DC: Is the future of one of our powerful learning ecosystems more like adding your own desired groups/cohorts, topics, items, etc. to your server? Like a learning-focused type of Discord service? (https://t.co/Vq4dZamBf2)#future #learningecosystems #personalizedlearning pic.twitter.com/wVMWYBN3R1
— Daniel Christian (he/him/his) (@dchristian5) August 17, 2023
On 07/13/2023,
in adjunct faculty, attention, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, Daniel S. Christian, faculty, instructional design, learning, Learning Experience Design, learning theories, memory,
by Daniel Christian
Sources of Cognitive Load — from learningscientists.org
Excerpt:
Cognitive Load Theory is an influential theory from educational psychology that describes how various factors affect our ability to use our working memory resources. We’ve done a digest about cognitive load theory here and talked about it here and here, but haven’t provided an overview of the theory so I want to give an overview here.
…
Cognitive load theory provides useful and dynamic model for how many different factors affect working memory and learning. Hopefully this post provides a useful overview of some of the main components of cognitive load!
From DSC:
Along these lines, a while back I put together a video regarding cognitive load. It addresses at least two main questions:
- What is cognitive load?
- Why should I care about it?
How do I put it into practice?
- Simplify the explanations of what you’re presenting as much as possible and break down complex tasks into smaller parts
- Don’t place a large amount of text on a slide and then talk about it at the same time — doing so requires much more processing than most people can deal with.
- Consider creating two versions of your PowerPoint files:
- A text-light version that can be used for presenting that content to students
- A text-heavy version — which can be posted to your LMS for the learners to go through at their own pace — and without trying to process so much information (voice and text, for example) at one time.
- Design-wise:
- Don’t use decorative graphics — everything on a slide should be there for a reason
- Don’t use too many fonts or colors — this can be distracting
- Don’t use background music when you are trying to explain something
On 07/07/2023,
in art, attention, career development, communities of practice, creativity, digital audio, Emotion, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, formal learning, ideas, informal learning, instructional design, K-12 related, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, learning spaces, liberal arts, more voice more choice more control, multimedia, music, personalized/customized learning, project-based learning, society, sociology, story, storytelling, student-related, United States, youth,
by Daniel Christian
Recording Arts as Reengagement, Social Justice and Pathway — from gettingsmart.com
Key Points
- After a successful career as a recording artist, David “TC” Ellis created Studio 4 in St. Paul to spot budding music stars.
- It became a hangout spot for creative young people, most of whom had “dropped out of school due to boredom and a sense that school wasn’t relevant to their lives and dreams.”
- Ellis and colleagues then opened the High School for Recording Arts in 1998.
On 05/15/2023,
in active learning, collaboration, communications, communities of practice, education, education reform, education technology, engagement / engaging students, ideas, instructional design, K-12 related, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, learning spaces, participation, passions, pedagogy, project-based learning, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, United States, youth,
by Daniel Christian
Inviting Learners into Work That Matters — from gettingsmart.com by Tom Vander Ark
Key Points
- We’ve found pockets of excellence in three dozen high school visits this spring.
- Where we’ve spotted evidence of deeper learning (i.e., engagement, critical thinking, excellent public products) it’s been work that matters to the learner and their community– it’s relevant, purposeful, and consequential work.
On 05/09/2023,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adjunct faculty, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, change, collaboration, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, computer science, content development, aggregation, repositories, copyright/ownership/NFTs, corporate universities / corporate training, digital learning, education, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, generational differences, global / globalization, heutagogy, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, leadership, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, learning theories, library / librarians, lifelong learning, Microsoft, more voice more choice more control, online media, online tutoring, open courseware and systems, personalized/customized learning, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, programming, research, skills, society, strategy, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, the downsides of technology, tools, training / L&D, trends, United States, universities, vendors, virtual tutoring, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, workplace, youth,
by Daniel Christian
Also relevant/see:
On 04/20/2023,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Blockchain, business, business side of he, change, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, credentialing, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, education, experimentation, face-to-face, formal learning, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, informal learning, innovation, instructional design, K-12 related, law schools, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, lifelong learning, more voice more choice more control, reinvent, skills, society, teaching & learning, training / L&D, United States, universities, vision/possibilities,
by Daniel Christian
A New Era for Education — from linkedin.com by Amit Sevak, CEO of ETS and Timothy Knowles, President of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
Excerpt (emphasis DSC):
It’s not every day you get to announce a revolution in your sector. But today, we’re doing exactly that. Together, we are setting out to overturn 117 years of educational tradition.
…
The fundamental assumption [of the Carnegie Unit] is that time spent in a classroom equals learning. This formula has the virtue of simplicity. Unfortunately, a century of research tells us that it’s woefully inadequate.
From DSC:
It’s more than interesting to think that the Carnegie Unit has outlived its usefulness and is breaking apart. In fact, the thought is very profound.
If that turns out to be the case, the ramifications will be enormous and we will have the opportunity to radically reinvent/rethink/redesign what our lifelong learning ecosystems will look like and provide.
So I appreciate what Amit and Timothy are saying here and I appreciate their relaying what the new paradigm might look like. It goes with the idea of using design thinking to rethink how we build/reinvent our learning ecosystems. They assert:
It’s time to change the paradigm. That’s why ETS and the Carnegie Foundation have come together to design a new future of assessment.
-
- Whereas the Carnegie Unit measures seat time, the new paradigm will measure skills—with a focus on the ones we know are most important for success in career and in life.
- Whereas the Carnegie Unit never leaves the classroom, the new paradigm will capture learning wherever it takes place—whether that is in after-school activities, during a work-experience placement, in an internship, on an apprenticeship, and so on.
- Whereas the Carnegie Unit offers only one data point—pass or fail—the new paradigm will generate insights throughout the learning process, the better to guide students, families, educators, and policymakers.
I could see this type of information being funneled into peoples’ cloud-based learner profiles — which we as individuals will own and determine who else can access them. I diagrammed this back in January of 2017 using blockchain as the underlying technology. That may or may not turn out to be the case. But the concept will still hold I think — regardless of the underlying technology(ies).
For example, we are seeing a lot more articles regarding things like Comprehensive Learner Records (CLR) or Learning and Employment Records (LER; example here), and similar items.
Speaking of reinventing our learning ecosystems, also see:
On 04/13/2023,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adult learning, Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, Blockchain, career development, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, credentialing, education, education reform, experimentation, future, global / globalization, heutagogy, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, informal learning, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, K-12 related, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, lifelong learning, pathways, personalized/customized learning, platforms, professional development, reinvent, skills, society, student-related, training / L&D, United States, universities, vendors, virtual K-12 schools, vision/possibilities, workplace, youth,
by Daniel Christian
Credentialed Learning For All — from gettingsmart.com
Vision
Learning happens throughout life and is not isolated to the K-12 or higher education sectors. Yet, often, validations of learning only happen in these specific areas. The system of evaluation based on courses, grades, and credit serves as a poor proxy for communicating skills given the variation in course content, grade inflation, and inclusion of participation and extra credit within course grades.
Credentialed learning provides a way to accurately document human capability for all learners throughout their life. A lifetime credentialed learning ecosystem provides better granularity around learning, better documentation of the learning, and more relevance for both the credential recipient and reviewer. This improves the match between higher education and/or employment with the individual, while also providing a more clear and accurate lifetime learning pathway.
With a fully-credentialed system, individuals can own well-documented evidence of a lifetime of learning and choose what and when to share this data. This technology enables every learner to have more opportunities for finding the best career match without today’s existing barriers around cost, access, and proxies.
Addendum on 4/28/23 — speaking of credentials:
First Rung — from the-job.beehiiv.com by Paul Fain
New research shows stacking credentials pays off for low-income learners.
Stacking credentials pays off for many low-income students, new research finds, but only if learners move up the education ladder. Also, Kansas is hoping a new grant program will attract more companies to participate in microinternships.
On 04/12/2023,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, CMS/LMS, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, digital learning, elearning, emerging technologies, experimentation, future, game-changing environment, higher education, ideas, innovation, instructional design, interaction design, interactivity, IT in HE, law schools, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, microlearning, multimedia, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, teaching & learning, tools, traditional / tradition, United States, universities, vendors,
by Daniel Christian
How Easy Is It/Will It Be to Use AI to Design a Course? — from wallyboston.com by Wally Boston
Excerpt:
Last week I received a text message from a friend to check out a March 29th Campus Technology article about French AI startup, Nolej. Nolej (pronounced “Knowledge”) has developed an OpenAI-based instructional content generator for educators called NolejAI.
Access to NolejAI is through a browser. Users can upload video, audio, text documents, or a website url. NolejAI will generate an interactive micro-learning package which is a standalone digital lesson including content transcript, summaries, a glossary of terms, flashcards, and quizzes. All the lesson materials generated is based upon the uploaded materials.
From DSC:
I wonder if this will turn out to be the case:
I am sure it’s only a matter of time before NolejAI or another product becomes capable of generating a standard three credit hour college course. Whether that is six months or two years, it’s likely sooner than we think.
Also relevant/see:
On 04/12/2023,
in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, career development, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, communications, communities of practice, content development, aggregation, repositories, copyright/ownership/NFTs, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, creativity, digital audio, digital storytelling, digital video, disruption, drama/theater, education technology, educational games / serious games, emerging technologies, Emotion, engagement / engaging students, entrepreneurship, experimentation, future, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, K-12 related, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, legislatures / government / legal, liberal arts, media/film, multimedia, new business models, online media, platforms, presentations, productivity / tips and tricks, skills, story, storytelling, teaching & learning, tools, training / L&D, United States, universities, vision/possibilities, webinars,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
Before we get to Scott Belsky’s article, here’s an interesting/related item from Tobi Lutke:
I just clued in how insane text2vid will get soon. As crazy as this sounds, we will be able to generate movies from just minor prompts and the path there is pretty clear.
— tobi lutke (@tobi) March 29, 2023
Our World Shaken, Not Stirred: Synthetic entertainment, hybrid social experiences, syncing ourselves with apps, and more. — from implications.com by Scott Belsky
Things will get weird. And exciting.
Excerpts:
Recent advances in technology will stir shake the pot of culture and our day-to-day experiences. Examples? A new era of synthetic entertainment will emerge, online social dynamics will become “hybrid experiences” where AI personas are equal players, and we will sync ourselves with applications as opposed to using applications.
Unauthorized sequels, spin-offs, some amazing stuff, and a legal dumpster fire: Now lets shift beyond Hollywood to the fast-growing long tail of prosumer-made entertainment. This is where entirely new genres of entertainment will emerge including the unauthorized sequels and spinoffs that I expect we will start seeing.
Also relevant/see:
Digital storytelling with generative AI: notes on the appearance of #AICinema — from bryanalexander.org by Bryan Alexander
Excerpt:
This is how I viewed a fascinating article about the so-called #AICinema movement. Benj Edwards describes this nascent current and interviews one of its practitioners, Julie Wieland. It’s a great example of people creating small stories using tech – in this case, generative AI, specifically the image creator Midjourney.
Bryan links to:
Artists astound with AI-generated film stills from a parallel universe — from arstechnica.com by Benj Edwards
A Q&A with “synthographer” Julie Wieland on the #aicinema movement.
From DSC:
How will text-to-video impact the Learning and Development world? Teaching and learning? Those people communicating within communities of practice? Those creating presentations and/or offering webinars?
Hmmm…should be interesting!
On 03/22/2023,
in 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, adult learning, change, communications, communities of practice, content development, aggregation, repositories, digital audio, digital video, experimentation, faith, society, vendors,
by Daniel Christian
Houses of worship to move streaming from social media to dedicated platforms — from inavateonthenet.net
Excerpt:
A report by Pushpay, with data from over 1,700 organisations has found that while 91% of churches currently livestream worship services on social media, only 47% plan to do the same in the upcoming year.
The report, entitled ‘State of Church Tech 2023 is available to download here.
The reason cited for this shift is organisations’ lack of control on social media platforms to maintain engagement, as users are bombarded with pop-up windows, notifications, status updates, and more.
This is driving a rise in custom video players, website embeds, mobile app streaming, and other platforms that are better suited to maintain engagement.
On 02/23/2023,
in adult learning, change, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, Daniel S. Christian, education, experimentation, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, innovation, instructional design, K-12 related, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, lifelong learning, reinvent, society, staying relevant, United States,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
It seems to me that the idea of a Trim Tab Group goes waaaaay back. And from an excellent teacher — the LORD.
Mark 2:21 — from bible.com
“No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse.”
So the idea of starting a small, different group that will grow into an amazingly large group of people may turn out to be the route that the invention of a new lifelong learning ecosystem will need to go through.
On 02/22/2023,
in business, career development, change, changing business models, collaboration, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, Design Thinking, education, education reform, Emotion, engagement / engaging students, entrepreneurship, experimentation, future, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, K-12 related, leadership, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, legislatures / government / legal, lifelong learning, motivation, participation, passions, traditional / tradition, training / L&D, United States, universities,
by Daniel Christian
Why The Education Economy Is The Next Big Thing For The American Workforce — from fastcompany.com by Brandon Busteed
How can integrating our educational system, our employers, and our job creators affect our modern economy?
Excerpts (emphasis DSC):
Though the economy and education have long been topics of top concern to Americans, we haven’t created strong linkages between the two.
The topics are more like two castles with a large moat between them. Yet there is nothing more important we can do as a country than to build the world’s most effective “educonomy,” which would seamlessly integrate our educational system, our employers, and our job creators.
…
All told, we collected the voices of close to 1 million Americans on this subject in the past year alone. And what we’ve learned is alarming:
Student engagement in school drops precipitously from 5th grade through 12th grade. About three quarters of elementary school kids (76%) are engaged in school, while only 44% of high school kids are engaged. The longer students stay in school, the less engaged they become. If we were doing this right, the trend would be going in the exact opposite direction.
From DSC:
I appreciated the imagery of the economy and education being like two castles with a large moat between them. I, like many others, also use the term siloed to describe our various learning ecosystems — PreK-12, higher education and vocational programming, and the corporate/business world (I realize I could also include those who work in other areas such as the government, but hopefully folks get the gist of what I’m trying to say).
But here’s the most disturbing part (albeit likely not a surprise to those working within K-12 environments):
About seven in 10 K-12 teachers are not engaged in their work (69%), and as a profession, teachers are dead last among all professions Gallup studied in saying their “opinions count” at work and their “supervisors create an open and trusting environment.” We also found that teacher engagement is the most important driver of student engagement. We’ll never improve student engagement until we boost teachers’ own workplace engagement first.
Our older daughter works in an elementary school where several of the teachers left prior to Christmas and more have announced that they are leaving after this academic year. For teachers to leave halfway through the year, you know something is majorly wrong!
I think that legislators are part of the problem, as they straight-jacket teachers, principals, and administrators with all kinds of standardized testing.
I would think that such testing dictates the pace and the content and the overall agendas out there. I don’t recall taking nearly as many standardized tests as our youth do today. Looking back, each of my teachers was engaged and seemed to be happy and enthusiastic. I don’t think that’s the case any longer. Let’s ask the teachers — not the legislators — why that is the case and what they would recommend to change things (before it’s too late).