54: Cognitive Lod Theory This post complements this earlier one on The Lens of Cognitive Load Theory While technology acceptance is a theory that can explain and predict the decision to use a technology, cognitive load theory (Sweller, Ayres, & Kalyuga, 2011) (CLT) predicts and explains technology use once it has been adopted. CLT is Read More
In private conversations for several years, I have been promoting “Ackerman’s Theory of Control.” My informal theory can be summarized as “people (children included) need to control something in their lives… if they don’t feel in control, they will take control of something.” My theory emerged out of years of working with children, and finding Read More
Educators are well-known for being easily distracted–we adopt a “new” or “innovative” method or strategy or tool for teaching, and we become strong advocates for it until the next innovation arrives. (In recent months, I have collected recollections of colleagues whose memories support the conclusion that some of us have been using these methods consistently Read More
60: Four Prepositions for EdTech When we think about computers and information technology (ICT), and the models that educators have developed to use ICT in classrooms, it seems we can capture the nature of students’ and teachers’ interaction with it with four prepositions. Each is described and illustrated in this post. Teaching about computers- When Read More
A colleague asked a question… she suggested I share the answer… So, I have several students taking Coursera courses…. also EdX and Udemy… there are other MOOC providers out there as well. The model for MOOC’s (massive open online courses) is generally the same regardless of the provider: 1) Some MOOC’s have start dates and Read More
A colleague asked a question… she suggested I share my answer… An ISBN (International Standard Book Number) is a wonderful tool for writers and researchers to understand and use. The 13-digital number is unique to each book published, and it is associated with metadata about the book. Metadata includes much that writers care about when Read More
In 2006, futurists Alvin Toffler and Heidi Toffler captured the relative speed of change throughout society with this scale: businesses appear to be adopting new information technologies and adapting to them at 100 miles per hour, with other organizations (such as professional organizations and non-governmental organizations) moving almost as quickly; families in the United States Read More
Palfrey and Gasser (2016) used the term semiotic democracy to describe the effects of participatory content creation on society. They observed, “any citizen with the skills, time, and access to digital technologies to do so may reinterpret and reshape the stories of the day” (p. 233). It appears high school students are providing us with Read More
61: Frameworks Defined A continuum can be created with educational scholars placed at one extreme and educators at the other; educational theory is placed on the extreme with scholars and models of instruction are placed on the extreme with practitioners. Between these two extremes, there exists a gap that must be filled if instruction is Read More
Education and the models and strategies educators use to create learning environments are grounded in ideas about how people learn. Ideas about learning are grounded in cognitive and learning sciences, and also on ideas about the organization and structure of knowledge. Connectionism is an idea that is gaining popularity and influence in thinking about teaching Read More