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04.07.08

Humanising elearning using illustrated characters

Barry Kayton

Steve Vosloo

Who we are

Barry Kayton
@ Bright Sparks

Steve Vosloo
@ Shuttleworth Foundation

Bright Spark: Creative consultants / imagineers / content creators

http://www.brightsparks.ws/

Shuttleworth Foundation: Innovation in education, intellectual property, open and collaborative resources, and telecommunication

http://www.shuttleworthfoundation.org/

Both organisations based in Cape Town

Kusasa: tomorrow

Open-source e-learning initiative to develop analytical thinking skills in learners and more effective teaching practices in teachers

How? A software programming-based learning environment that is teacher facilitated (as opposed to taught) and partly peer-taught

Support teaching of curriculum

Grades 4-12 in SA. 6 pilot schools (gr 4)

2005-2010 a work in progress

Why?

Chronic shortage of maths and science teachers in SA

Mathematical, scientific and analytical thinking is not being developed

Classroom disconnect because of digital amusements

Increasing access to computer labs

Papert, S. (1993). Mindstorms: Children, Computers, and Powerful Ideas. Cambridge, MA: Perseus Books.

Approach

Develop HOTS by engaging learners

Facilitate exploration (Piaget's constructivism) and creation (Papert's constructionism)

Kusasa: a whole learning system which includes software, curriculum-aligned content, and teacher training materials

Our purpose is to enrich learners with deeply mathematical and scientific experiences that are wrapped up with enjoyable feelings

http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/cpdscotland/images/blooms_taxonomy_tcm4-392604.jpg

Software

LAMS

LMS. Leaning activity sequencing and monitoring

Account management, Q&A, noticeboard,
multiple choice, forum, survey ...

Squeak eToys

Visual programming/modelling language and environment designed for young children

Objects with headings, angles, variables, motion, time, speed, acceleration

Papert's constructionist approach: create public artefacts, engaged learning through active, playful construction

LAMS:Learning Activity Management System. Open source Learning Management System. Provides a drag-and-drop interface for the rapid development of learning sequences. Its tools include: chat, notebook, Q&A, noticeboard, multiple choice, forum, survey and voting.

In eToys, a learner can paint an object (such as a car), and drag out tiles that represent instructions to make the object move, turn, change shape and colour. Learners can create models of phenomena such as phases of the moon, the diffusion of dye in water, or the behaviour of a salmon swimming upstream.

Both LAMS and eToys are tried and tested elearning tools, but their combination in this project is novel, as is the extensive use of illustrated characters.

Process

LAMS holds together:

Comic

Crunch/Reflection

Class exercise

Crunch/Reflection

eToys

Crunch/Reflection

Typically 1 hour lesson (too short)Support teaching of curriculum

Long-term view:1) Teaching how to use eToys2) Scaffolded modelling3) Free modelling using Squeak, and later Python

Role models

Role model some of the targeted learning outcomes such as analytical thinking or interpersonal life skills

Role model positive behaviours, thinking styles, attitudes and values Cognitive apprenticeship (Berryman 1991; Coman 2002)

Characters with personalities not just talking heads!

Fictional characters can facilitate the shift of typically dry, academic information into dynamic, humanised knowledge.

Berryman, S. E. (1991). Designing Effective Learning Environments: Cognitive Apprenticeship Models. Institute on Education and the Economy Brief, 1, September.

Coman, P. G. (2002). Critical Success Factors for eLearning Delivery. The Changing Face of HE in the 21st Century: Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for Implementing eLearning, 2002, International Conference on Computers in Education, IEEE Computer Society, Washington, DC. 1549-1550.

Why comics?

Comics motivate and engage (Hutchinson 1949; Sones 1944; Wax 2002)

Help learners with low and middle intelligence levels (Sones 1944) to grasp issues that they grapple with when only presented in text form

In the struggle to engage students of all dispositions comics can prove to be a formidable tool (Yang 2003)

Create an emotional connection between learners and the characters (Versaci 2001) humanise elearning for compelling role modelling

Hutchinson, K. (1949) An experiment in the use of comics as instructional material, Journal of Educational Sociology, No. 23, pp 236-245.

Sones, W. (1944) The comics and instructional method, Journal of Educational Sociology, No. 18, pp 232-240.Wax, E. (2002) Back to the drawing board; Once-banned comic books now a teaching tool, The Washington Post: B.01, May 17.Yang, G. (2003) Strengths of Comics in Education, [online], http://www.humblecomics.com/comicsedu/strengths.html. The visual form of comics means that they can quite literally 'put a human face'' on a given subject (Versaci 2001, p. 62), which, for Versaci, an English language teacher, resulted in his learners making an intimate, emotional connection with the characters of a comics story.Versaci, R. (2001) How comic books can change the way our students see literature: One teacher's perspective, English Journal, Vol. 91, No. 2, pp 61-67.

The facilitator/teacher

Facilitates sessions, crunch questions ...

Guides the characters

Good teacher model to learners (for some the only role model)

Good teacher model to teachers

Non-authoritarian

To learners from disadvantaged backgrounds, whose teachers may be ill-qualified, poorly trained, poorly paid and demoralised, Tia represents what teachers could be and should be. She models the behaviour of a rational, creative and productive thinker, which in some cases may stand in stark contrast to the typical experience of teachers that many disadvantaged learners may have had. To learners whose experience of adults and teachers is anchored by the memories and presence of authority figures who demand unquestioning obedience, Tia represents an alternative anchor with which they might reorientate themselves in the direction of more analytical, critical and creative thinking.

With Kusasa, the goal is for the classroom teacher to be a lesson facilitator, while Tia leads the actual learning exercises in a collaborative software environment that fosters peer-to-peer learning, either using LAMS or by learners physically engaging each other. In two implementation sessions at primary schools in Cape Town, grade 4 learners demonstrated their willingness to help each other when stuck. Social dynamics between some of the learners produced interesting interactions some learners gladly shared their insights into using LAMS, but only with their friends in the class.

Four thinking styles

SophieReadsQuestionsOpinionatedSceptical

FarrahDancesDrawsTrustsGullible

JojoEnergeticDoerBodyAction

TomLogicalMathematicalInventsExperiments

The four characters represent four thinking styles, personalities and ethnic backgrounds. Sophie is a verbal/linguistic thinker and a theorist; Farrah is a visual and musical thinker and an artist; Jojo is a kinesthetic/bodily thinker and a doer; and Tom is a logical/mathematical thinker and an inventor.

Characters question and support each other, modelling peer-to-peer teaching and learning

Characters as role models of attitudes and values

Tom demonstrates the problem of making unwarranted assumptions and the value of breaking assumptions

Farrahs story shows the dangers of being gullible and the value of making sensible inferences

Jojo models what it means to change your point of view

Sophie demonstrates the power of thinking in terms of questions

Characters question and support each other, modelling peer-to-peer teaching and learning

Berryman, S. E. (1991). Designing Effective Learning Environments: Cognitive Apprenticeship Models. Institute on Education and the Economy Brief, 1, September.

Coman, P. G. (2002). Critical Success Factors for eLearning Delivery. The Changing Face of HE in the 21st Century: Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for Implementing eLearning, 2002, International Conference on Computers in Education, IEEE Computer Society, Washington, DC. 1549-1550.

Metacognition

Key component of HOTS

To be or not to be? -- Hamlet

Thought bubbles: thinking about a problem, thinking about the thinking they are applying to that problem

Visual back-and-forth, internal dialogue

We recognise that disadvantaged learners have little exposure to literature and therefore limited exposure to metacognition. Therefore it is important to develop this skill.

Challenges

Illustrated comics are time and resource heavy

Creative director, writers, illustrators, inkers and colourists

Can be prohibitively expensive

Difficult to create genuinely creative stories --> cannot be too formulaic or didactic

A work in progress ...

Grade 4, 5 and 6 complete

Grade 4 under evaluation and broad roll-out

Conclusion

How to role-model effective thinking practice to ever larger numbers of learners efficiently and effectively?

The challenge is to develop attitudes, values and habits that support HOTS

Kusasa solution: elearning, humanised by means of illustrated characters and stories

Thank you

www.kusasa.org

www.brightsparks.ws

www.shuttleworthfoundation.org

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www.shuttleworthfoundation.org