Learning something new and utilizing that information or experience for my second graders is very familiar as I build my professional repertoire. Explicitly learning something within my personal life does not happen as much, therefore choosing a topic to research and then learn it in four weeks was not only challenging, but intimidating and daunting. As this learning journey has unraveled throughout my blog posts (Knitting: Knot an easy task and Knitting: STILL Knot an easy task), I have learned a lot about myself as a learner and a person. When I was first faced with the decision with what to pick for this adventure, I was stumped. Many questions soared through my mind. What did I have time to learn? What do I have access to? Then for my CEP 810 course, we read an article called: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless by Brittany Levine Beckman (2017). In this internet article, students saw a need in their community and took the necessary steps to fulfill that need: homeless people and their lack of shelter. These students worked with an MIT program that would help them prototype their tent design. The girls’ ambition to help their community created a flashback when I was in my church group and we made tie blankets for homeless shelters. I got to thinking about how I already learned how to crochet but what if I learned how to knit? This new skill could lead to helping my local community when I become better at it. This is when I knew that knitting would be my networked personal learning topic of choice. When it comes to learning a new skill, I have automatically gone to YouTube. Where I can pause and playback as many times as I need. This is how I ultimately learned how to crochet! So, when getting told I needed to find other resources in many different places it became a challenge. I would go to forums and social media, which led to immediate confusion because of the knitting jargon. I would go to affinity spaces like Reddit and struggle to search a specific question because I still didn’t know the jargon. A glossary of knitting terms and YouTube became my best friend for this project. Click here for all the resources that I utilized (or didn’t) during this knitting adventure. What did I learn throughout this knitting journey? Yes, I learned some basics of knitting like casting on, the knit stitch, binding off, how to hold the needles (still can’t hold them perfectly yet – still working on it), types of yarns best for beginners, and many other tips and tricks. But I also learned a lot about myself as a learner. I am more motivated to learn something new when I know who or what it could benefit. If I learned to knit, I could produce items for my family, friends, or even my community. I learned that I need a lot of breaks within learning so I don’t become frustrated. I also learned that I can’t have distractions while I’m learning something new, or else I might drop a stitch! My progress ended up being like a rollercoaster but a fun one! Check out the video below where I put my four-week knitting journey into a five minute video. What’s next? I am excited to say that I will continue my knitting journey now that I am getting the hang of it. But I will most likely stick with YouTube when I have questions or when I’m ready to learn a new stitch. On the other hand, I can still see myself utilizing other resources like social media and Reddit when I am ready to learn something new (especially if there is not a lot of jargon in my new skill of choice). I have learned the value in other people’s expertise, which may guide me in a new and rewarding learning experience. I wonder what I will pick next.
References Beckman, B. L. (2017, June 15). All-girl engineer team invents solar-powered tent for the homeless. Mashable. https://mashable.com/feature/diy-girls-solar-powered-tent-homeless#mIuwHqMM8Sq1. Wiersma, C. (2021). My Knitting Journey. [Video]. https://youtu.be/FZ34KOnL74o
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What is 21st Century Learning? 21st century learning is seen as student centered and technology enhanced. It is also where students need to embody the 4 C's: critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity. These skills that are seen in lessons in the classroom, will help students be lifelong learners and problem solvers in the "real world".
Therefore, I have created a lesson that features 21st Century Learning that could be used for my second grade students. One of the Social Studies Standards is about recognizing National Symbols. During this lesson students will be researching a National Landmark in groups. Students will then take their research and create a Virtual Tour of their Landmark with their group to present to their class, as if they are actually on the tour. Check out my Virtual United States Landmark Tours Lesson below and see how I incorporated 21st century learning inside of it!
Incorporating 21 Century Learning
Collaboration
Students learn so much from one another and they also learn teamwork when faced with group projects. I could have had my students work on a National Landmark individually and reached a similar goal but adding collaboration to the project added a another social learning opportunity for the students. Creativity Giving students the opportunity to be creative in the choice that they make for their virtual tour gives them the freedom to try or create something totally unexpected. Hobbs (2011) explains in her book Digital and Media Literacy: Connecting Culture and Classroom, that students need to create content while thinking about their audience, which I hope I incorporated into my lesson clearly. Communication Communication can look different in various ways in the 21st Century. We have email, texting, Facetime, regular conversations, presentations and so on to communicate, therefore I believe a majority of lessons should include it. During my Virtual National Landmark Tour lesson, students are forced to communicate in many different ways. They need to get their points across clearly and effectively when speaking to their teammates and inside of their creations which is geared for a specific audience. Communication will forever be an authentic "real-world" skill that won't go away, but the medium will change as the years go by so why not foster this skill in the classroom. Technology I decided to use technology in two ways during this lesson. Students use their iPads for research on multiple platforms and students also use creation apps to make their virtual tour. Challenges
The most challenging aspect of creating this lesson was finding the right tool for my second graders to utilize for their virtual tour. While I have a love for teaching my students coding, that does not necessarily mean the rest of my second grade team will be teaching their students how to use Scratch. I also wonder if giving students the opportunity to use Google Slides, the project could possibly turn into more of a presentation. Lastly, I question if expecting them to create a virtual tour is to hefty of a challenge overall, but I am a big supporter of trying it out with the students and giving them the benefit of the doubt and see where the lesson takes it. We can always adjust!
My 21st Century Learning Critiques
Student Centered Learning is where students are more in charge of their learning. Students set goals, work at their own pace while the teacher is there for them as a guide. While I believe this is very important and helps students with skills such as responsibility and accountability, I also believe that this can not be done in the classroom all the time especially with younger grades.
I traveled to Wisconsin last year to tour schools that showcased Personalized Learning (a form of student centered learning). Students chose what topics or lessons to join their teacher in, they chose what math games they played, and the list can continue. While this all sounds great, I believe that students still need teachers at the forefront of their learning and that students need to learn explicitly from adults in both a classroom setting and at home. It is all about balance.
References
Hobbs, R. (2011). Digital and media literacy: Connecting culture and classroom. Corwin/Sage. Learning can end up feeling like an intense roller coaster. Learning has its ups and downs and sometimes learning occurs at different speeds at different points of your journey. I thought I was on the rise of my learning to knit roller coaster last week (check out my first knitting blog post here) but instead I took a downward plummet when I picked up my needles earlier this week. I had to rewatch videos, I dropped many stitches, and made gigantic holes in my work. I had to explore different affinity spaces to help me with these issues. James Paul Gee (2018) explains that "...within these affinity spaces, people are fully engaged in helping each other to learn, act, and produce, regardless of their age, place of origin, formal credentials, or level of expertise." I found many spaces like Reddit, and different knitting forums that were welcoming in helping each other succeed. But on the other hand, I also still felt like an outsider because I couldn't fully understand everything they were explaining or describing because I am still just a beginner.
Check out this time lapse I made of myself knitting the first few rows of my creation! References
Gee, J.P. (2018, February 26). Affinity spaces: How young people live and learn online and out of school. Phi Delta Kappan. http://www.kappanonline.org/gee-affinity-spaces-young-people-live-learn-online-school/ Wiersma, C. (2021). Time Lapse of Knitting. [Video]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGhak7BNVF0 We have lived in the 21st century for 21 years now, and while education continues to change, there are core concepts that are expected to be seen within classrooms. "The term “21st-century skills” is generally used to refer to certain core competencies such as collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem-solving that advocates believe schools need to teach to help students thrive in today’s world. In a broader sense, however, the idea of what learning in the 21st century should look like is open to interpretation—and controversy" (Rich, 2010). 21st Century Learning doesn't just stop there. After many hours of research, I have learned that classroom learning doesn't just encompass the 4 C's but it also involves student centered learning. I have also learned that there is a complex framework that has been developed specifically for 21st century learning. Kereluik, K., Mishra, P., Fahnoe, C., & Terry, L. (2013). What knowledge is of most worth: Teacher knowledge for 21st century learning. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 29(4), 127-140. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.msu.edu/login? url=https://www-proquest-com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu/scholarly-journals/what-knowledge-is-most-worth-teacher-21st- century/docview/1509083265/se-2?accountid=12598 While this framework may seem daunting, teachers have been utilizing this framework for years. I also thought technology usage in the classroom was going to be more at the forefront of my research but it turns out it was in the least of my findings. Should digital literacy and technology be more explicitly incorporated into this framework? Check out the video below that I have created using AdobeSpark that sets the scene for 21st Century Learning. Creating this video was another learning experience in itself. I had to use Google Slides, take screenshots, and make videos using Quicktime. After I did all of that, I could finally put all the content into Adobe Spark. I thought I could do it all in the one program! References:
Kereluik, K., Mishra, P., Fahnoe, C., & Terry, L. (2013). What knowledge is of most worth: Teacher knowledge for 21st century learning. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 29(4), 127-140. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.msu.edu/login? url=https://www-proquest-com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu/scholarly-journals/what-knowledge-is-most-worth-teacher-21st- century/docview/1509083265/se-2?accountid=12598 Rich, E. (2010, October 11). How do you define 21st century learning?. In Education Week. Retrieved from https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/how-do-you-define-21st-century-learning/2010/10 Wiersma, C. (2021). 21st Century Learning. [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZGUFhlA6qk Trying something new can be very daunting and intimidating, but sometimes you just have to take the leap. I've had knitting needles around for about 10 years and haven't touched them until today. I've known how to crochet for many, many years so you would think that I would accept knitting easily... but two needles instead of one crochet hook, no thank you. This week I took that learning leap and started to learn how to knit. I cumulated resources throughout the week (some good and some bad), dug out my purple knitting needles, and sat on the couch with my video tutorials and got started this morning. I had to learn how to Cast On, the Knit Stitch, and then how to Bind Off. By the end of two hours, I grew frustrated, I dropped many stitches, I had hand cramps, but most importantly I learned how to knit! Check out my picture progress below! We tell our students to learn something new everyday, so I believe we should be setting the example and be lifelong learners too! Bransford et al. (2000) stated in their book How People Learn: Brain, mind, experience, and school that "Learners of all ages are more motivated when they can see usefulness of what they are learning and when they can use that information to do something that has impact on others - especially their local community." (p. 61). As I become more proficient, I would love to knit scarves, hats, blankets, etc. and donate them to people at shelters who need it. We did something similar in my church program when I was younger and it was so rewarding to know I was helping others! Overall, I am excited to see where my knitting journey takes me in the next month, hopefully a nice scarf will come out of it! References
Bransford, J., Brown, A.L. & Cocking, R. R. (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience and school. National Academy Press. http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309070368. We come across new people almost daily. We nod in solidarity as we are passing one another, we strike up a conversation because we have something in common, or see one of their posts on social media. All of these interactions are valuable and you can learn from each of these people, whether it be personally or professionally. We are making important connections or we are networking. Just like any other professional, teachers have a Professional Learning Network (PLN). A Professional Learning Network is "...any network that you create to learn from and share ideas with others." (Common Sense Education, 2017). This networking is what aids us in growing throughout our career, which also ends up helping our students too! Since moving to Missouri from Michigan, my in-person connections have grown rapidly and I am entirely grateful for that. I have met an unbelievable amount of people that want to collaborate and see the success that is happening inside my classroom. Before making the Mind Map below, I knew that these connections would be my strongest. After creating my PLN mind map, I realized that I still have a long way to go in utilizing resources to their full potential, more specifically the right side of my map: social media. I have established myself on many social media hubs but I haven't contributed to conversations, expressed myself, or delved deeper into the connections or resources that I could utilize. My social media is just "there". The next step, no matter how intimidating it may be, is to follow more insightful people and contribute to conversations especially on Twitter when there is a chat going on which could lead to so many opportunities. Time to take the leap! References
Common Sense Education. (2017, July 21). What's a PLN? And 3 ways teachers can get connected [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ju54C5A3RCw&feature=emb_logo |
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