The introduction to this legislation states
that "In America, no child should be left behind. Every child should be
educated to his or her full potential." Mandating standards and tests in
and of itself cannot erase the fact that children from homes where parents
have little education and minimal resources have many strikes against
them.
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Leaving Children Behind. - 0 views
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Evidence indicates that the "digital divide" gets larger each day. Children in homes with computers have huge advantages over those without such technology. While neurologists have extolled the virtues of high-protein diets for brain growth and development of young children, the economically disadvantaged continue to be plagued with high-carbohydrate diets, even in Head Start and public-school food service programs. Evidence indicates that more time on task helps to advance learning. The few efforts to increase the school year have mainly focused on poorly structured remedial summer programs doomed from their inception with the "punishment brand."
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Empirical research does not support the belief that all children can learn the same curriculum, in the same amount of time, and at the same level. The problem with such an unsubstantiated belief is that it may be used to deny differential financial support for those who come to school with environmental disadvantages. Not all children have high-quality nutrition, stimulating homes, and extensive learning opportunities prior to entering school.
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This concrete evidence should be enough to convince us that we should concentrate on improving the lives of children before they come to school. It is not enough simply to proclaim that "no child will be left behind" without enacting proper public policy to provide economic opportunity for families, healthcare for all children, and parenting education for young mothers.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Synchronous Learning - 0 views
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Teaching Standardized Courses: Advantages and Disadvantages | Faculty Focus - 0 views
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Yet there are those who feel “standardized” means “canned” — with no input from the teacher, and no opportunities for instructors to fully leverage their expertise, much less infuse their teaching style into the course.
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In fact, she says, teaching an online course with some standardized content can carry with it certain instructor benefits, including: Allows you to spend less time preparing your online course Lets you focus your energies on teaching the course Enables you to teach a wider range of courses Gives your course a professional look and feel, with multimedia components that appeal to today’s students
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Despite the many benefits of standardized courses, however there are some pitfalls that need to be addressed, including the potential for: A poor fit between course design and the instructor’s teaching style, in some cases there may be irreconcilable differences Lack of ownership and engagement Loss of interest after repeating the same content semester after semester Disagreement with aspects of course content
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“You’ll want to thoroughly familiarize yourself with the course you are going to teach, because if you don’t understand the content, approach, and principles of that course, you will find it hard to be an effective instructor,” Ko says. “Also find out what you can add or change in the course, whether that is your own commentary, additional resources, assignments, or discussion questions. Or it may be that your unique contribution will be in providing feedback and facilitating interaction in the class.”
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Despite the many benefits of standardized courses, however there are some pitfalls that need to be addressed, including the potential for: A poor fit between course design and the instructor's teaching style, in some cases there may be irreconcilable differences Lack of ownership and engagement Loss of interest after repeating the same content semester after semester Disagreement with aspects of course content
EBSCOhost: Online Discussions: A Survey of Advantages and Disadvantages Compared to Fa... - 0 views
CL1 - Teaching Stories: Disadvantages of Collaborative Learning - 0 views
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Differences of Asynchronous Learning and Synchronous Learning: Definition of Asynchrono... - 0 views
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You have decided that you have the money, time and materials to do this. What is next to know? How about the way the class will be held? Not all college online courses are the same at all.
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Hopefully, this blended learning environment takes the best from both asynchronous and asynchronous.
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The disadvantages: Again, procrastination can happen with the asynchronous parts (self-paced) then that negatively impacts the synchronous (real time, instructor facilitated) portions. It is easy to become mixed up of what to do when and where to do it.
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However, the way the class is structured as asynchronous, synchronous or a blended version is vital to know before you undertake an online course.
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Virtual Fieldtrips in the Elementary School Classroom - 0 views
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First, virtual fieldtrips can be used to explore a destination that the class will actually explore in the next few weeks.
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Second, a classroom of elementary school students can take a virtual fieldtrip to a location that would otherwise be inaccessible to them. The virtual fieldtrip is useful for students of all ages, but elementary aged children can benefit even more from virtual field trips.
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I believe field trips, both real and virtual, should encourage students to socialize during the field trip.
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submit questions to the makers of the virtual field trip, discuss the trip they took with their parents and siblings, and compare the information they learned from the field trip with information they read in magazines and books.
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Functional Assessment - 0 views
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http://www.uncp.edu/home/dente/online.htm - 0 views
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Such discussion places many learners at a disadvantage - those who are introverted, those for whom English is not their first language, those who don't like to interrupt, those who like to think more before they speak, and many others
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only 20% of the students do 80% of the discussing. Online, 65% of the students do 80% of the discussing.
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class discussions easily cross week boundaries. It is very common for a discussion which began in the first week of the course to resurface in the fourth week when new learnings shine a fresh perspective on it. This type of dialogue feels much more natural than the fragmented discussions I experienced in the classroom.
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My experience with teaching online is that it is a different thing. I encourage us all to experiment in both our face-to-face and virtual learning encounters and to share what seems to work and not work.
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Class Size - 0 views
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Smaller class size seems to result in higher achievement among students who are economically disadvantaged. Students with lower academic ability seem to do better in smaller classes than in larger ones. It may be that class size affects student attitudes more significantly than it affects achievement. A direct effect of large class size is to lower the morale and increase the stress of teachers. There is typically little to be gained from reductions in class size that do not bring class size below 30.
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The most positive effects of small classes on pupil learning occur in grades K-3 in reading and mathematics.
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Little, if any, increase in pupil achievement can be expected from reducing class size if teachers continue to use the same instructional methods and procedures in the smaller classes that they have used in larger classes (Robinson, p. 82).
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Teachers with small classes must not only be trained to be effective in such settings, but they must also be committed to try new skills and procedures.
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Robinson, Glen E. “Synthesis of Research on the Effects of Class Size.” EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP (April 1990): 80-90.
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The most recent comprehensive review of existing research was completed by Robinson (1990), and used a cluster analysis approach. Studies were “clustered” into categories considered important for class size decisions such as grade levels, subject areas, student characteristics, student achievement, student behavior, and teaching practices. The results of part of Robinson’s analysis appear below.
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Effective schools research has extended its research agenda by focusing on an expanded number of variables that are presumed to be related to student achievement. Schools are now perceived as a cultural entity where the complex interplay of multiple variables affect the lives of all who learn and teach in those institutions. As the metaphor for American schools has shifted from an assembly line to that of a caring, learning community, the class size research agenda has also shifted to include such variables as instructional method, teacher morale and stress, teacher work load, student behavior and attitudes, content areas, student characteristics, and grade level. Bennett (1987), in a review of more recent research, found broad agreement among researchers on the following general conclusions:
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Minds on Fire: Open Education, the Long Tail, and Learning 2.0 (EDUCAUSE Review) | EDUC... - 0 views
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30 million people today qualified to enter a university who have no place to go. During the next decade, this 30 million will grow to 100 million. To meet this staggering demand, a major university needs to be created each week.
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Open Educational Resources (OER) movement, which has provided free access to a wide range of courses and other educational materials to anyone who wants to use them.
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Web 2.0,
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e that our understanding of content is socially constructed through conversations about that content and through grounded interactions, especially with others, around problems or actions. The focus is not so much on what we are learning but on how we are learning.5
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Students in these groups can ask questions to clarify areas of uncertainty or confusion, can improve their grasp of the material by hearing the answers to questions from fellow students, and perhaps most powerfully, can take on the role of teacher to help other group members benefit from their understanding (one of the best ways to learn something is, after all, to teach it to others).
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The dichotomy between Cartesian and Social Learning is problematic, and this is one of the reasons why. If Social Learning still comes down to group learning from each other, it remains unclear what would be the "alternative" model of learning/teaching between group users, if not substance/pedagogy.
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But viewing learning as the process of joining a community of practice reverses this pattern and allows new students to engage in “learning to be” even as they are mastering the content of a field.
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open source movement
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Digital StudyHall (DSH)
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We now need a new approach to learning—one characterized by a demand-pull rather than the traditional supply-push mode of building up an inventory of knowledge in students’ heads. Demand-pull learning shifts the focus to enabling participation in flows of action, where the focus is both on “learning to be” through enculturation into a practice as well as on collateral learning.
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Not only is it a matter of "if" such campuses are a possibility, but "should" such campuses be a priority. If online and distance education can yield at least comparable results to traditional academic settings, then their ease of accessibility and lower overhead costs warrant further exploration as a viable possibility.
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“I think, therefore I am,” and from the assumption that knowledge is something that is transferred to the student via various pedagogical strategies, the social view of learning says, “We participate, therefore we are
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How does the open source idea fit with fields like medicine or chemistry where knowledge is less "socially constricted"?
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Open Source/Access research. One of the problems right now is that the NIH or fed government will pay for research, but the public then had to pay for the results of that research. We are paying for the same research twice. Open Access Journals (see Harvard Memo) hopes to change this.
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seeking the knowledge when it is needed in order to carry out a particular situated task.
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Knowledge that is obtained when "needed" then answers the famous question many high school students ask their teachers, "When will I ever use this?"
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I grew to see high school as a time for exposure to all disciplines in order to find what best suited one in preparation for college or the workplace. Now I am wondering if the multiplicity of disciplines will be "tailored" to fit the personal interests of the learner. Will differentiating for all eradicate the question Ben mentions?
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This form of education was also based on what could be called an industrial style of education. They education system became an extension of industry--students were passed along on the assembly line from one course to the next, year after year and came out a finished produce with similar skills and altitudes as their peers. Now education has and can become more narrow and niche based and less industrial.
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This involves acquiring the practices and the norms of established practitioners in that field or acculturating into a community of practice.
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In this open environment, both the content and the process by which it is created are equally visible, thereby enabling a new kind of critical reading—almost a new form of literacy—that invites the reader to join in the consideration of what information is reliable and/or important.
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And at the third level, any participant in Second Life could review the lectures and other course materials online at no cost. This experiment suggests one way that the social life of Internet-based virtual education can coexist with and extend traditional education.
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Through these continuing connections, the University of Michigan students can extend the discussions, debates, bull sessions, and study groups that naturally arise on campus to include their broader networks. Even though these extended connections were not developed to serve educational purposes, they amplify the impact that the university is having while also benefiting students on campus.14 If King is right, it makes sense for colleges and universities to consider how they can leverage these new connections through the variety of social software platforms that are being established for other reasons.
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he site’s developers note: “We fundamentally believe that the new electronic environment and its tools enable us to revive the humanistic spirit of communal and collaboratively ‘playful’ learning of which the Decameron itself is the utmost expression.”
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As more of learning becomes Internet-based, a similar pattern seems to be occurring. Whereas traditional schools offer a finite number of courses of study, the “catalog” of subjects that can be learned online is almost unlimited. There are already several thousand sets of course materials and modules online, and more are being added regularly. Furthermore, for any topic that a student is passionate about, there is likely to be an online niche community of practice of others who share that passion.
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that will support active, passion-based learning: Learning 2.0. This new form of learning begins with the knowledge and practices acquired in school but is equally suited for continuous, lifelong learning that extends beyond formal schooling.
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In addition to supporting lecture-style teaching, Terra Incognita includes the capability for small groups of students who want to work together to easily “break off” from the central classroom before rejoining the entire class. Instructors can “visit” or send messages to any of the breakout groups and can summon them to rejoin the larger group.
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Learning by teaching - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - 0 views
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Jean-Pol Martin developed the concept systematically for the teaching of French as a foreign language and gave it a theoretical background in numerous publications.[9] 1987 he founded a network of more than a thousand teachers that employed learning by teaching (the specifical name: LdL = "Lernen durch Lehren") in many different subjects, documented its successes and approaches and presented their findings in various teacher training sessions.
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. The new material is divided into small units and student groups of not more than three people are formed. Each group familiarizes itself with a strictly defined area of new material and gets the assignment to teach the whole group in this area
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Advantages Student work is more motivated, efficient, active and intensive due to lowered inhibitions and an increased sense of purpose By eliminating the class division of authoritative teacher and passive audience, an emotive solidarity is obtained. Students may perform many routine tasks, otherwise unnecessarily carried out by the instructor Next to subject-related knowledge students gain important key qualifications like teamwork planning abilities reliability presentation and moderation skills self-confidence Disadvantages The introduction of the method requires a lot of time. Students and teachers have to work more than usual. There is a danger of simple duplication, repetition or monotony if the teacher does not provide periodic didactic impetus.
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Sudbury schools, since 1968, do not segregate students by age, so that students of any age are free to interact with students in other age groups. One effect of this age mixing is that a great deal of the teaching in the school is done by students.[18] Here are some statements about Learning by teaching in the Sudbury Schools:[19] "Kids love to learn from other kids. First of all, it's often easier. The child teacher is closer than the adult to the students' difficulties, having gone through them somewhat more recently. The explanations are usually simpler, better. There's less pressure, less judgment. And there's a huge incentive to learn fast and well, to catch up with the mentor. Kids also love to teach. It gives them a sense of value, of accomplishment. More important, it helps them get a better handle on the material as they teach; they have to sort it out, get it straight. So they struggle with the material until it's crystal clear in their own heads, until it's clear enough for their pupils to understand
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This cooperative atmosphere mimics potential workplace scenerios that students would expect to find in there careers after college
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Jean-Pol Martin (1989): Kontaktnetz: ein Fortbildungskonzept, in: Eberhard Kleinschmidt,E.(Hrsg.), Fremdsprachenunterricht zwischen Fremdsprachenpolitik und Praxis: Festschrift für Herbert Christ zum 60. Geburtstag, Tübingen. 389-400, (PDF 62 KB)
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Relational Context of Teaching - 3 views
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He continues that we can face the future with confidence if we know how to teach ourselves, read between the subjective lines of media, process the vast amount of information that will be available, work collaboratively, and reaching for resources that will expand our capacities – for example a resource like this course!!
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I believe that anyone can conquer fear by doing the things he fears to do, provided he keeps doing them until he gets a record of successful experience behind him.
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However, to be part of the social network and be actively involve citizens, each must become life-long learners.
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... and like it or not life is now technology mediated. No matter who you end up being "when you grow up" if you are not comfortable with technology, can't assess/evaluate information, can't find information when you need it, you will be at a disadvantage.
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I agree. I am concern for the students who are not exposed to this technology. In our district, the computer teacher was laid off, yet we kept all the coaches/sports. Adults, who are not on board with the technological needs of their students, are the ones making these decisions.
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Eleanor Roosevelt
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June 21st,
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What I would like is to have the option of posting and assessing it as NG (no grade)
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Finally, I carefully considers there are no place where Alex might say “can you tell me more”
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Since our blogs are shared work-spaces, we are suppose to engage in collaborative reflective discourses, creating a shared understanding, leading to collaborative knowledge
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Dewey states: “I assume that amid all uncertainties there is one permanent frame of reference: namely the organic connection between education and personal experience. (Dewey 1939:25).
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Dewey was a great believer in the connection between the educational system and the social community. "It was forgotten that to become integral parts of the child's conduct and chracter they must be assimilated; not as mere items of information, but as organic parts of his present needs and aims -- which in turn are social" (Dewey). In his book, The School and Society, he talks about the deep connection between home and school, between home and work, and the importance of the school as the connector.
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pay attention
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I had a doctor describe ADD very aptly to me. He said think about your child's surroundings as radio waves. Your child is picking up every radio wave that is out there and he does not have the ability to ignore any of it. When my son was 11 he described his inability to understand things in school like this: it's like I'm looking through a window that is foggy. I can see, but it's not clear enough to make sense.
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This was a good explanation of ADD. Do you know that there is a college that is set up for ADD students? It is called Landmark College and it is a remarkable place!
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then I go on an adventure and troll through the internet and my books to satisfy my desire to learn. I continue, immerse in my hyper-focus state of mind, until I feel that I have a deep understanding of whatever I am exploring.
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This is a good thing; it's what online learning is all about. I realize it's probably frustrating to you because you focus so intensely on what you're doing, but I definitely see your presence in this course, so I wouldn't worry that you're not interacting enough. Just for the record, 12 posts is difficult for me as well when you consider how much research goes into each one.
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I will investigate and use group Wikis
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detailed rubric
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I need to create a rubric for my "Book Club" forum. Any suggestions for where to start? Do I reinvent the wheel, or are there sites that have pre-fabricated rubrics that can be tweaked to fit my needs?
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Hi Donna, Whenever youi can do not reinvent the wheel. I am going to post either today or tomorrow a post on building a rubric. First I need to see what Alex wants us to do
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plan on using Alex’s rubric for my instructional design,
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Hey diane, sometimes I never know when I am ready to write. I thought I had the pattern down. Read the material, take notes, reflect and research on what interests or inspres me, but this module I was not ready to blog and i started writing something, and some crazy stuff just came out. It might have been the two best blog posts of the semester.
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While i agree with you I think I would not push myself sometimes if I wasnt forced. I might have chosen to slack instead of worked when I was tired or busy with life. Do you think you can use different models of teaching with different students in the same class?
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I agree with Ian...it reminds me of doing sports in high school. If my coach didn't push us harder and harder we wouldn't ever have been successful! Alex is our coach and we can either choose to step up to the plate and work our butts off or we can sit on the bench and let the game, or in this case the learning, pass us by!
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I am saddened and concern for the positivist, behaviorist methods she employs and models. I
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poor grade.
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This is the second time you've brought up this issue. The way I see, Alex is the instructor, and she has designed a course with rubrics. I really don't see that the rubrics are that difficult to understand. I understand you wanting to get an "A" but if you want the "A" you have to work hard for it. If your life circumstances prevent you from doing what she considers the fair amount of work, that's not her problem. I don't feel an instructor should change the syllabus or rubrics for every student that complains about the work load, unless the instructor has received numerous complaints. I think that perhaps you have a lot on your plate right now, atleast that's the feeling I get from reading some of your posts. I can understand that, I've been through a lot myself this semester. However, it's unfair to expect Alex to change the point system just for you. May I suggest something: Clearly you are a hard working student, but circumstances are obviously preventing you from putting in the amount of work needed to earn an "A." Just accept that and work toward a "B" which is a perfectly acceptable grade. Take the pressure off of yourself. It's just a grade. A year or two from now it won't matter. All that will matter is that you learned about online teaching and came away with a robust course that you can teach. I think that's a good deal.
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Donna My comment is a pedagogical one and not an attack on Alex. The point I may not be making clearly, why the number 12? I am not the only student who has stated that a post takes several hours. Does Alex require this? No. Why I take this time is because of the quality I expect to bring to the discussion forum. I was not posting prior knowlege, but new understandings. Learning takes time and the #12 does not seem to recognize this time. I again do not see "choice" in this rubric. I agree the knowlege is the goal, and I have no problem with what I have learned and will continue to learn. However, with the exception of the last grading I have not gotten a "B" but failed every discussion forum except the last. Yes I was teaching a summer online course. I also have home responisblilites. These were stresses, but not obstacles. According to the expectations we were expected to do ~ 45 hours in class work and 100+ hours building our course. I don't know about you but the class work I have done over 150 hours just in class work. Finally, why do I bring this argument up for a second time. It is not for Alex to change; but for you all in this class to not simply copy and use Alex's rubric in your own courses. That is why I speak out.
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Again if I had scrolled down I would have seen that 12 posts were not required.
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In the future I will build my course off line,
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when a student finally understands that their discussions need to encompass teaching, cognitive engagement, and social presence, then the discussion forum truly becomes a awesome learning tool!!!!!!
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Alex, my Shifu, has diligently pushed me down the road of online pedagogy. There were many times when I landed hard and bounced a few times. However, just like the panda, I too will become capable in my bumbling ways. I too realize there is no secret ingredients in 21st century teaching….it still is best practices in education with technology embedded in it.
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I have changed in many ways as a result of this class. I am now and will continue to be a blogger, and use blogs as one way to facilitate learning for my students. I understand the Community of inquiry approach, and have now created a rubric for my discussion forums that reflect the elements of teacher, cognitive, and social presence. I was fortunate to be teaching online as I took this class, and I observed my discussion forums going from conversations to dialogue that exhibit depth of learning. I have observed the pedagogy of my professor and will incorporate similar ways of interacting with my students, using the tools that web 2.0 affords me. I have moved from having little enthusiasm for online learning to embracing it as an essential medium for learning.
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I knew I needed this course to become the better online teacher, what I didn’t know was the transformative change that I would experience this summer.
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ulnerability, especially with the knowledge that their efforts will be evaluated by their instructor.