Pedagogy for Digital Natives

Pedagogy for Digital Natives

Brita L. Williams

Concordia University – Portland

Pedagogy for Digital Natives

            Pedagogy, the art and science of teaching, is critical to creating a successful learning environment but useless if the instructional strategies are not applied with the learner in mind. Knowing the learner is more than recognizing an identified learning disability or a student who is an English Language Learner. Engaging the learner requires the teacher to discover how they process information, store it, and recall it later as needed. Effective teaching takes into consideration the cultural background of the students, including their fears and what inspires them. The different patterns of students thinking today is a reflection of their digitally infused culture.

Instructional Methods and Strategies

            There are countless books written detailing a variety of research-based instructional methods and strategies on how to teach content to many different types of students. However, effective teaching is partnering with the student in learning (Prensky, 2012). It is about what the learner is learning and not about what the teacher is teaching. The content to be taught is already available to the students from numerous sources. Determining the most successful means of conveying that content is where authentic teaching begins. Creativity, which was thought to be relegated to the art and music classrooms, is essential to learning in the 21^st century. Through creativity, students can learn how to apply and manipulate the content (MacArthur Foundation, 2010).

Changes in Strategies

            Changing instructional strategies for teaching and engaging the digital native is critical for successful learning. One such strategy is to use the structural thought processing from digital gaming (Prensky, 2012). Game theory creates situations in which each chosen action can give different results with the objective of finding the best way to achieve the best possible solution. This type of student engagement eliminates monotonous routine and boredom in learning. Students learn to apply their random-access thinking skills to solve real-world problems (Prensky, 2012). Teachers can apply gaming theory by purposeful gamification of any content (Davis, 2014). Students today are no less competitive or motivated to succeed than earlier generations. The difference is, they expect immediate feedback and results so that they can make the needed adjustments and try again.

Conclusion

            Learning is an active process involving different modalities of receiving information, applying new knowledge, and developing problem-solving skills. A constructivist learning environment where new knowledge is built on prior knowledge and prior experience promotes this process (Joyce, Weil, & Calhoun, 2015). Higher education will not survive without adapting to the processing methods of the digital natives. Traditional universities are still valuable for creating an environment of discovery and having professors who thrive on new ideas and provide mentorship and encouragement to their students (Christensen & Eyring, 2011). To uphold the value of a degree in higher education, the students need to recognize the potential for their future through the lens of a digital native.

References

Christensen, C. M., & Eyring, H. J. (2011). The innovative university: Changing the DNA of higher education from the inside out. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Davis, V. (2014, March 20). Gamification in education. Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/gamification-in-education-vicki-davis

Joyce, B., Weil, M., and Calhoun, E. (2015). Models of teaching (9^th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

MacArthur Foundation. (2010). Rethinking learning: The 21st century learner [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0xa98cy-Rw

Prensky, M (2012). From digital natives to digital wisdom. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Future Forward Exemplars

 Future Forward Exemplars

Brita L. Williams

Concordia University - Portland

Future Forward Exemplars

            For institutions of higher education to survive the increasing costs of operation and the forward-thinking ideas brought by the technological revolution, they must be prepared to innovate and embrace the future (Christensen & Eyring, 2011). Several institutions across the country, both private non-profit and public have been moving to position themselves for future generations and society’s needs.

Southern New Hampshire University

History of Innovation

Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) is well-positioned for the future because that was their mission when they opened in 1932 as a business school to prepare individuals for bookkeeping, accounting, and secretarial work. Their goal was to help people find jobs when jobs were scarce. The founder, Harry Alfred Benjamin Shapiro, “believed passionately in the value of knowing the ‘why’ … and not just the ‘how’” (SNHU History, n.d., para. 2). They developed a flexible enrollment format with weekly enrollment opportunities including both day and evening classes. The University offered programs for active duty servicemen and veterans to support and develop job skills, including creating programs located on military bases.

Prepared for Today’s Students

Today, the University offers 200 online degree and certificate programs, more than any other institution in the country. Many of the online programs are offered in lieu of on-campus offerings and at least half of them are offered to both traditional and non-traditional students.

Unique to SNHU’s online programs are the student services they offer. In addition to academic advising, the institution offers an online writing center and tutoring services 24/7 (SNHU Online, n.d.). They also offer online accessibility services for both students with disabilities and active service members who may experience accessibility issues. Finally, the services usually left to the campus only environment, is an online wellness center for information, education, and resources. Students enrolled in distance education need mental support services due to life’s stressors as much as those on campus.

Conclusion

As a non-profit University, SNHU can offer programs that are affordable and fit the needs and expectations of the students they serve. Their growth in the last 60 years is a testament to that service. This University is a great example of starting out with the needs of the students in mind and remaining open and flexible as those needs have evolved. The traditional universities of the past can learn from the template of SNHU for how to be progressive in thought and mode of operation to remain relevant in providing value in education. 

           

Reference

Christensen, C. M., & Eyring, H. J. (2011). The innovative university: Changing the DNA of higher education from the inside out. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

SNHU History. (n.d.). The history of SNHU. Retrieved from https://www.snhu.edu/about-us/leadership-and-history/history

SNHU Online. (n.d.). SNHU online experience. Retrieved from https://www.snhu.edu/student-experience/online-student-experience

Learning from MOOCs

 Learning from MOOCs

Brita L. Williams

Concordia University - Portland 

Learning from MOOCs

            The demographic trends in higher education are forcing institutions to innovate, disrupting the historical template (Christensen, & Eyring, 2011). While Harvard will most likely remain for a very long time, new institutions will not find themselves as able to weather the storms of change. The technological revolution has brought a permanent change in the educational format with the non-traditional methods of delivery (Prensky, 2012). With that change, a new demographic of students are seeking to take advantage of the new way to acquire an education. Some universities have sought to capture this new trend with the development of MOOCs.

MOOCs in Higher Education Landscape

            Higher education is the place where students are seeking an education to become more learned or provide them with more job possibilities. MOOCs as stand-alone courses, free or not, only fill the first purpose, to become more learned. For universities and their programs to maintain their accreditation, specific outcomes must be planned for and assessed (Marx, 2006). Programs that lead to a professional certification are regulated by the certifying industry. Teacher preparation programs are regulated by state boards of education and state law in addition to any professional accreditation (PESB, n.d.). MOOCs are not usually programmatic in nature and universities usually have a continuing education program which offers a variety of courses to enrolled students or the general public. MOOCs fill that niche nicely.

MOOCs Learning Effectiveness

            Traditional institutions in higher education can learn from the development of MOOCs. First, what these universities and colleges need to understand is that there is more than one way to offer an education. MOOC designs are useful in the for-profit education industry because they can cater to the working individual with other responsibilities. Enrollment for classes can be taken one at a time and at a pace that works for them. The traditional institutions need to recognize the growing demographic of the non-traditional students who are seeking an education and possibly a professional certification but who require more flexibility in time and mode of delivery (Hess, 2011). The key is to offer valuable alternatives to the traditional educational structure. Receiving value for their educational dollar is of growing importance to students with the increasing costs of tuition and books (Johnstone, 2016).

MOOCs – Assessing Their Legitimacy

            Assessing the legitimacy of any program or course is important to gain and maintain accreditation. Accrediting agencies review syllabi, program and course outcomes, and evaluate the data collected by the institution (Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, n.d.). The data represents student achievement in relation to the stated outcomes. Any MOOCs would need to go through a similar assessment to be worthy of credit posted on a student’s transcript. If a MOOC was developed through an existing department in the institution, it could offer stand-alone courses with legitimate outcomes to assess students. It is more likely that a MOOC would be offered as a legitimate graduate course. There are many industries that suggest or require additional credit hours to maintain certification (Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, n.d.). If the courses were developed at a graduate level it could bring the institution more money and the student may benefit financially from their company as well.

Conclusion

            Innovative leadership is how the traditional institutions will learn how to meld a legitimate program design with the non-traditional MOOCs (Christensen, & Eyring, 2011). Technology will continue to evolve requiring administration and faculty to be flexible. Students will become more adept and expect their college choice to be current with the fast-paced changes in technology. The 21^st-century workforce is calling for graduates who are prepared for the future.

References

Christensen, C. M., & Eyring, H. J. (2011). The innovative university: Changing the DNA of higher education from the inside out. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Hess, F. (2011, September 28). Old school: College's most important trend is the rise of the adult student. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/09/old-school-colleges-most-important-trend-is-the-rise-of-the-adult-student/245823/

Johnstone, D. B. (2016). Financing American higher education. In Bastedo, M. N., Altbach, P. G., & Gumport, P. J. (Eds.). (2016). American higher education in the twenty-first century: Social, political, and economic challenges (4^th ed.) (pp. 310-341). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.

Marx, G. (2006). Future focused Leadership: Preparing schools, students, and communities for tomorrow’s realities. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Development.

Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). (n.d.). Accreditation standards and related policies: Standard two-resources and capacity 2. C.8. Retrieved from http://www.nwccu.org/Standards%20and%20Policies/Standard%202/NWCCU_Standard_Two.htm

Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. (n.d.). Continuing education. Retrieved from http://www.k12.wa.us/certification/clockhours.aspx

PESB. (2011). Residency Teacher. Professional Educator Standards Board. Retrieved from https://www.pesb.wa.gov/preparation-programs/program-standards/standard-5-knowledge-and-skills/residency-teacher/

Prensky, M (2012). From digital natives to digital wisdom. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Stokes, P. (2011). What online learning can teach us about higher education. In Wildavsky, B., Kelly, A. P., & Carey, K. (Eds.). (2011). Reinventing higher education: The promise of innovation (pp. 197-224). Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.

Respect, Dignity, and Self-Worth

I am NOT an anomaly.

I will not and cannot believe that. I have to believe there are a lot of people like me who do not immediately judge a person’s character on their gender or color of their skin. I was told today that I was more unique than I realize in my thinking. I simply do not understand why someone would think that way.

What just happened?

I was observing a colleague teaching her class at her request. She was holding class outside. The students were working on a small writing project in small groups and were scattered about in a lovely Japanese garden on campus. The garden is open to anyone wanting to take a stroll, sit and rest, chat with someone, or just think. My colleague was dressed professionally, with her University name badge on, and was holding her materials with a clipboard. I was dressed in jeans and a nice top, but not professionally as I was not teaching this day. An older gentleman, who was walking towards me on the path, stopped and asked me what I was teaching. I said that I wasn’t teaching but Dr. S was, I was just there to observe. My colleague came up to tell me that she knew he would come up to me because he had just walked past her without comment. At first, I was confused but then realized it was because she is Hispanic and I am white and the gentleman was also white. She proceeded to explain that this happens to her daily and although she is used to it and ignores it, her students do not have the confidence to do that. Instead, many of the young students either internalize it or allow it to feed their anger. I was angry. I wanted to go back and ask the gentleman what he was thinking!

Remembering

This experience brought to mind my own when I was 19 years old working in an accounting firm where most of the accountants were men. I was subjected to blatant looks, comments, and behavior which portrayed an assumption of me, my level of intelligence, and sexual possibilities. It was demeaning and I literally fought back with my words and an occasional slap in the face.

What Can We Do?

I have concluded that all of this sexual harassment training and multicultural training has done nothing but force these opinions and behaviors underground where they still exist in a more subtle manner. Fighting back must be constructive and educational. Slinging insults and branding people without knowing their character, whether they be white or non-white, regardless of gender, will NOT reap a more civil, enlightened population. I believe our reaction to these instances of stupidity (and YES, I call it stupidity) is important. Unfortunately, that begins with a belief in our own self-worth. Confidence in what are abilities are while recognizing our own failings or mistakes is how we demonstrate our worth to others. People need to take responsibilities for their own behaviors before judging others … sounds like a parable I know. Educators must take the lead in how we behave and present ourselves to our students. Respect, dignity, and self-worth can be modeled and it can be taught.

If Only?

It would not have helped for me to go back and ask the gentleman what he was thinking. The best thing I could do to promote an enlightened mindset was what I did do. Explain that I was not the professor teaching but that Dr. S. was. I recall now that he did have a slight look of surprise or confusion. Hopefully, he realized the more educated and qualified faculty there was the Hispanic woman and not the white one.

The countdown is about to begin...

What am I doing here?

I have created this blog for my EdD Doctoral Degree program I am working on from Concordia University - Portland. This program is completely online which allows me to continue my teaching at Central Washington University in Ellensburg without having to travel to another campus for my classes. This is a cohort program that is designed to direct the student towards completion within about 3 1/2 years. I am 8 weeks shy of finishing year two.

What have I learned so far?

I have learned that I can write without fear now. The thought of writing is what stalled me to begin in the first place. I realize that I know more than I thought I did. I have learned about the history, the organizational structures, and the critical issues in higher education. Quantitative and qualitative research methods and statistics are less of a mystery than they once were. The most impactful concepts I have learned are about leadership, what is good leadership, poor leadership, and servant leadership. I have found myself applying my learning to my teaching with every course I take, adding to my curriculum in every course I teach.

Technology & Revolutions in Higher Education

This blog is for my technology class. I am hoping to learn how to create and use technology to enhance my own teaching to education students.