Infusing Multiliteracies Into Museum Learning Practice for Inclusive Cultural Participation

Posted by Dr Stephania Savva

Description :

One of the most poignant discussions in the museum world, has been on issues of inclusion and access. Prolific museum figures like Nina Simon presenting in the recent Museum Next Conference in London, shared the vision behind OFBYFOR ALL, a new global initiative to help civic and cultural organisations become OF, BY, and FOR their communities. However, what is it that can help take the next step in terms of inclusion and learning within and out of museum grounds? 

This article draws on a doctoral research study to investigate museum’s democratic potential, through transformative approaches to pedagogy aimed at meaningful cultural participation.

The ‘meaningful’, stands for a degree of competence in reading, interpreting and constructing meaning from the existing multiple forms of language (Stapp, 1984: 112; Mitchell, 2007: 3). ‘Participation’ involves an ability to negotiate the complex dialogic relationship that exists between the written word, the spoken word, images, objects, time and space (Mathewson-Mitchell, 2007: 3).

Consideration of issues of access in relation to the significant literacy requirements of museums, suggests that increasing focus on the explicit teaching of museum-based literacies, could be the way through which to expand museum visiting opportunities for the less 'conventional' audience.

It is actually proposed that museum-based literacies could act as the means to the development of cultural competence in museum environments. This evolution in theory and practice of, and about museums, has been notably part of radical changes in the museum world since the 1970s, mostly known as new museology.

Museums as Agents of Change

The development of a “new museology” (Mayrand, 1985: 201), is a concept used to describe the focus on the potential of museums as a positive social force. Golding (2009) suggests the museums should act as frontiers, places where learning and identity are produced and developed for all, while new ‘bridges’ are raised between non-dominant communities and their own histories (Philip, 1992 in Golding 2009).

It became profound that if museums accept their educational role, “they must also accept their social responsibility to work towards supporting a participatory democratic society” (Hein, 2005: 50). We need to “take advantage of the current context, as ‘opening new educational and social possibilities’ (Cope and Kalantzis, 2000: 18), to promote democratic education and human needs...” (Early, 2007: 67).

Changing Times, Changing Literacy 

Ever since the 1960s, the nature of literacy practice and needs is changing; Hall (1989) suggests this is thought of as a consequence of New Times. New Times is an era of internalization, characterised by the breaking down of borders between local and global contexts resulting from rapid change in communicative practices (Gee, 2000: 183; Luke and Elkins, 1998).

One common element that has changed is that literacy has become inherently plural; thus researchers have problematized the very notion of literacy as a discrete set of skills. Luke and Freebody (2000) provide one of the more recent and useful definitions of literacy: 

"Literacy is the flexible and sustainable mastery of a repertoire of practices with the texts of traditional and new communications technologies via spoken, print, and multimedia". 

(Luke and Freebody, 2000: 9)

In such a perspective of literacy, the literate person is one who develops capacity to respond to emerging and communicative needs, a literate person who is a sophisticated user of texts. The individual engages with literacy practices as a decoder of text, as a maker of meanings, as a purposeful user of information and as a text analyst who employs critical thinking skills in the literate work (Luke and Freebody, 2000; Liddicoat, 2007: 20). 

Figure 1: Evolution of the concept of literacy over fifty decades

Although acknowledging contemporary, 21st century demands of ‘literacy’ and education, this definition does not incorporate the social context of literacy. Literacy is, as Gee (1996: 22) has aptly described, “a socially contested term”. To this respect, literacy is a social practice rather than merely a means to an end. 

Such a consideration draws on the paradigm of New Literacy Studies (NLS) and recognises literacy as a set of socially and culturally constituted practices enacted across and within social and institutional spaces. It acknowledges literacy as a social and historical construction that evolves dynamically (Giampapa, 2010: 4; Potvin, 2009; Garcia, Bartlett and Kleifgen, 2006). 

Literacy is seen as a social responsibility including a critical or transformative emphasis in which literacy is a tool to understanding social structure in which we live so we can transform it in meaningful ways (Gee, 1996: 58; Street, 1995). The social perspective of literacy, implies more than superficial contacts with print; it icorporates an understanding of how to manipulate words and concepts through complex daily social interactions in an accepted manner (Giampapa, 2010; Potvin, 2009; Reid, 1998; Kern, 2000) through cultural apprenticeship (Rogoff, 1990).

The ‘New’ in Literacies: Multiliteracies

Following the NLS paradigm, ‘multiliteracies’ have emerged. The term “Multiliteracies” immediately shifts us from the dominant written print text to acknowledge the complexities of practices, modes, technologies and languages with which literate people need to engage in the contemporary world.

The “New London Group” (a team of ten academics including James Gee and Allan Luke) came together in 1996 concerned about how literacy pedagogy might address the rapid change in literacy due to globalisation, technology and increasing cultural and social diversity. They employed the term ‘multiliteracies’ to address these issues (The New London Group, 1996).

Since then, The Ontario Ministry of Education has come up with a number of literacy initiatives, some of which are characterized by a critical and social view of literacy, where literacy is conceived of as "the ability to use language and images in rich and varied forms to read, write, listen, speak, view, represent, and think critically about ideas" (Expert Panel on Literacy Report, 2004: 5).

Figure 2: Multiliteracies and their design elements (Adapted from The New London Group, 2000)

Luke and Luke (2001: 92-94) echo this idea, and argue that new technologies have facilitated the emergence of new kinds of artefacts, such as digital storytelling, requiring new levels of engagement and development of higher and different mental faculties (i.e. new multiliteracies). Luke (2000) also talks about the critical multiliteracies - being able to understand, debate, and act upon the material, political, and social consequences of technological change.

An alternative view of literacy calls for a reconceptualization of literacy as reading and writing the world (Freire, 1970). This conceptualization foregrounds critical thinking in both teachers and students, and looks beyond functional literacy (reading and writing skills), to the knowledge and power relations in literacy discourses.

Agnello (2001) refers to this approach as postmodern literacy, and argues that through this approach “reading and writing become enhanced methods for exploring the democratic self and its formation through ideological exposure to knowledge and power relations formulated by educational policy texts. Through such exploration, literacy becomes a tool for self-, student, and social advocacy rather than commodity to determine whether one measures up satisfactorily on test scores” (Agnello, 2001: 24-25).

Museum Learning as a Multiliteracy Practice

Museum-based literacies or museum literacy, refers to the competence in drawing upon the museum, its space and collections using certain skills and practices. In 1984, Carol B. Stapp observed that “museum literacy” was then a newly emerging phrase that articulated the older idea of a philosophy of museum accessibility.

Museum literacy goes beyond ‘reading’ objects; which may be understood as visual literacy; it requires a deeper level of process and understanding of the multiple and interacting languages and modes of communication found in the museum. 

By broadening the view of museum literacy, it is acknowledged that the language that is involved in the museum is diverse and incorporates multimodal literacies including: linguistic, visual, audio, gestural, spatial patterns, technological and print-based (see for instance, Cope and Kalantzis, 2000: 160,203; Giroux, 1992; Hooper-Greenhill, 1999).

Figure 3: The multimodal literacies in museum-based pedagogy (Savva, 2016)

This view of museum learning redefines the goals and strategies of educators and the museum curricula. The idea of education in museums is seen as exploratory, broad, experiential, complex and multi-layered; museum strategies are now audience driven (Russo et al., 2007, Hein, 1998; Falk and Dierking, 2000).

To this discussion fits the incorporation of museum learning into the multiliteracies concept; this is facilitated by the realization that a display of material culture conveys messages about the people who created them and the times in which they were used (Pearce, 2003). 

The act of creating an exhibit is parallel to the act of producing knowledge. Exhibits are not simply displays, but systems of signs that express messages about culture. Museums and their exhibits reflect the ideology of those who create them.

In the same vein that “There is no such thing as ‘reading’ or ‘writing,’ only reading or writing something . . .” (Gee, 1999: 93), the same would hold true for creating exhibits. There is no such thing as displaying an artifact without displaying something about that artefact. Also, the interpretation of messages is similar to the deciphering of text, using the signs, symbols, objects, etc., of a museum exhibit as part of the process of creating meaning (Roberts, 1997).

Griffin (1999: 8) identifies the unique learning opportunities offered by museums as: opportunities to closely examine objects or specimens; opportunities for comparison that allow trends and patterns to be deciphered; natural learning processes that incorporate the sharing and communication of ideas and the raising of questions; and opportunities to develop perceptual skills that teach how to gather information from objects and experiences. 

Because museum exhibits make meaning through multiple media, multiple modes, and multiple symbol systems, the literacy practice of museum visiting is a multiliteracy. 

An interesting project exploring the latter, is the ‘Museum Literacy Project’ in 2008-2010, involving nine different museums, administrations and training institutions based in five European countries, supported by the EU programme Lifelong Learning - Grundtvig Learning Partnerships, 2008. The project focus was on museums and audiences with low schooling level, and how museum literacy can be reached and maximize the museum experience for these audience.

Dimensions of a Pedagogy of Multiliteracies for Museum Learning - The Research Framework

Taking into consideration the unique characteristics of the museum environment, I undertook an empirically-based doctoral study involving the design, enactment and evaluation of the Living Museum Partnership (LMP), a museum-school partnership that unfolded in 13 weeks for the construction of a student-generated virtual museum to support environmental education curriculum (Savva, 2016). 

Specific focus was on developing virtual learning environments and applying augmented reality to enhance culturally and linguistically diverse students' repertoires of literacy practices. This design-based research, draws from the field of New Literacy Studies, the proposed Museum Multiliteracies Practice (MMP) framework derived from the multiliteracies pedagogy of the New London Group, the Learning by Design Model adapted from Cope and Kalantzis and Schwartz’s museum based pedagogy.

Figure 4: The pedagogies interacting in the Museum Multiliteracies Practice framework (Savva, 2016)

It is proposed that museum educators and learning professionals undertake an approach for teaching and learning in the museum setting which incorporates multiliteracies pedagogy. Identification of museum literacies requires thorough examination into the interaction of modes that are evident, the incorporation of multiliteracies implicated, the various sign systems that are employed, and the unique nature of the museum learning environment (Mathewson-Mitchell, 2007: 7-8).

The focus should be not only on literacies as communication (meaning for others, as supports for social interaction). My doctoral research for instance also emphasized on literacies as a form of representation (or meanings for ourselves, as supports for thinking).

Cope and Kalatzis (1996, refined 2000, 2009) elaborate on the potentials of a ‘Pedagogy of Multiliteracies’ in fulfilling these aspirations. Two important ideas brought in a multiliteracies pedagogy are Learning by Design and Multimodality.

Learning by Design, is building into curriculum the idea that not every learner will bring the same lifeworld experiences and interests to learning, as well as acknowledging that every learner is not on the same page at the same time; pedagogies of learning are re-configured to construct learning as “a dialogue of difference” (Cope and Kalantzis, 2005: 31). The idea of Multimodality discusses learners’ movement between written, oral, visual, audio, tactile, gestural and spatial modes of meaning-making (Cope and Kalantzis 2005, 2009). 

On this basis, the New London Group (1996) has proposed a multiliteracies pedagogy consisting of situated practice, overt instruction, critical framing, and transformed practice.

• Situated practice includes learners’ prior and present experiences in a community of learners (composed of experts and novices). 

• Overt instruction involves the teacher’s or expert’s interventions to scaffold (Bruner, 1983) or support learning and increase the learner’s consciousness about learning. Scaffolding is a metaphorical concept that refers to the visible or audible assistance that a more expert member of a culture can give to an apprentice (Bruner, 1983, 1986). You might also note Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), that relates to Bruner’s notion of the scaffold here. 

• Critical framing refers to learners interpreting the historical, cultural, political and ideological contexts of learning.

• Transformed practice includes implementing new understandings through reflective practice in other contexts.

Figure 5: The Multiliteracies Model and Learning by Design (Adapted from Kalantzis and Cope, 2000)

Also identified within the Learning by Design Model are four knowledge processes (See Figure 5 above). The knowledge processes identified are:

(a) Experiencing the known and the new

(b) Conceptualising by naming concepts and theorising 

(c) Analysing functions and interests 

(d) Applying appropriately and creatively.

Findings and Implications for Museum Learning Practice

Stapp (1984) had argued that schools do not address the knowledge, skills and attitudes for museum literacy. Recent observations of the characteristic use of museums by school-based teachers suggest that a relatively passive, idealist approach to museum experiences, as identified by Stapp, has continued, with teachers lacking confidence and competence in the museum setting (Mathewson-Mitchell, 2006). 

Based on the findings of my doctoral research, it is suggested that addressing museum-based multiliteracies leads to effective museum-school partnerships and meaningful museum learning practice. Research data suggested that students’ repertoires of literacy were enhanced as they engaged in the learning process as active designers and multimodal learners (Savva, 2016). It was found that students gained opportunities to:

Figure 6: Findings of Museum Multiliteracies Practice research (Savva, 2016)

It is proposed that any museum education programme or museum-school partnership or collaboration pays attention to the following key principles:

1. Teaching children, especially digital natives of our time, to be literate in any setting is not just a set of skills that can be transferred. Rather, education needs to enable them to participate in social situations using the required literacy practices.

2. Museum visiting is seen as multiliteracy practice; as such it requires specific museum-based literacies that are rarely identified or explicitly taught by museums or schools.

Conclusion

Ultimately, this brief review and presentation of the proposed empirically based, research framework for museum learning practice, forms a pathway to follow for inclusive cultural participation at any level and age. The London New Group’s (1996) ideas further developed by Cope and Kalatzis (2000; 2005; 2006) for a Pedagogy of Multiliteracies, could inform the development of the specific literacy requirements of museums, in a way that could lead to full museum literacy and a transformative cultural engagement and participation for diverse audiences.

Cherami Cards: A Fun New App for Creating Online Cards

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

There are many sites for personalizing greeting cards and sending them to friends and colleagues for birthdays, holidays, special occasions, etc. However, the personalization process on many of those sites comes down to simply inserting a line of text into an already created image or animation. Those solutions are great when we don’t have much time for original design, but we still want to show we’re thinking of someone.

On the other hand, there are web apps such as Cherami Cards that help people fully customize their online cards, which can make the recipient feel really special. Though this piece of software is not about boosting productivity or revolutionizing any industry, like some powerful programs that we can’t live without, Cherami can be a very handy partner in “boosting relationships” and stirring someone’s emotions. 

Let’s see how it works, and then we can give you some tips on how and when to use it. 

The Basics of Using Cherami 

Head over to Cherami Cards to make your own card. Officially, there is only one type of e-cards that the app lets you create. Those are love cards. However, very soon there will be more online cards categories, such as holiday, humorous, inspirational cards and more. 

You’ll be prompted to start the creation process by selecting a shape. All current versions of card shapes can be seen on the left side of the screen. If you inadvertently click on some other option, you can always go back to the Shape category by clicking on it on the top “wheel of options.” 

Once the card shape has been carefully selected, you can do the same with other design options, such as Background, Border and Graphics. Go to each section and play with different possibilities. For example, in the Background category you can choose between different background patterns (transparent or solid) as well as pick a color for your background by clicking on the color wheel.

Similarly, you can choose a pattern for your border and its color. Of course, you don’t have to apply any border if you don’t want to.

The graphics category currently has a limited selection of illustrations, but if you’re sending a love e-card, you’ll certainly find what you’re looking for.

However, if your online card is not meant to inspire romantic feelings but serve some other purpose (e.g., scare your friends for Halloween or send thanks for Thanksgiving), then we suggest you click on the Media category and then on the Upload Image option. This will let you upload any photo you want from your computer, such as bats, pumpkins or any appropriate image.

When you click on the Upload Image, you’ll be able to browse through your folders to find the photo. Once you click on it, Cherami will let you crop it in the shape you prefer.

Just click on the Apply button that will appear below, and your image will be placed on your online card.

Finally, click on the Text option and write something cute, witty or wise to make your card even more interesting and original. You can then play with font, text color, etc.

And here’s what we created in a few minutes, but of course, you can do better!

Now click on the Save button in the upper right corner, and then choose whether you want to share, edit or create a new card. If you click on the Share option, you’ll be able to share your romantic e-card on social networks, or send it to someone special via email. Of course, you’ll need to create an account with Cherami in order to do that. 

And the best news goes last: Cherami Cards is a completely free service, so you can create as many cards as you like whenever. In a week or two the mobile view of the tool will be complete, so users will be able to use the service from their mobile devices as well. 

Use Cherami to cheer someone up, remind them that you’re thinking about them, wish them a happy birthday or without any reason whatsoever. That’s what love, friendship and Cherami Cards are about!

YOUR NEXT READ: Labeley - Designing Custom Labels Has Never Been This Easy and Fun

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*by andreascy*

4 Key Elements to Redesigning Learning Spaces for the 21st Century

Posted by Dr Stephania Savva

Description :

Within a field of fast changing nature of technological progress and the emergence of new pedagogical theories such as design thinking, maker-spaces, flipped learning and blended learning among others, it is extremely important for learning spaces to evolve along with time. Here we sum up ways in which to re-design your school or classroom in a way that is meaningful to nurture 21st century learning. 

At the moment, millions of dollars are being invested on constructing new school buildings. Are they really worth the investment? These schools can be considered as monuments to obsolescence. It is common practice that a lot of money are spent to build a 21st century school without really going deep into how and why the school should look like. Instead, people go ahead with the construction that they always wanted to have.

Nevertheless, it is necessary that a substantial theoretical background exists before providing the learning environment that kids need. In fact, it is considered that an appropriate learning space is one of the most convenient practical methods available to enhance the effectiveness of the education system. This redesigned space has the potential to create a better environment that meets the needs and requirements of 21st century learners. 

Source: Classroom Design Piktochart by Mary Wade

The following paragraphs address some of the critical elements which are essential when taking up the re-design of a learning space:

1. Instruction Should Be the Driving Force of Design

It has been a common belief until recently that it is important to have classrooms that are separated into subject-area departments. This was an old fashioned trend and it has changed during the past couple of years with reference to the benefits of cross-disciplinary work. Usually designers of modern world schools are not aware about the instructional and learning models of the 21st Century or the actual curriculum. However, it is appropriate to create awareness among designers, architects and practitioners in order to design the learning spaces in an appropriate manner to cater the requirements of 21st century learning. Otherwise, we would be trying to fit the learning of 21st century into the industrial age learning spaces that existed in 20th century.

2. Learn to Question Everything

None of the preconceived notions about learning spaces and instructions are sacred. Just question yourself some important questions:

- Is it important to have a classroom where the teachers are in front or in the center? Can learning take place only within classrooms?

- Is it essential for a learning space to have a capacity of about 30 students?

- Can there be smaller or larger groups or can we have both?

- Is it essential to stick to a 9 month school calendar?

You need to question everything when designing 21st century learning spaces. Questioning all of our preconceived notions would help us to get a better understanding on how 21st century learning spaces should look like. It will also help to organize these learning spaces in a proper manner.

3. Incorporate Technology to the Learning Spaces

Technology has gone through rapid development over the last two decades which have not left the educational world untouched. The use of educational technology and technology enhanced learning in general has been associated with a variety of benefits. These benefits maximize significantly by redesigning the learning spaces in order to meet 21st century needs.

Trying to incorporate the use of technology to existing learning spaces will not be effective since it will prevent from gaining the maximum benefits out of the investment. The entire learning space needs to be redesigned in order to capitalize the strengths of the technology. The school, classroom or library, should be re-designed from scratch in a way that will fit the use of advanced technology.

Towards this end, it could be meaningful to design a conference room within the school, which would be equipped with the latest video-conferencing capabilities. Such a facility would potentially allow international collaborations and global networking projects for the students to be engaged in. Therefore, redesigning the learning spaces by incorporating technology can simply be defined as rethinking the spaces to meaningfully capitalize on technology.

4. Design Collaborative Learning Spaces to Suit the Needs of 21st Century Learners

Redesigning learning spaces for the 21st century is all about accommodating the specific needs and requirements of the 21st century learners, both students and teachers. It is evident through empirical research that digital natives learn through use of technology within carefully designed learning instruction. To do so, they must be engaged in modern world school designs that facilitate collaborative learning, and in this sense it is useless to build classrooms or lecture halls row after row.

Instead, the conceptualization when constructing contemporary learning spaces should focus on how to enable room for students to engage with each other in collaborative projects. The learning spaces should assist students to learn things independently from teachers, with facilities to explore new things on their own in groups and conduct research without much guidance. Hence, special attention should be given towards making room for research work and brainstorming when re-designing learning spaces. We don’t need to be designers in order to engage with this process. All that is needed is to have the capability to conduct a preliminary research and figure out the essential changes that need to be introduced to the classroom, school or library. For example, as a teacher, you can retrieve different information on tips to create a more collaborative space within the classroom. The teacher could then use the space as a resource through which to facilitate an effective learning experience for the students.

It is imperative also to consider ways in which the learning space designed will facilitate classroom flow. Towards this direction, it would be meaningful to ask the students' feedback in order to get some useful inputs about how the classroom should look like. In fact, you can ask how the student will intend to move around in the classroom. To make things simple for this sort of discussion, you can print a diagram of the classroom and ask the student or students to sketch where they will move. It would be better if you can trace the movements of the teacher in the same diagram with a different color. This sheet of paper can be useful when determining the heavily used areas of the classroom. Then the inputs can be used to support fluid movement within the classroom.

It becomes obvious that there are a lot of factors which should be considered when redesigning a learning space to suit 21st century education standards. If you have a proper plan and a solid theoretical framework in mind, you will not find it difficult to deal with the entire process of redesigning classrooms in order to respond to the needs of 21st century learning environments. Once you are done, the next step would be to obtain required support and supplies so as to make your space rise to the occasion!

It is apparent that delivering a re-designed learning space requires a lot of money to be invested on. However, the investment is totally worth the money because it has the potential to deliver excellent student learning and aesthetic outcomes in the long run.

ALSO OF INTEREST: 8 Ways Digital Storytelling Transforms Learning in 21st Century Education: The Research Evidence

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Personal Learning Networks for Educators

Posted by Dr Stephania Savva

Description :

A Personal Learning Network (PLN) is the learning theory of digital era; it tries to explain complex learning methods within a rapidly changing digital social network.

In their world famous book on learning networks introduced by Stephen Downes and George Siemens posit that “For the first time in history, we know now how to store virtually all humanity's most important information and make it available, almost instantly, in almost any form, to almost anyone on earth. We also know how to do that in great new ways so that people can interact with it, and learn from it.” The previous conceptualizations draw on the theory of connectivism, which integrates principles from chaos, network and complexity and self-organisation theories.

Nowadays, these informal learning networks are popular among the educators all around the world. Basically, Personal Learning Networks aim for educators to benefit by extending their knowledge and experience beyond their schools, as well as their geographical boundaries. To achieve the latter, Personal Learning Networks are forming connections and making personal relationships with educators, subject specialists, teachers, university professors and experts all over the world.

How it Works

It doesn’t matter where you come from or where you live, you can always be in the network and get connected with the people available, share your experiences, and discuss with them about relevant subject matters and the class room. Mainly, the educator chooses whom to get connected with on these networks and how often to be involved.

Within a PLN, educators have distinct goals, interests, needs and matters that are often expressed to the group they include in their network. Other than that, the educator will work together and connect with various members, beginning to develop strong relationships with some people and have a low level of interactions with some other members. Not all crossings will be equally treated. There are several pre-existing Personal Learning Networks, which are highly famous among the educators globally.

Examples of PLNs Around the World

‘Powerful Learning Practice’ is one of the professional development programs for liberal minded learners. It’s a year round program of studies which provides groups of educators with new ideas and practical experience in order to support their technical knowledge and talents, revising classroom activities and making them applicable for today’s classroom, finding other educators with same ideas and plans, and creating their own interactive learning tools. Unfortunately, this Personal Learning Network costs $1,500 per person for a year of professional development in a school and $1,000 per district team individual. Moreover, teachers can get education credits for their participation in this network.

EdChat is another popular Personal Learning Network, which started as a Twitter conversation for learners and now has been expanded to a PBworks wiki that inspire the ideas made on Twitter that interpret in to practical advice. To participate in the EdChat on Twitter, you just have to click the hashtag #edchat and then you can join in the EdChat conversation. EdChat members can also go through the success stories of the network, joining in two live conversations each Tuesday, and join the EdChat group at the Educator’s Personal Learning Networks.

The Educator’s PLN is a Ning website which is an online platform for creating one’s own social network that makes interactions between educators around the globe. It is enriched with an impressive collection of resources like downloadable audio files with education chives such as invited speakers, discussion panels with specific topics like experimenting the Bernoulli’s theory in the classroom, and descriptions of relevant blogs, documents, and lists of resources, videos and events.

edWeb.net is a newly introduced online social network that is freely available and it allows educators to connect with their colleagues and to work together on their work plans and projects based on their own professional learning groups, mentor each other and practice using a variety of new methods. Particular strategies inside the network follow a game-module learning assembly that brings together teachers and the game developers to discover the best practices and conduct further discussions relevant to their field.

Classroom 2.0 is another Personal Learning Network designed for the ones who are interested in sharing ideas and methods on using Web 2.0 and latest media in education practice. This is a meaningful and accessible way of connecting with associates, and organizing events, merging different groups, participating Webinars each Saturday and mainly discussing everything about online projects.

Leading a PLN

Many early believers in Personal Learning Networks have now become major leaders of this approach in educational systems. Not surprisingly, most Personal Learning Networks seem to advocate a great amount of collaboration and reflection. Activities within Personal Learning Networks facilitate self-expression, chatting, blogging and referring e- books. Other than that, many existing educating leaders proceed to upgrade Personal Learning Networks to maintain relevant contents, spread the good ideas and encourage discussions and resources. Personal Learning Networks always accept educators for their ideas and not for their titles.

Numerous books, blogs, newspapers, journals, magazine articles and research papers maintain the continuous development and active use of Personal Learning Networks as a tool for learning. This ongoing process of evolutionary practice is benefiting educators both professionally and personally in many ways.

However, educators need to remember that life-long learning needs continues effort. Similarly educators expect this dedication from students. Personal Learning Networks are always in the form of collaborations. Collaboration is a method of educating which has been among us from the beginning of modern education system. Nevertheless, it was mostly constricted to confronting interactions within classrooms, divisional areas or, in some instances, conferences, only if educators get a chance to participate in one. This is the way educators collaborated and connected and through the time. Some may think that we don't need internet to be connected as educators. However, internet technology is the most prominent way of removing barriers of the time and geographical location and connects people.

Conclusion

Based on the above, it would be meaningful therefore to engage in learning via Personal Learning Networks, since schoolchildren exchange several information on cultural studies, history and many other studies with other students around the world. Educators also share methods, work plans and strategies. Resources are readily accessible when they are on internet. The popular social media application, Twitter is the pillar for most Personal Learning Networks. Interestingly, that view of Personal Learning Networks will continue to change along with evolution of the technology.

Overall, it could be claimed that it is worthwhile to proceed and engage in Personal Learning Networks as these hold a prominent place in the future of education. Nevertheless, like any trend arising, it should be adapted based on the needs of the particular institution and people.

NEXT READ: The Potential of Blended Learning for Steering Education

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The Potential of Blended Learning for Steering Education

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description: 

Think about all of the ways that technology has influenced and infiltrated nearly every aspect of your life. Paying by check? You can do that online or just with your phone. Making a reservation at a restaurant? No need to call - an app will do it for you. Want to turn off the lights and lock your door? Your smart devices can help connect you.

That technological influence extends to our learning environments, too. Classrooms have undergone a centuries-long change that’s only been speed up with the advent of technology. What used to be one-room schoolhouses in the late 1800s are now redesigned spaces which invite students and teachers to engage in learning using tablets, whiteboards, and more.

One of the most prominent ways in which technology is changing classrooms is through impact on what we think of as the traditional learning environment. One classroom with one teacher standing in front of multiple students as an authoritative figure has given way to a concept known as blended learning. The latter is an instructional approach that capitalizes on the best of both worlds - education and tech. 

Blended learning, is a learning trend driving education which in some form, is currently available in nearly every state. In a nutshell, this strategy or approach to teaching and learning involves the student learning through at least partial online delivery of content. In this sense, it offers both traditional instruction - a teacher in front of students - and digital or online content that’s accessible at any time. 

The conceptualizations behind blended learning adhere to the notion that students are not uniform, and learning shouldn’t be either. Based on learning theories such as Gardner’s on multiple intelligences, and multiliteracies pedagogy, it is considered that students have different learning styles and come for culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds which should be taken into consideration when planning a lesson. In this respect, it is suggested that enhancing students’ learning through digital content can be a personalized response to students’ needs and desires, allowing them to learn at their own pace through means that are relevant to their lives.

In relation to the different strategies for undertaking a blended learning approach, six models have been proposed for its implementation: Face-to-Face Driver Model, Rotation Model, Flex Model, Online Lab Model, Self-Blend Model and Online Driver Model. More recently, other alternative blended learning models have been brought to the surface of educational cycles: 

a) The traditional brick-and-mortar blended learning model:

An approach where the instructor uses online platforms to add resources, assign and gather homework, as well as encourage online discussions and other asynchronous learning activities beyond classroom hours

b) The hybrid learning model:

Students attend live events physically or online (for example webinars) while also work in virtual online environments. There could be an arranged schedule where some days students attend the class and others are optional however students must attend online.

c) The flipped learning model:

Teachers and other instructors record their online lectures and students are obliged to watch them before class. During the lesson, they can work on different tasks and in this sense the teacher has more time to work with challenging topics and addresses students’ difficulties. 

Regardless of which type of blended learning model one chooses to adopt, there are certain misconceptions and considerations needed to be addressed. For instance, people often assume that blended learning equals all education online, but that isn’t true. It might be that the focus is on a technology rich environment, nevertheless, there is ‘hands on’ learning. In addition, unlike it is commonly believed, in blended learning students do not work individually only. The can undertake projects in groups with their peers to produce collaborative work online.

Furthermore, blended learning in contrast to the myth that it requires less work than traditional face to face instruction, doesn’t cut down on the amount of work that needs to be done by either students or educators. In fact, both sides may need to work at a more systematic basis. Instructors still need to prepare and students still need to do the work. But blended learning allows those learners to engage with information more frequently in order to fully grasp concepts that may have been more difficult with just one go-round.

Based on these characteristics of blended learning, in summary, the advantages from engaging in such practice have been identified as being:

- The meaningful combination of interactive face to face instruction and digital content through a differentiated personalized based teaching approach

- The use of digitally mediated content such as digital storytelling that has been found to motivate students’ interest and increase students’ learning and affective outcomes

- Access to the instruction such as an online session many times, with stops and pauses to the discretion of the learner.

- Researchers and practitioners suggest that blended learning can encourage students to continue learning outside the classroom. It can expand beyond the traditional school walls to connect with students’ lives.

- Blended learning can maximize the potential for acquiring 21st century skills.

Despite the promising features of this approach, the excitement about the possibilities of blended learning and the ways that technology can better prepare our students and assist our educators needs to be tempered with some serious questions about the process. It’s not a match for every person or every situation. Students need to know what the physical, in-class requirements are, and instructors need to be upfront and proactive about their availability and roles through digital means. 

For instance, the technology that’s a given in a traditional classroom may not be available in each student’s home, which can impact learning and pacing. Students and instructors must have a shared understanding about assignments and work - what files are usable and which are not. And there should be practice and testing so that everyone understands the accessibility and usability of that particular online environment.

Whilst there is no fixed recipe for meaningful teaching and learning instruction, it appears that technology enhanced learning is the present and future of 21st century education. Blended learning could be a flexible and dynamic approach through the meaningful engagement with technology. 

Whatever the end result, it’s important to understand how blended learning cannot guarantee success. It requires commitment on behalf of the educator and careful use of digital means. And therefore it is important to be aware of its different aspects. This graphic is a good place to start.

Source: Quill.com

Conclusively, it appears that exciting times lay ahead for educators and students all together. Now, more than ever, we are in a position to offer the most engaging form of education that will empower students as dynamic and active learners. Blended learning, as it is proposed in this article, is one powerful approach which could change the education game and will be around for many years to come.

READ NEXT: 8 Ways Digital Storytelling Transforms Learning in 21st Century Education: The Research Evidence

I’m all eyes and ears for your comments.

*by andreascy*

Labeley: Designing Custom Labels Has Never Been This Easy and Fun

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

There are multiple reasons for using labels: to inform users about the product’s contents, to make the product look attractive so people would be interested in trying it out, to help people organize their belongings, to alert others about potential dangers of using an item, etc. 

The most basic, simplest label would be a piece of paper applied to an item with a sticking tape. That certainly does the job of identifying a product, but it’s not the best solution if you want to sell an item or make a gift that includes a sticker. In most cases you want your label to look presentable. 

Not everyone can afford to hire graphic designers when branding their products. And in many cases people need labels simply for their private purposes (labeling their kids belongings for summer camp, making stickers for a beer party or a small, intimate wedding, etc.), so paying someone to design their label is out of question.

That’s where a simple, smooth tool such as Labeley comes in. It’s a custom label maker that only requires users to have some imagination, playful spirit and, of course, Internet connection. The tool is web-based and completely free, so it’s definitely worth trying out. 

Use Labeley to Create Beer, Wine, Kids, Household or Any Other Label

Here’s how to use this neat label creator:

Go to the tool’s main page (labeley.com) and first click on Start Designing. You’ll see four category options: beer, wine, kids and general. Check out all four to see different options, backgrounds, illustrations… Then choose the one you like.

Let’s say you chose the Beer category. Select an appropriate label shape from the selection on the left side of the screen.

Now click on Border and pick one whose color you like. This step is optional.

The following step is optional as well. If you want some interesting background, click on Background and choose one from Labeley’s backgrounds gallery. You can also choose the background color.

Next, click on Graphic and pick any graphic that you like. Maybe these illustrations will also give you ideas for a name for your beer brand.

If no illustration is quite what you want, you have another option: to upload any photo/design you want from your computer. Just click on the Upload tab, then on Upload Image, and then browse your computer for an appropriate photo for your beer label.

Then go to the Text option, click on the green Create Text button that will appear, and select from a wide range of fonts. 

You can also choose the font’s color, style (normal or italic) and weight (normal or bold).

Finally, here’s what we’ve created for the purposes of this tutorial:

Play around with Labeley’s design options to see how the tool works, and after 10 minutes you’ll be able to create a professional-looking label for any purpose and occasion. You might even surprise yourself with your newly discovered design skills and talent!

RECOMMENDED: Get HQ Professional PowerPoint Presentation Templates and Diagrams with Powered Template

Give us a shout if you have any questions. Thank you for reading!

*by andreascy*

An Anatomy of Deeper Learning and Implementation for 21st Century Education: The Research Findings

Posted by Dr Stephania Savva

Description : 

21st century education is experiencing significant turbulence as a response to the call for more meaningful and relevant learning experiences that comply with students’ literacy needs and competencies required to succeed in their lives. 

Towards this end, deeper learning has emerged as a theory which could be the means to transform 21st century education when truly integrated in the classroom.

Deep Learning Quote by: Kelsey Sheehy.  Image by: THE OFFICIAL ANDREASCY

Does this hold true? This article will attempt to provide some insights on the matter drawing from research findings from the last two decades.

What is Deeper Learning?

Deeper Learning is a broad term coined by the Hewlett Foundation and refers to the range of skills and knowledge required for students to acquire and master "in order to succeed in 21st century jobs and civic life” (Hewlett Foundation, 2013). The essence of the concept entails a set of competencies incremental to students exposed in academic content. The intention is that through the instructional principles proposed by the deeper learning theory, students gain an in-depth level of knowledge and understanding on different subjects rather than superficial learning, and are in a position to achieve problem solving in and out of a school context, both in their school-word and their lifeworlds to be able to successfully cope with challenges in their college, career and life.

Can Deeper Learning Contribute to Succeeding 21st Century Education?

“Schools aren’t failing and don’t need reform”. Instead, a renown academic and researcher, Tony Wagner states, “we need to reinvent, re-imagine our schools.”.

In response to the dilemma for school leaders on what this transformation should entail for 21st century learning, educational researchers cohort that we should intend to cultivate deeper understandings and higher order thinking in a holistic manner by pursuing changes in terms of students, teachers, school culture, school systems and leadership (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Schools Tranformational Model by Lenz et al. (2015, p. 149)

In order to re-imagine schools in such a transformational and holistic way, deeper learning theory proposes 4 components that need to be implemented in a school setting (Infographic).

1. Policy makers and teachers should opt to create a strong school culture

2. Educational staff should be working collaboratively

3. Teachers should design instructional content that is meaningful and relevant to students' lives

4. Deeper Learning outcomes should be the ultimate intention of each learning experience

 

Infographic: 4 Components of Deeper Learning Outcomes (by Monica Martinez and Dennis McGrath)

One key indicator of whether learning has been improved, is student learning outcomes. The latter relates to achieving 21st century skills or the four Cs of learning as they are commonly referred to: creativity, critical thinking, communication and collaboration. In deeper learning theory, student driven outcomes are more specifically addressed and interpreted in terms of the following:

• Mastering core academic content: Students attain and master core key subjects and use a metalanguage to fulfill certain tasks

• Think critically and solve complex problems: It is imperative for students to exhibit competency in thinking critically, analytical thinking process and creativity in solving problems

• Work collaboratively: Students should be familiarized and feel confident working in groups to be better prepared to respond in a team setting later in their lives and succeed several goals.

• Communicate effectively: Students should be able to communicate effectively both orally and in writing. They must cultivate their presentation skills and developing logical and convincing arguments that are appropriate for communicating in a variety of settings. 

• Self-directed learning and ability to incorporate feedback: It is imperative that students grow into mature learning, be able to set their own learning pace, determine goals and monitor their progress, as well as strive to improve.

• “Academic mindset”: The term refers to the mental state students have by feeling confident based on their skills and abilities, in a way that they are empowered to overcome obstacles.

These outcomes are incremental towards an authentic deeper learning approach.

Deeper Learning in Practice: The Strategies

Deeper Learning is far from a generic theory. In fact, it has already been utilized in a range of settings that extend beyond the scope of education, such as in training in businesses. However, the focus in this article is to examine the practical implementation and strategies pertaining to schools. 

Over the last decade the spotlight is on deeper learning principles (DLP). In regards to the previous, research findings has indicated substantial benefits from the use of deeper learning principles. The National Research Council in its 2012 report Education for Life and Work suggests the following research-based methods for developing true deeper learning: to employ multiple and varied representations of concepts and tasks, encourage elaboration, questioning, and self-explanation, engage learners in challenging tasks through supportive guidance and feedback, teach with examples and cases, promote student motivation, and implement formative assessment.

Other research has showed that among the prerequisites for a successful implementation of the theory are to design instructional content that extends beyond superficial activities and relate to authentic life situations and problems. Towards this direction, learning experiences for students should stem from project based, connected approaches and inquiry based learning principles. Further to these, deeper learning activities should rely on apprenticeship-based learning, which adheres to allocating mentors with a real-world role. All the above should take place in the context of a collaborative classroom setting where groups of students work together to solve complex real life problems and apply transferable knowledge.

 Dr Monica Martinez in her book "In Deeper Learning: How Eight Public Schools are Transforming Education in the 21st Century" (2014), draws on the example of eight public schools educating students based on the following six strategies for developing deeper learning principles:

1. Empowering students to lead their own learning (student owned learning) through disruptive learning experiences. Students as self-learners are empowered through taking over leadership roles, managing complex projects and assignments, as well as engaging in reflective practice. 

2. Emphasize meaningful learning experiences through inquiry-based learning that seeks solutions to real-world complex situations (student centered learning). Students in groups critically reflect and solve problems with teachers acting as facilitators in the learning experience.

3. Design connected experiences and subjects around central concepts and ideas that will lead to Deeper learning outcomes and content knowledge and skills (competency-based learning). In this way the instructional approach promotes a coherent picture of what in-school learning is.

4. Extend learning experiences beyond school with authentic and relevant entanglements and opportunities to learn. This can be achieved through interaction with local communities by reaching out to museums, organizations and corporations.

5. Personalized learning is incremental to cater for students’ individual needs. The latter requires substantial time and dedication to prepare a profile with insights of each student’s needs, abilities and competence in order to then design appropriate and meaningful lessons and activities. 

6. Use of technology is a powerful tool in succeeding deeper learning in the schools researched by Martinez in purposeful ways promotes meaningful learning. Engagement in digital literacy by means of projects can enhance students’ analytical, creative and critical thinking skills, as well as communicative and collaborative attributes effectively regardless of the location, anytime and anywhere.

The above strategies are schematically represented in Figure 2.

Figure 2: Strategies of Implementation to foster Deeper Learning

Research Evidence of the Impact of Deeper Learning

With educators constantly bombarded with new learning theories and best practices to reach the objectives of the new millennium, there is reason to be suspicious and reluctant to adopt new approaches. Nevertheless, in the case of deeper learning, substantial evidence exists on the beneficial impact from its systematic implementation. The vast majority of this work is based in the United States where deeper learning has been embraced by schools, universities and a range of other learning settings.

The American Institutes of Research conducted a study in 2014 which illustrates that students in deeper learning schools graduated at higher rates than others from non deeper learning schools. In particular, in the San Francisco Bay Area, Envision High Schools, fostering deeper learning principles, succeeded more than 90% of their students continuing to college, in comparison to the 50% of students graduating from all California High Schools. Importantly, students from these schools managed to score highest rates in the standardized Academic Performance Index tests, when comparing to all other California schools. And in many of these cases, these students were the first in their family to attend college.

As a result of the need to assess deeper learning, influential foundations have developed different formative assessments including the Collegiate Learning Assessment, which is vastly used by more than 175 institutions across the United States. Internationally, the most reputable test is the Programme for International Student Achievement (PISA) exam, offering a reliable and widely acknowledged measure of key aspects of deeper learning. Further to these, the federal government has funded two unique consortia of states: SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) in order to develop the next generation of assessments that comply with the principles of deeper learning and contemporary education standards.  

Conclusion

The quest for deeper learning is not utopia. It is a complete theoretical approach with practical guidelines to integrate in variant school contexts. Although much research is still needed to determine its impact, the preliminary work being carried out so far illustrates that
  deeper learning could be the path to re-imagining teaching and learning for 21st century education.

RELATED READ: Six Learning Trends Driving Education

Intrigued to know what you think.

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