1. education
2. english as a second language

OET 2003 Talk 3
Learning and Teaching
Anita Pincas
1
This talk
Why you would want to go online at all?
What we know and don’t know about learning?
What our common starting point ought to be?
What our online options are?
2
Autonomous - self-directed
Self-directed adult learners attempt to
navigate in an information landscape without
landmarks, and to make sense of (and impose
order on) the profusion of stimuli they
encounter in cyberspace.
This presentation develops a model for
designing software and creating structures
to support lifelong learning through formal,
non-formal and informal means.
3
The dilemma
Students need help
Provide non-human
support
Write better materials:
Self-assessment,
FAQs
Students still need help
Provide human support
Rich resources
Make students autonomous
Too many students
Too few staff
4
What do we know about
learning?
1. Everyone can learn – no research needed; it is obvious
2. Everyone does it a bit differently,
3. Even if you are aware of different learning strategies
you will not be able to predict them for any individual
4. An individual person’s strategies may change in
different circumstances, for different subjects, at
different times of the day!
5. Everyone needs some guidance – from parents,
teachers, peers.
6. Expectations influence learning – own, and parents’ or
teachers’ or peers’.
7. Cultural traditions affect people’s learning
8. Previous learning experience may be valuable,
motivating, discouraging…..
5
L
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1 Age
2 Sex
3 Previous experience
4 Proficiency
5 Personality
6 Aptitude
7 Attitudes
8 General intelligence IQ
9 Sense modality preference
10 Sociological
preference
11 Cognitive styles
12 Learner strategies
1 Aptitude
2 Motivation
3Strategies
4 Cognitive and effective
factors
a.extroversion/introversion
b. risk-taking
c. intelligence
d field
independence
e. anxiety
Difficult Terms…………
Sense modality preference:
Preferring to learning by seeing
vs. hearing, etc.
Sociological preference: E.g.
learning with peers vs. learning
with the teacher
Field independence: Perceiving
an area as a whole vs.
perceiving the separate parts
within the whole
…………………………..
Empathy: ability to sense the
feelings of other people
Reflexivity/impulsivity: Being
reflective or impulsive
Analytic/gestalt: Seeing the
parts vs. seeing the whole
1 Age
2 Socio-psychological
factors
a. motivation
b. attitude
c. anxiety
3 Personality
a. self-esteem
b. extraversion
c. anxiety
d. risk-taking
e. sensitivity to
rejection
f. empathy
g. inhibition
h. tolerance of
ambiguity
4 Cognitive style
a. field dependence vs.
independence
b. reflexivity/impulsivity
c. aural/visual factors
d. analytic/gestalt
5 Hemisphere specialization
6 Learning strategies
7 Other factors e.g. memory,
6
sex
Interrelation of learning variables
Individual learning differences
beliefs about learning
affective state
general factors
Learning processes
and mechanisms
Learner strategies
Learning outcome
proficiency
achievement
rate of learning
7
Learner
strategies
Activist
Pragmatist
Reflector
Theorist
Honey P and Mumford A (1982) The Manual of Learning Styles
Activists prefer
Theorists prefer
new experiences, problems and opportunities
to be engrossed in the 'here and now'
excitement
change
to lead the learning
freedom in their learning
to organise learning within a personal system or model
time for methodical exploration of ideas and situations
a chance to question and probe
to be intellectually stretched
learning with clear aims
learning that is logical and rational
to think, analyse and generalise
to be required to understand.
Pragmatists prefer
Reflectors prefer
to see immediate relevance to the learning
learning in practically biased ways
to practise and apply their learning
to copy or emulate a model or theory
to observe and think about activities
a 'back seat' role
time to reflect and consider
to work in a detailed and painstaking way
well structured learning experiences
.
8
Individual learner differences
Hypotheses led
Real life settings
A
Theory-led studies that examine
IDs in how learners learn
in real life settings.
Controlled environments C
Theory-led studies that examine
IDs experimentally, i.e. by
assigning learners to special
groups and by manipulating
their learning experiences
Data collection led
B
Exploratory studies that examine
IDs in the way learners learn in
real life settings.
D
Correlational studies designed to
investigate whether expected
patterns of relationships involving
IDs and learning occur in
specially selected groups of learners
A. Checking how people learn when self-motivated outside school/college
Hypothesis: Strong self-motivation will improve learning.
B. Collecting data on different factors in people learning outside school/college
C. Checking how people learn in control groups with different motivations in school/college
Hypothesis: Differences in motivations x and y will improve learning.
D. Collecting data on different factors in people learning in control groups in school/college
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Kinds of Learning
-factual or knowledge-based
associated with
write, state, explain, show, compare, generalise, select, judge.
-skills based
associated with
try, experiment, correct, re-try, practise, drill
- affective, ie to do with people’s attitudes or feelings
associated with
listen, perceive, answer, accept, relate, change, decide.
Bloom B. (1956 Vol.1, 1964 Vol.2) A Taxonomy of Learning Objectives
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Factual












What access your students have:
Is paper easier than CD?
Is CD easier than the www?
Do email attachments solve the problem?
What methods of clear presentation are best?
- text - graphics - pictures - film - audio
How much teacher explanation is needed?
- Gradual blackboard build up: working through a maths problem
- talking head: explaining, defining terms
- Q/A session with real students: vicarious learning
- lecture (classroom video or talking head) putting substance of text
materials into context, in own words, explaining things, linking them to
the students’ interests and needs, giving more examples than are in the
textbook…..
Case studies, video simulations…
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Skills
Do the skills need live training from a teacher, e.g. a sport, a machine to operate?
-illustrated online by moving film/cartoons before live training
- samples by film analysed for understanding - practice still needed?
- filmed simulations
- videoconferencing, e.g. role play meetings, teacher trainees video
own real class and get remote feedback
Intellectual skills e.g. teaching people to use computer software
-programmed, step by step instruction online with self-assessments.
- teach the rules of rule-governed behaviours
What about study skills, writing reports, research methods, critical analysis?
12
Affective
How change people’s attitudes
-power of film to influence people
-power of the written word
- use of the internet to demonstrate factors in the wider world
-online loss of personal impact if merely writing?
13
Reasons for internet use
-quickly update texts and materials
-cheaper and easier - for the provider
-Search across subjects, across books, etc., in ways
that are not possible in a library or even on a CD
because not enough space.
- communicate between people
14
FLEXIBILITY
Collis B. and Moonen J. (2001) Flexible Learning in a Digital World
Flexibility related to time:
1. Times (for starting and finishing a course)
2. Times (for submitting assignments and interacting within the course)
3. Tempo/pace of studying
4. Moments of assessment
Flexibility related to content:
5. Topics of the course
6. Sequence of different parts of a course
7. Orientation of the course (theoretical, practical)
8. Key learning materials of the course
9. Assessment standards and completion requirements
Flexibility related to instructional approach and resources:
10. Conditions for participation
11. Social organization of learning (face-to-face; group, individual)
12. Language to be used during the course
13. Learning resources: modality, origin (instructor, learners, library, WWW)
14. Instructional organization of learning (assignments, monitoring)
Flexibility related to delivery and logistics:
15. Time and place where contact with instructor and other students occur
16. Methods, technology for obtaining support and making contact
17. Types of help, communication available, technology required
18. Location, technology for participating in various aspect of the course
19. Delivery channels for course information, content, communication
15
Changing the approach
•flexible learning
•constructivist teaching - peer group learning is important
•resource based teaching - learners discover information for themselves
•problem based teaching - learning starts not from given solutions but
from students trying to work out solutions to problems set
•activity methods -learners are more active than listening to lectures
•transformative teaching - students [and teachers] develop independence
•autonomous learning
16
Before, during, after
Collis and Moonen op cit p. 93, based on Figure 5.3)
(Before)
Preparation by learners
(During)
F2F event by teacher
(After)
Follow-up by learners
(Predominately)
Acquisition
Acquisition+Contribution
(Predominately)
Contribution
Study resources in the
WWW site are partially from
work, partially
from the WWW.
*Build on the preparation:
Use session to focus on ideas
indicated in the 'Before'
period and also to prepare
for follow- up activities.
*Re-view and re-use
resources *Individually or as
a group, develop or locate
resources to contribute to the
WW-W site.
*Prepare for upcoming
face-to-face session by
contributing new material,
indicating preference for
study focus during the focal
session.
*(Possibly) integrate remote
participants.
*Capture key aspects of the
session for re-use via the
WWW site.
*Build professional network
via contacts for just-in-time
learning.
17
Elements of teaching Ko S. & Rossen S. (2001) Teaching Online A Practical Guide
The activities in most college classes can probably be divided into a few large categories:
•Instructor presentation: Typically lectures, simulations, charts, and graphs, computer-assisted
presentations. (Guest lecturers included).
•Discussion: Small group, guided discussion sections run by teaching assistants are common.
So are question- and answer sessions as adjuncts to lectures, labs, and exams. In seminars,
instructor presentation and discussion are often combined.
•Group-oriented work and student presentation: Collaborative, cooperative, and other peer
activities: a group project, peer-reviewed compositions, independent project presented to the
class.
•Research: conducted by individuals or in groups; practical applications, experiments,
fieldwork, interviews, and apprenticeships.
•Assessment: exams, essays, projects; portfolios that combine different types of work; and
evaluation and credit for participation.
Instructor Presentation: Classroom teaching, or lectures. These are probably the most
common method of presenting content in school or college classrooms, with transparencies,
slides, blackboard writings, or computer-assisted PowerPoint presentations. To translate this type
of activity into an online environment, you can use several different online formats alone or in
combination. Here are some notes on these possibilities, along with their advantages and
disadvantages.
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Effective Teaching
Panel 1
Effective Teachers:
Panel 2
Pupils achieve more when a teacher:
> are clear about their instructional goals;
> are knowledgeable about their content and the
strategies for teaching it;
> communicate to their students what is expected
of them - and why;
> monitor students' progress and check their
understanding;
> are knowledgeable about their students,
adapting teaching to their needs and anticipating
misconceptions in their existing knowledge;
> teach students ‘meta-cognitive strategies' and
provide opportunities to master them;
> address higher as well as lower level cognitive
objectives
> monitor students' understanding by offering
regular, appropriate feedback;
>integrate their teaching with that in other subject
areas;
>accept responsibility for student outcomes;
> are thoughtful and reflective about their
practice.
> emphasises academic goals;
> makes them explicit and expects pupils to be
able to master the curriculum;
> carefully organises ;and sequences the
curriculum;
> clearly explains and illustrates what pupils are
to learn
> make expert use of existing teaching materials
in order to devote more time to practices that
enrich end
> frequently asks direct and specific questions to
clarify the content until it is over-learned or
automatic;
> provides pupils with ample opportunity to
practise;
> gives prompts and feedback to ensure success;
> reviews regularly and holds pupils accountable
for work.
> corrects mistakes end allows pupils to use a
skill
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Three options
Replication of existing practice
Simply re-create, or replicate, the kind of
course you are most familiar with.
 Improvements
Use the capacity of the internet to add value
to the kind of course you are familiar with.
 Innovations
Use the internet to change the way you
organize teaching and learning.

20
The 3 elements of teaching

new knowledge of some kind presented to them
either abstractly or concretely,
often called input

active exercises in which they are guided to come
to grips with this new knowledge
often called uptake

application of the new knowledge in the real world
often called consolidation
21
The three Ps
Presentation – teacher gives information - input
Practice – students work on the information
through exercises
- uptake
Production – students use what they have
learned - consolidation
22
Components
1. Lecture –
Teacher provides new knowledge, information or instructions
Examples: an explanation, a demonstration
2. Lecture follow-up: Activity workshop or seminar
Teacher sets guided or controlled exercises
Examples: writing a definition, doing/reporting an
experiment, a field trip.
[3. Monitoring
Teacher comments on or corrects the exercises.]
4. Application
Teacher sets open tasks
Examples: essay, project, research.
[5. Feedback
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Teacher comments on the work and offers encouragement.]
Traditional Teaching sequence
PRESENTATION
New
knowledge
Lecture
Video
Text
Reflection
student
follow-up by
reading, etc.
PRACTICE
PRODUCTION
Active
exercises
Tasks
Problems
Research
Application
[Assessment]
Tasks
Problems
Research
Workshops or
seminars
Collaboration
Co-operation
Sharing ideas
Individual
work
TUTOR moderates
provides feedback
Reflection
student follow-up
TUTOR supports
assesses
provides feedback
Reflection
by student
24
Alternate Teaching sequence
PRACTICE
Active
exercises
Tasks
Problems
Research
Workshops or
seminars
Collaboration
Co-operation
Sharing ideas
PRESENTATION
New
knowledge
Lecture
Video
Text
Reflection
Student
follow-up on
lecture
TUTOR moderates
provides feedback
Reflection
student follow-up
by reading, etc.
PRACTICE
PRODUCTION
Active
exercises
Tasks
Problems
Research
Application
[Assessment]
Tasks
Problems
Research
Workshops or
seminars
Collaboration
Co-operation
Sharing ideas
Individual
work
TUTOR supports
assesses
provides feedback
Reflection
by student
25