Learning Communities Labs for Innovation in Teaching and Learning Brent G. Wilson University of Colorado at Denver January 2003 Tel Aviv Israel
What Is Knowledge? Three Contrasting Views...
Acquiring Content
Constructing Meaning
Developing & Sharing Cool Stuff
Knowledge as... u Content acquisition u Meaning construction u Participation in inquiry and sharing u All of the above!
Teaching Architectures Three basic models...
Teacher-Centered Environment
Learner-Centered Environment
Learning Community
Self-Organizing Systems u Autonomous agents u Diversity of perspectives u Innovative actions and solutions u High levels of connectivity u Self-organization u Emergent intelligence
Classroom Communities
Cohort Groups
Alumni and Field Communities
Starting Over: Designing a Learning Environment From Scratch If we wanted to design a learning environment, without ever having seen one, what would we come up with? From Tom Carroll, PT3 Grants
T S ?
S T P S S T
L P L L L L L L L L L
Put Problems in the Middle u Teacher on the side u Local resources all around u Leaky boundaries to outside world allowing access to –people –info & resources –places
Projects for Communities u Design studio u Inquiry (e.g., action research) u Cases for study & exploration u Group support for exams u Discussions of readings u Writer’s workshop
Inquiry Cycle
Star.Legacy
The Legacy Principle u Build on what you find. u Leave something for the next group. u Texts define communities, but interpretation of texts is always evolving.
More Strategies u Case-based reasoning u Problem-based learning u Service-learning u WebQuests u Epistemic games u Slashdot forums u Field experiences
Varieties of e-Learning u Self-paced self-instruction u Support resources on the Web u Group-paced courses online u Informal interests & support u Blended learning experiences Do what best fits your situation.
Adoption Strategy u Start small w/Web resources u Move to blended learning u Choose a target for online delivery u Convert to online delivery u Target programs and repeat process u Evaluate at every stage.
Good Targets for Online Delivery u Deliverable content u Online adds value u Access a concern u Available resources and expertise (e.g., willing instructor)
Learn More About Inquiry Learning... u on_4.html on_4.html u u nth6/index_sub5.html nth6/index_sub5.html u html html u u
Further Reading and Resources u Dynamic Learning Communities u 7 Principles for Undergrad Teaching also debk/teachtip/7princip.htm debk/teachtip/7princip.htm u Cognitive Load Theory u Problem-Based Learning u Case-Based Teaching u Tom Carroll on Networked Learning Communities e1.htm