(Previously posted on my blog "My Digital Education Space":  http://spaceforeducation.blogspot.com)

If you haven't already watched this, I would firstly suggest you do so as I think it is really worth 20 minutes of your time. Otherwise, please scroll down to read my thoughts on "Bringing on a Learning Revolution".

I'd like to start by addressing Sir Robinson's insightful quote:

"Human communities depend upon a diversity of talent, not a singular conception of ability."

The industrial model of education is still quite prevalent in today's schools. Across the globe, our education systems are plagued by the need for conformity. In fact, most of what we define as "education" entails adherence to standards and failing to do so means we have failed the system. The need to conform is instilled in various ways; Students walk quietly in a straight line down the hallways; student work displayed on classroom walls appears almost uniform in design and content; students are expected to sit only in their desks when it is time to work or listen to the teacher. students are typically uniformly assessed using the same tool(s) and graded according to strict criteria. To ensure our students are "prepared for the 21st century", they are subjected to standardized tests regardless of whether the teacher has or hasn't covered the content being tested. Given the instances described, it is no surprise that we find a great divide between students who are excelling academically and those who are struggling to cope with everyday school demands.

If instead of building a school culture of conformity we allowed students to celebrate their diverse abilities, we would likely see more motivated individuals who would be creating things out of their learning experiences previously unimaginable. Inquiry or project-based learning would lend itself beautifully to bringing learning to life and realizing students are individuals with unique abilities. Inquiry learning is authentic in nature as it requires learners to work both collaboratively and individually in attempting to solve a real-life problem or address a question. Ideally, the teacher would group students of different abilities together and have them utilize their inner strengths collaboratively to create a product or solution. It requires the teacher change her/his perception of being a "disseminator of knowledge" to that of a researcher and facilitator, both guiding the process while closely observing and recording the outcomes of learners working together on projects. Instead of strict focus on student evaluation, the teacher now also engages in the act of constant self-evaluation, continuously questioning and striving to improve the circumstances within her/his learners' environment.

Sir Robinson also mentioned that what we need is not evolution but rather a "revolution" in education. I think we need to start at the school level for such a revolution to truly make an impact. It needs to start with local school administrators being committed to valuing diversity in learning pathways as well as diversity in learner abilities. Additionally, administrators need to convey these beliefs in the school philosophy through dialogue with teachers and parents as an example. Professional development is also an essential component of this picture. Encouraging teachers to both attend and host workshops that demonstrate ways in which inquiry learning can be applied in the classroom builds a better understanding of this approach in the school community. Teachers should be encouraged to share personal successes and challenges with this approach and to work collaboratively with other teachers on projects involving their students. It is then eventually necessary to share these practices and successes with other schools in the community and professional development sessions should become more inclusive so as to empower other school teachers and administrators to adopt inquiry learning in their schools. We could take it a step further and empower our students to act as mentors to other schools' students in working effectively using the project approach. There are so many potential opportunities to coach students on topics ranging from good project-management skills to developing strong interpersonal skills in group work.

The late Sylvia Ashton-Warner was a New Zealand writer and educator who taught Maori children; she wrote a book called "Teacher" which at times shed light on the seemingly chaotic environment of her learners. I use the word "seemingly" because when we think of chaos, it conjures the image of a lack of order. We often connote chaos with something undesired and needing to be immediately rectified. However, when I reflect upon the moments when my students appeared most engaged in learning, there was "chaos" in the classroom - students were talking aloud, hashing out their thoughts exuberantly while working collaboratively. Desks were shuffled around the room, at times leaving a trail of papers and lead pencils. Some students would completely opt out of sitting at their desks, instead choosing to stand, sit on the floor or a table to work; Students were frequently moving around the room to access materials for projects. Other students were wandering around the room and visiting peers to see what they were doing. At times, I felt inner conflict between the need to conform and restore order in my classroom, other times I felt inner joy to be feeling more connected with my students and realizing they were enjoying the ride as learners in my classroom.

I think Sir Robinson's notion of a learning revolution certainly now speaks to the disruption that I afforded students. I could have easily chosen to conform and keep students quietly working at their desks, discouraging movement around the room for the sake of "staying on task". Having worked with preschoolers, though, I learned one very valuable lesson which I took with me into the elementary classroom - children have an infinite capacity to explore and in doing so, develop a love for learning. They have a need to move about, interact, and even get messy in order to both uncover and discover new ideas. A young child's definition of learning would likely include words such as "play", "friends", "fun", and "doing". When asking a typical school-aged student to define learning, you might get a definition that starkly contrasts the positive image conjured by a young child.

When we inundate our students with facts, tests, and order, we inhibit their abilities and capacities to engage in meaningful learning. We must as Sir Robinson stated in his speech "disenthrall ourselves" from the traditional views of education we might still hold dear to our hearts. Instead, we need to enthrall ourselves with methods and ideas that bring learners to school not out of necessity but out of an inner desire to be there. This is undoubtedly a serious challenge for educators to undertake but one that can not only change the course of education but also change the course of our lives for the better. It is a challenge that requires we work together with colleagues, administrators, parents, and, of course, our students. We need to start by "listening" to our students and I don't just mean listening to what they say. We need to "listen" to their body language from the moment they enter the door of the classroom in the morning; we need to "listen" to their reactions to what we say through their facial expressions. By starting with our students, only then can we truly develop a deeper understanding of what they need to learn; we need to work towards developing human communities in our classrooms that honor diversity not only in cultures but in abilities. In the course of this journey of discovery, we also will begin to see those students who formerly walked around with learning disability labels as competent individuals with the capacity to learn but needing to take an alternate path in order to do so. We also need to work with our colleagues both within the confines of our schools and in the rest of the world using the internet as a tool for collaborating with and inspiring one another. We need to have ongoing dialogue with administrators and parents to demonstrate through our documentation and action research what it takes to engage our students.

In some of today's schools, a quiet revolution in education is already brewing. We need to focus on the efforts and successes of these schools with the intent of replicating the effects of these changes in our own schools. Confucious once said "the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step." Let's all take the first step and perhaps by working together we can take more steps than working alone.

In my graduate program, I encountered  Palloff and Pratt's work, titled "Building learning Communities in Cyberspace" touched on the topic of "learning communities" and what criteria must be met to build this type of community:

-clearly define the purpose of the group
-create a distinctive gathering place for the group
-promote effective leadership from within
-define norms and a clear code of conduct
-allow for a range of member roles
-allow for and facilitate subgroups
-allow members to resolve their own disputes
(Palloff, Pratt, p.24)

Often when we think of the traditional definition of "community", this conjures a mental image of a town-like setting with people waving and talking to each other. We also picture that due to the quaintness of such places, people largely know each other on a first name basis. The traditional definition of community also tends to be associated with a place-based identity; thus community has been strictly tied to one's geographical location.

With the creating of social networks online, people are now congregating in various types of online group settings who share commonalities. Interests ranging from politics to education can bring several people together from all over the world.

From personal experience, I've been part of a professional learning network (PLN) largely through Twitter as I've mentioned in my previous post. I have found that I've learned so much from other people through their links to resources. I am also part of other online groups that come together via listserv (mailing list) where one posts discussions and they are threaded so that we can track the discussion closely. One such group is comprised of parents who are interested in sharing advice and asking for assistance relating to parenting issues. We have members from Canada, US, India, and some countries in Europe. Recently, one person wrote a comment requesting assistance relating to handling her young child's sudden emotional outbursts. Within a short time, there were a few thoughtful responses to her question. The person wrote to express her gratitude noting her delight with the level of support within this group. After reading her post, it made me strongly consider the need to re-think the definition of "community" in the context of online interactions with people. I have heard people often refer to social networking tools such as Facebook or Twitter as places where one can feel part of a community of people. I'd like to step back and look to Palloff's and Pratt's criteria which I listed earlier and treat it like a checklist while examining these two social networking tools; having examined each criterion I would say that both Twitter and Facebook would be potentially classified as "communities" according to Palloff and Pratt. However, I still feel there is something amiss in this definition of "communities".

One might add you as a friend on Facebook or follow you on Twitter as the case may be, but is one necessarily going to have a similar community feel to that of a person in a place-based community? Apart from the lack of face-to-face interaction in the online realm, does one truly feel supported by other group members and at will to share their inner-most thoughts? Of course, comparing Twitter, a social networking tool that limits you to typing no more than 140 characters to a listserv where you could write a lengthy response, the quality and types of interactions differ greatly. Furthermore, does size also matter? In the case of a place-based community, one typically thinks of the lesser-populated environments as those where a stronger regard and understanding of others exists. However, when online, the larger the size of a "community" the more possibility in getting responses or support from others in your network.

If you refer back to my story of the parenting listserv, I think what made it seem more like a "community" of people would be that much of the questions and advice relayed are emotionally involved - that is, we are often seeking emotional support which requires opening up to others in a way that one doesn't always feel comfortable doing in other environments. There is a sense of anonymity in that we don't have profile pictures posted nor do we need to share any personal information with our audience. Perhaps in this regard, we feel more free to speak our minds and admitting that parenting is challenging at best without the risk of finger-pointing.

I think the need to re-define the term "community" with respect to the online realm is evident as we hear this word creep up more often with the rise of social media. I sometimes feel concerned we over-use it or misuse it entirely as some education professionals have mentioned before.

What are your views on using the word "community" when online? What are some factors that you think we need to consider? Is it realistic to use this term for anything other than a place-based setting as some would advocate?

I watched this video today on Edutopia, leaving me in complete awe of what this school has accomplished:

Rather than testing students on knowledge which often is forgotten after not being applied beyond the classroom, students should be given the opportunity to work on long-term projects and should be assessed on their understanding of their content instead. To determine whether they have understood the material, students should be asked to present their work and be asked open-ended questions that enable them to demonstrate their understanding of how what they've researched applies to the "real world".

There will, of course, be students who are shy and might feel inhibitions around speaking publicly. We can give them opportunities to present their material through a video and have them answer questions using chat, voice recording or e-mail instead. I had a student who was autistic and very fearful of being in front of the class. She was given the opportunity to present her project to me and display her work to students who then posed questions on paper which they handed into her for later responses. Because our classroom espoused a strong belief in maintaining a community of respect, empathy, and collaboration, she was not made to feel singled out by anyone. Instead, they praised her amazing work using Power Point and her incredible art work she used as visuals for her presentation.

I often created rubrics to evaluate my students. I would hand out the rubric at the beginning of a project and as part of their homework, would ask students read over it carefully and be prepared to summarize in their own words what the criteria meant. We would spend a class period discussing the rubric and looking at examples of work that constituted 5 points (excellent work) across the scales, 3 points (average work), and 1 point (below average work). I would also meet with students midway in their projects to discuss how things were going and to give them an idea of where they were at so far in some of the points on our rubric.

Students did get evaluated individually on their portion of their project but was also given a group mark based on organization of their presentation, collaborative efforts and how they worked together to problem-solve for example. Because I was doing project-based work, it gave me more freedom to be an observer, overseeing how everyone was working. If students appeared to be disengaged, I would speak to them privately to determine what might be causing this. We would work together to try and find solutions to working within their respective groups if they were feeling disenchanted due to group-related conflict.

I would love to hear from you if you have adopted project-based learning as part of your pedagogy: How did you implement it in your classroom? What challenges (if any) did you face? How have you assessed student learning?

I was listening to an interview with Professor Elliot Soloway of Computer Science and Education at the University of Michigan, and Professor Cathleen Norris of Learning Technologies at the University of North Texas regarding their perspectives on Mobile Learning (M-learning). Both Professors agree that mobile devices have enormous potential to transform learning in the K-12 education setting. The interview was approximately 22 minutes long, but I have taken some notes from the interview which I thought you might find of interest if you are considering making a case for M-learning in your school or district.

-mobile devices already in "children's toolbox"; many children have cell phones
-cost of mobile devices is zero to schools vs. a 1 - to - 1 laptop program
-mobile devices for learning could be applied to all subjects
-to maximize security of students, schools can de-activate texting and voice
-active learning is the essence of mobile learning
-all apps available on mobile device are available for learning (advantage is that they are mobile and the portability should be considered when designing learning activities)
-protecting students while online is important to consider; can have access to tools that monitor sites students accessing and de-activate device when going to inappropriate sites
-In one school in Singapore, 3rd grade students significantly outscored in Science using mobile device compared to other 3rd grade students not using mobile devices
-should get students engaged with technologies early on to ensure success; capitalize on their enthusiasm while they are young
-E-Rate (Federal Technology program) should include mobile devices so they can be readily purchased by schools

One of my greatest hesitations about completely endorsing M-learning in the classroom is that due to the screen size being small, I see it as a constraint in how long students can view content on the screen. I do, however, see the potential for using M-learning for reviewing key concepts covered in subjects, for listening to podcasts that introduce a lesson (using a music player like the iPod shuffle, for example), and as a form of communication with other students when working on projects.
Due to concerns that have arisen around mis-use of mobile devices for the purpose of sexting or bullying other students, we do have to be vigilant about the welfare of our students while engaged in M-learning. Just as we need to educate children about the importance of being safe in day-to-day life, teaching them about being safe while online is equally essential. For this reason, I feel that we should not dismiss using technologies such as mobile devices because of safety concerns; instead we need to educate our students on how to be both a) safe and b)responsible whilst taking precautions in the form of filtering sites that are potentially unsafe or inappropriate in the context of an education setting. We also have to consider how much time students are spending with their mobile devices and ask ourselves what is a reasonable amount of time that we should allocate to learning activities using these devices.
What are your thoughts on M-learning? Do you see it as having potential in a K-12 education setting, and if so, how?

I just read on AllFacebook's site an article about a Principal in New Jersey sending an e-mail to parents, making a plea to ban social networking from their middle schooler's lives. Principal Orsini believes middle schoolers have no business using social networks online and that parents should be vigilant to track all online usage as he feels social networking can cause psychological damage to youngsters.

Whether as educators we agree or disagree with students engaging in online social networking, social networking is increasingly prevalent in students' lives, especially in North America. Thus banning social networking is definitely not the answer to dealing with cyber-bullying. As was illustrated in Orsini's e-mail, 3 students who had told their parents they closed their accounts did not in fact follow through.
I think we should educate middle school students on how to be both safe and responsible while online. Using a social networking site in the classroom to build a community of inquiry is one way of educating students on netiquette while creating a safe space to engage in meaningful learning. Students should be given mini case studies about topics pertaining to online activities and discuss the issues that arise whilst discriminating between appropriate and inappropriate practices for example.

We should find ways as educators to re-purpose social networking sites for the classroom. I think it is important to educate students about developing their online identities in a responsible manner and learning how to interact safely with others. The wealth of tools and sites available on the internet give students the opportunity like no other time in the past to communicate with peers around the globe; they empower students to voice their views on a large scale. For teachers engaged in a project approach to learning, social networking could have a profound impact on students' world views, dispelling propaganda to which they would have otherwise blindly given credence.

What are your thoughts on students using online tools such as Facebook for social networking? How could students use social networking sites in the classroom?

I have just published "Twitter for Teachers - A Professional Development Tool" on Scribd. This guide is intended to introduce teachers to Twitter and to demonstrate ways it can be used for engagement in quality online professional development. Please read and share with other educators.

Twitter for Teachers- a Professional Development Tool