Dewey and Experiental Learning
Life experiences and lessons prepare us everyday. The tasks and projects we undertake prepare us for the tasks we will undertake in the future.
Decisions made earlier brought us here today.
What experiential lessons prepared and brought you to the ITEC department at SFSU?
posted by Lee Rodrigues @ 11:00 AM
15 Comments:
My answer to this question is not unlike my answer to Lawrence's question. My current work demands that I create new ways of delivering information, new ways of training users, and new ways of designing instructional content to help our users understand how to use our software applications. My work experience, including interacting with software users during training sessions and usability tests, prompted me to want to learn more about how the instructional design industry approaches these problems, and thus set the framework for my learning at ITEC. Although I don't have the same classroom (any!) experience as many of my fellow ITEC classmates, the kind of work I do has prepared me for some aspects of the instructional design field.
On a side note: Did anyone else think Dewey's article was somewhat very dated? I am SO not a seamstress, even after taking home ec. classes in elementary school.
What really brought to Itec was exactly what Dewy article talks about; in his profound approach to a massive, and continuing change in every aspect of our society, and calling our education system in general, and school in particular, and in much detailed, a and deeper level the way learning takes place! As he said the change is here, a and is everywhere, and sooner, and later we have to adopt to its ever-changing speed; that was the point that also pulled me back to school, to follow the speeding path of technological expansion in gaining new territories of knowledge; to be able to adopt more effective ways to open up better ways, maybe more of using this “embryonic community life” in Dewey’s words; and here in the school I can experience how long the journey will be, to really able digest thoroughly the spirit of the new technology into our school system; is the whole motivation of coming back to the school environment is this urgent need of catching up to the speed for me; as I said in the other note, even the experience of doing cinema in my days that stretch to couple years ago in this same school, sfsu, now demands of much more expansive knowledge of learning the new tools ;the new instruments that enable me to enhance my perspective even on the idea of cinema;
What really brought to Itec was exactly what Dewy article talks about; in his profound approach to a massive, and continuing change in every aspect of our society, and calling our education system in general, and school in particular, and in much detailed, a and deeper level the way learning takes place! As he said the change is here, a and is everywhere, and sooner, and later we have to adopt to its ever-changing speed; that was the point that also pulled me back to school, to follow the speeding path of technological expansion in gaining new territories of knowledge; to be able to adopt more effective ways to open up better ways, maybe more of using this “embryonic community life” in Dewey’s words; and here in the school I can experience how long the journey will be, to really able digest thoroughly the spirit of the new technology into our school system; is the whole motivation of coming back to the school environment is this urgent need of catching up to the speed for me; as I said in the other note, even the experience of doing cinema in my days that stretch to couple years ago in this same school, sfsu, now demands of much more expansive knowledge of learning the new tools ;the new instruments that enable me to enhance my perspective even on the idea of cinema;
What really brought to Itec was exactly what Dewy article talks about; in his profound approach to a massive, and continuing change in every aspect of our society, and calling our education system in general, and school in particular, and in much detailed, a and deeper level the way learning takes place! As he said the change is here, a and is everywhere, and sooner, and later we have to adopt to its ever-changing speed; that was the point that also pulled me back to school, to follow the speeding path of technological expansion in gaining new territories of knowledge; to be able to adopt more effective ways to open up better ways, maybe more of using this “embryonic community life” in Dewey’s words; and here in the school I can experience how long the journey will be, to really able digest thoroughly the spirit of the new technology into our school system; is the whole motivation of coming back to the school environment is this urgent need of catching up to the speed for me; as I said in the other note, even the experience of doing cinema in my days that stretch to couple years ago in this same school, sfsu, now demands of much more expansive knowledge of learning the new tools ;the new instruments that enable me to enhance my perspective even on the idea of cinema;
What really brought to Itec was exactly what Dewy article talks about; in his profound approach to a massive, and continuing change in every aspect of our society, and calling our education system in general, and school in particular, and in much detailed, a and deeper level the way learning takes place! As he said the change is here, a and is everywhere, and sooner, and later we have to adopt to its ever-changing speed; that was the point that also pulled me back to school, to follow the speeding path of technological expansion in gaining new territories of knowledge; to be able to adopt more effective ways to open up better ways, maybe more of using this “embryonic community life” in Dewey’s words; and here in the school I can experience how long the journey will be, to really able digest thoroughly the spirit of the new technology into our school system; is the whole motivation of coming back to the school environment is this urgent need of catching up to the speed for me; as I said in the other note, even the experience of doing cinema in my days that stretch to couple years ago in this same school, sfsu, now demands of much more expansive knowledge of learning the new tools ;the new instruments that enable me to enhance my perspective even on the idea of cinema;
What really brought to Itec was exactly what Dewy article talks about; in his profound approach to a massive, and continuing change in every aspect of our society, and calling our education system in general, and school in particular, and in much detailed, a and deeper level the way learning takes place! As he said the change is here, a and is everywhere, and sooner, and later we have to adopt to its ever-changing speed; that was the point that also pulled me back to school, to follow the speeding path of technological expansion in gaining new territories of knowledge; to be able to adopt more effective ways to open up better ways, maybe more of using this “embryonic community life” in Dewey’s words; and here in the school I can experience how long the journey will be, to really able digest thoroughly the spirit of the new technology into our school system; is the whole motivation of coming back to the school environment is this urgent need of catching up to the speed for me; as I said in the other note, even the experience of doing cinema in my days that stretch to couple years ago in this same school, sfsu, now demands of much more expansive knowledge of learning the new tools ;the new instruments that enable me to enhance my perspective even on the idea of cinema;
What really brought to Itec was exactly what Dewy article talks about; in his profound approach to a massive, and continuing change in every aspect of our society, and calling our education system in general, and school in particular, and in much detailed, a and deeper level the way learning takes place! As he said the change is here, a and is everywhere, and sooner, and later we have to adopt to its ever-changing speed; that was the point that also pulled me back to school, to follow the speeding path of technological expansion in gaining new territories of knowledge; to be able to adopt more effective ways to open up better ways, maybe more of using this “embryonic community life” in Dewey’s words; and here in the school I can experience how long the journey will be, to really able digest thoroughly the spirit of the new technology into our school system; is the whole motivation of coming back to the school environment is this urgent need of catching up to the speed for me; as I said in the other note, even the experience of doing cinema in my days that stretch to couple years ago in this same school, sfsu, now demands of much more expansive knowledge of learning the new tools ;the new instruments that enable me to enhance my perspective even on the idea of cinema;
What really brought to Itec was exactly what Dewy article talks about; in his profound approach to a massive, and continuing change in every aspect of our society, and calling our education system in general, and school in particular, and in much detailed, a and deeper level the way learning takes place! As he said the change is here, a and is everywhere, and sooner, and later we have to adopt to its ever-changing speed; that was the point that also pulled me back to school, to follow the speeding path of technological expansion in gaining new territories of knowledge; to be able to adopt more effective ways to open up better ways, maybe more of using this “embryonic community life” in Dewey’s words; and here in the school I can experience how long the journey will be, to really able digest thoroughly the spirit of the new technology into our school system; is the whole motivation of coming back to the school environment is this urgent need of catching up to the speed for me; as I said in the other note, even the experience of doing cinema in my days that stretch to couple years ago in this same school, sfsu, now demands of much more expansive knowledge of learning the new tools ;the new instruments that enable me to enhance my perspective even on the idea of cinema;
sorry to all my fellow blogger at itec 800!
for this strange duplicating comments of me;still the machine do its own starnge things;at home i was not able to post, and even reach the 800 blog, and here i have 4 duplicated version of the comment.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Like vanessa my response here is related to my response to Lawrence's question.
Teaching brought me the ITEC department. Through my experiences teaching I came to understand that being an effective teacher requires a good understanding of learning theory and instructional design as well as an understanding of how to use the most immersive technologies available in order to engage and captive students. I cam to these conclusions through my own inquiries in my classroom. I use my understanding of learning theory ID and the tools I have available to try to create engaging lessons. sometimes it works wonderfully but other times they don't succeed as well. I really want to understand first, why some things work better then others and second, how to create instruction that works, is for students and promotes their success in the sciences.
Sati
Again, the response to Lawrence's questions also applies here. I would add that my brief foray into the educational arena was the motivating factor that brought me to ITEC. Since the design market in the Bay Area is so saturated, looking for a full-time gig is pretty challenging. I thing the ITEC schooling will allow me to expand my personal aresenal to perhaps provide consultancy services to many areas.
What experiential lessons brought me to the ITEC Program? To quote the Grateful Dead, “What a long strange trip it’s been.” Including SFSU I’ve attended six different institutions of ‘higher’ education and have been apprenticed and reached journeyperson level in two different unions as well as a working member of three other unions. That would account for my organized learning resume. My ‘community’ of learning, however, has been even more extensive and quite of more benefit. For instance in college I have sat in many darkened rooms looking at slides of art history, memorizing dates and pertinent data. My resulting knowledge of art history was minimal. On the other hand I spent a summer in Europe studying art history where mornings were spent discussing the social history of the period and afternoons were spent viewing the real thing. There is nothing quite like standing under a flying buttress to fully understand the architectural wonders achieved in the High Gothic era of art history.
As an artist I have personally witnessed the transformation of my craft from a hands on ‘hard copy’ mode of operation to being totally cybernetic and/or conceptual. As someone who has been obsessed with the techniques of my craft I have a demanding spirit of inquiry. Thanks to the willingness of many artists before me I have been able to learn a multitude of concepts and skills that have allowed me to have some success in pursuing my artistic and career interests. I’ve become a journeyperson in my craft and have had the pleasure of being able to ‘train’ and share my knowledge with others. Also because of the digital revolution that has taken place I have taken on the task of staying abreast with skills that were not part of my artistic ‘community of learning’. I purchased a Macintosh Centris 650 in 1991, loaded it up with graphic software and began to teach myself the art of digital graphics. I met other artists doing the same and entered a new ‘community of learning’ where we shared experiences with each other. It was the combination of these two things, my enjoyment of teaching within my Scenic Artist union and my desire to keep learning and staying abreast with contemporary techniques that has brought me to the ITEC program.
I taught for 30 years, towards the end I was burned out. I felt that my working conditions were smothering me. I could not be creative; I was bored so I made a decision to leave teaching. However I was still interested in education. I have always like computer and I started hearing a lot about on-line learning. After not working for about a year I took some classes multi media classes and really like what I could create.
I met a really good multimedia teacher and I worked as his intern for a semester. We worked on an on-line quiz for his class - he taught me a lot. Then one day we where talking about careers, I thought I want to work in multimedia but he suggested instructional designing. It was a match for me I had a background in education and multi-media. After researching the subject I found about the program at SFSU. As I approach the end of my first semester , I am in a environment that is creative and giving me room to develop my skills. It has been interesting reading about the learning theories and then reflecting on my own experiences as an educator. When I first read about “learned helplessness” I had to stop reading and reflect on the times that I saw this attitude in students.
Taking online classes at Cal State Hayward. I decided to get an online teaching credential they offered. It was a rewarding experience and convinced me I could return to school and get the Masters I have always wanted to earn. Seeing major changes in teaching computer classes I new I needed to change directions. So I am here.
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