Evaluating Learning Technology

This week’s blog we needed to provide an example of a currently available technology that would not be a good fit for the lesson we are trying to teach and explain why. Then we are to give what tool, wither new or emerging, might be a better fit? So after pondering this assignment I choose to go with teaching someone how to tile his or her bathroom floor.

I don’t believe I would use asynchronous learning to teach how to tile a floor. The learner would become frustrated with reading a long e-mail on how to do it. A discussion board would become to long also and text messaging would take way to long. So what I would have accomplished by using this form of instruction is one really upset individual who just wanted to tile his or her own bathroom floor.

Instead I would probably use Audiographics technology. Audiographic technology is used to provide multiway audio and a shared screen, and was used to conduct real-time tutorials with remote students (Mason, 2003). Mason writes that Audiographic technology is good for problem solving sessions in mathematics, language practice in second language classes, syndicate work in business courses, and collaborative project work among student in many subject areas. I believe this would also be helpful technology to teach an individual the skill of laying tile, especially if it could be archived. This would allow the individual to play it as often or pause the archived Audiographic as they need to.

I would not have given this any thought of possibly working in the past because this type of technology required two telephone lines: one for sound and one for the audio. With the way the Internet is changing and with the new Collaboration Software that is available this can be easily achieved now. With collaboration software you have available communication software and content development software combined.

The most important thing to remember as an Instructional Designer is that not all software and technology is going to be a good fit for your instructional purpose. Research is your friend and you need to find what combination of technology and software are going to give you the end result.

Reference

Mason, R. (2003). Evolving technologies. Encyclopedia of distributed learning.

Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Media. Walden University. Flash Program: "Classification of Learning Technology

Software"

Technology in Your Daily Life

This week for class we were asked to consider our own use of technology. We were asked to answer these questions: Would I consider myself to have a “millennial learning style?” Do I use technology freely and with ease in most aspects of my life? Or do I begrudgingly use technology only when I am forced to? Finally, what effect, if any, has my use of technology had on the way I learn, or on my educational experiences in general?

Chris Dede writes that the Internet-based learning styles ascribed to “Millennial” students – those born after 1982 – increasingly apply for many people across a wide range of ages, driven by the tools and media they use every day (pp. 8). I would have to say that I do consider myself to have a “millennial learning style” even though I was born way before 1982.

Being able to go back to school and finally complete a goal of mine would never have been possible with out online education. For me to be able to be as successful as I have been with online education I found myself having to use technology freely and with ease in most aspects of my life. With being comfortable and using technology everyday made the decision to go back to school online and easy choice for me.

Another example of my comfort and use of technology freely is doing this blog site. I had no idea till I started this project how to create a blog. Without getting stressed out over it I jumped in and figured out how to do it and now have this blog site. When I am not bogged down with full time classes and work I will probably start another blog about photography and digital art.

Technology as we all know is forever changing and at a very quick rate. When I went to my first online school I was using great tutorial videos that help me get through projects that were assigned to me. I also got to experience a writing tablet for some of my drawing projects. Without these forms of technology I think it would have been harder to achieve graduating with a 4.0 gpa.

Now I find myself at a different online college and with this college I am learning that there is a lot more research that needs to be done. I am finding the online library to be a great resource center for me. I have also used the Internet for my other class to find some great case studies for business. I even have instructors now that are having audio instructions for us to listen to. I love the convenience of downloading the audio instruction into my IPod and listening to it when I have spare time.

Technology and my comfort in using it is helping make my dreams come true. I only hope that when I finally am an Instructional Designer that I can use technology to help make others comfortable with it as a learning tool.

Reference

Dede, C. (2005). Planning for neomillennial learning styles. Educause Quarterly,
1, 7–12.

Technology Prioritization

For those of you that don’t know I am going to school for Instructional Design and Technology. One of my courses requires me to do a few weeks worth of my assignments on this blog I have created. With that being said let’s begin with the first entry.

This week I’m going to highlight the two technologies I use daily, which I could not live without and why. Finally, I will end this entry reflecting on the insight I gained regarding technology and learning. Let me start by stating the two technologies I use on a daily basis and I could not live without.

First and for most my Mac laptop, without this wonderful piece of technology I would not have been able to go back to school and get my degree. With having a full time job, raising a family, and trying to take care of a home I just don’t have the time to go to a ground campus for my education.

The next piece of technology I use every day would have to be my cellular phone. Now that I moved over 2000 miles away from all of my family it is great to be able to talk to them when I can. I also like the idea of always being in contact with my daughter now that she is a teenager and is trying to spread her wings and become independent. She is involved in so many after school activities that the convenience of having the phones helps us use are time more wisely.

The most power insight I learned from this weeks reading was from J. Bussell’s article entitled Technology written in 2006. Bussell’s writes that it is estimated that workers of today will have to prepare for two to three career changes in their lifetime. After reading that I started to wonder how many my daughter will have to go through. I understand people are living longer but technology is increasing and changing so rapidly that I believe this is contributing to the necessity of having two to three careers. Personally myself I will be on my third career after I finish this degree.

The second insight I learned came from Randal Carlson’s article written in 2006 entitled Instructional Technology. In this article Carlson writes that Performance technology, electronic performance support, and knowledge management are but a few of the emerging concepts that will influence instructional technology now and in the future. This statement by Carlson really shows how cutting edge instructional design truly is and what a long way it has to go. I’m quit excited to be part of this new form of educating people.

References

Bussell, J. (2006). Technology. In M. Bevir (Ed.), Encyclopedia of governance, 953–

956. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Carlson, R. D. (2006). Instructional technology. Encyclopedia of educational

leadership and administration. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.