Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Engaged Learning: Making Learning an Authentic Experience
Several thoughts after reading this article.
TJC embarked on the PBL programme for the TJC Academy (TJC THINK Cycle). After a year of implementation, we discovered a distance between the THINK Cycle and the idealised PBL approach. Very much of the differences are idealogical in nature which are impacted by the implementation strategies of the teachers and the learning attitudes of the teachers and students.
In crafting problems and designing lessons, the TJC curriculum planners start from the A Levels curriculum. In conducting the lessons, the ultimate aim of the teachers and students is to pick up knowledge to meet the curriculum requirements through solving the problems of the PBL. In an idealized PBL, however, the ultimate objective is to solve the problem posed. The Singapore educators and students are in general very examination driven. Unless the A Levels is geared towards the assessment of process skills required by an idealized PBL, it will be difficult to implement the academically defined idealized PBL. The TJC Think Cycle however is still a big step forward towards authentic and engaging learning environments.
Examples of the technologies recommended by the paper to facilitate engaged learning are:
1. videos such as in anchored instruction
2. Technology-based templates that guide learners in the problem solving process
3. Communication tools
4. Information searching tools
5. reflection logs
6. Peer critiquing tools
7. Monitoring tools
8. Learning environments which facilitate the involvement of experts
9. Mind Tools
10. Collaboration tools like the Knowledge Forum
11. Visualisation-simulation tools
Many schools know have some forms of LMS. However, most LMSes do not have all the required technologies to facilitate engaged learning. Schools therefore have to deploy different platforms. Operationally speaking, this will be a deterent to the use of IT. At the user level, it is ideal if there is 1 platform that fulfills most if not all the requirements for schools to implement IT facilitated engaged learning environment.
TJC embarked on the PBL programme for the TJC Academy (TJC THINK Cycle). After a year of implementation, we discovered a distance between the THINK Cycle and the idealised PBL approach. Very much of the differences are idealogical in nature which are impacted by the implementation strategies of the teachers and the learning attitudes of the teachers and students.
In crafting problems and designing lessons, the TJC curriculum planners start from the A Levels curriculum. In conducting the lessons, the ultimate aim of the teachers and students is to pick up knowledge to meet the curriculum requirements through solving the problems of the PBL. In an idealized PBL, however, the ultimate objective is to solve the problem posed. The Singapore educators and students are in general very examination driven. Unless the A Levels is geared towards the assessment of process skills required by an idealized PBL, it will be difficult to implement the academically defined idealized PBL. The TJC Think Cycle however is still a big step forward towards authentic and engaging learning environments.
Examples of the technologies recommended by the paper to facilitate engaged learning are:
1. videos such as in anchored instruction
2. Technology-based templates that guide learners in the problem solving process
3. Communication tools
4. Information searching tools
5. reflection logs
6. Peer critiquing tools
7. Monitoring tools
8. Learning environments which facilitate the involvement of experts
9. Mind Tools
10. Collaboration tools like the Knowledge Forum
11. Visualisation-simulation tools
Many schools know have some forms of LMS. However, most LMSes do not have all the required technologies to facilitate engaged learning. Schools therefore have to deploy different platforms. Operationally speaking, this will be a deterent to the use of IT. At the user level, it is ideal if there is 1 platform that fulfills most if not all the requirements for schools to implement IT facilitated engaged learning environment.
# posted by Sherwin Cheng @ 6:52 AM 
