Society and Technological Change Education The Latin word “universitas,” meaning corporation, came first from the guild of professors and students in the Middle Ages. On receiving a degree, a Bachelor could teach under the supervision of a professor. This arrangement expanded to become the Guild system that governed all craft and professional education during that era (Hess 63-65). (Hess, William B. “Bonaventure,” Catholic Thinkers in the Clear. Allen:Thomas More, 1985.63-74.) Primitive education might be represented by the Guild System. Under this system children were apprenticed to Master craftsmen. The child was accepted at about seven years of age. They carried water, did household chores and were nearby the craftsmen. When the child got be be seventeen or so, if he showed an aptitude for the craft, he might become a journeyman. This meant he was allowed to ply his trade under the supervision of the Master craftsman. The Guild system was a means of creating a unpaid labor force. Early education depended on -Observation -Discourse It was cheap and ineffective. Education (or more accurately Training) was Practical and Professional Emergent education was a combination of altruistic goals and a way to employ more adults. Its characteristics were that it was... -Rote (learned by repetition) -Public and mandated (The Northwest Ordinance in the US dedicates an acre of every unit for a public school) -General (later there might be some trade "specialization") Modern education is... Technical no matter what the subject matter Liberal Less rigorous (after Dewey’s ascendancy) Values independent thought (Asian educational systems, far better at teaching sciences and math, are now attempting to foster creativity).
Using technology to deliver instruction has both advantages and disadvantages, Pros The Very Best Instructor Geographical Distance Is Irrelevant Class Size Can Be Irrelevant (if the technology is used appropriately- web-based help for Microsoft, for example, serves millions of users). Self- paced Learning Is Possible (Each learner can set an personally optimum pace) Immediate Feedback Is Enabled Cons Some Learners Are Not Served (Aural and tactile learners may suffer unless the instruction incorporates "listening" and "doing" lessons. Most online instruction is developed for the "reading" learner.) Economic Inequality Becomes Educational Inequity (If you can't afford the hardware and network, you can't take advantage of online instruction.). Infrastructure Dependencies (if you live in an area that doesn't have fiber optics, your learning experience may suffer.) Group Learning May Be Impeded Social Interaction Is Limited Pros The Very Best Instructor Geographical Distance Is Irrelevant Class Size Is Irrelevant Self- paced Learning Is Possible Immediate Feedback Is Enabled Cons Some Learners Are Not Served Economic Inequality Becomes Educational Inequity Infrastructure Dependencies Group Learning May Be Impeded Social Interaction Is Limited
Technical programs exist to support any level of development Educational Programs (From Lafferty, Iris Obille. “Get the Word Out: New Reading Programs Help Jump Start Beginning and Struggling Students.” Technology and Learning. November, 2005.) Reading Readiness by Knowledge Adventure (Preschool)Teaches Visual Recognition, -Alphabet Recognition, Letter Sequencing, Beginning and Ending Consonants. -Graphical and musical reinforcement. -Software creates reading group based on mastery -Pre and Post scoring -Teacher’s curriculum -Tips to send home -Seventy Lessons ReadingPen K-12 (WizCom Technologies)A three ounce, hand-held tool.Scans, --- -Translates and pronounces -Offers option to break into syllables. -Encourages struggling students who might otherwise be shamed into silence. -Twenty-four language translations SOLO (Don Johnson) -Report writing remedial prompt software -Modules: --Read- OutLoud; --Write- OutLoud; --Draft-Builder; and --Co-Writer -Coaxes the unsteady student to reveal what they already know- then formats the information into a draft of a report. SketchUp 5.0 (Last Software) -3-D design tool -Video tutorials, galleries, user forums, free downloadable models -Architecture, design, stage design, CAD Teaches geometrical and mathematical concepts
Training v. Education (Bailey, Robert W. Human Performance Engineering: A Guide for System Designers. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 1982.) “ Training is the systematic acquisition of skills, knowledge, and attitudes that will lead to an acceptable level of human performance in a specific activity in a given context”(463). In systems that have operational issues, for example, many human performance problems (perhaps even the majority) have little if anything to do with training. Does practice make perfect? Ellis found in 1977 that half of all instruction sessions had no hands-on training and that there was little difference in performance between those with and without practice where little movement skill was required. In 1977, Karlin found savings of over $2.5M for one year in one application. That's over $9M is 2010 equivalent dollars.
What are the approaches to Learning? Descriptive (theory) or Prescriptive (instructions, criteria, conditions of evaluation) Prescriptive Instruction doesn't always work “ To land this plane you must level off to an altitude of about ten feet. Then after you have descended to about two feet, pull back on the elevators and touch down as you approach stalling speed. You must remember that at touch-down the control surfaces are less sensitive, and any gust may increase your airspeed. That may start the plane flying again, so be prepared to take corrective measures with the throttle and elevators. And if there is a cross-wind, lower the wing on the windward side,holding the plane parallel to the runway with the opposite rudder.” (Miller, Galanter and Pribram, 1960, 83)
Prescriptive training can even be nonsensical "Adjust the curvature of your (bicycle’s) path in proportion to the ratio of your unbalance over the square of your speed." As many skills are developed, the learner passes from conscious performance of an operation, to somewhat conscious performance of the operation, to completion with little attention to the performance of the task. Skills Development Stages (Conscious, Shared, Automatic) Developing Skills without Instructions General v. Detailed Instruction. Highly formalized instruction will lead to faster learning; looser instruction can lead to “deeper” learning.
Developing Efficient Skills Do you know how to make a bed? Think about the steps in order. How many times do you move from one side of the bed to the other? If you find that you move from one side of the bed to another, you are probably following prescribed steps you were taught. Is all that walking really necessary?
What conditions suggest on-line instruction? Testing yields “identical” responses (correct performance is always the same) Scheduling constraints (people may work at their own pace) Location constraints (many different locations) The subject matter is stable (frequent updates are not needed) The benefit is greater than the cost Group exercises are not essential (Hilgard and Bower, 1975) Solitary Learning Is Best Used to Teach When the Skill Is… Active Repetitive Learned through Reinforcement Develops Speed or Proficiency through Practice Has a Meaningful Organization Creates a Basis for Understanding Divergent or Independent Thinking Is Encouraged Should Be Customized to the Abilities of the Audience Note: Only a few of these conditions are required for Instructional Technology to be desirable
The Instructional Technologist’s Perspective Advantages (Medsker, 1979) Centralized Control- everyone gets the same course Training is available anytime and anywhere it is needed Real-time interactive training and feedback Computer Based Training (CBT) can be used to track the achievement of course objectives. Disadvantages Requires three sets of skills Subject matter, technology and instructional techniques (the electronic page turner) Two to three hundred hours of development per hour of instruction. This does not include analysis and testing which are roughly equivalent in length. The more sophisticated the hardware and software the longer the training. Not suitable unless courses are going to be needed over a long period of time. Not suitable when a small population is to be trained.
All that you have read and heard to this point is based on the state-of-the art as of yesterday. Today there should be no limits to the ability to train using digital and electronic media. Even the limitations of cost are not what they were recently. Anything that can be done in a conventional setting can be done better, faster, more effectively given existing technology. Let’s explore Accommodating Learning Styles Some students learn most effectively by reading the materials in textbooks and in lecture notes (like the ones provided for you here). These learners are best supported by the dominant on-line learning tools. Those who argue against on-line education frequently claim that the other dominant learning styles are ill-served by technology. Let’s consider if that criticism is justified. Auditory learners retain material best when they hear the information as in a lecture. Today podcasts with or without accompanying visuals can serve this learner effectively. As with other types of programmed instruction, every student will be trained by the very best course developer and delivered by the very best lecturer. Group exercises and Social Interaction among students are also cited as deficiencies in on-line education. With the availability of conferencing software, cameras, mics and multi-screening student interaction can be as effective on-line as they are in-person. If business conferences and dating events can be effectively conducted on-line, the social needs related to education can be satisfied equally well. Instructors sometimes report they can “read” Physical Cues (like facial expressions) from students. These cues can signal when a learning point has been successfully grasped or when reinforcement is needed. Multi-screening could provide the lecturer a view on students better than the view of a front row learner. At the same time, that instructor can verify the signals from those anonymous seats in the back row. Finally, technology can offer visually or aurally impaired learners a truly equal opportunity to learn. The problem then is not a failure of technology. Rather there is a failure to get the technology into the right hands.
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