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#TT1921 - I got a better insight into synchronous interaction though this article. I think it is worth reading. Synchronous learning refers to a learning event in which a group of students are engaging in learning at the same time. Before learning, technology allowed for synchronous learning environments, most online education took place through asynchronous learning methods. Since synchronous tools that can be used for education have become available, many people are turning to them as a way to help decrease the challenges associated with distance that occurs in online education.

February 2009 | Volume 66 | Number 5 How Teachers Learn Pages 34-38 Learning with Blogs and Wikis Bill Ferriter Technology has made it easy for educators to embrace continual professional development. Few ideas about teachers' professional growth resonate with me more than those of Richard Elmore, professor of educational leadership at Harvard, who has gone as far as to argue that school structures make learning for adults unlikely at best and nothing short of impossible at worst. In a 2002 report for the Albert Shanker Institute, Elmore wrote, As expectations for increased student performance mount and the measurement and publication of evidence about performance becomes part of the public discourse about schools, there are few portals through which new knowledge about teaching and learning can enter schools; few structures or processes in which teachers and administrators can assimilate, adapt, and polish new ideas and practices; and few sources of assistance for those who are struggling to understand the connection between the academic performance of their students and the practices in which they engage. So the brutal irony of our present circumstance is that schools are hostile and inhospitable places for learning. They are hostile to the learning of adults and, because of this, they are necessarily hostile to the learning of students. (pp. 4-5)

Technology has made it easy for educators to embrace continual professional development. Few ideas about teachers' professional growth resonate with me more than those of Richard Elmore, professor of educational leadership at Harvard, who has gone as far as to argue that school structures make learning for adults unlikely at best and nothing short of impossible at worst.

Founded in 1943, ASCD (formerly the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development) is an educational leadership organization dedicated to advancing best practices and policies for the success of each learner. Our 175,000 members in 119 countries are professional educators from all levels and subject areas--superintendents, supervisors, principals, teachers, professors of education, and school board members.

Vesely, P., Bloom, L., & Sherlock, J. (2007). Key elements of building online community: Comparing faculty and student perceptions. MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 3(3), 234-246. Vesely, Bloom, and Sherlock (2007) document that essential to the learning process is the student/student and student/teacher interaction, and building this community of learners is more challenging in online. Students in blended courses felt interaction may be better than in traditional courses. Students who feel silenced in onsite class discussions are more apt to contribute online. Seeking help can be a determining factor in successful learning. In the online communities, help is available virtually around the clock from the instructors and fellow classmates. Furthermore, through their experiences in the blended course, students would better understand the significance of managing their time, cultivating their study environment, regulating their effort, seeking appropriate support, and learning from classmates. In my experience, students reported that their online interaction with classmates had greatly assisted in their comprehension of course materials. Central to how they felt about blended learning was the quality and quantity of student and faculty interaction. In blended courses, students are often required to engage actively by reading and responding to discussion forum postings that become a permanent record of their participation and learning, rather than passively attending classes. Perceptions of interaction from faculty are also positive for blended courses. Faculty renovate their teaching methods by placing onsite lectures online and adding supplementary activities to aid student learning. Blended teaching and learning transforms education from "a command and control structure to a connect and collaborate environment" (Moskal, Dziuban, Upchurch, Hartman, & Truman, 2006) which is more student-centered than faculty-controlled. For faculty, the quality

College students who frequently text message during class have difficulty staying attentive to classroom lectures and consequently risk having poor learning outcomes, new research shows. Because it is difficult to demonstrate that texting alone can have a direct impact on students' cognitive learning, researchers used path model analysis to describe the relationships between texting, as a "mediator" or intervening variable, and cognitive learning.

tools and constructivism

Love that the "practical descriptions of constructivist learning" listed in the article "[C]onstructivist learning should engage students in meaningful learning and ... the critical features are that the learning should be ... * Active and manipulative, engaging students in interactions and explorations with learning materials and provid[ing] opportunities for them to observe the results of their manipulations * Constructive and reflective, enabling students to integrate new ideas with prior knowledge to make meaning and enable learning through reflection * Intentional, providing opportunities for students to articulate their learning goals and monitor their progress in achieving them * Authentic, challenging and real-world (or simulated), facilitating better understanding and transfer of learning to new situations * Cooperative, collaborative, and conversational, providing students with opportunities to interact with each other to clarify and share ideas, to seek assistance, to negotiate problems, and discuss solutions."

There seems to be a widespread belief that every college or university is already deeply enmeshed in online learning. The reality is that many schools are still trying to figure out their online learning strategy. If you are thinking about investing in a new online learning program then you will have no shortage of advice.

A Dictionary For 21st Century Teachers: An ongoing index of emerging learning models, theories, and technology for progressive teaching.

A Dictionary For 21st Century Teachers: An ongoing index of emerging learning models, theories, and technology for progressive teaching.

Synchronous or Asynchronous eLearning? Check the Benefits of Synchronous and Asynchronous e-Learning to choose the best learning solution for your learners.

In an online classroom environment many of the learning activities and expectations are similar to those found in a traditional classroom. These learning environments offer meaningful interactions in a face-to-face setting and are most commonly referred to as synchronous learning activities (Hrastinski, 2008; Harris et al., 2009; Simonson et al., 2012).

E-Learning Queen focuses on distance training and education, from instructional design to e-learning and mobile solutions, and pays attention to psychological, social, and cultural factors. The edublog emphasizes real-world e-learning issues and appropriate uses of emerging technologies. Who is the Queen? You are, dear reader. Susan Smith Nash is the Queen's assistant.

Web 2.0 and Emerging Learning Technologies/Web 2.0 Learning Styles describes how technology Web 2.0 tools are used to enhance students learning. Furthermore, Howard Gardner's learning styles are discusses as well and his theory of Multiple Intelligence. Finally, the main characteristics of the Web 2.0 learners are summarized. In addition to theories of multiple intelligences and learning styles there are issues related to learner personalities. The widely accepted traditional model of education too often fails to consider all these areas. Some teachers, however, address the kind of senses (auditory, visual) the learner uses, the learner's aptitude (Theory of Multiple Intelligences), and the personality type. Alicja Haptas #TT1721

This looks really interesting, Alicja. I hope to read it more closely over the weekend.

I hope you will enjoy it!

I hear complaints about the poor quality of student writing today as often as I read stories about the Internet causing the end of higher education as we know it (i.e., frequently). When those complaints come in the form of actual conversations with peers, instead of in print, I feel myself immediately put on the defensive.

Thanks for this post Heather. I liked that the instructor recognized that despite some challenges with using a new technique to promote his students' writing skills the energy that was expressed by his students far outweighed the "mess" that he dealt with the first time trying something new.

The lack of learning transfer is a common mantra in higher education. It's a good article for reflection. Although I've been a proponent of service learning, at the same time, I wasn't sure how students could or if they would transfer their experiences to the academic component. Now, I need to rethink my position on service learning and its impact on connected learning

For Blackboard Users--Tutorials from UIS Center for Online Learning, Research and Service --Jim G

An inspirational account of the evolution of learning and a glimpse into the future of learning. Raymond Lawson

This article is about corporate learning but is applicable to learning in general. The author is making the case that "we are clearly on the edge of a mobile learning revolution".

Abstract In something of a landmark for education Knowles (1970) suggested an important change in the way in which educational experiences for adults should be designed. The approach, known as andragogy, contrasts quite sharply with pedagogy which is the teaching of children. This paper suggests there is benefit in moving from andragogy towards truly self-determined learning. The concept of truly self-determined learning, called heutagogy, builds on humanistic theory and approaches to learning described in the 1950s. It is suggested that heutagogy is appropriate to the needs of learners in the twenty-first century, particularly in the development of individual capability. A number of implications of heutagogy for higher education and vocational education are discussed. top Heutagogy

Abstract: As more and more instructors enter the world of online teaching and learning, a body of knowledge is emerging around the challenge of facilitating online interaction and fostering online collaboration. This paper draws from the literature on asynchronous learning and the authors' own experiences with online discussion and collaborative online projects. We identify a variety of techniques for focusing student dialogue, fostering an online learning community, and promoting successful collaboration. Instructors who are teaching wholly online courses or simply integrating online components into face-to-face classes will benefit from the observations and discussion.

Many readers use synchronous e-Learning tools to deliver instruction live and online. However, there are many other uses for these tools in education and in corporate settings. This article relates the success of one particular tool, and offers a number of best practices that you will be able to put to work in creating and delivering effective, competitive e-Learning.

I need to check these out. I am not familiar with all of them.

Most of us are working at full capacity, and keeping up with technology can feel like one more chore on the to-do list. Still, learning your way around a few of the best Web tools is worth your time. Innovative teachers are frequently using intuitive programs and websites that are easy to learn. #TT1721

Even just in this assignment, I feel like I am getting bombarded with information from Tumblr, Twitter, Diigo in addition to what we get in e mails, texts, Facebook and Nexflix, etc. Whew. So much reading- so little time and energy.

Addresses the popular conception of learning styles and the lack of empirical support for teaching to students' styles. Touches on the role of metacognition in learning. The references constitute a short list of key readings on the topic.

Melissa, I will definitely check this article out! Learning styles is my favorite concept!

This paper explains very clearly the meaning of multiliteracies and multimodality. In education this pedagogy brought new teaching and learning methods which are different from traditional approaches that focused on monomodal tools for learning. Multiliteracy gives flexibility in teaching and learning. Students learn in different ways, some of them prefer linguistic expression while others are more open to multimodal forms.