Ecosystems of collaboration case study: LAMS Learning Activity Management System James Dalziel Profe

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Ecosystems of collaborationcase study LAMS
Learning Activity Management SystemJames
DalzielProfessor of Learning Technology and
Director, Macquarie E-Learning Centre Of
Excellence (MELCOE)Macquarie University, Sydney,
Australia Director, LAMS Foundationjames_at_melcoe
.mq.edu.auwww.melcoe.mq.edu.auInvited
presentation for CoSN, March 10th, 2008,
Washington DC, USA
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Overview

• A Vision for Teachers for the Future
• Learning Design
• LAMS
• Overview Examples
• LAMS Community
• New to LAMS Branching
• Summary

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A Vision for Teachers of the Future

• Teachers create digital lesson plans that make
  it easy to run educational activities on
  computers
• Teachers share good teaching ideas (digital
  lesson plans) with their colleagues
• Teachers are free to adapt, localize and improve
  good teaching ideas from others
• By collectively sharing and improving good
  teaching ideas, teachers would lead an education
  revolution
• Web 2.0/Participatory web for pedagogy

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What is Learning Design?

• Learning Design is a new approach to describing
  lesson plans in a structured, digital way
• A Learning Design typically describes a sequence
  of student activities (content collaboration
  tasks)
• A sequence applies to a class/week/topic (not
  whole unit)
• Focus on sharing and re-using good sequences
• Often implemented online with technology
• But becoming a general framework for face to face
  and online

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Learning Design Example LAMS

• LAMS is the worlds leading software for Learning
  Design
• 1000s of educators, 80 countries, translated
  into 25 languages
• Demo accounts at http//demo.lamscommunity.org/
• Visual drag and drop approach to designing
  sequences
• Helps educators to visualise teaching and
  learning processes
• LAMS sequences can be shared, re-used and adapted
• LAMS Community (www.lamscommunity.org)
• Approximately 2900 members, 86 countries, 220
  sequences
• Freely available as open source software
• Integrated with CMSs Blackboard, WebCT, Moodle,
  Sakai, etc

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LAMS Demonstration

• What are the qualities of an effective teacher?
  (from preservice training)
• Step 1 Answer question, then reflect on answers
  from other students
• Step 2 Vote on a list of qualities, consider
  collated votes
• Step 3 Discuss responses to Steps 1 2
• Step 4 Read an experts view on the topic
• Step 5 Discuss experts view compare to class
  view
• Step 6 Personal reflection (or essay if
  assessment) on initial question, based on
  initial views, class discussion expert view
• Can be run face to face with no technology, or
  fully online, or a mix
• Demonstration Authoring this sequence, then
  Preview Learner view
• Example 2 Role play Adopting Interactive
  Whiteboards in schools

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LAMS Authoring view of Qualities of an
Effective Teacher
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LAMS Student view Step 1a (QA) of Qualities
of an Effective Teacher
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LAMS Student view Step 1b (QA) of Qualities
of an Effective Teacher
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LAMS Author Adopting Interactive Whiteboards in
schools Role play
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LAMS Community View of various communities
forums
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LAMS Community Repository for Sharing Learning
Designs
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LAMS Community Detailed view of individual
sequence
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New LAMS Features

• Introducing LAMS V2.1
• Branching
• Teacher allocated
• Group-based
• Tool-output based (MCQ Forum so far, more to
  come)
• Sequences in optional
• Student choice of one or more sequences

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Implementation of new Branching Features for LAMS
V2.1
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LAMS 2.1 Interactive Whiteboards Role play
Inside branching for role tasks
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Pedagogical uses of new features

• Can assign different students to different topics
• Each group investigates a different aspect of a
  phenomenon, then reports findings back to the
  whole class
• Can use Branching with Tool Output (and Skip) to
  provide remediation tasks for only some students
  (eg, quiz score lt X, then do branch remediation
  activities otherwise skip branch)
• Can allow students to choose from different
  optional sequences (according to topic, skill,
  thoroughness, etc)

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Summary

• The field of Learning Design provide a new
  framework for describing digital lesson plans
• Not just content quizzes includes Web 2 style
  collaboration
• LAMS helps teachers create run digital lesson
  plans with students and share them with other
  teachers
• Software and sequences freely available to use
  and adapt
• The Vision Teachers lead an education revolution
  by sharing, adapting and improving digital lesson
  plans

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Further LAMS Information

• Introduction to LAMS walkthroughs, videos, case
  studieshttp//cd.lamsfoundation.org/
• Demonstration accounts for LAMShttp//demo.lamsco
  mmunity.org/
• General information about LAMS http//www.lamsfou
  ndation.org/
• LAMS Communityhttp//www.lamscommunity.org/
• Qualities of an Effective Teacher download
  sequence from http//www.lamscommunity.org/dotlrn/
  clubs/educationalcommunity/lamsresearchdevelopment
  /lams-seq//sequence?seq5fid256078
• Adoption of Interactive Whiteboards in schools
  Role Play download sequence from
  http//lamscommunity.org/lamscentral/sequence?seq_
  id376440
• Animated mock-ups for Pedagogic Planner
  concepthttp//saturn.melcoe.mq.edu.au/jly/Ped_pla
  nner.htmhttp//saturn.melcoe.mq.edu.au/jly/Ped_pl
  annerv2.htm