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The impact of instructional elements in computer-based instruction_July2007.pdf
Study examining what happens when you remove common elements of instruction. Practice with feedback was critical; information, objectives, examples, and review made little difference.
“This study investigated the effects of several elements of instruction (objectives, information, practice, examples and review) when they were combined in a systematic manner.”
“Results indicated participants who used one of the four versions of the computer program that included practice performed significantly better on the posttest and had consistently more positive attitudes than those who did not receive practice.” -
Problems with Bloom’s Taxonomy
Criticism of Bloom’s Taxonomy, with two alternatives for classifying objectives
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The categories or “levels” of Bloom’s taxonomy (knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation) are not supported by any research on learning. The only distinction that is supported by research is the distinction between declarative/conceptual knowledge (which enables recall, comprehension, or understanding) and procedural knowledge (which enables application or task performance).
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Archive for July, 2011
Weekly Bookmarks (7/31/2011)
July 31, 2011Weekly Bookmarks (7/24/2011)
July 24, 2011-
Share Google Reader items on Google+ | David Vielmetter
I assume at some point Google will add Google+ to the “Send to” options in Google Reader, but until then, here’s a workaround in Firefox.
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ID and Other Reflections: Lurking is Not a Static State
Perspectives on lurking as an active act in part of the cycle of participation, pulling together quotes from multiple sources
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Somehow, the word lurker has become associated with pejorative connotations of people taking from communities without giving back, of not contributing, of being selfish and feeding off the hard work of others. They are the free riders. However, is that truly the case? Would we consider silent participants in a meeting or at presentations lurkers?
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A lurker might very well be giving back by performing better at their jobs, by sharing insights with others in the context of their daily work by using the learning gleaned from lurking. This is especially true of communities in enterprises. Since the give back is asymmetric and happens in a different context, this goes unnoticed.
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Writing Assistance Freelance Rate Chart (PDF)
Estimated freelance rates for writers and designers, including instructional designers, from one staffing company. ID work is listed at $63-90+/hour, average $80
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FreelanceSwitch Hourly Rate Calculator
Calculate business expenses, personal expenses, how much of your time you are actually able to bill. Nice to play around with the variables and see how that affects the hourly rate.
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Look, I’m lurking – The Knowledge Lens
Thoughts on lurking and what lurkers bring to a community
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The problem with calling it “lurking” makes everyone think negative thoughts. Like our community is full of Peeping Tom’s or other people with nefarious intent. People who don’t talk are still participating and learning – just in some non-obvious ways.
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Lurking or Legitimate Peripheral Participation | weiterbildungsblog
(Auf Deutsch) Comparison of perspectives on lurking: the 90-9-1 rule, an aspect of our own personalities, an individual learning process, a challenge for community managers, or “Lurking als Lernen” (lurking as learning).
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Lurking als Lernen: “Lurking is not a problem, as long as lurkers are learning because enough material is created and shared by nonlurkers.” (Claude Almansi)
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Misadventures in Learning: What’s a Twitter Chat?
Intro to Twitter chats like #lrnchat, including how it works and tools to make participation easier
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Debunking Five Myths About Project-Based Learning | Edutopia
Responses to myths like “PBL isn’t standards-based” and “PBL takes too much time.”
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22 Books For Beginner Instructional Designers | Upside Learning Blog
Book list for new instructional designers. No descriptions or rationale to help you prioritize, but some good reads here.
Lurking or Legitimate Peripheral Participation
July 18, 2011During the July 7 early #lrnchat about social media and social learning, there was a lot of discussion about lurking.
In response to the question “What are some ways you learn through social media that aren’t collaborative, with other people per-se?”
I do a fair amount of lurking (ie “legitimate peripheral participation”)
I also retweeted this message by Colby Fordham:
We all like sharers, but there is a value in lurking. [You] have to [learn] the rules and important topics.
…and then stop lurking
Often, lurking is just a temporary phase, and you do jump in afterwards. But is that always necessary? I have lots of online communities where I sit on the periphery and lurk, long past the initial phase of learning how the community works.
A few examples:
- YouTube: Most of the time on YouTube, I’m just watching. I’m not creating my own videos, commenting, sharing, or bookmarking. I have a few videos, but I’m lurking at least 90% of the time.
- Kongregate: Technically, I am not a lurker on this gaming site by the strictest definition, since I do rate games. I read through the forums and chat sometimes, but rarely jump into the conversation.
- News: I don’t get a newspaper in “dead tree” format; I get most of my news online. I read several newspapers and blogs, all of which have commenting or community features. Most of the time I don’t even read the user discussions, and I never add my own comments.
- Slashdot: I skim the RSS feed, but I don’t have an account and have never commented.
- Wikipedia: At one point, I contributed quite a bit (2500+ edits), but it’s been over a year since I’ve been active.
I learn on all those sites. (Yes, even Kongregate: I learn game strategies on the forums. What I learn is of limited use in the rest of my life, but it’s useful for my goals when I’m on that site.) I’ll be honest; I’m not really interested in getting sucked into the high drama conversations on most of those sites. Wikipedia, for example, can be pretty intense and nasty. It’s the only place online I’ve actually been directly threatened (although there was no actual danger, it was still disconcerting). If I’m going to be part of conversations, I’d rather they be part of the learning community, or at least more productive than many of the conversations at the sites above.
Would I be a better gamer if I was active in the Kongregate forums? Most likely. But I’m not looking for a high level of expertise in gaming. So why should I expend my energy there, when peripheral participation gets me enough expertise to meet my personal goals?
In the #lrnchat conversation, Jane called this behavior “taking,” and she’s right—I’m reading and taking advantage of the resources without giving back. I give back here, but I don’t give back in every community that I use. My giving is very uneven, and sometimes I just lurk.
Is it wrong to lurk, or is it appropriate to have different levels of participation in different online communities? Should we exclude anyone from reading the RSS feeds of our blogs if they aren’t commenting, bookmarking, +1-ing, etc?
In Digital Habitats, Etienne Wenger, Nancy White, and John D. Smith call lurking “legitimate peripheral participation”:
From a community of practice perspective, lurking is interpreted as “legitimate peripheral participation,” a crucial process by which communities offer learning opportunities to those on the periphery. Rather than a simple distinction between active and passive members, this perspective draws attention to the richness of the periphery and the learning enabled (or not) by it. (p. 9)
Do the people active in a community learn more than those on the edges? Yes, I do believe that. But if your goal isn’t to be an expert, peripheral participation may give you enough learning to meet your needs. You can learn via social media without it actually being social learning.
What do you think? Are there communities where you are in the center of the action, but others where you’re on the periphery? Is there a place for lurking in learning communities, or should everyone be an active participant? If we’re designing learning with social media, can we focus just on social learning, or can we also support use of social media for peripheral participation?
Image credit:
Weekly Bookmarks (7/17/2011)
July 17, 2011-
Ed Tech and Instructional Technology Related Programs in the United States
Curt Bonk’s collected list of masters and doctoral programs in instructional technology
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Drivers that will change the landscape of work and key skills needed in the next 10 years (sense-making, social intelligence, novel & adaptive thinking, cross-cultural competency, new media literacy, virtual collaboration, etc.)
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Easy tool for scheduling meetings across time zones. Set it up with the locations you commonly use and bookmark your specific URL.
Weekly Bookmarks (7/10/2011)
July 10, 2011-
Splitting recordings into separate tracks – Audacity Wiki
The method of labeling and using “Export multiple” worked really well for creating audio for Captivate
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I Came, I Saw, I Learned…: Adobe Captivate 5: Make Quick Work Out of Adding Audio to a Project
Tips for streamlining the process of adding multiple audio files to Captivate
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elearn Archive: So you want to be an e-learning consultant…
Harold Jarche on freelance e-learning work. Includes a table of types of work and a range of fees. (Updated from previous link since the site was reorganized.)
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Review of Bozarth’s Social Media for Training plus responses to common misconceptions about social media and social learning
Getting Started as a Freelance Instructional Designer
July 7, 2011
If you are starting out as a freelance instructional designer or consultant, what do you need to know and do?
I am currently exploring my options for freelance work. I know many of you out there have made the leap from regular employee to consultant. I’m interested in any words of wisdom you might have. Do you have any favorite resources or books? Are there any lessons learned or great tips for the transition?
I have found a few resources already:
- Harold Jarche’s So You Want to Be an eLearning Consultant? is a great overview.
- I just bought Consulting Basics after reading Bill Brandon’s review. (It arrived today, so I haven’t started reading it yet, but it looks good.)
Please pardon the following blatant self-promotion.
My current contract is scheduled to complete at the end of July, so I am looking for projects starting in August. I have several leads right now, but if you have or know of any projects starting in August or later, I’d appreciate you keeping me in mind.
Update 12/4/2011: Now that I have made the leap, I’ve posted a few tips for making the transition to freelance.
Image Credit:
Weekly Bookmarks (7/3/2011)
July 3, 2011-
Review of Kirschner, Sweller, and Clark’s paper bashing constructivism, discovery, and problem-based learning, plus some context and research on the other side.
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Thus Kirschner, Sweller and Clark’s paper is an important reminder for us to not carry Problem Based Learning (PBL) to its extreme. That is, while it has its strengths, learners often need a more direct approach in order to build a solid foundations before being presented with PBL.
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With the title blaring, “Why Minimal Guidance during Instruction Does Not Work” rather than, “Why Minimal Guidance during Instruction Does Not Work for Novice Learners,” the authors almost seem to ignore that PBL is a necessity in order to promote deeper levels of understanding.
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The paper relies heavily on Cognitive Load Theory, yet we have to realize that it is still a theory rather than a law.
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Thus, both the authors and the constructivism movement are guilty of jumping on theories before they are fully understood.
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