October 31, 2007 at 5:23 pm
· Filed under adult learning, individualized instruction, interactions, motivation
The old style of computer-based training was content-centric, taking into consideration only the information-based definition of content (below), and giving less attention to all the resources that could be used in order to transform the learning process into a meaningful, enjoyable and interesting experience.
| What is content? |
Definition |
| Information-based |
Content is all the information, such as facts, concepts, and procedures to be learned. |
| Objectives-based |
Content is a collection of learning objectives specifying behavioral outcomes. |
| Media-based |
Content is all text, graphics, videos and other media components of an instruction application. |
| Experience-based |
Content is the sum of all instructional components in a learning application |
| |
Source: Michael Allen’s Guide to E-learning |
With all the changes from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 and all the buzz about collaboration, participation and social networking, the Educational sphere could not remain deaf. When even new businesses and marketing channels were able to create educational materials more engaging and effective than traditional educational models, educators needed to pay attention.
However, the whole theory of engaging learners, putting them at the center of the learning process is not recent, many educationalists have been discussing student-centered pedagogical models over the past 50 years. At times it seems as if marketers and designers have been paying more attention to educational theories than educators.
E-learning had to adapt. Learner-centric programs create opportunities to intrigue learners stimulating them to unfold the content, promoting a dynamic interaction between task, instructor and learner, praising collaboration instead of competition, transforming learning in an iterative process.
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October 31, 2007 at 4:12 pm
· Filed under adult learning, individualized instruction, interactions, motivation
Adults want to know the value of what they are learning, how the new knowledge relates to their life, and how it will help them to develop important abilities. They want to be challenged with surprising information and effort-saving insights. They do not have time to waste studying things that they already know or having to do things without understanding why.
Good learning experiences pay attention to the learner’s background and cause him to think and seek for new solutions. It is not a matter of presenting the content from simple to complex concepts, it is to hear our learner and let him unfold the content as he needs, creating ways to help him abstract, synthesize and integrate the new information, giving opportunities to practice for later performance, promoting self-awareness of competencies and needs.
| Sequencing models |
Definition |
| Content-centric |
- Simple to complex
- Chronological
- Hierarchical
|
| Learner-centric |
- Known to unknown – determine the learner’s initial competencies and then build on them.
- Misconceptions to latest techniques – chunk content into a map of meaningful, performance-related events; advance in steps which presents challenges and sense of progress.
- Goal decomposition – allow learners to review at almost anytime; allow learners to attempt almost any task at their request since the results identify undeveloped skills that learner can pursue.
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Source: Michael Allen’s Guide to E-learning |
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October 30, 2007 at 3:27 pm
· Filed under individualized instruction, learning styles, questions
How is it possible to create individualized instruction using different kind of learning styles, when there is a determined curriculum and schedule? This issue caught my interest because it is one of the biggest challenges that I see with online courses. Pretests are only used to evaluate students’ learning in comparison with the post-test and are not used to present students with the opportunity either to tell, or share, or choose a different teaching approach.
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