Module 3 - Collaboration

I think how people interact with others differs depending upon their upbringing.  Whenever we are children, we typically learn to play with “the group” and interacting with other children becomes part of our development.  I think this is often different when you consider the person who was raised as an only child.  Since they are typically used to being alone and without siblings, they might not be as prone to interact or work within groups initially like others may be. 

Technology helps facilitate collaboration in many ways.  A prime example of this can be shown within this course that we are taking now.  Resources such as Google Docs and Skype are allowing us to interact, collaborate and share ideas in a group setting while being in various areas of the world.  San Francisco State University mentions a couple of constructivist principles that tie along with technologies such as these.  One is that people learn to learn as they learn, a concept that I have experienced throughout this class as I continue to gain more knowledge as we progress in this course.  Another is that learning involves language and is a social activity, two things that require interaction and collaboration with others (San Francisco State University, n.d.).

The following citation is for the study that I found that discusses improving learning through collaboration. 

Mendinhos, I. (2009). School library self-evaluation: A way to improve learning through collaboration. International Association of School Librarianship.Selected Papers from the ...Annual Conference, , 1-7. http://search.proquest.com/docview/236052251?accountid=14872

San Francisco State University. (n.d.). Principles of Constructivism. Retrieved on April 13, 2012 from http://online.sfsu.edu/~foreman/itec800/finalprojects/eitankaplan/pages/principles.htm

Module 1 - What are your beliefs about how people learn best? What is the purpose of learning theory in educational technology?

I believe people learn best when they are in an environment and setting that is comfortable to them.  When people are in new places or a setting that in awkward, they tend to be nervous, tense or out of place which can disturb the learning process.  I think this is why we tend to have trial runs in schools when it comes to testing. We want the students to become used to the environment that they will be in and also familiar with who their administrator will be.  This will usually provide the students with more confidence before the “big day”.

I also think people learn best when they have familiarity or prior knowledge with the subject that they are learning.  Mastery of skills previously helps students build onto new skills that they are taught.  It also helps make the attainment of new knowledge more cohesive with what they already know.

According to M.K. Smith, learning theory pertains to “ideas about how or why change occurs” (2011, ¶ 15).  This ties into educational technology because within the field of technology things are constantly ever-changing.  Since the field of education and technology changes constantly, learning theory helps and gives ideas on why those changes occur. 

Smith, M. K. (2003) 'Learning theory', the encyclopedia of informal education, www.infed.org/biblio/b-learn.htm, Last update: December 04, 2011