Douglas Thomas and John Seely Brown
Reflecting on Chapters 1-3
Chapter 1: Arc-of-Life Learning
Quote: “The new culture of learning gives us the freedom to make the general personal and then share our personal experience in a way that, in turn, adds to the general flow of knowledge.” (p. 31) I like the word freedom in this quote. The idea that knowledge isn’t pre-determined, but is something learners should be free to explore, and then add to the collective experience.
Question: How can we capitalize on the passions of our students to make learning fun again?
Connection: The cultivation of my PLN has opened up a new learning community for me. There are some teachers on my site who share my passion for technology, but there are multitudes that share it on the web. I have gained access to resources and ideas through this community that I would not find at my school site.
Epiphany: We are missing a great opportunity by not tapping into the creativity and imagination and play of our students.
Chapter 2: A Tale of Two Cultures
Quote: “The goal is for each of us to take the world in and make it a part of ourselves …” so “we can re-recreate it.” (p. 38.) This chapter speaks about learning in an environment that responds to its surrounds and “thrives on change” (p. 37) so it is constantly being re-created.
Question: What needs to happen to adapt our curriculum so we are giving students to figure out "novel solutions"? (page 35
Connection: Working on my 20% project I have been “learning through engagement within the world” (p. 38) by reaching out to Twitter, Google+ communities, and curating a Diigo research list.
Epiphany: Instead of providing questions with pre-determined answers to our students, we should ask encourage our students to ask questions, and ask them because they want to know more.
Chapter 3: Embracing Change
Quote: “As information is constantly produced, consumed, updated, and altered, new practices of reading, writing, thinking, and learning have evolved with it.” (p. 42) I think this idea is important because it recognizes the impact technology has had on what we know, and how important it is to change our teaching practices to reflect that.
Question: What is the best way to communicate this idea to veteran teachers? How do we encourage them to “embrace change, not fight(ing) it.”? (page 43)
Connection: I loved this quote by Heraclitus (p. 39): “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” I think the peer interaction component of EDL 630 has affected the river I’m stepping into. By getting feedback, and a glimpse into the work of others (stepping into the river), I’m affected and changed (I’m not the same (wo)man.)
Epiphany: The idea that memorization can be a valuable technique (for things that seldom change), but we ask students to memorize things they “don’t actually use very often in their day-to-day lives.” (page 44)
Reflecting on Chapters 1-3
Chapter 1: Arc-of-Life Learning
Quote: “The new culture of learning gives us the freedom to make the general personal and then share our personal experience in a way that, in turn, adds to the general flow of knowledge.” (p. 31) I like the word freedom in this quote. The idea that knowledge isn’t pre-determined, but is something learners should be free to explore, and then add to the collective experience.
Question: How can we capitalize on the passions of our students to make learning fun again?
Connection: The cultivation of my PLN has opened up a new learning community for me. There are some teachers on my site who share my passion for technology, but there are multitudes that share it on the web. I have gained access to resources and ideas through this community that I would not find at my school site.
Epiphany: We are missing a great opportunity by not tapping into the creativity and imagination and play of our students.
Chapter 2: A Tale of Two Cultures
Quote: “The goal is for each of us to take the world in and make it a part of ourselves …” so “we can re-recreate it.” (p. 38.) This chapter speaks about learning in an environment that responds to its surrounds and “thrives on change” (p. 37) so it is constantly being re-created.
Question: What needs to happen to adapt our curriculum so we are giving students to figure out "novel solutions"? (page 35
Connection: Working on my 20% project I have been “learning through engagement within the world” (p. 38) by reaching out to Twitter, Google+ communities, and curating a Diigo research list.
Epiphany: Instead of providing questions with pre-determined answers to our students, we should ask encourage our students to ask questions, and ask them because they want to know more.
Chapter 3: Embracing Change
Quote: “As information is constantly produced, consumed, updated, and altered, new practices of reading, writing, thinking, and learning have evolved with it.” (p. 42) I think this idea is important because it recognizes the impact technology has had on what we know, and how important it is to change our teaching practices to reflect that.
Question: What is the best way to communicate this idea to veteran teachers? How do we encourage them to “embrace change, not fight(ing) it.”? (page 43)
Connection: I loved this quote by Heraclitus (p. 39): “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” I think the peer interaction component of EDL 630 has affected the river I’m stepping into. By getting feedback, and a glimpse into the work of others (stepping into the river), I’m affected and changed (I’m not the same (wo)man.)
Epiphany: The idea that memorization can be a valuable technique (for things that seldom change), but we ask students to memorize things they “don’t actually use very often in their day-to-day lives.” (page 44)