Kimberley Roelvink,
Clara Moreno,
Menno Schokker,
Alkistis Stergiani Kartsiou
Innovative technologies and relevant trends
As it has been already discussed, technological innovations of our times have favored the development of new educational trends and methods. Online learning has changed the landscape of educational procedures for both students and teachers: scoring tests, grading papers, presenting subjects or giving feedback in an online environment are all totally different pursuits when physical presence is replaced by virtual presence. The rules, the levels of interaction, the way the knowledge should be spread are completely changed in an online environment. A theoretical discussion between researchers has emerged, where cognitive, psychological or behavioral factors related to the participants in these new realities are also examined[1]. Based on such observations, technology companies are rushing to build the tools and software that will make online learning easy, functional, effective and enjoyable for students and educators.
Online learning
- MOOCS: Online learning can be achieved in two ways. Having in mind the traditional use of the term, it could refer to direct online education through good structures distance courses or a full distance study program provided by institutions, universities or organizations. This can also refer to MOOC's, this are massive open online courses. The TU Delft and TEDEX are also linked with this type of education system where everything is done online. In this case, physical presence is only necessary in cases obligatory physical meetings because exams and papers are also handed in digitally. On the other hand, indirect online education could refer to all those online platforms and sites that contain valid information and knowledge, through articles, books, papers, videos etc. We are indirectly educated every time we are going through articles in the “science directory” or “research gate”, through books in “google books” page, through papers on “google scholar”. Every big library around the world makes a lot of material available online; students can usually have an easier access to the content but it becomes more complicated for the visitors in most of the cases, requiring subscription or payment of a certain amount.mooc-list
- Blended learning: It can be defined as a mixture of face-to-face teaching and online learning (eLearning). Students can choose where they want to learn (at school, at home or anywhere else) and when they want to learn (during school hours, evenings or weekends). But the teacher remains the one who decides whether students are allowed to choose and which parts are performed online and which in the classroom.itslearning
- Gamification: By making the homework look like a game, students are motivated, they can earn points, levels and compare themselves with others, they will become motivated to reach the top. Moreover, by interaction with games students of all ages can simulate and better understand consquences of different scenarios and this is an effective way to learn complicated subjects such as robotics. However, a not balanced usage of gamification can lead to addiction and unhealthy habits. There are different well function developments, like:
- DuoLingo,
- Ribbon Hero,
- ClassDojo,
- GoalBook,
- The World Peace Game,
- Interactive Ivy,
- Mr Pai’s Class,
- CourseHero,
- Brainscape,
- Socrative 101
Retrieved:knewton.com yukaichou.com
General software and products
Software that has been primarily developed in order to facilitate free distance communication, such as Skype, has been proven really useful for educational purposes as well while there are no limitations in its use. On the other hand, there are tools that enable members of a team that are geographically apart, to simultaneously work on a shared file which keeps track of all changes that have been made to it by each and every user (googleDrive Word, BIM Revit Architecture etc) providing the common space that is physically missing.
In general, numerous platforms that are either initiative of educational institutions or independent parties have appeared, contributing towards the transition to online learning. Our well-known collegerama is such a tool developed by TU Delft, where the users have the ability to attend lectures while not being physically present in the class. A number of platforms and sites which aim to support those interested in these new methods and learning tools are presented below:
- Articulate Studio - a tool for authoring eLearning course materials, containing updates and posts on different innovations, difficulties in online learning as well as how education ties into technology. (https://www.articulate.com/)
- The Sloan Consortium - It provides educational and professional resources for online educators. (http://onlinelearningconsortium.org/)
- SmartBuilder – a helpful and easy way to learn for those who want to construct their own online course. (http://www.smartbuilder.com/product/smartbuilder)
- Udutu - interactive online courses with the designer-friendly format for distributing, track and report on training. (http://www.udutu.com/)
- Prezi - a popular virtual whiteboard for presentations, with users from all around the world. (https://prezi.com/)
- Resources for Teaching Online - a site providing different online teaching methods, advice for building online courses and working with students. (http://www.asa.mnscu.edu/facultydevelopment/online-teaching/)
- Classroom 2.0 - a dynamic community-supported network which allows the users to be informed about participatory technologies and how they can be used in the classroom, through sharing experience and tips. (http://www.classroom20.com/)
Similar platforms are the“CourseLab”, the “Wikispaces Classroom”, “Connexions”, “Kubbu”, “Planboard”, “Curriculumbits”.
Lastly, apart from trends that are purely related to technological advances, there are educational initiatives which are more traditional and mainly require physical presence, such as conferences, workshops, seminars etc. These type of activities, although not new, are gaining more and more ground nowadays, as a means of distributing knowledge in both local and global level.
Groups that need further consideration to steer the “teach your own” subsystem in the desired direction
Students and teachers are the groups playing a crucial role in the success of the “teach your own” subsystem of the future sustainable Texel. Their enthusiasm and satisfaction from the new regime are the goals and the precondition for our interventions to work. Thus, their real needs, which can also be confirmed after our onsite visit, have to be taken into consideration. Apart from them, there are more actors who can both induce or block the transition into the new subsystem and need to be taken into consideration. These are:
- Parents
Parents need to be supportive of the new educational methods, while they are the actors who define whether their children will participate in them or not, at least up to the secondary school years. Depending on the type if interventions, they could even also become part of the learning process since their involvement could bring more positive results, as in parent cooperative schools (http://www.preschools.coop/v/cooperative-preschools/)
- Municipality
The public authorities of the island must be willing to invest on the new technologies and they could possibly have a coordinative role, determining the needs for school equipment, educators etc depending on the number of students. They should also be able to provide the infrastructure and the buildings that will host the educational activities.
- Educational institutes of the mainland
Universities and other educational institutions should be convinced to expand their educational activity on the Texel island.
- Residents of Texel
Even those who have no children can play a major role in the success of the transition, while “teach your own” will not only design for the standard educational procedure (school and university). We realize that we should also design for knowledge embedded in local activities and projects towards sustainability; the benefits and the know-how for urban farming or sustainable transportation, for instance, should also be spread through the “teach your own” mechanisms.
- Technology companies
Lastly, for the implementation of an online learning system, technological equipment is necessary. Companies and organizations providing either the knowledge or the technological means for that might also be interested in funding part of the initiatives as a way to test their products or experiment on their learning methods.
Conclusion
It can be concluded that the teaching landscape is shifting very fast on this moment. A lot of participation and trials are done with different types of online education and the way of stimulating the minds of children and students. When students become as eager to learn as to win a game, the quality and spending more time so the education level will rise. Designing a network based on Texel would be an outcome. So there are a few steps that need to be taken.
- Digital education: High quality of information, lectures, movies, pdf's, assignments, test.
- Blended learning: online and personal, adaptive learning and new way of learning, focus on personal education
- Incorporated from primary to secondary to MBO or HBO to business life
- Connection with sustainable projects and interventions on the island
While steering on these four key elements the overall quality of education will rise. The communal bond becomes stronger and more actively involved. More native youngsters will become able to receive higher education. By doing so, they fill up the gap with job opportunities and create a better business climate. With online education and guidance from locals and professionals, students receive the same opportunities as students from the mainland. The urge to study abroad becomes smaller and the when they do decide to go, there is a strong connection with the island that incentives the return of highly educated population.
While providing a better and more adaptive quality of education, parents will be satisfied and settle down. Because their children will have a promising future. While the knowledge grows on the island and more sustainable project are financed the island becomes more interesting for companies, research and schooling institutes to connect with the island. While doing so, more job opportunities will grow and the quality of the educational system will increase again. By doing so, the secondary school will generate an income and is not bonded to public financial resources.
To start this positive spiral, a small investment from the municipality is needed, but it will start a new age for the island, where knowledge, technology, and sustainability will flourish.
[1] Theoretical evidence on how a proper online educational procedure itself should be formed is another topic that exceeds the limits of our contribution; we should rather try to come up with a general but functional distance learning plan where the role of each party is well defined.