links, meta, calendar, tag, etc.), use “posts” to write something and insert pictures and video, the option “comments” inform us to read comment on our blogs, and others. All of those designs give us instruction and support to know and use the blog conveniently. This can also be applied to students.

Motivational Affordance

 Some research suggests that the motivation can be divided into two parts: intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation. The intrinsic motivation "refers to the pleasure and inherent satisfaction derived from a specific activity”; the extrinsic motivation “emphasizes performing a behaviour because it is perceived to be instrumental in achieving valued outcomes that are distinct from the activity” (Venkatesh and Speier 1999, p. 2).The intrinsic motivation refers to the person’s motivation, which is the motivation to use a blog. After learning how to build a blog and having my blog, I find it is not difficult to use a blog. Except for publishing the homework, I always design my blog, when I study how to insert video and pictures, I am excited to add some video and pictures into my article, it is really interesting for me, and I have got the sense of achievement. So I believe I am really keen on the blog now. Otherwise, the extrinsic motivation refers to blog, which is a kind of social media. Firstly, the blog is a channel for knowledge, information, comments, and links. We could publish, search and organise knowledge and information, comment on other person’s standpoint, link to what our favourite and interesting website. Then, the blog is a tool to develop sharing and communication. When we share our knowledge and information on the blog others can comment, discuss, and exchange ideas. When we read feedback, it is helpful for our learning. Lastly, as the educational and entertainment resource, the blog has automatic time and date stamps, which avoid misinformation; in addition, the blog is portable, if we have a computer and Internet connection, we could use it at anywhere and anytime.

Below is an image which analyses the affordances of blogs

Blogging is a useful tool in elearning as teachers we need to be fluent in how it works so as to manipulate blogging to pedagogy and andragogy.


References

J. H. Jung, Christoph Schneider, Joseph Valacich. (2010) Enhancing the Motivational Affordance of Information Systems: The Effects of Real-Time Performance Feedback and Goal Setting in Group Collaboration Environments. Management Science, Vol. 56, No. 4, April 2010 .724-742

 Samuel K. W. Chu, Alvin C. M. Kwan, Peter Warning (2012). Blogging for Information Management, Learning, and Social Support during Internship. Educational Technology & Society, 15(2), 168–178

Venkatesh and Speier, 1999

Pedagogy and Andragogy

  Pedagogy is the science and art of education, specifically instructional theory. I did some research on the word and it simply means the art of teaching, to gain a deeper insight i went on to explore the origins on the word. The word pedagogy has its roots in Ancient Greece. Rich families in Ancient Greece would have many servants, one of whom would be specifically tasked to look after the children. Often these slaves would lead or escort the children to the place of education. The Greek word for child is pais (the stem of this is 'paid'), and leader is agogus - so a paid-agogus or pedagogue was literally a leader of children. Later, the word pedagogue became synonymous with the teaching of our young. Taken in this context, we would probably all agree that pedagogy is about children's education. And yet this confines us to a very limited understanding of what pedagogy is, or has the potential to become.

If we take the principle of leading or guiding someone to education then we open up a whole new world of possibilities for learning. It's a well known aphorism - teachers teach, but educators reach- and also a principle that is at the very heart of true pedagogy. True pedagogy is far more than someone instructing. Pedagogy is leading people to a place where they can learn for themselves. It is about creating environments and situations where people can draw out from within themselves, and hone the abilities they already have, to create their own knowledge, interpret the world in their own unique ways, and ultimately realise their full potential as human beings. It's certainly not about absolutes, but is more likely to be about uncertainties. Good pedagogy is about guiding students to learning. It's about posing challenges, asking the right questions, and presenting relevant problems for learners to explore, answer and solve. True pedagogy is where educators transport their students to a place where they will be amazed by the wonders of the world they live within. This definition by Steve Wheeler sums it all up.

The following link will take us to a youtube video by Dr Sonwalkar defining Pedagogy
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkoRR670fj8

Andragogy

Knowles' theory of andragogy is an attempt to develop a theory specifically for adult learning. Knowles emphasises that adults are self-directed and expect to take responsibility for decisions. Adult learning programs must accommodate this fundamental aspect. Andragogy makes the following assumptions about the design of learning: (1) Adults need to know why they need to learn something (2) Adults need to learn experientially, (3) Adults approach learning as problem-solving, and (4) Adults learn best when the topic is of immediate value. In practical terms, andragogy means that instruction for adults needs to focus more on the process and less on the content being taught. Strategies such as case studies, role playing, simulations, and self-evaluation are most useful. Instructors adopt a role of facilitator or resource rather than lecturer or grader.

Conclusion

 What i have learnt from the above is that pedagogy has three models which are, Transmission, Generative and Transformative. Pedagogy is centred on elementary education. If one has adult learners it is beneficial to take the andragogy approach since adults learn in a different way as compared to elementary scholars. I am going to pay attention to a few technologies that can help students to reach their full potential in learning. My next blogs will be exploring blogs, Wikis, Images, Audio and Video to facilitate learning.

References

(Wheeler, 2013)_(Knowles,M 1984)_(Knowles,M 1975)