E-Learning around the Worldelearning-seminar .uoc.edu
7 June 2013
Teaching for Understanding: the role of ICT and E-learning
Educating for theUnknownData
Information
Knowledge
Understanding
Wisdom
Reconsider Understanding
• How do you know you understand it?Understanding is a capability to apply your knowledge
flexibly and effectively in various situations
Understanding is demonstrated and developed through performances of understanding
Think of something you understand well:
• How did you develop this understanding?
Teaching for Understanding Framework: based on collaborative research conducted at the Harvard Graduate School of Education
Generative Topics
Build the curriculum around important and accessible topics that interest learners and teachers
Understanding Goals
Define explicit goals for learners’ understanding and make goals public early and often
Performances of Understanding
On-going Assessment
Provide multiple, varied opportunities for learners to perform in ways that develop and demonstrate their understanding
Assess learners’ work frequently using public criteria that align with learning goals and suggest ways to improve
Support reflective, collaborative learning communities
of teachers and learners
Generative Topics
Performances of
Understanding
Ongoing Assessment
UnderstandingGoals
ReflectiveCollaborativeCommunity
Too often assessment does not support understanding
Not helpful feedback
How is teaching for understanding different from traditional instruction?
• Knowledge is a product• Teaching is transmission• Learning is reception• Students absorb and repeat• Exams test knowledge acquisition• Schools are organized to support
instruction, not learning for understanding
Traditional instruction:
How is teaching for understanding different from traditional instruction?
• Understanding is a process• Teaching is cultivation• Learning is constructing• Students think, apply, create, critique• Exams assess/promote expertise• Learning communities share authority and
responsibility among members • Schools are communities of inquiry
Treaching for Understanding:
Teaching for Understanding:Engage Multiple Intelligences
Teaching for Understanding:Offer Students some Choices
Teaching for Understanding:Support Practical Inquiry Cycles
http://www.visiblethinkingpz.org/VisibleThinking_html_files/03_ThinkingRoutines/03d_UnderstandingRoutines/ConnectExtendChallenge/ConnectExtend_Routine.html
Teaching for Understanding:
Make Thinking Visible andHelp Students Learn from One
Another
Leaving the door unlocked is like giving away the key
Teaching for Understanding:Reflective, collaborative communities of learners
Share educational authority and responsibility
How can ICTs and E-Learning help?
• Connect learning to life• Promote interactive learning• Support multiple intelligences • Enable students to pursue multiple pathways• Make learners’ thinking visible• Sustain Practical Inquiry Cycles…over time and
across distance• Foster ongoing assessment and revision• Connect communities of learners• Facilitate balance between teacher guidance and
learners’ intrinsically motivated inquiry
Teaching For
Understanding