Douglas W. Conrad - Cycle 4 Journal
Feb. 27, 2013
Today I begin the planning for cycle 4 of my action research project by reflecting on what happened in cycle 3. The mobile media tools proved to be a good fit for all three sections of students and some good data was collected along with evaluations and reflections. Now I turn to the last cycle of this research project. I am hoping to tie this all together to discover if the positive impact that these tools had on student learning outside of the classroom can be a benefit to the more structured learning environment of the classroom. In the classroom, cell phones and wifii connected tablets are most often a distraction unless they are part of a specific learning plan. Outside of the classroom, these tools integrate organically with our lives. As with anything, individuals must seek a balance of use but we have become culturally adapted to this in mo
st cases. We all know when to silence our phones and refrain from talking with our hands and shouting on a bus or train. How can I tweak what already worked in the last cycle to discover if these tools, when used outside the classroom, can in fact be a benefit to the learning inside the classroom. I will look into Augmented reality as one way of connecting the two learning spaces. I meet with the two professors in my Twitter part of the research on Friday to get their input and then we are off to cycle 4. Surprising to me is how much this process has changed me. All of the reflection and writing, writing, writing has helped me understand how I learn best and hopefully be able to assist teachers in planning their technology use.
3-1-13
I met with the participants in this action research this week and reflected with them about the action we took in cycle 3. Now we are all set to go with cycle 4. We will add a photo element to the knowledge building activities that the students engage in. It is my hope that the inclusion of images taken from the diverse situations the students find themselves in will help bring a part of that place back into the formal learning environment of the classroom. Some guidance was given to the students to use the addition of photos in a way that compliments the academic collaboration they are already engaged in. The two professors are compiling their own reflections and are working on a presentation for a national convention about this experience
March 4 - 10
For this cycle, the guidance given students with regard to integrating photos was in part to "keep it clean" and on topic but more importantly to use the photo as an extension of the idea they are sharing to assist in the knowledge they are building. One great thing that a photo accomplishes is to be easily impactful on our experience of understanding. I can tell you about the beautiful sunset and even with my most descriptive words, it is hard to convey the depth of color with just words as well as this picture.
Photos also have the potential of conveying a sense of place. If you have been to a beach like this or seen a sunset like this, it will be easy for you imagine yourself there. I feel like the mobility of the smartphone and the apps available for communication combined with a camera and relatively fast network connections make this the right time and tool to be a useful education tool. These devices are still disruptive and carry with them a potential for distraction if not used strategically. While I know that this research will not answer more questions than it raise, it feels like this is a small step toward discovering how mobile media technologies can have a positive impact on students learning in and out of the classroom. It may be a big leap to go from the cycle 3 reflections that these tools have a positive impact to claiming that they can be successfully utilized by schools to enhance knowledge building in the formal learning environment of the classroom. This change in how we learn and communicate may take more years and more studies to discern the value from these devices for education. but I feel that this action research project has highlighted the possibilities that these tools embody.
For this cycle, the guidance given students with regard to integrating photos was in part to "keep it clean" and on topic but more importantly to use the photo as an extension of the idea they are sharing to assist in the knowledge they are building. One great thing that a photo accomplishes is to be easily impactful on our experience of understanding. I can tell you about the beautiful sunset and even with my most descriptive words, it is hard to convey the depth of color with just words as well as this picture.
Photos also have the potential of conveying a sense of place. If you have been to a beach like this or seen a sunset like this, it will be easy for you imagine yourself there. I feel like the mobility of the smartphone and the apps available for communication combined with a camera and relatively fast network connections make this the right time and tool to be a useful education tool. These devices are still disruptive and carry with them a potential for distraction if not used strategically. While I know that this research will not answer more questions than it raise, it feels like this is a small step toward discovering how mobile media technologies can have a positive impact on students learning in and out of the classroom. It may be a big leap to go from the cycle 3 reflections that these tools have a positive impact to claiming that they can be successfully utilized by schools to enhance knowledge building in the formal learning environment of the classroom. This change in how we learn and communicate may take more years and more studies to discern the value from these devices for education. but I feel that this action research project has highlighted the possibilities that these tools embody.
March 15, 2013
The innate social nature of mobile media tools seems to be the "cause" of the distraction these devices are most often seen to be in the classroom. Rather than attempting to change this or keep them out of the formal learning environment, a strategic plan for their use can guide students and help them develop good digital citizenship.
The innate social nature of mobile media tools seems to be the "cause" of the distraction these devices are most often seen to be in the classroom. Rather than attempting to change this or keep them out of the formal learning environment, a strategic plan for their use can guide students and help them develop good digital citizenship.
March 20, 2013
Lev Vygotsky coined the term Zones of Proximal Development at the beginning of the 20th century to describe the distance between a student’s ability to perform a task under adult guidance and/or with peer collaboration and the student’s ability solving the problem independently. Twitter and Glassboard in this action research project are enabling students' ZPD to be freed from the constraints of time or physical place. The students are working independently while having the benefit of the guidance of and collaboration with their peers.
Lev Vygotsky coined the term Zones of Proximal Development at the beginning of the 20th century to describe the distance between a student’s ability to perform a task under adult guidance and/or with peer collaboration and the student’s ability solving the problem independently. Twitter and Glassboard in this action research project are enabling students' ZPD to be freed from the constraints of time or physical place. The students are working independently while having the benefit of the guidance of and collaboration with their peers.
March 23, 2013
As cycle four winds down, I am preparing to wrap up this research. I will write up the poll questions this week and engage the professors in some discussion about how this has all gone. It is encouraging to see that the mobile media tech tool has been a good fit for their needs along with providing good data for this research. I am hoping that I will find in the data and reflections of this cycle and for the whole project that mobile media technologies are not only having a positive impact on learning in informal spaces but have the potential to be part of the solution to bridge our formal and informal learning environments. The increasing mobility of knowledge building and the personal nature of the devices we use point to the possibilities for education to better fit learning to individuals environmental context instead of being some separate space or environment we go to learn.