Professional Development Strategies

for Digital Immigrants

Alyson Indrunas

Everett Community College English Composition, Title III Faculty Mentor,

and Fire Science OL Program Trainer Western Washington University Graduate

Student in Continuing and College Education

Research Interests: educational technology, faculty professional development, adult education, and instructional design

Big Questions

What are the characteristics of Digital Immigrants and Digital Natives?

Can we think about technology as a tool for teaching from a Digital Immigrant's perspective?

How can we learn from students about technology? What is a Personal Learning Network? How do we teach about learning and learn about

teaching using technology?

How This Presentation Works

Take all my ideas and make them yours! Have something better to offer? Share it with me.

Take some notes. Add to the conversation. Are you a Multi-tasker? Use the chat!

http://atlconference2013.wikispaces.com/home

I will address questions by scrolling through the chat. Write Q before your question, so it’s easy for me to see.

Relieved that brain science shows we can't multi-task? Easily-distracted? Please email me your comments.

Easy Assessment Idea

Fear of “Breaking, Losing Information”

Palfrey and Gasser

from Born Digital: Understanding the first generation of digital natives

“They were all born after 1980, when social digital technologies, such as Usenet and bulletin board systems, came online. They all have access to networked digital technologies (p.7).

Digital Natives

Early Adopters=Digital Immigrants

Now what?

Marc Prensky (2001)

"Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants"

born after 1980 have spent their entire lives surrounded by

modern technology such as computers process information differently

DI Assumptions

“Digital Immigrant teachers assume that learners are the same as they have always been, and that the same methods that worked for the teachers when they were students will work for students now. But that assumption is no longer valid.” (Emphasis Prensky)

Advises that we change our methodology and content.

Legacy and Future Content

"As educators, we need to be thinking about how to teach both Legacy and Future content in the language of the Digital Natives. The first involves a major translation and change of methodology; the second involves all that PLUS new content and thinking (Prensky, p.4)."

Technology Enters the Classroom

Show DI’s It’s Fun!

Use a cell phone poll with your teachers who are nervous about technology. Here’s an example from my polleverywhere.com

Easy Tricks Empower

“Get out your cellphone,” said no teacher ever.

My students did a cell phone poll, and I was shocked and amazed that they all put their cell phones away once the exercise was over.

One student did not have a phone, so her neighbor texted it for her.

“Duh, we didn’t need our phones anymore.”

The Birds

Connect to DI’s Culture

My Philosophy of Technology

Pay attention to my verbs below (I will never stop being an English teacher).

Embrace chaos. Give good information that people can access later. Share my enthusiasm. I am not a salesperson! Invite people to ask for help. Take risks and something may fail. Bombard people with information and tools they can play with

later. Converse about what works and what doesn't. Be honest.

Disclaimer Statement: This Has Not Been Easy

My "online presence" has been hidden in learning management systems.

Here is what I wrote when asked to reflect on the future of learning:

The 'new culture of learning' honestly wears me out. Not only am I supposed to be a master of content, I need to innovate constantly and be an IT specialist. I have to become a seer of the future, a cheerleader for student creativity, a personal counselor, and a graphic designer by never leaving my electronic devices. And I have to do all of this with the knowledge that I am a part-time, contingent worker with no future of full-time employment.

What changed my mind?A teacher!

Working Students

Easy Strategies and Ideas Ask students to create a visual aid that is

NOT a PowerPoint. Poll them to see who wants to go into

Computer Science or IT. Collaborate with students about a

technology that you'd like to learn.

Harder Strategies and Ideas Take a class. Sign-up for a MOOC. Ask your administration to fund on-going

technology training. Devote time to your Personal Learning

Network.

What is a Personal Learning Network (PLN)?

What Does a Networked Teacher Look Like?

Connectivism

Connectivism is a learning theory for the digital age.

Learning has changed over the last several decades. The theories of behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism provide an effect view of learning in many environments.

They fall short, however, when learning moves into

informal, networked, technology-enabled arena.

Encourage DI’s to Lurk

Learning is a process of connecting specialized nodes or information sources.

A learner can exponentially improve his or her own learning by plugging into an existing network.

Learning happens in many different ways. Courses, email, communities, conversations, web search, email lists, reading blogs, etc. Courses are not the primary conduit for learning.

Here’s What’s Working

Use Principles of Andragogy. Adults are: self-directed learners motivated by connecting their learning to their life

experiences goal-oriented motivated by learning/training that is relevant and practical

What’s Working

Technology makes some teachers feel stupid, inadequate, and overwhelmed.

Remember to remind them of their expertise.

Always have about 10 minutes built-in to your presentation/training for teachers to vent about “the students today.”

Training Advice

Respect that they are Digital Immigrants. Show them similarities and differences

between their students and themselves. Ask teachers about their motivation to use

technology. You may have to change your plans as the

trainer/teacher depending on what they want.

Choose One Thing

Advise them to choose one thing. They don't have to recreate their entire

class. Choose one assignment, lesson, unit, etc.

Make it sound fun! Admit that you are still learning. Be honest

about what works and what doesn't.

Thank you, NW eLearn!

Resources & References

My Wiki: http://atlconference2013.wikispaces.com/home “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants” http://bit.ly/gxuBqH Photos of tapes, discs, etc. www.photopin.com Boy with iPad http://www.flickr.com/photos/notionscapital/5225049493/ eLearning Photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/adesigna/2946164861/ Woman with laptop http://www.flickr.com/photos/notionscapital/3961139526

/ Girl with cellphone www.photopin.com George Connectivism www.connectivism.ca/about.html Networked Teacher http://www.flickr.com/photos/courosa/2922421696/ Screenshot from Alec Courosa’s Collaborate February, 2013

http://etmooc.org/topics-schedule/