Learning Objects Site

What are ActiveLessons?
ActiveLessons are engaging, technology-based, student-centered (pupil-centered) learning activities designed by teachers using PowerPoint (or other presentation tool). The idea is to empower teachers to easily create technology-based activities that draw upon variety of existing and new digital resources from internet, repositories of learning objects and other sources, and require students to use technology and create artifacts demonstrating their understanding. This idea partially challenges WebQuest approach and proposes that instead of getting teachers to design web sites, more effective strategy would be to use a presentation tool to design in more productive way. ActiveLessons are technologically simple because PowerPoint is used for design and there is no need to struggle with technicalities of web publishing. With reduction in technicalities teachers can concentrate on pedagogy. The central hypothesis in this proposal is that if teachers develop understanding of technology-supported pedagogy, technicalities will synch in naturally through experience and emerging needs.

ActiveLesson Process in Nutshell
An average ActiveLesson occurs in the following way:

Presents students with some authentic scenario for learning. This scenario is presented in multimedia way and the task is given to students. Collaboration and division of labor is usually part of the process.
E ngages students to explore resources (e.g., web sites, multimedia packages, learning objects, MP3 or videos) and transform material as they work on their task.
Provides templates and organizers to scaffold students’ approach to the task.
Requires students to use technology-based tools (e.g., MS Word, MindManager/Inspiration, Digital Camera, PDA device) to create artifact of their involvement in the task. Require students to produce an artifact for evaluation. Students might also conduct presentations and exhibitions, upload their artifacts on-line for class critique, etc. ActiveLessons might contain checklists for students to conduct self-evaluation of their artifacts before submissions.
Artifacts are evaluated and some discussions, negotiation of meanings and if in necessary, additional activity takes place.

Theoretical Background
ActiveLessons builds on a number of previous pedagogically sound ideas:

microLessons -- Divaharan & Wong (2003) propose teacher use of Microsoft PowerPoint technology to design technology-based learning. In its first form, microLessons were short teacher-directed presentation designed to transmit a specific subject matter. Subsequently Divaharan & Wong reformulated microlessons into an approach for design of student-centered learning expiences where PowerPoint slides were used to set a context and task for students. Divaharan & Wong understood these as small lesson components that would take 15 to 30 minutes to complete and lead to achievement of one or two specific learning objectives. Although Divaharan & Wong claim that this is a constructivist approach, specifying limited time and integrating a specific learning objective in a microLesson to inform learners were key limitations of this approach and resulted that most of these emerged to lead teachers towards design of well-structured problem solving tasks. However, one important idea from this strategy is that teachers can use presentation tool to design something more than just presentations -- they can use this tool as multimedia authoring and design tool for creating of a learning environment.
WebQuest -- Dodge (1995) defines WebQuest as “an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the internet.” This is a very powerful idea to integrate technology into teaching and learning and to engage student to work with and transform information into understanding within a context of an authentic task (see March, 2003). However, a key problem with WebQuest is that it requires teachers to engage in an activity of designing web sites. This is complex activity for most of teachers which usually results in spectrum of complications, often unattractive set of web pages with missing links, and discontinuing interest by teachers to further repeat this exercise and build additional WebQuests. An individual who is not technically proficient would have difficulties creating permanent graphical appearances as web pages usually change depending on monitor resolution and target browsers, images must be prepared into a format suitable for web display and entire structure is consistent of many independent files which merge into a visual display once a page is viewed in a browser. For WebQuest to be shared, whole collection of files must be distributed unless the site is compressed using zip utility (which then requires users to be able to return it to original form). All these and many other complications would be solved if teachers are encouraged to use presentation tool such PowerPoint for design. In addition, PowerPoint would result in more creative and interesting presentation.
RTSE Components of a Learning Activity -- Oliver (2001) recommends that the key components of an on-line learning activity are resources, task and support. Churchill and Wong (2000) suggest that fourth component, evaluation is a critical in learning activity and it must be included. I understand, that in fact, these four components: resources, task, support and evaluation are component of any learning activity, whether on-line, classroom-based or in mix-mode. Resources are subject matter material and information and data that can be useful. Task is a problem to be solved or an inquiry. Problems presented are ill-structured types specified by Jonassen (2000) as decision-making, troubleshooting, diagnosis-solution, strategic performance, case analysis, design and dilemmas. Inquiries are related to development of theoretical thinking or “deep structural strategies, the children’s growing understanding of basic features and relationships laying not at the surface of the learning material, but demanding abstraction from the phenomenon and penetrating into the substance” (Lompscher & Hedegaard, 1999, p.13). Support is set scaffolds, as well as a strategy for students to obtain support independently and collaboratively when needed or providing support when it is observed as needed. Evaluating is critical component in learning activity and it focuses on the outcome of the task. The task should result in a production of an artifact that demonstrates transformation of information and development of understanding and as such, it should inform about misconceptions developed by learners and lead to additional informed intervention.

When considering these prior attempts to understand effective design of student-centered learning activities, ActiveLessons are best described as technology-based, student centered learning activities designed with presentation tools to present a task and lead to resource, require supported transformation of information and production of artifacts that demonstrate developments in students understanding.

Why is this Effective Strategy?
ActiveLesson approach is an effective strategy for school-based teaching and learning. It is important to get teachers to use technology “now” and to develop through this experience. Here are some of the reasons for the claim that ActiveLessons is an effective strategy:

ActiveLessons are easy to design and cheep to develop.
ActiveLessons are based on contemporary relevant pedagogical approach.
Minimum training is needed for teachers.
Teachers will appreciate that simple technology allows them to design pedagogically sound learning experiences for their students.
ActiveLessons be developed by everyone including students.
Existing resources can be used with ActiveLessons.
Easily to manage for reuse as only single file is distributed.
Can be packaged and shared across teachers and institution(s)
Can be reused in different situations (classroom, on-line, assignments, independent studies, etc).
Can be easily upgraded and accommodated to different students and cultures.
Templates can be developed and provided for teachers to populate with their material.
Scaffolding tools can be provided to facilitate pedagogical decision-making.

Why PowerPoint for Design?
Here some rationale for using PowerPoint for design of ActiveLessons:

Requires very moderate technical skills thus it empowers teachers to concentrate on pedagogy while designing e-learning activities.
Allows easy integration with other application.
Allows easy deployment over the internet, CD-ROM and even mobile devices
PowerPoint can link to any resource form internet, digital repositories of learning objects.
Documents such as for example MS Word, Excel, and Macromedia Flash can be embedded into the same file..
Resources such as thousands of royalty-free images and other media on almost any topic that can be directly placed in PowerPoint. Many of these can be edited in a PowerPoint.

ActiveLesson Design Process
Process of designing an ActiveLesson occurs in the following ways:

Identify suitable topic from your curriculum for design into ActiveLesson
Write learning outcome as your own design heuristics.
Identify task to lead to achievement of the learning outcome.
Plan interesting scenario that would involve learners
Locate resources and tools required in completion of task
Plan support components such as instructions, templates, frequently asked questions, extra resources that would scaffold learners, etc
Plan how to evaluate learning and what to do if further intervention is required

.References

Churchill, D. (2006). Student-centered learning design: key components, technology role and frameworks for integration. Synergy, 4(1), 18-28.
Churchill, D. & Wong, P. (2000). C-A-S-E On-line learning environments. Paper presented at the 4th Global Conference on Computers in Education (GCCCE2000), Singapore May 29-31.
Divaharan, S. & Wong, P. (2003). Student-centered learning: microlessons. In S.C. Tan, Teaching and learning with technology: an Asia-pacific perspective (pp. 182-198). Singapore: Prentice Hall.
Dodge, B. (1995). Some thoughts about WebQuests. Retrieved October, 18, 2005 from http://webquest.sdsu.edu/about_webquests.html.
Jonassen, D. (2000). Towards design theory of problem solving. ETR&D 48(4), 63-85.
Lompscher, J. & Hedegaard, M. (1999). Introduction. In M. Hedegaard & J. Lompscher (Eds), Learning activity and development (pp. 10-21). Aarhus, Denmark: Aarhus University Press.
March, T. (2003). What WebQuests are (really). Retreived May, 5, 2005 from http://bestwebquests.com/what_webquests_are.asp
Oliver, R. (2001). Developing e-learning environments that support knowledge construction in higher education. In S. Stoney & J. Burn (Eds), Working for excellence in the e-conomy (pp 407-416). Churchlands, Australia: We-B Centre.