2+Design+for+Learning

=​Design: Teaching for Today's World =

The presentation by Dr. Sharon Friesen and Candace Saar can be enhanced by examining more closely some of the practical aspects of Teaching and Learning 21st Century Skills. Although the presentation provided rationale and rubrics for teachers to improve their teaching and the learning of their students, the presentation did not specifically outline resources teachers would be able to use to design and build the understanding of their students.

**//Teachers// //are Designers of Learning//**

The first in Dr. Friesen’s resource, //What Did You Do In School Today?// identifies that effective teaching practices begin with learning opportunities that are designed to engage students both academically and intellectually (Friesen, 2009).

The rubric below guides teachers in self reflection of how they are designing instruction that is focused on building understanding.

=//Exemplars and Guides // = = = Teachers are in need of exemplars and guides of how to action each area of the rubric above. There are abundant online resources, exemplars and guides that model and provide templates for teachers in using the above rubric. Below are descriptors from the "**Design Is Focused On Building Understanding"** section of the above rubric with accompanying resources that extend the discussion from the 21st Century Learning session.

** 1) Rubric Descriptor: Skillfully Designing Opportunities that Focus Student Inquiry on Issues, Questions and Problems Central to the Discipline **

​ Sk​ill​fully designing opportunites for students is one of the areas teacher can rely upon the collaborative technologies to provide opportunities for their students to investigate questions and problems central to the curriculum. As the article Learning Environments: Where Space, Technology and Culture Converge (Brown et al, 2009) emphasize, teachers are faced with the challenge of finding the right time and place for technology to be incorporated. This applies to student use as well as teacher use in planning and research.

The online resource Intelligence Online, [|www.iomembership.com] is a online template that assists teachers in skillfully designing learning opportunities that emphasize problem solving, multi sources, inquiry and collaboration. Teachers post, edit, revise, share and publish learning opportunities that they have designed to meet particular learning outcomes, grade levels and skills. There is also a focus on student engagement, with opportunities for students to collaborate and links to experts.



**2) Rubric Descriptor: Engagement By Connecting To Students' Lives And The World **

​A practical aspect of increasing student engagement is by connecting text to the students' every day lives and interests. As the resource //Using Students' Engagement To Improve Literacy ( [|www.ncrel.org/litweb/adolescent/qkey10/qkey10.pdf] ) outlines, student engagement increases when classroom instruction relates directly to student interests. //



Fo​r other practical suggestions and examples of how students can become involved in an issue that has direct real world implications, peruse [|www.dosomething.org]. Here, students and teachers have created initiatives that students can join, or a platform for students to initiate, publicize and promote a curricular area that can make a difference to the larger community. Examples of some of the projects are:

- Pollution Prevention - Recycling Initiative - Math Tutoring Program - Story Publication For Teens

​The link below outlines a literacy project that students have been a part of. The project is part of Do Something.org and is an example of how students can relate their learning to a meaningful purpose.

media type="youtube" key="EibZywkuMPM" height="250" width="439"

**3) Rubric Descriptor: Skillfully Designing Strong Inquiry Based Learning **

The video link provides an overview of Inquiry Based Learning and clips of it in action for an elementary science class.

media type="youtube" key="XEnrDXPxFo4" height="326" width="418"

=Professional Development=

​There are a variety of other professional development opportunities for teachers in this area. For example, the CRC has a unique conference this August in Calgary. The Conference outline is below.

Research reveals that, although there has been an increase in the use of technology in our world, computers are generally poorly integrated into teaching and learning processes (Cox et al., 2004; Tondeur et al., 2008) and emphasizes that that merely knowing how to use technology is not the same as knowing how to teach with it.

Spend two days with CRC consultant Brenda Dyck, exploring the **T**echnological, **P**edagogical, **C**ontent **K**nowledge model (TPACK) model, a practical guide that helps to clear away the fog accompanying the use of technology in education by providing "//a way of thinking about the knowledge teachers need to understand to integrate technology effectively into their classrooms”// (Mishra & Koehler, 2008). This two part, highly interactive Technology Boot Camp will introduce teachers with a framework that will position them as designers of a curriculum that flexibly and creatively integrates technology and pedagogical approaches together in ways that supports student engagement in the learning process and address curriculum in powerful ways in tune with digital learners. Teachers are invited to bring a portion of their upcoming Fall curriculum to work with during these two days.

During this interactive session, participants will:

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 108%;"> · **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Engage **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">with the basic components of the TPACK model · **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Experience **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';"> how knowledge about content (C), pedagogy (P), and technology (T) is central for developing a basis of teaching with technology. · **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Explore **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">how the TPACK model will enhance curriculum content · **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Establish **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">the TPACK model within an Alberta curriculum context · **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Employ **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">the use of this model to make well informed decisions regarding the best way to use existing and emerging technologies in their upcoming Fall, 2010 curriculum planning <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">
 * Date: August 19-20 (9:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.) **
 * Site: Calgary Regional Consortium **
 * #130, 7220 Fisher Street SE, Calgary **
 * Cost: $100 for two days (a Continental breakfast and lunch is provided) **
 * Audience: Teachers, administrators K-12 **