RSA #4 Inquiry-Based Learning meets Resource-Based Learning

According to Bernie Dodge, a WebQuest is:

"An inquiry-oriented activity in which most or all of the information used by learners is drawn from the Web. WebQuests are designed to use learners' time well, to focus on using information rather than looking for it, and to support learners' thinking at the levels of analysis, synthesis, and evaluation."

WebQuests are activities which can be created for students of many different ability levels to use. There is an article titled FOCUS: Five Rules for Writing a Great WebQuest. This article is available as word document on the web. While the article was originally created in 2001, the information in the article is still valid. The FOCUS method revolves around the following ideas:

Find great sites
Orchestrate your learners and resources
Challenge your learners to think
Use the medium
Scaffold high expectations

In order to keep a relevant and meaningful WebQuest, one should follow these directions when creating one. Finding great sites includes not only the quality of the content on the given site but the readability and timeliness of the information presented. Dodge offers tips to help find great sites such as mastering search engines, probe deep into the web, and keep track of the resources that you find.

Dodge goes on to offer tips on how to properly orchestrate your learners based on skill and resources based on availability. At the time of the article, Dodge stated, "As of this writing and for the foreseeable future, there are not enough computers to go around" (2001). In 2014, there are still many schools that do not have the resources available to have each student in the class completing a WebQuest independently on their own hardware so this step is important for many people.

Challenging learners to think is a basic for any educator. All teachers should be challenging their learners to think at their ability level, which is the idea behind differentiated instruction. Dodge offers ideas on how you can best meet your students needs for a challenging curriculum within the same WebQuest.

Using the medium refers to using the WebQuest and the Internet as a whole to the fullest extent. The Internet in 2014 is an almost endless supply of information including media. Students are exposed to pictures and videos constantly. A WebQuest should be organized so that students are receiving information from both the text and the media.

The last piece of the WebQuest framework offered by Dodge is that it should scaffold high expectations. "A great WebQuest ask students to do things they might not ordinarily do" (Dodge, 2001). Students should gather information during a WebQuest and synthesize the information into a new form. Scaffolding expectations also allows teachers to differentiate their instruction again based on student need.

WebQuests can be powerful tools that should be used in the modern classroom. WebQuests bring Inquiry Based Learning methods together with Resource Based Learning methods which creates a meaningful learning environment for students.

References:

Dodge, B. (2001). FOCUS: Five rules for writing a great WebQuest. Learning and leading with technology, 28(8), 6-9.

Dodge, B., & March, T. (2007). What is a WebQuest. Retrieved from: http://www.britishcouncil.org.hk/eltnetwork/doc/WebQuests%20ELT%20Workshop.doc

RSA #3 Resource-Based Learning

According to the University of Leeds, Research-based learning (RBL) is a style of learning that will "actively develop students’ independent research skills and provide students with opportunities to put these skills into practice" ("Research-based learning," 2014). In the classroom, research based learning is synonymous with resource based learning. The difference is that resource based learning provides all the necessary resources for students while research based learning lets students find their own resources. Resource based learning provides students with access to high quality materials on a given subject. Students are then able to use the materials with instructor directions to foster and develop research skills. Resource based learning also provides students a unique exposure to different materials than they may gather independently. In resource based learning, the instructor collects a library of information and resources that are useful to the students in the class and contain information regarding the topic covered in class.

Resource based learning can be used in many different classes from Social Studies classes to Science classes as well as English and even Mathematics classes. Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) classes have been an area of innovation in current education trends. Vega (2014) outlines methods to use research-based and project-based learning in STEM classrooms. She includes an infographic which compares a percentage of students meeting or exceeding Ohio state standards in core classes. Cleveland Metropolitan School District is compared with the state of Ohio overall and MC2STEM High School, a school which integrates research-based learning into its practices. The research based practices not only brought student success with state standards back to the level of Ohio's average, but it exceeded the state percentages by as much as nine points. The practices also brought high school graduation from sixty three percent to ninety five percent, which is eleven percentage points higher than the Ohio state average.The data listed in Vega's article show evidence that research based learning can improve student success.

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References

Research-based learning (2014). University of Leeds Curriculum. Retrieved from http://curriculum.leeds.ac.uk/rbl

Vega, V. (2014). Research-based practices for engaging students in stem learning. Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/stw-college-career-stem-research

RSA #2 Inquiry Based Learning

This week in class, the module topic was focused on Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL). After completing the readings listed on the class’s blackboard site, I was able to come to a greater understanding of what IBL is, and I received some ideas on how to properly use it. IBL as you may gather from its title is centered around student inquiry or questioning. IBL often starts with the instructor posing a question. The website teachthought.com has an infographic that was included on this week’s module page. According to the infographic, students move between the stages of the inquiry process at various speeds and may be on different stages than their peers. Students are given real questions, they find resources, interpret information from those resources, and they report their findings.

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While searching through resources I may use in my own classroom, I came across an article by Owens, Hester, and Teale titled “Where do you want to go today? Inquiry-based learning and technology integration” which followed two projects incorporating inquiry in urban education settings with technology playing a key role. Owen et al stated that interest, a plan, and a purpose are important factors for the learning process. “We have found that more than any other single factor, a student’s topic choice, and the actual questions associated with the topic, affect how well the inquiry turns out” (Owen et al, 2002).

Both resources mentioned discuss how IBL can improve student comprehension on a given topic. The article by Owens et al offers numerous suggestions on how to improve success with IBL. While the article is over ten years old, it offers insightful information into IBL.

In choosing a favorite pedagogy for learning so far in Educational Technology 6030, Inquiry-Based Learning seems to be the most applicable to my teaching style and my students.

References

Owens, R.F, Hester, J.L., & Teale, W.H. (April, 2002). Owning technology. The Reading Teacher, 55(7). 616-625. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20205108

TeachThought Staff (2013, October 25). 20 questions to guide inquiry-based learning. te@chthought. Retrieved from http://www.teachthought.com/learning/20-questions-guide-inquiry-based-learning/

RSA#1 Case-Based Learning

This week in EDT 6030: Using Technology to Build Learning Communities, the module is about case-based learning. Most of our reading materials introduced me to blended learning. Blended learning is:

A formal education program in which a student learns at least in part through online delivery of content and instruction with some element of student control over time, place, path, and/or pace and is at least in part at a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home. (Staker & Horn, 2012, p. 5)

According to Lim, Morris, & Kupritz (2014), there has recently been a push in academic institutions to include blended instruction. The goal is to “overcome the shortcomings of online instruction” (Lim, Morris, & Kupritz, 2014, p. 2) to increase learning outcomes. Many institutions have started to adapt blended learning environments to enrich the material that was only previously available in the brick-and-mortar classroom or online.

The purpose of Online vs. Blended Learning: Differences in Instructional Outcomes and Learner Satisfaction was to determine if there is a significant difference in learning and learning application between an online classroom and a blended learning classroom. The blended learning classroom consisted with half of the instruction in a classroom and half online. The study included 125 students from the University of Tennessee. The study found not significant differences in learning outcomes between online learning and blended learning.

I found this study interesting because I would think that there would be a significant difference with the blended delivery format achieving higher success in regards to learning outcomes. The data supports a conclusion made by Staker (2011), “blended learning is more likely to be crammed into the current classroom and sustain, rather than transform, the traditional classroom model” (p. 166).

References 

Lim, D. H., Morris, M. L., & Kupritz, V. W. (2014). Online vs. blended learning: differences in instructional outcomes and learner satisfaction. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 11. Retrieved from http://184.168.109.199:8080/jspui/bitstream/123456789/2257/1/EJ842695.pdf

Staker, H. (2011) The rise of K-12 blended learning [White paper]. Retrieved Septemper 6, 2014, from The Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation: http://www.christenseninstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/The-rise-of-K-12-blended-learning.emerging-models.pdf

Staker, H., & Horn, M. (2012) Classifying K-12 blended learning [White paper]. Retrieved Septemper 6, 2014, from The Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation: http://www.christenseninstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Classifying-K-12-blended-learning.pdf

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