Quote: “As a way in which the related conflicts are played out in practice, legitimate peripheral participation is far more than just a process of learning on the part of newcomers. It is a reciprocal relation between persons and practice. This means that the move of learners toward full participation in a community of practice does not take place in a static context. The practice itself is in motion (paragraph 31).” Knowledge and learning is ever evolving and therefore it is important that, newcomer and old-timer alike, are actively participating in the upkeep of this process. The cyclical part of the LPP is what keeps it going, and therefore it thrives with the support of an active community. The steady active flow from newcomers to oldtimers are what will be the sustenance of an LPP. The persons in the peripheral eventually will be part of that inner knowledgeable circle that will guide the newcomers. Question: Situated learning requires a balance between experienced and novice members that is voluntary. How can a teacher assess if she/he is doing this correctly? Are there specific things she/he should be looking for? Will the change be based on her experience and that of her students? Connection: I kept thinking about the relationship between learner and educator that we are so accustomed to throughout our K-12 education system and how clearly this is not what LPP is. I also noticed how this is changing especially in the way our program and more specifically this class is set up. We are being challenged to ask questions, discover new things about ourselves and ultimately reach that level of expertise in which we can continue to cycle from learner to master learner. The idea of an LPP relates well with this master’s program because it pushes us to be active participants of the community by building our PLN through a real world lens. The projects and activities are not merely there for us to learn and understand about theories, but to actually apply them in context through the support of a community, our cohort and other teacher that we can connect with via the internet. Epiphany: I will have to admit that this activity was not a piece of cake for me. I struggled with the text, but thanks members of cohort and various google searches, I was able to get a good grasp on this activity. Not only did I get a better understanding of the concept I also realized the importance of a close reading activity across all levels of education. I do something simpler in my class with my 2nd grade students. There at the novice stage and therefore require a lot more coaching, but regardless of the level, I see the value of this. I was able to take away more from this activity, than if I had just read it and taken a quiz on it. I have a deeper understanding of what situated learning is and Legitimate Peripheral Participation. Click on the button below to view my google doc. Chapter 7 Knowing, Making, and Playing
Quote: “In play, therefore, learning is not driven by a logical calculus but by a more lateral, imaginative way of thinking and feeling instead. Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Locations 1403-1404). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. Question: Can someone be all three frames: homo sapiens, homo faber, and homo ludens? or is someone more one than the other? Connection: I can see the importance of having all three of these frames. Each of these frames will push our global society towards a different/much more self driven path than what we are doing for learners now. Epiphany: I realized that the most important moments in learning are when a person is exploring as they are trying to figure something out. When their imagination/curiosity is driving their thinking in a game and creating a place for them to experiment, using their ideas becomes a very a powerful tool for learning. Chapter 8 Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out Quote: Geeking out asks the question: How can I utilize the available resources, both social and technological, for deep exploration? Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Locations 1488-1489). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. Question: Are these three stages (Hanging out, messing around, and geeking out) innate to the new generations? Connection: I see how important technology driven social interaction is to our new society and the up-and-coming generations of learners. Therefore, it is crucial for all master learners/teachers to bring all that into the classroom to create more meaningful lessons. Epiphany: I realized that the stages described in this chapter indicate the important steps towards successful learning moments. I see how important it is to let children create their own learning paths in education. Chapter 9 The New Culture of Learning for a World of Constant Change Quote: “And where imaginations play, learning happens.” Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Location 1713). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. \ Question: How can we push for more educators to apply this new culture of learning? Connection: I can see why in our courses for this program we are given opportunities to interact/share information during our discussion boards/online meetups. Collaborating as a collective will create a better understanding of content and also create new questions of inquiry brought forth because of these moments of collaboration. Epiphany: When I finished reading the book I realized that it’s not the end of the journey, it’s the road to get there that makes learning successful. Throughout this journey a student/learner should be constantly collaborating, synthesizing our rich resources of information and using play/imagination to push forth through this “fluid knowledge”. Chapter 4 Learning in the CollectiveQuote: “In communities, people learn in order to belong. In a collective, people belong in order to learn. Communities derive their strength from creating a sense of belonging, while collectives derive theirs from participation.1”
1Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Locations 622-623). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. Question: How do people find their place in a collective? Connection: Our Masters’ program is teaching us how to build our PLN by embracing peer-to-peer learning. We are building our collective via our cohort. Epiphany: A collective is an integral part of all learning because of how connected we are now. There is no I but a very strong we. The collective helps build, support, and challenge our learning and thus create a place for meaningful learning. It doesn’t dictate what we must learn, but instead supports whatever the individual wants to learn. Chapter 5 The Personal with the CollectiveQuote: “At their best, blogs give an individual the chance to interact with and become part of a collective that both shapes and is shaped by his or her thoughts.” Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Locations 808-809). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. Question: Should everyone blog? Why? Connection: Thanks to Dr. Heil I can confidently say that I’m learning how to understand the beauty and purposeful use of blogging. Which in turn is helping me to understand how both the personal and the collective stand together. Epiphany: I understand the importance of the collective. I can help to build this collective, which in turn will help me to grow professionally and personally. I can connect with others to build and enhance my knowledge in multiple ways. Chapter 6 We Know More Than We can Say.Quote: “Students learn best when they are able to follow their passion and operate within the constraints of a bounded environment.” Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Locations 1055-1056). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. Question: How can teachers develop lessons that embrace tacit knowledge? Connection: I had seen and used some of the tools we are currently using, but not in an educational context. But now, with all the readings, videos, and wealth of information I have been provided I see the purpose of these things more. Why? because I was given some structure and then set free to pursue my professional interests. Epiphany: I can clearly understand the importance of choice. This empowers the learner to find his or her own path. I am in charge of what and how much I am learning because I’m seeking these experiences independently. Chapter 1:Quote
“...What happens to learning when we move from the stable infrastructure of the twentieth century to the fluid infrastructure of the twenty-first century, where technology is constantly creating and responding to change?1” 1Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Locations 51-53). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. Question: I wonder how long it will take before all master learners accept their new role in education, or if they will ever accept? Connection: In the #2ndChat EDU Chat we discussed ways you know you have a global classroom and a lot of the answers revolved around the importance of cultivating 21st century learning using technology. I think that this chapter pushes for that. Epiphany: My aha moment came at the very beginning when I read the part I quoted of being able to switch to a fluid structure. I think this really put into to perspective how important it is to let go of the old and and embrace the fluid structure that is coming. Chapter 2 A Tale of Two CulturesQuote: “The ultimate endpoint of a mechanistic perspective is efficiency: The goal is to learn as much as you can, as fast as you can. In this teaching-based approach, standardization is a reasonable way to do this, and testing is a reasonable way to measure the result.1” 1Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Locations 331-332). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. Question: Will this culture “that emerges from the environment, and grows along with it” fully close the achievement gap? Connection: EDL621 discussed the various learning needs and styles and this chapter emphasizes the learner that thrives on change and how it needs it to create further change. Epiphany: I can see how important it is for all educators to embrace the culture in which we are not the providers of knowledge, but the facilitatos of said knowledge Chapter 3 Embracing ChangeQuote: “In a world of near-constant flux, play becomes a strategy for embracing change, rather than a way for growing out of it.1” 1Thomas, Douglas; Seely Brown, John (2011-03-12). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change (Kindle Location 562). CreateSpace. Kindle Edition. Question: Will this fast paced change bring back a resurgence of people wanting to slow things down? Connection: While I wa participating in our EdChats I realized how many people out there are ready to see change happen now. I was fascinated by the massive amount of information that everyone shared in the 1hour session. Epiphany: We need to embrace this new change because it’s here to stay. This new generation is here to interact, create a fast paced change and create its own destiny. They will not wait for us(older generations) to catch up. I will have to officially state that my view of the teaching profession has changed forever. First, I would like to point out that I will no longer settle for status quo teaching. I will ensure critical thinking is implemented in my classroom. I want to inspire change as inspired by other master learners. I began my career thinking of myself as a facilitator of knowledge, now, I recognize that this belief is more in line with where education is headed. Therefore, I want to join the group of people interested in the very change that will benefit learners, master learners, and ultimately our global society. We need critical thinkers with the ability to solve real-world problems and at the same time prepare for that uncertainties of our future.
I completely agree with all seven of Wagner’s essential survival skills for the 21st century. I also understand the need for compassion and respect for other people and our world as vital to our global society and for our learners’ well being. Critical thinking and problem solving involve more than just thinking critically. These skills require the student to observe the situation and to ask the necessary questions to lead the student to the solution. I understand that I can't just teach students to answer my questions. The students must practice creating questions on their own, a process that is crucial for all learners. This way students can rid themselves of that need to be given the questions, but instead, dig deep in their intellect and devise their own questions. They should be guiding their own thinking. They can't understand something if they are not working on finding questions for their inquiry. I have worked on retraining my instruction to include more moments where the students can think for themselves with little support. Through this process, the students can build on their experience and gain the tools necessary to succeed with their problem solving skills. Collaboration across networks and leading by influence creates that connectedness that globalization and technology has initiated. We need to understand that we can stand alone, but if there are no other people around, than we were just standing. We need each other to solve problems having multiple angles in an efficient manner, therefore, we should be able to collaborate with everyone, including people from other walks of life. Agility and adaptability push us to be flexible. I think that our learners need to understand that the world is constantly changing and we need to adapt accordingly. Our history proves it, they should be able to understand this just by seeing how much the real world has changed and continues to change. Initiative and entrepreneurialism provides the edge that keeps our world interesting. Learners are innately curious, which is why we are always trying to improve our lives by solving current problems and thinking of ways to make our lives easier, while also planning for the future. It’s not all about solving problems, learners should be have effective oral and written communication, so that we can push our progress further. Once a learner has solved an issue, they should be able to clearly state how they got the answer so we can continue to build on this knowledge. However, before a learner can communicate,they should be able to go through the plethora of information that is readily available to them to determine what is useful and valid. This will make it easier for them to find those self created questions and continue to add to this useful information. By adding to the current knowledge banks we house via the internet, a learner can build that curiosity and imagination that pushes the learning to higher levels of understanding and ultimately building that compassion/respect for other fellow human beings and our world. The implementation of these skills will create well rounded global citizens and the future leaders of our world. These skills are not implemented the same way everywhere, as we read in the three examples provided by Wagner. These skills need to be delivered according to the needs of the learner, because if there is one thing all current educators can agree on, it’s that we all learn differently. I believe that in my classroom, implementing these skills would be focused around project based learning and using technology as primary tool. Wagner did not make many references to elementary school educators, but I expect that he would agree that by combining rigor with basic concepts that need to be learned at the primary grades, learners will be better prepared once they reach the junior high and high school level. The more opportunities that we provide learners to developing these skills, the better prepared they will be for the real world, which in my opinion is the ultimate goal of education. I will commit to begin by bimonthly projects in which the students have opportunities to apply these skills. I want them to see these skills as something that happens organically and that asking a lot of questions is important and useful. I will create these projects based on content that we are currently studying and tie it in with the real world issues. An example of this would be having the students study why we are conserving water, then exploring that subject from various angles. The project assignment would have them find guiding questions to help us understand and ultimately find a solution. I would give my students creative freedom to present their findings via a medium of their choice. Then we would would all find ways to assess each other via a rubric. I would measure success by using this rubric as well the constructive criticism provided by their fellow learners. I will then create opportunities for us to find other problems of their choice and have them explore these. Wagner has breathed change into my conscious and I’m ready to attempt to be part of it. Reinventing the Education profession...
This was one my favorite reads of all. I couldn't stop nodding and agreeing with his personal experience as an educator because that's almost identical to what happened in my Teacher Preparation program. I couldn't believe it. Tony Wagner went through Harvard school of Education. I would have thought that they would be ahead of this game. But I guess a broke unchallenged system is broken everywhere. My biggest take away from this chapter was the idea of "reinventing" the education profession. This sounded very scary because of how much havoc reinventing can cause on anything. I also thought about veteran teachers and how unfair it would be to tell someone who's been teaching for many years, that they have to do it differently. I know that would be a fight. With that said, I realize that there must be some casualties in reinventing anything. Change happens and we all must roll with the punches. We can't expect change/reinvention to come without a price. This price I think is reasonable since we will have better teachers, administrators and hopefully students. I realize that sometimes it is not easy to look at yourself and say,"This is not working. Let me try something different." I know because I have seen a change in me that has caused me to think about how I would rate myself as an educator. I don't think I'm bad, but at the same time, I'm not sure if good. I want to know. This is why I think Tony Wagner's suggestion to reinvent the profession makes sense. We don't have to throw everything away. We just have to fine tune it and push for programs that will prepare us to teach in the real world and for the real world. We have to stop focusing on test and statistics that will not give us long term, maintainable results. What is good now might not be good in 2,3, or 4 years from now. But if we focus on committing to always staying relevant, coming to a consensus of what is rigor and focusing our attention on the problem we should be focusing on. I think we can do this. |
AuthorMy name is Ulises Cisneros and I'm on a journey that I never thought I would take. I'm here to learn, stay relevant, and expand my knowledge of technology in education. Archives
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