Group items tagged

http://www.thersa.org/events/rsaanimate/animate/rsa-animate-drive This RSA animate featuring Daniel Pink focuses on motivation. Although not Pink's thesis, to me it provides the explanation for why bonus pay to teachers (or students) for student achievement, particularly on tests is wrong-headed and damaging to educators and schools as professional environments in the long run. You can't pay people to care but you can organize school environments in which meaningful learning can be achieved. Teachers generally want to succeed and simply need a well-managed opportunity.

Thanks Uche for sharing this talk. I found Dan's insights interesting especially when he said that management is a technology that cannot lead to engagement. It struck me that it was a delicate balance between managing from the outside and developing self-management from inside.

Very disturbing findings. Here's a quick excerpt: "There is still debate over whether scientific collaboration leads to better results. Jonathon Cummings, an associate professor of management at Duke University, and his colleagues got a grant from the National Science Foundation to look at 491 research collaborations funded by the foundation. They discovered something unsettling: Collaborations of more universities fared worse than projects primarily executed at a single university. More collaborators meant fewer patent applications, fewer published papers, and less chance of the group seeking additional funding to keep projects going." "Dr. Cummings says it appears that the amount of coordination required to make progress on research-everything from setting up meetings to integrating knowledge among group members-outweighed the potential benefits of collaboration. In the wake of the study, he says, the science foundation now requires grant applicants for some programs to detail how they expect to manage the collaboration."

Interesting promises here. My current school uses Podium which is not ugly but totally useless if you want a tool for classroom teaching.

math learning management influenced by game design. 

Here's another perspective on engagement: how to make games more addictive (or compulsive?) by creating "smarter game loops" with fewer exit points. The example discussed is "Game Dev Story," a management simulation for a game development studio.

An article for those of us interested in technology in higher education. According to the article, "The question is, what should leaders of today's colleges and universities know about technology in order to manage the inevitable change that disruptive technology will bring?"

"Location data from mobile phones has indicated that 93 per cent of human movement is predictable... the researchers, from Boston, USA and China, believe that it could be useful for mobile networks' data load management, city planning and anticipating the spread of viruses."

This game does a great job of incorporating the social aspect of gaming. In addition, Sokikom uses classroom management techniques to reward postive behavior through "class cash." It would be interesting to look at what behaviors are actually transferred into the classroom.

One of the most powerful classroom management strategies available to teachers is the provision of learning activities which actively engage students during the lesson. When students arrive at the lesson in a motivated state, eager to take part -- and then apply themselves to a given task - there is far less likelihood that their behaviour will become a problem. Like most teachers, you have probably tried a wide range of student engagement and motivation strategies to deal with disruptive students but if you are looking for a reliable SYSTEM which has been proven to raise motivation and engagement levels among the most uninterested, dispassionate learners, you'll love this video series. In this first video, Rob Plevin from Behaviour Needs Ltd explains two reasons WHY it is important to engage your students during lessons. There are hidden benefits to ensuring your students are motivated and engaged during learning activities -- as the video shows.

Teacher David Suarez has developed a three-tiered approach to teaching math in which student choose how much of a challenge they want in class. Especially interesting because it's one of the first time I've seen a classroom teacher discussing how they support and manage a differentiated classroom.

I came upon this resource last December and I agree that this is a well documented effort for how to differentiate and create commitment. I have encouraged as many teachers as possible to try it out since I don't have a class right now to practice with it. It has so many elements from our readings and the video of his classes is an excellent way to help teachers understand what differentiation looks like in practice. Thanks for sharing.

Seems like a lot of experimentation in this implementation. Unusual.

Check out this edtech start-up: I spoke to the founder today, and their philosophy sounds like it's right out of T-545. It's all about promoting intrinsic motivation for positive classroom behaviors and increasing kids' engagement through technology and immediate feedback.

David Rose featured this in a 560 lecture and I spoke a little about how I use it at homeschool. I don't use the negative behavior options and D. Rose said Skinner did not think negative reinforcement was useful. I use it as a way of facilitating conversation around positive actions that promote a pleasant social environment.

Interesting article, some good points about managing class and using tech well, some curious points about eliminating jobs-

Here are some interesting ideas on all fronts regarding motivation.

Managing engagement in the classroom;

I think vocational schools give students the means for making time spent in school relevant and useful to them. They pursue an interest and see it connected to a relevant future. In the current age where interdisciplinary work is the norm, jobs are mutable, and careers are evolutionary, vocational education is no longer preparing students for a job or career; just their first one.

I completely agree! I have a good friend who dropped out of high school, earned his GED the same week, and went on to a technical vocational school to study IT/systems management. Turned out that once he got to the vocational school, he became the top student in most of his classes, and well-known for staying after class to engage instructors in intellectual debate. I find it disappointing that our society tends to devalue vocational schools; it seems to me that we should instead be focusing on what fits each student best.

The expansion of virtual education puts companies that provide e-learning services under the microscope As researchers, politicians, and the general public have begun to question the results of fully online virtual schooling, private providers-particularly for-profit companies-that supply curriculum, content, and sometimes instruction and school management for online education are facing the most scrutiny.

San Jose, CA (PRWEB) March 26, 2012 Henley-Putnam University's next free webinar takes an in-depth look at best practices for completing online courses. Key fundamentals of learning, including communication, self- motivation, time management, and prioritization will be discussed in depth (https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/930185490).