Who is your audience? Who pays attention to you? Why should they? Why do they?
Do they give you attention out of obligation or in response to an invitation?
If your audience isn’t paying attention to you, could it be because they are shouldn’t be your audience? Could it be because you have not cultivated their interest?
I used to scoff at those who I deemed utterly dependant on air conditioning. 
Consider this a confession and an anonymous apology to the general public. I now count myself among you and I judge you no longer.
Damn heat.
Of course, it is funny, isn’t it, that we so look forward to it in the blisteringly cold winter?
In either case, I am grateful for heat and air conditioning.
This summer, I have had the privilege of helping teach in Michigan State University’s Masters Program in Educational Technology. The session I have been helping with includes CEP 800: Learning in school and other settings, CEP 815: Technology & Leadership, & CEP 822: Approaches to Ed Research.
This summer, I have had the privilege of helping teach in Michigan State University’s Masters Program in Educational Technology. The session I have been helping with includes CEP 800: Learning in school and other settings, CEP 815: Technology & Leadership, & CEP 822: Approaches to Ed Research.
The outstanding teachers who are a part of this course have been identifying researchable problems in education and developing a research proposal. Specifically, they have been using a backwards design format to articulate a dream they have for their educational context and to generate support for a plan going forward with it.
In the midst of this undertaking we have been learning about how learning itself involves active, socially-mediated construction of knowledge in school, home, community, and work settings. We have explored project management, planning and evaluation, ethical and social implications of integrating emerging technologies, as well as relationship building.
You can see a glimpse of the learning we have been doing together here:
What have you made that you take the most pride in?
Do you remember what it was that inspired you to create something like it? If not, where does creativity come from?
For me, there are a few songs I have written that have given me more satisfaction than anything else I have created. When I think about them or play them, a sense of relief comes over me as if it was a song that really needed to come into existence and I was the one to do it.
When I think about inspirations for some of these songs, I can’t help but consider the works of Rich Mullins, Rob Bell, Brian McLaren, Seth Godin, Malcolm Gladwell, David Bazan, and Derek Webb.
Interesting that not all of these names are of musicians.
Good art, much like energy, has a way of translating.
Photo Credit: Marc Soller via Compfight
The following were some questions asked of me as I evaluated the TEC-VARIETY Model in the “Instructional Ideas & Tech Tools for Online Success” CourseSites MOOC which I am participating in. I like how this activity enabled me to think deeper about the topic of learner motivation in online environments which is near and dear to my heart. Overall, I find that this is an outstanding model with plenty of supporting empirical research that supports much of it, but it also makes me wonder if it could still be improved upon further. I don’t get the sense that the original developers of this model would want anything but this to happen.
One thing I think might be missing would be a more nuanced explanation of the problem that it is attempting to intervene for. The TEC-Variety model seems to lean heavily on the problem being sensitivity to the tool usage of a given medium, issues regarding training on pedagogical issues and the nature of asynchronous environments. It might be important to stress that there are other systemic problems that are crucial aspects to the problem of learner motivation that some interventions will simply not be able to address.
Another missing link are ones that were self-identified to be incomplete which were the actual solutions. Some solutions were specific examples of interventions to use, but there was little support for the effects these particular suggestions have had on past usages.
Other suggestions were vague and general in nature which could take one down multiple other specific solution options raising other questions as they went. Some general words in the model that could be considered for inclusion would be belongingness, peer-assessment, exploration, inquiry, reflection, experience, simulation, time-on-task, and the creation of one’s own meaningful learning models.
At the same time, many of these generalities could be connected and possibly consolidated into a more simple and general model in order to be a more solid framework upon to build from.
I like the emphasis on learner engagement because this is an affective domain that can be measured and will yield learning results.
Generally, courses that helped me navigate my own goal trajectories and involved meaningful levels of engagement toward the refinement and actualization of these goals with creative achievement modeling have been the most meaningful to me. I had one online course that built these models of my demonstrations into an end of the course project that brought things all together regarding what I had done each week to demonstrate my creative competency of the intended learning outcomes while being able to reflect on how these related to my context and career goals.
The best way to deal with motivation and retention is to have a deep understanding of people in general, the diversity of what makes them tick, the uniqueness of their contexts, characteristics, their challenges, fears, hopes, stories and inspirational narratives that guide them.
Well, some could be motivational problems I have experienced elsewhere and others might actually be perpetuated by the medium itself. For instance, on one hand you have the ever-existing business of people’s lives, laziness, lack of resources and energy, distractions, obligations and all other influential contextualizations (aka excuses). On the other hand, the online environment itself can lend toward even less accountability if the learner and instructor are technologically fearful, incompetent, poorly-resourced, inadequately oriented and in need of a less isolating measures.
Oh no, never.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBNe8CUePTQ]
Andy and I have made a few tweaks to the work environment recently.
Don’t forget: The Island is always here for you when you need it.
LOST
(dramatic bass drum rumble and fade out)
a fresh idea
a new perspective
these can be the twigs
that kindle a fire of breakthrough
learn
design
reflect
Photo Credit: Sergiu Bacioiu via Compfight
This morning, I just had to laugh.
You see, as I pulled into the parking lot of Will’s House where I work, there were a few police officers waiting at the entrance who stopped me due to a much needed counter-protest down the street. The officers informed me that I couldn’t park there at the moment unless I was law enforcement or faculty.
As I explained to them that I worked there at Will’s House, I realized that I was driving our van which doesn’t have a Fac/Staff parking sticker on it making me look like a liar.
To my knowledge, this was the first time this had ever happened in our parking lot. It just so happened to fall on the very day I had to ride the van into work due to my car breaking down last week.
Go figure, right? But wait, there’s more.
When my car broke down last Friday, it caused me to have to coordinate using the van instead as I was driving for a newly set up carpool to work with a coworker. This put Lindsay in a pickle because she had a doctor’s appointment to go to on Monday.
Unfortunately, due to an expedient rescheduling last week, that appointment wasn’t on our calendar. So, I thought I was in the clear to use the van. I was wrong.
I wasn’t able to get ahold of Lindsay on Friday to confirm it, though, because she was working an event all day. This caused a marital scuffle to ensue on Sunday, ironically right before entering the house of Shalom. I, as usual, was being hard-headed. We made up during the service that conveniently was on the topic of forgiveness.
Anyway, all that to say, try not to allow your car to break down, ok?
It makes things so much easier. It also makes your bank account $400 richer.
Photo Credit: Anssi Koskinen via Compfight
