Publishing Web for Students' Final Papers
Publishing Web for Students' Final Papers |
|
From: Sharon Wie
Email: swie@cats.ucsc.edu
Course: Psychology101: Informal Learning and Technology
College: UCSC, Kresge College
Instructor: Eugene Matusov
ClassWeb: http://www.ematusov.com/psych101
ChildrenObservations: Yes
Date: 13 Dec 1996
Time: 03:45:12
Remote Name: cust105.max9.san-francisco2.ca.ms.uu.net
The purpose of this paper is to show the importance and significance of the learning environment. The learning environment will be defined as the physical area surrounding the actual learning. At the local latina youth center, University of California, Santa Cruz undergraduates and the children participants collaborated to achieve a higher level of learning. Through class readings, discussions, direct observations, and fieldnotes connecting their overall experience, the UCSC undergraduates were able to note the effect of the environment on the children. Because each undergraduate decided what teaching method (i.e.: top down, bottom up, adult run, children run, collaborative, etc.) worked best with the children, a variety of situations and relationships were built within the site. To positively involve the environment as a part of the learning atmosphere, it is important to look at many theories regarding the factors involved with the environment. The theories and reflections I present in this paper involve the learning environment (R. Doman, date unknown) (Brophy & Alleman, 1991), Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (L. Moll & K. Whitmore, 1993), cooperative learning (Classroom Compass, date unknown), personal learning (E. Matusov & B. Rogoff, 1995), models of teaching and learning (B. Rogoff, E. Matusov, and C. White, 1996), and personal experiences (Psych101 website, 1996). By comparing and contrasting the teaching methods, equipment, activities and participants, one will discover how greatly influential the child’s learning environment is to his or her learning. At the local latina youth center, the focus of the learning centered on computers, although other academic and social attributes were also gained.
INTRODUCTION
I believe that a child’s surrounding or environment during a learning opportunity plays a large role in effecting the the children’s learning. Brophy and Alleman (1991) say that effective learning environments facilitate activities that are driven by curricular goals and engage the learner in inquiry requiring, problem solving and decision making situations. I agree that these factors are important but also believe that other not mentioned characteristics influence an effective learning environment as well. The learning environment is the concrete atmosphere surrounding the learner. This atmosphere consists of teachers and their methods of teaching, equipment and resources available at the site, activities and goals, and the learners.
When you walk down the narrow, angled halls of the local latina youth center into the computer lab where a special program called Tele Araña Mágica is developing, you will find a number of activities being attempted in a small room nestled in the corner. Tele Araña Mágica combines the community, local university, and research in a joint effort to learn and teach elementary aged children informally. The youth center plays its role by facilitating and attracting children to the program. The university structures the program and provides undergraduates to guide the teaching and learning.
The noise of about six to ten children and six University of California, Santa Cruz undergraduates playing each other on the computers, listening to CD ROM’s, tapping letters on the keyboard, and other sounds are heard as you approach the computer lab. Through the door, you can see that this place is far from calm, formal, and systematic. I plan to demonstrate that the environment of a learning atmosphere, specifically at the Tele Arana Magica site plays a large role in optimizing the children’s learning
METHOD
There are sixteen UCSC undergraduates and thirty two Spanish -English bilingual children engaged in this informal learning and technology project. The UC Santa Cruz undergraduates participating in Tele Araña Mágica also meet twice a week at the university with a professor in a psychology Informal Learning and Technology class. During the class, undergraduates discuss readings concerning different aspects of informal teaching, teaching methods, computer impacts, and educational expectations. In addition to the class and practicum, the UC undergraduates were required to write a minimum of seven postings a week on a web page designed for the class. At least one field note (observation of an interesting, specific incident, personal reflections, and inquiries), one reply ( commenting on other classmates’ field notes), one rewrite of the fieldnote, and one discussion (class, practicum, or web related) was expected. Students were encouraged to read as much as possible on the web to gain more knowledge about the site and view others’ perspectives. The professor of the course and two graduate student teacher assistants read most of the messages and provided feedback. The course syllabus, assignments, readings, and other relevant class information was also contributed to the web site.
The children partaking in Tele Araña Mágica range from ages six to twelve. There are two groups of children that attend twice a week on their assigned days after school. The UC students are also divided into two groups and arranged to work with the same children. The number of children seemed to differ each day, however, and many attended randomly. Although the undergraduates change because of quarter long classes, the majority of the children remain throughout the program. Throughout the first quarter, the number of children participants seemed to decline.
The undergraduates work with the children on computers, board games, homework, or other activities at Tele Araña Mágica. Evidence of learning or teaching is the primary goal of the class. Keeping kids away from violence is the youth center’s main concern.
Because the Informal Learning psychology class and the Tele Araña Mágica program is so new, much changed at the beginning of the quarter due to lack of specific resources and equipment. The UC undergraduates, therefore, refocused their aim from informal technology learning to a broader margin of learning. They realized that the program was not merely about learning internet, but a place where kids would stay off the streets, have fun, and learn something at the same time. The students learned quickly that it was partially up to them to keep the kids interested and returning. It was also obvious from the beginning that certain games were going to be the most popular and some least popular. The first few days at Tele Araña Mágica, many of the computers failed to work leading students to play games such as real estate purchasing Monopoly, Life, Connect Four, and Marbles. Many of the children had never played these games before and learned with the help of their peers and undergraduates. A student writes reaching that revelation,
"I think boardgames are great. It gives the kids a chance to explore different things o learn, whether it’s counting or reading or following instructions, the kids still learn a lot of things. I also noticed that the kids come up with their own structure when playing the board games. They come up with different rules to the game and think of different way to learn and teach others....I’m learning that board games can serve several purposes for us and the kids: learn different teaching methods, learn different cognitive skills, it teaches us how to socially interact with each other and it teaches us to be patient with one another."
The UC Santa Cruz undergraduates were originally told that they would only be working with the same one or two children. However, that was never established. Some undergraduates felt that they were unable to attach themselves to just a few kids. One undergraduate states in a fieldnote,
"I have often felt like I haven’t really connected with the kids during my time at Tele Arana Magica. I’m beginning to wonder if using computers together is not unlike TV together. I wonder if it’s kind of a distraction or obstacle to getting to know one another." (A.D., 11-02-96)
Others worked with the same children often. Another UC student wrote that teaching Monopoly to the same kids was much easier than different kids.
"I continued to work with Ariel* (names have been changed for confidentiality) and Isaac* because of my previous experience with them. I believed that one of the goals of this class was to follow a few children. I knew that there would be some differences playing Monopoly this time and was interested in seeing how much Ariel* remembered." (S.W., 10-31-96)
Tele Araña Mágica created an informal learning atmosphere where kids expand on computers or other subjects. The informalness and lack of strict guidelines regarding what needs to be taught and how at the site gives the opportunity for the participants to grow socially as well. An undergraduate posted a fieldnote pertaining to the social behavior of two boys.
"I was watching Mike* play with the Lion King puzzles. He played for a while, then got bored and said that was fine and then looked around to see if anyone looked like they might want something to do. I saw Phil* and asked if he wanted to play....As we walked over, Victor came and sat down in front of the Lion King program. An argument ensued. Mike wanted to play now, but I had just told Phil that he could. I tried to reason with Mike, but he wouldn’t listen to me. Phil looked upset. Mike wouldn’t stop playing the game. I finally got them to agree to share. When Mike was done with the puzzle, it was Phil’s turn. While Phil played, Mike left to play on another computer til it was his turn. They didn’t sit at the computer together." (A.D., 10-23-96)
Besides working on the computer with the children, this undergraduate also mediated and encouraged positive behavior. By compromising and sharing, both parties seemed fortunate.
The informal atmosphere leaves much room for as assortment of environments. The museum, explained by Matusov and Rogoff (1995) in "Public institutions for personal learning: Understanding the long-term impact of museums." creates an informal surrounding where the viewer at the museum decides how much time and effort they plan to spend at a particular exhibit. They argue that if an exhibit appeals to a viewer, the viewer may spend quite some time at the exhibit (reading the information posted, looking carefully at models or pictures) and gaining more knowledge on the topic. On the other hand, if the viewer is bored or not amused by an exhibit, they many simply walk by and move on to the next exhibit.
The environment at Tele Araña Mágica is unique in that the learning and teaching is informal, kids have a great amount of freedom, and the center itself is equipped with many activities unreachable to most of the children attending the program. Robert J. Doman (year unknown) of the National Academy for Child Development feels that the environment influences whether the child learns or not. He believes a positive environment encourages learning and a negative environment can create damage and discourages development and learning. A positive environment enables the child to feel that they are doing well, while the negative destroys the child’s motivation. He claims that a child is able to learn in a negative environment but not as well as in a positive, reinforced one.
Being as unfamiliar to the computer software as the children, UC undergraduates have at times felt as equals among the children. Having greater problem solving skills, the undergraduates ask questions that both strive to find answers for. In this incident, an undergrad deals with feeling useless at the computer because she has no idea how play the Lion King CD ROM game, but actually guides success.
"I was not a guider but an equal learner today. Phil* started the game on his own. He turned to me for help when I got stuck, but discovered that I knew absolutely nothing to assist him. I have never played the game and was completely lost. We did just fine, though...We worked together to find the memory game Phil was interested in. What we ended up doing, was pushing all the icons on the screen and coincidentally finding the right game. Whatever works right? When we got to the game, Phil found it to be very easy. We gave up guessing and I asked Mike* (a child I had seen play the game before) for help. the game went good for a while, until Phil realized that he was much better than I at the game..." (S.W., 11-20-96)
The environment plays its role through the community, socially and personally. If the learning site was disliked by the children, the children would most likely disrespect the authority, equipment, and personnel of the center. They would suffer in social aptitude because of the negative attitudes and behold lower self esteem. It is important for the community to support its environment and work to make improvement. The role of teachers, resources, and activities themselves are valuable factors in the learning environment. The UC undergraduates, taking on the role as teacher work with the children using their best judgment and intent to guide the children through various activities at Tele Arana Magica. The decide whether to explain the whole idea to specific (Top down) or specific to whole (Bottom up). The choose to structure the learning (Rogoff, Matusov, White, 1996) completely by the adult ( adult run), completely by the children (children run) or collaborate (adult role and children role working together: community of learners). At the fifth dimension site at UC San Diego called La Clase Magica (Vasquez, 1994), the role of the adults promotes a mutual exchange of knowledge and skills. At this site, the focus of the undergraduates is to be an equal status friend. Vasquez states in her article, "By building on what a child already knows, a more skillful individual can help the child achieve today, what tomorrow she or he can do alone." (1994)
Lev Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (Moll & Whitmore, 1993) is similar in that with assistance a child can mature in an activity unable alone. Vygotsky says the role of the teacher is (1) as guide and supporter (2) as active participant in the learning (3) as evaluator and (4) as facilitator. Many theories exist on how weighty teachers are in the process of learning, but nearly all agree that the teacher plays an important function.
CONCLUSION
Although there isn’t any quantitative evidence on how much the environment reflects students’ learning, it does do a great deal to guide or challenge learning. When the learner and teacher are motivated within themselves, the environment and their motivation combine creating greater effects. The activities need to be challenging enough, but not impossible. Many children learned to play Monopoly for their first time at Tele Araña Mágica. It was surprising to see how much math and other academic skills were used. The computers and software also have an impact on the children. As equipment, the children turn to them for fun and as a source of learning. Learning takes place with teachers, learners, activities, and valuable resources. Collaborating them usefully can create an optimal learning environment.
REFERENCES
Rogoff, B., Matusov, E., & White, C. (1996). Models of learning in a community of learners. In D.R. Olson & N. Torrence (Eds.). Handbook of education and human development: New models of learning, teaching, and schooling. London: Basil Blackwell.
Matusov, E., & Rogoff, B. (1995). Efidence of development from people’s participation in communities of learners. In J. Folk (Ed.), Public institutions for personal learning: Understanding the longterm impact of museums. Washington, DC: American Association of Museums.
Moll, L., & Whitmore, K. (1993). Vygotsky in classroom practice: Moving from individual transmission to social transaction. In E. Forman, N. Minick, & C. A. Stone (Eds.), Contexts for learning: Sociocultual dynamics in children’s development. London: Oxford University Press.
Vasquez, O. (1994). The magic of La Clase Magica: Enhancing the learning potential of bilingual children. The Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, 17 (2): 120- 128
Brophy, & Alleman. (1991). Activities as instructional tools: A framework for analysis and evaluation. Educational Researcher, May :9-22.
Author unknown. (date unknown) Cooperative Learning. Classroom Compass. Web
Doman, R., (date unknown). The Learning Environment. National Academy for Child Development. Web
