Critique Siemens’s “metaphors of educators.” Which of these metaphors best describes the role you believe an instructor should take in a digital classroom or workplace? Is there a better metaphor to reflect your view of the role of instructors?
How do we create a digital classroom that meets the needs of all students and challenges each learner to reach for unlimited success? I believe the answer can be found when online instructors incorporate meaningful discourse, feedback, and self-reflection into daily instruction (Anderson, 2008). Online instructors need to focus on creating an environment that fosters two-way communication in a comforting and exciting atmosphere. People are motivated to participate when they realize that someone on the other end is listening and will respond in a meaningful way. I believe an effective online instructor expects high-quality work, but does not intimidate learners from understanding how to produce superior assignments. It is very beneficial for instructors to provide a clear set of expectations, examples, and rubrics, so that students can accomplish a given task without frustration. According to Anderson, “an effective online instructor is one who enjoys interacting with learners; exhibits motivation, possesses knowledge of a domain, understands the learning process, and uses multiple learning activities to expand the knowledge of others” (Anderson, 2008, p. 360). In time, I want my students to become smarter than me because I have guided them to understand new concepts and applications. Therefore, the best teachers are the ones, who can help others become experts of a domain by encouraging social collaboration and critical thinking.
Each one of the educator metaphors uses a combination of being a facilitator or an expert to effectively teach students in the digital classroom. Each metaphor can have a positive effect on the learning of all students. Both the master of artist and the network of administrator metaphors promote guiding students to better performance, but they do not force students to learn the expertise of the instructor (Siemens, 2008, p. 15). On the other hand, we can see “the concierge as an expert because he or she incorporates traditional lectures and knows about resources that learners do not know are available or possible (Siemens, 2008, p. 16). Finally, we focus on the curator, which is known for setting up learning opportunities, but does not lecture to students. A curator provides all the learning options and resources necessary for accurate success, but allows space for students to create, explore, and make learning connections, and academic discoveries (Siemens, 2008, p. 17).
Which one of these strategies is the best for the digital classroom? To answer this question, I think we must analyze the "guide on the side" and the “sage on the stage” teaching models carefully. When most teachers serve as a “guide on the side,” they are not providing enough guidance or assistance to help students be successful. On the other, when teachers serve as the “sage on the stage”, they are not concerned with the needs of their students. Therefore, I agree with Siemens (Laureate Education, 2008) that a “guide on the side” is not enough for engaging in meaningful online collaboration and that a “sage on the stage” relies too much on one expert. I do not want to egoistically promote my abilities as an expert or require my students to learn without assistance. Siemens (2008) recommends curatorial teaching as a medium between both of these teaching models because it portrays teaching as a guided road of opportunity. Therefore, I believe in the curatorial teaching model because it provides just enough guidance, so that students of different ability levels can be successful. Curatorial teaching does not think for students however, it points students in the right direction for success. For students to successfully learn and participate effectively in the digital classroom, online teachers should be involved in the learning process, offer a variety of learning resources, and lead students in the right direction for acquiring and applying key strategies and concepts (Siemens, 2008).
Anderson, T. (2008). Teaching in an online learning context. In T. Anderson (Ed.), The theory and practice of online learning (2nd ed., pp. 343–365). Edmonton, AB: Athabasca University Press.
CommLab India. (2010). Sage on the Stage or Guide on the Side? Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/CommLab/sage-on-the-stage-or-guide-on-the-side.
Laureate Education, Inc. (2008). Siemens on Curatorial Teaching. Principles of Distance Education. Baltimore: Author.
McKenzie, J. (1998, March). The wired classroom. From now on The Educational Journal of Technology 7(6). Retrieved from http://fno.org/mar98/flotilla2.html#anchor281669.
Siemens, G. (2008, January 27). Learning and knowing in networks: Changing roles for educators and designers. Paper presented to ITFORUM. Retrieved from http://it.coe.uga.edu/itforum/Paper105/Siemens.pdf
Siemens, G. (2007). Notes on George Siemens 10-minute lecture on Curatorial Teaching. Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/ylm30/curatorial-teaching-notes
Amy Cravey
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Building meaningful discourse, feedback, and self-reflection into daily instruction is an significant aspect to successful learning as you stated. Technology would assist us in creating a course that would allow instructors to focus on creating an environment that fosters two-way communication in a comforting and exciting atmosphere as you said.
ReplyDeleteWould you as a designer or instructor intentionally build community building opportunities into your course to foster this safe environment and frequent communication?
Sandy
Is there another metaphor that can be applied to educators? What of the other metaphors mentioned by Siemens?
ReplyDeleteI really like your statement about being the guided road of opportunity. I think that you are right on with your assessment of the curatorial method of teaching. We need to be invested in the learning of the students like a curator. We need to realize that if the museum visitors (our students) don't get anything out of the sage on the stage, or if they are lost by the guide on the side then they don't learn and we don't work. The museum (the minds of both teacher and learner)will be forced to close down.
ReplyDeleteSandy
ReplyDeleteI would intentionally build learning communities or opportunities into my course because it enhances the acquisition of knowledge and the experiences of all students. Most students (young and old) are not motivated to discuss academic related content without a little nudge or force. According to Bob Lenz (2007), “A learning community does not just happen; it is created intentionally at every level of a school and organization.” Communicating critically and analytically is not a favorite past time for most people, so it takes time and effort to build a solid learning community. I think we have to remember the definition of “learning, which is a lifelong activity, or persisting change in human performance or performance potential that results from experience and interaction with the world" (Driscoll, 2005, p. 1). We cannot just learn today and quit tomorrow; learning is an ongoing process of compromise, communication, deliberation, and assessment.
Driscoll, M. P. (2005). Psychology of learning for instruction (3rd ed.). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Lenz, B. (2007, November 16). A Community of Learners: Building a Supportive Learning Environment. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/envision-schools-learning-community-respect.
Amy
You used a key word when discussing digital classroom and the use of technology...relevant. Several times I have witnessed technology being used or other digital medias inside of the classroom that are not relevant to the task at hand. One example would be the use of showing "educational" videos being shown that are irrelevant. At my school, we have to get a video reviewed a month before we show it to make sure that this digital media is relevant. Do you think that teachers use irrelevant material because of their lack of knowledge in educational technology, or because it is convenient?
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