Activity 9 :Technologies for learning.

Technologies:

Lots of stuff in there... and interesting to see Thom's presentation - though largely I thought still talking to the class with slightly different take on "powerpoint..." To be fair, I don't have a smart phone, and couldn't see links, but hope the others were engaging via the methods about which he spoke.


As a point to note... I do believe that there is a place for these fancy-smancy e-learning ideas... but I think in 20 (or 25 or 30...) years time, we will come back to moderation, and as the pendulum that has over swung to "a bit crazy" on the mobile/flexi/www -based world re-settles, having a conversation FACE-TO-FACE will once again be an important tool to have in our tool box. Let's face it - good to be good with IT. But even better to be great with people. Or not???

ePortfolios - getting to the nuts and bolt - I see this as a great opportunity for my learners to put together a "skills video." That is, a portfolio of evidence that they are required to produce anyway (distance students), in a concise, well presented and professional portfolio. Great opportunity at interview, to show off the stuff they have learned.

Learning Activity: Teaching Induction

Because induction is such an issue, this learning activity is going to be a video/multimedia mini production of the induction process.

• Learning Outcomes: 
• produce a instructional package (powerpoint/voice over/video/photos) of the process of induction to demonstrate the procedure from patient selection to completion of induction and placement and securing of the ET tube.
• consolidate knowledge of items required AND chronological order of use
• produce a video of this IN REAL TIME as demonstrated on a stuffed toy, to show understanding of time frames around this process
• How to go about this
• chose 2-4 team members.
• research the topic using the resources available (course notes/lecturers/students/clinics/Google etc)
• topics may sections such as (this list is not exhaustive)
• selection of and testing of ET tubes
• selection of rest of equipment required for intubation
• location of and identification of the drugs required for the induction/ET tube placement
• stethoscope(or not) for quick patient checks
• decide HOW you want to present the THEORY and INSTRUCTION of the induction process
• eg bite sized segments and voice over to explain
• flow chart with explanations
• break it process into small bites and provide explanation of each section
• this may be video/photo/powerpoint/voice combos
• collect resources for the procedure
• use tablette/smart phone and apps required to produce the evidence required for instruction of this process, including the real time video
• alternatively, this could be done as an instructional teaching session, and streamed live to another cohort.
• Assessment for this activity
• competency will be acknowledged if the evidence provided demonstrates a clear understanding of
• the equipment required and its use
• chronological order of use
• reasonable time frames are indicated for each step in the process, and demonstrated in the "real time" video
• reflection on quality and competency work is offered.

I'd hope that this will encourage flexible learning as the resources need to be sourced from many different places. Options for information include everything from Moodle, to face-to-face communication, Google, video from youTube, real life in surgery sessions (they could video this)...

In fact I think this is such a good idea, I'm going to implement it next year...

Activity 8: Adult learning theories for Flexible Learning.

The Mission:

Should I choose to accept it, was to explore learning theory relevant to my context and find one that resonated and apply it to my flexible learning plan.Heather Day points out, that when trying to find a theory ask yourself:

"How does this connect to what I do and what I believe about teaching/facilitation?"

And furthermore:

"If it doesn't connect easily move on until you find something that does."

The Problem:

Finding one theory that is really OSFA... I actually find it ironic that in flexible learning this would be the directive... that's not very flexible. I say this, because as I read, I thought that many theories had relevance and that actually it wasn't about ME finding the right theory for ME, but me providing the right theory for each and everyone of my learners... isn't this the goal?So some might be all about social learning and constructivisim, others might like behavourist-type learning environment...So with that little rant over - the world is truly a mish-mash of grey, and really not black and white...-  the theories that I connected with (and I have to say, I'm a little confused about where connectivism fits in... see note on this below) include:

• cognitivist theory (because this suits me - but I'm going to leave this out because I don't think a huge number of my learners engage this way...)

• social and situational theory (including constructivism)

• connectivist theory (there seems to be some argument about whether this is a theory or a pedagogical view...)

The Definitions:

cognitivism(I have included for completeness' sake...);"Cognitivism is the theory that humans generate knowledge and meaning through sequential development of an individual’s cognitive abilities, such as the mental processes of recognize, recall, analyze, reflect, apply, create, understand, and evaluate." wikipedia  

constructivism:"Simply stated, it is a learning process which allows a student to experience an environment first-hand, thereby, giving the student reliable, trust-worthy knowledge. The student is required to act upon the environment to both acquire and test new knowledge." wikipedia


connectivism:
"Connectivism was introduced as a theory of learning based on the premise that knowledge exists in the world rather than in the head of an individual.""Summing up connectivist teaching and learning, Downes states: "to teach is to model and demonstrate, to learn is to practice and reflect." " wikipedia

And I'm guessing I'm missing something here, as these seem to be talking about the same/similar thing. Learning by doing and reflecting and practise. So because there's argument about connectivism, I'm choosing constructivism for my FLP.

The Reason:

I've chosen this theory because as a generalisation for my cohort of students, I think that DOING and learning via hands on and actual practise is more the way the majority of them learn. This theory includes concepts like Kolb's learning cycle, and this very strongly reflects the way that we aim to teach many practical tasks... eg, induction and surgery, fluid lines, prepping the patient. They see, they try, they err, they do again... over and over until they are confident and competent (hopefully). This of course, suits the way we teach these skills in real life surgery sessions, and much of the information in the course is transferred through practical, hands-on learning.

"David Kolb, in his books Learning Style Inventory Technical Manual^[7]and Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development ^[8], emphasizes the importance of conditionalized knowledge through experiential learning. David A. Kolb and Roger Fry created the Kolb & Fry Model out of four elements: concrete experience, observation and reflection, the formation of abstract concepts, and testing in new situations." wikipedia

Activity 7 - Open Education Resources and Philosophies.

Again embraced the flexibility that is OP and went running (OK'ed by HOS) in the sun in the afternoon, so here I am at 8pm, on flexi-time.

I digress...

SO... waded through that document... {Open Education Practices: A User Guide for Organisations}. Plenty of fodder for the neurons in there. 

Some tidbits that I liked... 

• "Informational and personal connections are being made through this social media, and all of it creates an impressive opportunity for learning. But as yet educational institutions struggle to define themselves within this social media age, often rejecting the idea of social networked learning because it is regarded as unstructured, undisciplined and inferior to institutionalised learning."

I liked this one because I think there IS a real risk of it being exactly that (see last few words of above)... and this is where the support of the institution and getting the resources (all stuff we talked about earlier) is really important... 

• Jan Hylén's definition for OER as: "digitised materials offered freely and openly for educators, students and self-learners to use and reuse for teaching, learning and research."[3]

Interesting in that  there is no possibility for hard copy to be included - how does this fit with inclusivity for the third world, or the digitally illiterate or opposed??

• This means that any resources created by staff can be freely used, distributed and modified providing attribution is given to the original author. This approach encourages sharing and collaboration with regard to resources.
• http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Open_Education_Practices:_A_User_Guide_for_Organisations

So I am embracing this definition... any resource, anywhere, anyhow, and everyone gets to have a stab at it... but leave my name there as well. Sounds fair to me, and sounds like the power of numbers, improving resources for all to use, but mention my name.

So this is not my definition - but it is what I would say.

Have encountered a couple of responses to this concept... 

• Scenario one:

Firstly, response found whilst developing a wiki for a Standard Operating Procedure at a vet clinic I co-owned. This was available for all staff to modify, and put various instructions and information on, and therefore, any muppet (self-included) could send a courier packet the right way, and know where to get the goods to do this.So in this forum, I was fully embracing of the concept. Bear in mind this was not entirely open - it was password protected for those in employment (wasn't too keen to share this info as was a competitive advantage to be able to replace vet or nurse and give thorough instructions to replacement... you just needed the front interface password to run the whole show. Very nice.)Hmmm... so when we don't have the entire "trekkie-culture of sharing" as the focal point (money talks in business), my position changed slightly to how I feel about ...

• Scenario two

Enter OP. Open resources. Take your unit. Make it your own. Use what we have. Do with it what you will... quite challenging, but in the end, very sensible. Fantabulous. Had heaps to get started on. Adding my bits. Nothing from scratch. Wunderbar. And open to the general population... I also don't mind because I think this is the reality...

• "Many staff express the fear that people will no longer enroll in courses if their teaching material is freely available, but others point out that so much is already freely available and that most students want a qualification which requires assessment not content. Open Educational Resources are a way of attracting people to the Polytechnic, because they can see the sort of material we use, and they can orientate themselves to the courses before they start."     Robin Day

Strategies: put it all up there but protect our assessments. In reality few people take advantage of these sorts of resources anyway (FTI - failure to implement), so let them have a crack. But not the assessments at this point until we have a process to ensure robust assessment and can protect the quality of any graduate that says degree/diploma/etc was conferred via OER and OEP at OP. OK?


Importance: up-skilling anybody and everybody is generally a good idea. And pooling resources (including HR/IP) seem very sensible. It's hard to be an expert in everything, so share the gold, I say. Free education yes - but in the end, we have to make money and produce work-ready quality graduates... so a little more more is required to open our current resources up to Bob, Bill, Jane and Mary to manage their own NCVN in its entirety. In the end, this is win-win for all... educators learn, share better quality resources with learners and everybody has time for a wine.
Super. Now for mine. E noho ra...


PS: Am super frustrated that the fonts and presentation are so crap, and can't seem to work out how to fix it... apologies for those type-a's that also find this offensive...

Activity 6: Planning... importantly, planning to keep up... at induction.

My plan... involves one of the very frustrating times in practical surgery sessions. Students need tip of the tongue responses; total fluency with processes and underpinning theory. it's action, action, action. Take off and landing (induction and recovery) are the dodgiest part of anaesthesia...


I'm keen to improve this - if only for my own stress levels at induction :-)


Brain storm. What creates the knowledge gap?

• Ideas around anaesthesia and induction.
• High pressure time in surgery. 
• Limited amount of time to get lots of jobs done.
• Pre-med dependent. 
• Induction agent dependent. 
• Skills dependent.

Ways to enhance learning ...

• Covered in theory. 
• Research drugs used. Time frames known.
• Understand processes involved in induction. 
• Monitoring parameters
• What is most important at each step?
• How urgent?

Ways to engage students:

• Theory. 
• Practicals. 
• Videos. 
• Quick quizzes. 
• Rapid fire quizzes in class. 
• Words and sentence games - put in chronological order. 
• Make a "road map to anaesthesia."
• Being put on the spot!
• Live video and audio links, real time.

And then assess...

• In own time (within certain constraints).
• In real time.
• Underpinning knowledge able to be done first.
• Can be done in sections - so small bites for ease of management for learners.
• Feedback and re-assessment as required, as long as basis of competency is shown.

So currently my template is a list of ideas - I see theses coming together in a mind map type scenario with lots of linking options between formative practical and theoretical learning...

Peer Feedback:

{abridged} "Since the beginning of this year it has been on my mind that we need to start producing some great quality videos (we have the facilities) not only for anaesthesia but for surgery too.

Anaesthesia – the steps – take off to landing and monitoring!!!

Anaesthesia – circuit and machine checks.

The video’s would be incredibly useful for the distance students and I think give the FT students a little more confidence coming in to surgery also and of course they can view them as many times as they like in their own home without the pressure of the class around them.

We could do voice over on the videos etc."

This was from one person, but certainly reflected the general feeling of all the people that I spoke to (n = 4). And happily, this is one of the gaps that I had already highlighted...

Excellent.

SWOT Review:

• Strengths: lots of opportunity for different types of learning. Theory. Some video resources. Powerpoint. Practical - OP and in clinic. Small learning groups for practicals. Introduction to surgery and anaesthesia done before they come into the actual environment. Assessments processes driven by students (within certain boundaries).
• Weaknesses: lack of real time, on the job hours. Real time in a pressure time - need for fluency to be present at this time, rather than learning it at the time. Lack of really good video resource, with voice over for flexi viewing.
• Opportunities: develop the video resource, with voice over. Do with different drugs on board so the student see what it will look like in practise.
• Threats: changes in national legislation and monies to support this very important learning environment (larger classes required, less resources etc); not conceivable in short to medium term.

GOAL: induction video for next year's cohort.

Onwards and upwards... :-)

Induction = the process of inducing anaesthesia

Activity 5 – Design and describe flexible learning strategies for your context.

Had a little bit of trouble getting this link to work - so shout out if it doesn't function! Here's the trick - they don't link when it's viewed as a preview - you got to PUBLISH and then try it out!
Learn something everyday, don't we??

Found some of the readings and idea in the powerpoint very interesting - but it is a TERRIBLE powerpoint presentaiton, I would have to say! There's some useful information in there (concept of media-intructional-learning environment and how these things dictate the balance of what we actually choose to use), but it's a nightmare to engage with, IMHO.

Anyhoo... here's my strategy

Strategy Document
 Loved Cat's post on flexible learning... have a look!

Cheers, HB