The art of video training

Teachers do this all the time but Julia Child turned it into an art when the American chef and television personality mastered the feat of ‘thinking on our feet” as TV host of her live French cooking shows in the 80s.

While teachers may be skilled at performing a task, few are endowed with the power to teach, convey ideas and persuade. Despite television being a multi-medium with endless possibilities for props and special effects, Child ignored these bells and whistles when she became a show by herself.

Making spontaneity an art

Like a teacher with no recourse to stop time to restart her teaching, Child on live TV could not stop the camera and start again. What she did instead was invent a “spontaneous, somewhat fumbling style” (Castro, 2002, p. 191) now emulated by TV chefs worldwide. She expressed in words and showed details that most cooks would omit, like how to hold a knife with the proper positioning of the fingers, for example. She gave you these little details to give you the feeling of the job.

Thinking in real-time as events unfold

Castro (2002) cites Schon (1984) when he calls Child’s style  “knowing in action” (p. 191), the application of in-between knowledge, or space, between theory and practice. Also called “reflection-in-action”, thinking on our feet involves being aware of our experiences, feelings and theories in use as they unfold through our actions.

Castro (2002) discovered Child’s spontaneous delivery style when he analysed informal education training videos. A perfectly scripted presentation, he found, hid the difficulties and tips and tricks that learning a trade involves. No student can relate or approximate that perfection, asserts Castro. To illustrate the point, Caster compares two training presentations on video, one by a hotel restaurant maitre d’ and the other by Child (p. 190).

“The first video demonstrates how to remove the bones from a trout. The maître d’hôtel, in formal dress, tackles the fish as an actor performing in front of a full house. His movements are swift and precise, not one second is wasted. In no time, the bones are extracted, and the fish is reassembled as if by magic.

The second video is chef Julia Child. She searches for the right word, stops to ponder what she is going to do next, fumbles with the knife, drops the food, looks for a towel to clean her hands, discusses alternatives, and looks a bit worried about the results when removing the finished dish from the oven” (p. 190).

Conclusion

Focusing on advanced Internet technologies to deliver adult literacy and skills training may have blindsided us to an important fact: most may not have the means to afford online access. Fortunately, Castro (2002) discovers the efficient simplicity and cost effectiveness of going back to basics with the humble video or compact disc recorder, a companion to the ubiquitous and affordable television. On video, an adult trainer can focus on techniques for teaching with impact, sincerity, persuasion and empathy, like Julia Child did, to an audience of learners who want nothing more but to feel that learning a skill is within their reach.  

References

Castro, C. (2002). ICT for adult training: The victory of spontaneous action. In W. Daddad, & A. Draxler, A. (Eds). Technologies for education: Potential, Parameters and Prospects (pp. 186-191). UNESCO. Retrieved at
http://www.ictinedtoolkit.org/usere/library/tech_for_ed_chapters/17.pdf

Infed.org (undated). Donald Schon: learning, reflection and change.  Retrieved on 2 September, 2011 from The Encyclopaedia of Informal Education website at http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-schon.htm

Multimedia in Training

No multimedia here!

Adult literacy and skills training programmes are no more drab text-based resources delivered transmission style by trainers to a passive audience. Thanks to advances in multimedia tools, web technologies and instructional design, learning a skill is a multisensory experience. Graphics, audio, animation, live video and hyperlinks can be integrated to create a kinetic and interactive experience, making learning highly effective, asserts instructional design expert Patti Shank (undated).

Graphics, for instance, help illustrate a concept, audio provides narration, animation help visualise how parts work to make a whole and video shows everyday reality, explains Shank. Multimedia in training appeals to learning theorists as diverse as Fleming (2006) and Greenfield (Henry, 2007). While Fleming, who developed the visual, audio, kinaesthetic or VAK learning model believes that a learner has a preferred style for processing information, Greenfield believes that humans build a picture of the world through the senses working in unison, reflecting the interconnectivity that exists in the brain.

Get your procedures right
According to Shank teaching creates two kinds of knowledge: declarative knowledge and procedural knowledge. Copier technicians have declarative knowledge when they can describe and list the parts of a copy machine. Technicians who know how the parts work together and can use the knowledge to solve a technical problem, have acquired procedural knowledge, vital for real-world applications, contends Shank. Similarly, knowing how to build or assemble a bicycle or a computer network relies on procedural knowledge. As Brunye, Taylor and Rapp (2007) have indicated, learners who can successfully perform a particular task have learnt what the elements of a procedure are, and more importantly, understood the connections and relationships between those elements.

Multimedia to the rescue 
Procedural instruction is more effective with multimedia tools, assert Brunye, Taylor and Rapp (2007). Instructors can either repeat similar information across formats to leverage on the benefits of repetitive learning or use complementary multimedia by providing different information across formats. In the latter application, learners must actively integrate the information between formats such as text, images and hyperlinks, to build cohesive knowledge. In the process, learners will construct their own descriptions, deductions and explanations, adopting a constructivist approach to learning (Bloome & Goldman, 2002).

Ill-timed bells and whistles
Shank recommends abiding by a few principles when using multimedia in learning resources. The temporal contiguity rule, for instance, suggest presenting corresponding text and graphics simultaneously rather than consecutively. The redundancy rule, on the other hand cautions against using animation and narration with on-screen text. Multimedia must also match a learning objective. Text and narration are better for explanations, animations show changes over time and graphical analogies show hidden concepts such as how compound interest works.

Not everything that glitters is gold
Graphics can be made interesting to attract a learner, but that is where its use ends, argues Bloome & Goldman (2002). Instead of enhancing knowledge, it only seduces the user. Even when images, such as data charts and tables, are relevant for understanding, learners who cannot understand them will only give them a quick scan. In the same way, images and animations can overload a learner with too much information. As a result, learners may grasp ‘how’ a system works rather than understand ‘why’ it works.

Conclusion
Despite some weaknesses, multimedia will get more innovative -- and to a large extent, life changing. Apple’s IPAD is an example of how it has changed the way we read, entertain, learn and do business. Its multimedia platform reflects a flexible learning environment that gives users more control over their learning. To get the best that multimedia can offer, learners must develop the mindset of an active learner and acquire such skills as searching, the evaluation of documents and graphics, strategic reading and learn to integrate resources from various independent sources and online technologies (Bloome & Goldman, 2002).


References
Bloome, D. & Goldman, S. (2002). Literacy: Learning from multimedia sources. Retrieved from the website of Encyclopaedia.com. http://litd.psch.uic.edu/personal/jwiley/EncyEd03.pdf

Brunye, T., Taylor, H., & Rapp, D. (2007). Repetition and Dual Coding in Procedural
Multimedia Presentations. Retrieved from http://ase.tufts.edu/psychology/spacelab/pubs/brunye_taylor_rapp_acp_inpress.pdf

Fleming, N., and Baume, D. (2006). Learning Styles Again: VARKing up the right tree! Retrieved from http://www.vark-learn.com/documents/Educational%20Developments.pdf

Henry, J. (2007, 29 July). Professor pans 'learning style' teaching method. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1558822/Professor-pans-learning-style-teaching-method.html

Shank, P. (undated). The value of multimedia in learning. Retrieved on 30 August, 2011 from http://www.adobe.com/designcenter/thinktank/valuemedia/The_Value_of_Multimedia.pdf

Creating a personal learning environment

Don’t stay limited
Online learners may not be aware that a Learning Management System (LMS) like Blackboard’s limits the learner. Wilson et al., (2006) contend that it does not support lifelong learning, lifewide learning or personalisation. LMSs are asymmetrical in that the tools to organise and create are richer for teachers than for learners and the scope to create, participate and take control of one’s learning is limited to the confines of the institution’s own educational platform.

The LMS course-centric model offers all learners the same experience of the system and all see the same content organised in the same way with the same tools, say the authors. This is not unlike the education model that emphasises the common experience of learners within a context (like a school or university). While there have been attempts to create links to learning products and services on other platforms, the closed nature of the LMS discourages open sharing of content and is not available to the outside world or to learners after they leave a course. Such limitations restrict the drive towards lifelong and lifewide learning argue Wilson et al., (2006).

Let’s get personal
The Personal Learning Environment (PLE), on the other hand, connects learners to a wide range of services offered by organisations and individuals enabling both formal and informal learning. Instead of limiting learners to interact with a single software, PLEs enable learners to support their goals with access to devices (laptops, mobile phones, portable media devices), applications (newsreaders, instant messaging clients, browsers, calendars) and services (social networking services, weblogs, wikis).

PLE favours symmetrical relationships where any user is able to both consume and publish their own resources, manage contexts and adopt tools to suit their needs. It reaches beyond the scope of what’s offered by institutions and allows sharing of resources, not protecting them. PLE emphasises the use of creative commons licenses enabling editing, modification, and republishing of resources (The Power of Open). Creative commons licence holders can share and collaboratively build textbooks, lectures, and lesson plans, for example.

Implications for teaching and learning
In an environment where data is everywhere and needs only to be located, there is greater value placed on skills that enable fast and accurate access to information and the ability to discern authoritative content from noise. Teaching in PLEs is less about transmitting knowledge and more about engaging collaboratively in collecting, orchestrating, remixing and integrating information into knowledge building. Learners too will spend less time collecting information and more time reflecting upon the specific tools and resources that will lead to a deeper engagement with content.



References
Wilson, S., Liber, O., Johnson, M., Beauvoir, P., Sharples., P & Milligan, C. (2006). Personal learning environments: Challenging the dominant design of educational systems. Retrieved from http://dspace.ou.nl/bitstream/1820/727/1/sw_ectel.pdf

Creative Commons (undated). The power of open. Retrieved on 11 Aug 2011 from http://creativecommons.org/

Educators Guide to Innovation. (undated). Personalised Learning Environment. Retrieved on 11 Aug 2011 from http://guidetoinnovation.ning.com/profile/paultozer

Online learning from online games

Bring out your toys, it’s time to learn
It is time adult learners discovered the joy of playing video games, or rather explored screen-based games as a learning environment. Screen-based games in the context of this blog cover games played on computers and all other electronic devises with a screen and controller. Shaffer, Squire, Halverson and Gee (2004) argue that video games are not just toys or a route for computer literacy. It also allows learners to immerse in rich virtual worlds and assume the powerful identities that inhabit them. A Deus Ex player, for instance, can experience life as a government special agent who uses state-sponsored violence to fight terrorism. In Sims Online, players learn to run political systems complete with the power to overhaul the police force and judicial system.

Making it real
Such environments make games powerful contexts for learning, developing social practices and situated understanding, contend Shaffer et al. (2004), concepts in situated learning theory. Situated learning emphasises learning in an authentic environment that parallels real-world situations. Learners engage in context, culture, activities and social interactions related to the authentic learning activity.

Group learning is intense
Multiplayer online games create robust game playing communities that bring players together competitively and cooperatively, into the virtual world of the game, and the social community of game players, note Shaffer et al. (2004). Barton & Tusting (2005) define communities of practice as a theory of learning where new technologies provide ways for learning in groups who are distributed by distance. In the game Civilization, for example, whose objective is to build an empire, players share game expertise, post news feeds, participate in discussion forums, trade screenshots, exchange game files and even run their own university to develop complex game skills. Lave & Wenger (1991) believe that virtual worlds integrate knowing and doing. Games bring together "ways of knowing, ways of doing, ways of being, and ways of caring: the situated understandings, effective social practices, powerful identities, and shared values that make someone an expert" (Shaffer et al.2004, p.7).

The lonely online learner

While online learning is the greatest thing invented since the 2-minute cup of noodles I’m worried about its side effects. All I’ve done since I’ve enrolled in this course is sit in a room facing my permanently-switched-on computer with the door closed, curtains drawn and a heater at my feet. I only leave the room to get a snack which I eat while I continue to surf, type and think of proper ways to comment on some highbrow theory. What’s even more worrying is that I’m developing a very broad and flat bum, sore neck, claw like fingers and a very negative attitude to nice people who dare to disrupt me to find out how I’m doing or invite me out. I don’t know if I’ll ever be comfortable in the real physical world again after this stay in the secluded and remote world of online learning.

A new definition of literacy

Remember when literacy was defined as the ability to read and write print-based materials? Well, if that’s all you are competent to do, then you are far removed from a world where people find, seek and make meaning from a technological mix of text, graphics, video and sound. You have never, for instance, participated in audio-visual conferences, used search-engines, responded to emails, visited virtual environments, websites and social networks, or created a personal website, blog or wiki (NSW Department of Education and Training, 2010). You don’t also have the literate skills to critique texts and comprehend information from multiple perspectives, or the ability to deal with complex interfaces, countless images, video clips, pop-ups, real-time texts, downloads, hyperlinked texts and icons.

Today’s students who have access to all that technology at their finger-tips so to speak will be required to use higher-order thinking skills to “distinguish fact from fiction, argument from documentation, real from fake, and marketing from enlightenment (Jenkins, Purushotma, Clinton, Weigel & Robison, 2006 p. 44). The impact of using highly honed thinking skills is that educators must be prepared for negotiated curriculums where students will approach a task using different strategies and diverse sources and arrive at various conclusions. Students will also be evaluated on how fast they locate, evaluate, use, communicate and disseminate information through a variety of technologies. In an education setting where learners may be more literate in new technologies than the instructor, the role of the educator is to be “ less sage on stage” and more a “guide from the side” where the former suggests the teacher as lecturer and the latter, teacher as facilitator (Gordon 2009, p. 61).

Yet, technology is not without its challenges. Mastering a software application will not be enough, for instance, to develop informed decision-making and critical thinking skills. Successful learners are creators of information rather than passive software users. Educators must also be vigilant about the lack of access of some learners to technology and its learning opportunities creating what educators call the participation gap. Those with computers are able, for example, to develop comprehension skills and the competency to quickly and easily find information online. Assessing technology skills is another challenge. How does one assess a student’s ability to locate and analyse the information on a webpage or grade them for their co-construction of content in a wiki or for their contributions to online discussions?

Defining literacy in today’s context could be perceived as an elusive task. As new technologies for information, communication and collaboration emerge literacy may be thought of as a moving target, continually changing its meaning depending on what society expects literate individuals to do. As Howard Gardner (2008) has so aptly put it, literacy – or an ensemble of literacies – will continue to thrive, but in forms and formats we can’t yet envision.

References
Gardner, H. (2008, 17 February). The end of literacy? Don’t stop reading. The Washington post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com

Gordon, C. (2009).An emerging theory for evidence based information literacy instruction in school libraries, Part 1: Building a foundation. Evidence-based library and information practice, Vol.4:2. Retrieved from http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/EBLIP/article/view/5614/5320

Jenkins, H., Purushotma, R., Clinton, K., Weigel, M. & Robison, A. (2006). Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the 21st century. the MacArthur Foundation, Chicago. Retrieved from http://newmedialiteracies.org/files/working/NMLWhitePaper.pdf

NSW Department of Education and Training (DET). (2010). Literacy Learning and Technology. Retrieved from http://www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/literacy/assets/pdf/packages/tech_lit_learn.pdf

Animation in education

During my first job as a reporter in a Singapore newspaper several, and I mean several, years ago, I attended a training programme to learn the conventions of newspaper writing and how to increase my productivity by writing against very tight deadlines. I still remember the horror I felt when we were given huge antique-looking typewriters to produce our articles. Everything in that mechanical junk conspired to work against my race with time. The keys had to be deeply and firmly pressed to get a print out and worse, my edit button was a bulky rubber eraser. Thankfully, our real workspace was equipped with computers and customised software configured for the fast production of our articles for the 4 am production of the daily newspaper.

My point is, technology was in my time all about speed, volume and productivity. Not that it isn’t that way today, but we’re better now at using it to do some beautiful things for us like create and entertain and learn and play. For my blogs, I am going to spend some time researching and grasping the beauty of a feature of technology that I can use to make teaching and learning a more dynamic process. I will start with the role of animation in adult learning. The animated video by Robinson (2010) on what’s wrong with our current education, speaks for itself.

While educational animation has all the indications that the content will engage, motivate and educate the reader better than, say, static images would, Lowe and Schnotz (2008) argue that research on the inherent effectiveness of animation in learning is not conclusive. They suggest that animated materials can only be successful if the design employs principles that govern how learners develop understanding when they work with animation. For this reason Lowe and Schnotz (2008) have published a book with lessons for an improved way to design educational animations for a range of contexts. The first section in the book titled Information Search and Processing shows how to create tasks from animation. The second section on Individual Differences and Strategies, discusses how animation influences learning. The third section on Interactivity and Learning illustrates the potential benefits of using advanced technology for interactive learning, and the fourth section titled Instructional Issues draws on several research sources for the best strategies on the use of animation in learning.

Wohl, Christie, Matheson and Anisman, (2010) present an example of how an educational animation was successfully used in a gambling intervention survey. The nine-minute presentation began with a conveyor-belt metaphor to illustrate that persistence in slot-machine gambling would not bring a player closer to a win. Instead, a bag of marbles metaphor showed that slot machines operated on the principle of sampling with replacement where the original odds are reset with each play. Then a cylinder metaphor was used to show the actual odds of winning on a slot machine as 90,000 to 1. The presentation concluded with a message listing seven low-risk practices on how to stay within expenditure limits when gambling. In the feedback, respondents who watched the animation said they understood the concept of sampling with replacement by not endorsing the conveyor belt metaphor. I think this is testimony of what Lowe and Schnotz (2008) were trying say about how animated material is more successful if it employs the principles of learning.

References
Wohl, M., Christie, K., Matheson, K., & Anisman, H. (2010). Can animation-based education correct erroneous cognitions and reduce the frequency of exceeding limits among slots players? Retrieved from the Ontario Problem Gambling Research Centre website 2490_Wohl Research Summary FINAL.pdf

Robinson, K. (2010). RSA animate: Changing education paradigms. Retrieved from the Extreme Presentation ™ method website http://extremepresentation.typepad.com/blog/2010/10/sir-ken-robinson-on-education-animated.html

Lowe, R. & Schnotz, W. (Eds). (2008). Learning with animation: Research implications for design.
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, New York.