Engines for Education Integrating Open Educational Resources in Learning and Teaching

10/17/20152Naidu_Engines for Education In an age of economic volatility and increased competition, most organizations (not just Open Universities across the world are using the concepts of “open to people, places, methods and ideas” as a mainstream marketing strategy to attract a highly mobile student population. Students at many of these places of learning have access to, not only a very wide range of learning resources, but resources which they are able to adopt easily (at no direct cost to them), and also modify as and when necessary to meet their learning goals. Education2020

10/17/20153Naidu_Engines for Education What do you think about this scenario?

10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education4 1.Very possible huh? 2.Students have plenty of learning resources they can choose from. 3.Do not have to pay large sums of money to access these resources. 4.Moreover, they can modify these resources as they wish without having to seek permission to do so.

10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education5 But wait a minute... Lets look at this more closely...

10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education6 Is open access to learning resources all that is necessary? Are novice students the best judge of what is a good or a poor learning resource for them?

10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education7 As undergrads, did we/you know where and how to find great learning resources, and when we had found them, did we know what to do with them?

How different is this /17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education8...from picking out the best bread spread from our supermarket shelves?

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Or choosing the best medicine for your ailment in your pharmacy? 10/17/201510Naidu_Engines for Education

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OK....Perhaps I am stretching this a bit too far....but the point is /17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education12

Students need help... Locating learning resources Evaluating the good ones from the bad. Understanding and applying these resources to the solution of real life challenges and problems 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education13

That’s what teaching is all about!! Lets talk about teaching... 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education14

Conceptions of teaching differ... For some, teaching is a highly structured activity. For others, teaching is an open-ended activity with minimal structure and guidance, such as is the case with higher degree study. 10/17/201515Naidu_Engines for Education

Effective, efficient & engaging teaching In fact, effective, efficient and engaging teaching (e 3 -teaching) is neither an open-ended and unstructured activity, nor a one-way transmission of content with the teacher doing all the hard work. 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education16

E 3 Teaching E 3 teaching is much more than that (see Spector & Merrill, 2008). It takes place when a teacher carefully choreographs the learning experiences of students in close alignment with the expected learning outcomes for them, and with a fine balance of guidance and structure. 10/17/201517Naidu_Engines for Education

E 3 Teaching E 3 Teaching is about putting “students in an environment where they want to learn and where they can naturally discover their true passions” (see Robinson & Aronica, 2009, p. 238) “Great teachers have always understood that their real role is not to teach subjects but to teach students” (p. 249). 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education18

Nine principles for e 3 teaching 1.Teachers and learners are clear about the learning outcomes. 2.Learning is situated within a meaningful context and within the culture and the community in which learners live and work. 3.Learners are engaged in pursuing and solving meaningful and real-life/world challenges, and where they have opportunities to work on a variety of problems and tasks of increasing complexity with timely and useful feedback. 10/17/201519Naidu_Engines for Education

Nine principles for e 3 -teaching 4.The learning activities in these learning situations are clearly articulated and explicitly linked to knowledge and skills already mastered. 5.Learners, while working on learning situations, are required to think for themselves by reflecting in and upon their actions and regulating their own performance. 6.The development of understanding is promoted as a social process with learners acting upon authentic situations in groups and with dialogue, discussion and debate. 10/17/201520Naidu_Engines for Education

Nine principles for e 3 -teaching 7.The assessment of learning outcomes is closely aligned with the learning context. 8.The assessment of learning outcomes is linked to meaningful problems and tasks, and aimed at helping students further develop their knowledge, skills and problem-solving abilities. 9.The assessment of learning outcomes is designed to develop self-regulatory and meta-cognitive skills. 10/17/201521Naidu_Engines for Education

We need Models of teaching and learning Few would argue against the spirit of these guiding principles. But many will have problems applying them in their day-to-day teaching activities without operational models. 10/17/201522Naidu_Engines for Education

Theoretical orientation These models need to... – Immerse learners in the culture of the subject matter, task or skill that is being learned. –Offer opportunities for meaning and understanding to be developed through the interaction between the learners, their readiness and the attributes of the learning contexts and its artefacts. 10/17/201523Naidu_Engines for Education

Scenario-based learning Scenario-Based Learning is such a model SBL is about using a scenario to situate all learning and teaching activities. Scenarios can be real or contrived. Their value lies in their affordances – the opportunity they present for situating and contextualizing all learning and teaching activities. 10/17/201524Naidu_Engines for Education

SBL for professional learning SBL is a model of situated learning. SBL mirrors professional practice. Is best suited for professional learning 10/17/201525Naidu_Engines for Education

Key attributes of Scenario-Based Learning A scenario that affords learning in the subject matter. Problem-solving within authentic and realistic settings. Learning-centered activities which emphasize the centrality of the learning activities in the learning and teaching process. Authentic assessment tasks that closely reflect reality. 10/17/201526Naidu_Engines for Education

The roles of teachers in scenario-based learning Teachers and tutors are NOT merely “guides on the side”. The teacher is an engaged architect & choreographer of the learners’ learning experience. There is strong instructional guidance and direction. 10/17/201527Naidu_Engines for Education

Developing SBL 10/17/201528Naidu_Engines for Education

#1: Identification of the key competencies for practitioners This first step in the process involves identifying the key competencies that a practitioner in the profession needs to possess. 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education29

#2: Articulation of the learning outcomes for the learners. These competencies will form the basis for the development of the learning outcomes for your learners. 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education30

#3: Identification of key events in the life of a person who has accomplished these outcomes The next step is to identify events in the life of the practitioner who demonstrates competency in these skills. Knowing what such professionals can do in relation to these competencies is critical, as these are the events that will help you develop a suitable scenario. 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education31

#4: Identification of the main steps that practitioners take to work through these events The aim here is to break down the events in the life of an accomplished practitioner, in the form of the processes that they would adopt. This is critical because your goal is to emulate best practice. 10/17/201532Naidu_Engines for Education

#5: Development of a scenario with the variety that will offer scope for learners to learn the steps outlined in step 4 Now you are ready to develop a scenario that you know will afford the best opportunity for your learners to acquire those same sorts of competencies that you identified for your expert practitioner. 10/17/201533Naidu_Engines for Education

#6: Development of the learning activities and assessment tasks that learners will be required to complete within the context of this scenario Your learning scenario is not complete until it has a clear role or goal for your students. What are your learners required to do in this scenario? 10/17/201534Naidu_Engines for Education

Putting it all together

It is not a linear process The Connections

It is Goal-Based

A Generic Viable Systems Model (see Beer, 1985) Is OER-Based

Its a Recursive System Is iterative (embedded system) Has variety (requisite variety) Is a complex system (Just like real-life challenges and problems) 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education39

Its a Viable System (Beer, 1985) The VSM provides a framework for the design and development of the learning and teaching transaction Locates the purpose of OERs and their use in solving real-life challenges and problems. Viable Systems Model ( see /17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education41

Its the Engine for Education ( (Schank & Cleary, 1995) Viable Systems Model = the Engine OERs = Essential Fuel for the Engine 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education42

Selected References Beer, S. (1985). Diagnosing the System for Organizations. NY: John Wiley & Sons. Billett, S. (2011). Integrating experiences in workplace and university settings: A conceptual perspective. In S. Billett & A. Henderson (Eds.), Promoting professional learning (pp. 21–40). Dordrecht: Springer. Brown, J.S., Collins, A., & Duguid, P. (1989). Situated cognition and the culture of learning. Educational Researcher, 18(1), 32­–42. Collins, A., Brown, J. S., & Holum, A. (1991). Cognitive apprenticeship: Making thinking visible. American Educator, 15(3), 6–11, 38–46. Merrill, M.D. (2002). First principles of instruction. Educational Technology Research and Development, 50(3), 43–59. Naidu, S. (2010). Using scenario-based learning to promote situated learning and develop professional knowledge. In E. P. Errington (Ed.), Preparing graduates for the professions using scenario-based learning, (39-49), Brisbane: Post Pressed. Schank, R. C. (1997). Virtual learning: A revolutionary approach to building a highly skilled workforce. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Schank, R. C., & Cleary, C. (1995). Engines for Education. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Spector, J.M., & Merrill, M.D. (2008). Editorial. Distance Education, 29(2), 123­–126. The Cognition and Technology Group at Vanderbuilt. (1993). Designing learning environments that support thinking. In T. M. Duffy, J. Lowyck, & D. H. Jonassen (Eds.), Designing environments for constructivist learning (pp. 9–36). New York, NY: Springer-Verkag. 10/17/2015Naidu_Engines for Education43