Edited by Margaret Elizabeth Richardson, Wednesday, 21 Apr 2021, 13:30
"Learning is a messy journey. We are all
different, and we skip, slip and jump our way towards becoming knowers...
towards creating our own sense of meaning in any discipline. "
Have
MOOCS, of the kind presented by Coursera and Future Learn, really changed Distance
Learning?
How similar
DS106 is to the project based learning which takes place in a middle
school classroom which works with the IB MYP curriculum framework.
Have MOOCs changed Distance
Learning?
Distance learning in 1989
When I began my OU
journey in 1989 ( T102: Living with Technology) I eagerly awaited the arrival of the course
materials through the post. I was given advice on 'Active Reading Strategies' ,
a pacing guide and instructions to post CMAs (Computer Marked Assessment) and
TMAs (Tutor Marked assessments) by given deadlines. (Yes I did say the CMA was
posted! The paper copy was fed through a machine for marking and there were rules about not using blue ink). There was an exam at
the end for which I needed to attend a testing centre.
For collaboration, I was invited to join the tutor group discussion in my nearest town and In common with many OU courses at that time
there was a summer school, but I did not attend as I had two small children
under 2 yrs old.
What do the Coursera and Future Learn style MOOCs offer?
In order to compare the offerings I reviewed the
Coursera MOOC: "Introduction to
Mathematical Thinking" provided by Stanford. I have also taken various courses from Future
Learn on research skills together with some of the STEM offerings for CPD.
I notice in both MOOC formats, there is information provided,
documents to read, and video or audio to
watch and listen to. In Coursera these
are followed up with quizzes which have a mark assigned. In Future Learn the
quizzes do not have an allocated mark and each question may be attempted as
many times as desired. Each Future Learn activity includes an invitation to
contribute to a discussion forum, although I could only see patchy evidence of
interaction or facilitation - just posting.
They each have their own character, but in essence I see them both
as distance learning using an online distribution mechanism. Both taking the
same behaviourist, cognitive approach: knowledge gained through acquisition of
information and testing.
The Stanford course explicitly states it follows
the pattern of "Lecture -> Assignment -> Tutorial -> Problem Set
-> Tutorial" (The Tutorials are explanatory videos, not
interactive). Students are repeatedly advised to find or form a study group to
support understanding.
The goal
is clearly knowledge acquisition and they have both opened up the opportunity for
knowledge acquisition for many who could not afford or have access this
knowledge. The convenience of access brought about by technology is certainly
an improvement over books arriving in the post!... and yet I feel something is
missing.....
Learning IS a messy journey.
DS106 is
a MOOC which encourages mess, mistakes, sharing and reflection and learning
together as community. Cormier puts
forward the idea that the "...community of learners is the
curriculum" where learners agree the aims and objective for their own learning. In the DS106 style MOOC the
tutor becomes a member of the community as coach, guide and negotiator.
It seems
to me there is also a hidden element in DS106
- that of the basic knowledge and skills needed in order to be able to make valuable
contributions to advance understanding in the learning community.
Novice learners need exposure to basic concepts within the structure of
the course - rather like the apprenticeship model of learning. For a successful courses this needs expert
facilitation, either by tutor or experts within the community. This needs to be a safe space where each member has their own
expertise to share and is valued. Courses like DS106 with its messy structure can allow for this
to take place.
The
medium for DS106 is the technology and without it DS106 (Digital Story
Telling) would not be possible. Online sharing is at the core DS106 and those who participate are expecting
online interaction. This contrasts
significantly with the MOOCS of Coursera and Future Learn which could be taking
in isolation as if using a digital course book.
So what is the connection with the MYP classroom?
It is
widely recognised that when children are small they learn together through
play. As they grow older it is important
to capture this sense of wonder and exploration. The IB MYP curriculum aims to balance the
acquisition of factual knowledge and skills with independent or collaborative
investigations in order to develop conceptual understanding and encourage students to make
connections with other disciplines.
Students investigate through using a cycle of inquiry, action and
reflection - not unlike the approach of DS106. In fact Digital Story Design would be a perfect project within the MYP curriculum.
The overriding philosophy is for students to think critically and collaboratively construct their
understanding. The teacher ( as for DS106) is in the role of coach, guide and negotiator.
Comparing MOOCS - Or Comparing Ways of Learning?
"Learning is a messy journey. We are all different, and we skip, slip and jump our way towards becoming knowers... towards creating our own sense of meaning in any discipline. "
Davie Cormier A Rhizomatic Learning Companion <https://davecormier.pressbooks.com/> Accessed 21 April 2021
In Comparing DS106 or Rhizomatic 15 with offerings from FutureLearn or Coursera, two observations come to mind:
Have MOOCs changed Distance Learning?
Distance learning in 1989
When I began my OU journey in 1989 ( T102: Living with Technology) I eagerly awaited the arrival of the course materials through the post. I was given advice on 'Active Reading Strategies' , a pacing guide and instructions to post CMAs (Computer Marked Assessment) and TMAs (Tutor Marked assessments) by given deadlines. (Yes I did say the CMA was posted! The paper copy was fed through a machine for marking and there were rules about not using blue ink). There was an exam at the end for which I needed to attend a testing centre.
For collaboration, I was invited to join the tutor group discussion in my nearest town and In common with many OU courses at that time there was a summer school, but I did not attend as I had two small children under 2 yrs old.
What do the Coursera and Future Learn style MOOCs offer?
In order to compare the offerings I reviewed the Coursera MOOC: "Introduction to Mathematical Thinking" provided by Stanford. I have also taken various courses from Future Learn on research skills together with some of the STEM offerings for CPD.
I notice in both MOOC formats, there is information provided, documents to read, and video or audio to watch and listen to. In Coursera these are followed up with quizzes which have a mark assigned. In Future Learn the quizzes do not have an allocated mark and each question may be attempted as many times as desired. Each Future Learn activity includes an invitation to contribute to a discussion forum, although I could only see patchy evidence of interaction or facilitation - just posting.
They each have their own character, but in essence I see them both as distance learning using an online distribution mechanism. Both taking the same behaviourist, cognitive approach: knowledge gained through acquisition of information and testing.
The Stanford course explicitly states it follows the pattern of "Lecture -> Assignment -> Tutorial -> Problem Set -> Tutorial" (The Tutorials are explanatory videos, not interactive). Students are repeatedly advised to find or form a study group to support understanding.
The goal is clearly knowledge acquisition and they have both opened up the opportunity for knowledge acquisition for many who could not afford or have access this knowledge. The convenience of access brought about by technology is certainly an improvement over books arriving in the post!... and yet I feel something is missing.....
Learning IS a messy journey.
DS106 is a MOOC which encourages mess, mistakes, sharing and reflection and learning together as community. Cormier puts forward the idea that the "...community of learners is the curriculum" where learners agree the aims and objective for their own learning. In the DS106 style MOOC the tutor becomes a member of the community as coach, guide and negotiator.
It seems to me there is also a hidden element in DS106 - that of the basic knowledge and skills needed in order to be able to make valuable contributions to advance understanding in the learning community. Novice learners need exposure to basic concepts within the structure of the course - rather like the apprenticeship model of learning. For a successful courses this needs expert facilitation, either by tutor or experts within the community. This needs to be a safe space where each member has their own expertise to share and is valued. Courses like DS106 with its messy structure can allow for this to take place.
The medium for DS106 is the technology and without it DS106 (Digital Story Telling) would not be possible. Online sharing is at the core DS106 and those who participate are expecting online interaction. This contrasts significantly with the MOOCS of Coursera and Future Learn which could be taking in isolation as if using a digital course book.
So what is the connection with the MYP classroom?
It is widely recognised that when children are small they learn together through play. As they grow older it is important to capture this sense of wonder and exploration. The IB MYP curriculum aims to balance the acquisition of factual knowledge and skills with independent or collaborative investigations in order to develop conceptual understanding and encourage students to make connections with other disciplines. Students investigate through using a cycle of inquiry, action and reflection - not unlike the approach of DS106. In fact Digital Story Design would be a perfect project within the MYP curriculum.
The overriding philosophy is for students to think critically and collaboratively construct their understanding. The teacher ( as for DS106) is in the role of coach, guide and negotiator.