It’s a Whole New World Out There
Welcome to my first Blog, ever. One would think that working in
Communications and with a background in Advertising and Marketing I may have
written a Blog previously, or at the very least, would follow a few. This is
not the case. I completed my first degree (Bachelor of Business – Communications)
almost twenty years ago and while I have always embraced technology and many
forms of social media, I have shied away from Blogs.
I know I’m a multimodal learner, though I still love the feel of a
newspaper in my hand, I like the platform of communication to be reliable
(often keeping up with the news via the ABC Facebook page) and I need to
understand the big picture. Blogs have always seemed a little flippant to me.
This is undoubtedly the first of many challenges I will face throughout the
year as I embrace change and learn to appreciate the different ways that we all
learn and communicate.
I enjoyed Dr Judy Willis' presentation (which may be viewed here) and the
readings on different learning theories, particularly Connectivism : A Learning Theory for the Digital Age.
As a marketer and someone who has worked in a number of large organisations, Connectivism made perfect sense to me. I also identified with many of the learning trends mentioned and as a parent of four young boys, every day I am faced with the evolution of learning whereby technology has replaced cognitive processing in many environments - Google has a lot to answer for! My eight year old son will soon surpass me with his technical savvy, if he hasn't already. But learning is a continual process and the exciting aspect of the Graduate Diploma of Learning and Teaching is that we are all here because we are willing to embrace that change.
I came away from my first week thinking that the most important lesson I will learn this year is that as a Primary School Teacher my greatest asset will not be my knowledge, but rather my ability to understand the learner and to impart knowledge so that it can be processed internally.
Let the unlearning begin!
Thanks Vanessa
ReplyDeleteGreat first blog.
Good use of hyperlinking also.
Connectivism is alive and well in many schools and needs you to adopt teaching strategies to support and nurture its growth. A good way to look at the learning theories is to think of yourself as the learning manager rather than the giver of knowledge. 21st century teachers will always be adjusting all the variables in the student learning environment to get the best possible outcomes.
Have you commented on any other blogs?
Thanks Gary.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your advice, Working in VET (at Coal Train) we refer to our Trainers as "Facilitators" so I will work towards this approach within the Primary School environment also.
I have commented on four other blogs and will continue to go through and read/comment - it really is a fantastic way to learn and to get to know some of the other students. I have been having some trouble with my access - for some reason I can only sign in to this account from the original laptop I set it up from.
Interesting first blog post! I actually can't remember the last time I physically held a newspaper and read it. I always read online.
ReplyDeleteI also liked connectivism because there is no real need to know everything off by heart when you can just look up the information you are looking for. However in some professions I think it is definitely important to 'know' rather than to depend on simply searching for the answer, e.g. surgeons, pilots, etc. I think a balance of connectivitism and cognitivism seems to be a good balance for also trying to get students to retain some information whilst knowing how to find information if they require it.
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ReplyDeleteHi Vanessa. I really enjoyed reading your blog. You have a way with words, almost like a journalist. I too, have never used blogs before. In fact, I've hardly even read them. However, now that I know a bit more about them, I imagine there is oceans of information and other people's ideas floating around out there. Maybe one day I will find the time to explore some of it. I imagine however you would need your filters on as some people would probably write some pretty weird stuff.
ReplyDeleteHi Vanessa,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your first ever blog. I'm in the same boat as you where I didn't see myself as a blogger, however I can see the advantages for the classroom that's for sure. I enjoyed your closing paragraph and statement.