{"id":319,"date":"2017-05-29T07:00:18","date_gmt":"2017-05-29T11:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/?p=319"},"modified":"2018-06-18T11:06:43","modified_gmt":"2018-06-18T17:06:43","slug":"international-education-and-online-learning-the-necessary-networks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/2017\/05\/29\/international-education-and-online-learning-the-necessary-networks\/","title":{"rendered":"International Education and Online Learning – The Necessary Networks!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Teacher Editorial<\/span> | By T. A. Driedger
\n<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"bolt1\"In the happenstance of career pathways, I was able to interrupt my decades of teaching and leading in rural Alberta with two recent international travels, one to an Alberta accredited school in Qatar (2014) and another to a BC certified campus in South Korea (2017).\u00a0 Both offshore learning environments reminded me very much of my earliest years in a small Alberta school surrounded by long and seemingly empty distances – far from my colleagues and their enviable urban density.\u00a0 I, like these new global educators, was eager to form collaborations, to grow a bank of professional resources and proven skill-sets. The universal need was and is to feel less isolated as a novice educator (Sleppin, 2009). My own outreach became dependent on my teamwork for Alberta Education – where I could grow my contact base and resource knowledge while conducting the contracted research.\u00a0 For young academics in their cross-border adventures, I would also suggest designated time, segments fostered in a continuum of digital dialogues and framed by their own research design.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

A recent study aligns with this premise and led this writer to outline a possible pattern or movement of digital inquiry for these new practitioners to follow.\u00a0 Columbia and Clarke wrote the article entitled \u201cTurning Teachers into Action Researchers in their Classroom\u201d (2017).\u00a0 Its opening line is an invitation for the K-12 instructors to use their online capacities and begin to search and connect their experiences to the research and communities waiting in the Web to be accessed:\u00a0 \u201cWhen teachers engage in an action research process that highlights inquiry and analysis, they create potential to improve teaching, solve problems, and create success for students and teachers\u201d (Reason & Bradbury, 2001). This concept of targeted online learning from Columbia and Clarke (2017) is not without supporting theories.\u00a0 It finds its origins in both the connectivist<\/a> nature of digital exploration and in the constructivist<\/a> attitude that can be nurtured by partnering teaching experiences to professional research.\u00a0 It is a critical dynamic that keeps the teacher\u2019s pedagogy current and responsive to network data and interfaces.<\/p>\n

I started my journey by exploring Open Educational Resources<\/a> (OER).\u00a0 They are amazing learning objects that provide a myriad of opportunities for teachers in distant locations to become active and academic participants in their own professional development.\u00a0 I then decided to revisit the past traditions of the AISI Cycle 5 Framework of Alberta<\/a> (2011) and the 2011 Inquiry Cycle proposed by Dana, Thomas, and Boynton (sourced from Columbia and Clarke<\/a>, 2017) for a baseline.\u00a0 It was at this point I felt able to outline a less formalized process that could build one\u2019s professional competency in self-determined graduations, with an allowance for flexibility and individuality – as an exercise in lifelong learning within a wide range of engagements:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Develop a question or identify a problem – <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    This step is the launching point for an inquiry in which the answers may provide both a sense of community with a way of understanding and moving forward.\u00a0 The problem could be focused on the issues of one student (e.g. special needs and universal learning design), a pedagogy of interest (e.g. project based summative assessment), a long-term team study (e.g. literacy agendas running parallel to ELL action plans), or a discovery and implementation of recent research (e.g. OER and ELA for blended learning).<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. 2<\/strong>. Collect data –<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      This step could be formal or informal, done individually or with others, and may take a matter of moments or many long hours.\u00a0 It is truly about forming Personalized Learning Networks<\/a> from one\u2019s digital environment<\/a> (PLN\/PLE).\u00a0 One summary map is posted just below as an OER creative commons file from Treglia<\/a> (2015).\u00a0 I like this mind map image because it reflects her personal journey through the research objects and its city-like navigation:<\/p>\n

      \"bolt2\"<\/p>\n

      Connecting with Communities is essential for the isolated teacher and intuitive to the growth of digital capacities.\u00a0 I would try to address the synchronous (e.g. Staff Room Discussions), the asynchronous (e.g. BOLT professional learning modules), and the semi-synchronous (e.g. Google Classrooms with a partner school) avenues for a richer exchange for the resolution to the target issue.\u00a0 By inference (and my own experience):<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. An offshore educator could review a recent OER publication, summarize and share it in a collaborative online team to then discuss its applicability to their unique contexts.<\/li>\n
      2. A MOOC survey could provide the offshore educator with a community of practice and blending learning mode to grow their knowledge and interaction base.<\/li>\n
      3. A post-baccalaureate online series (e.g. BOLT<\/a> graduate level modules with AU) could immediately link the offshore professional to the most current academic communities where their context could become a baseline for extended study.<\/li>\n
      4. An offshore teacher could develop a research-based classroom unit to address a current focus for the parent education body (e.g. Alberta Education and Universal Design for Learning<\/a> in the growth of Academic Literacy).\u00a0 This unit could then be shared and analyzed by colleagues.<\/li>\n
      5. An offshore classroom could create a collaborative platform with a Canadian-based (or alternatively, another international school) campus.\u00a0 This platform could be used to share OER that relate to the identified topic and problem.\u00a0 Discussion could be shared in a blog format.<\/li>\n
      6. \u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>Reflect on the<\/strong> data <\/strong>–<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Offshore educators would, at this point, return to the documents of their accreditation body (e.g. Alberta Program of Studies) and embed their new learnings into the demands of their programming – so the pragmatics of using any idea is possible and of value within the governing structures.\u00a0 This given, I have found that almost any target learning for the students can influence mandatory curricula and can then lend itself to enhancing career learning. Reflection online can take the form of chats, emails, blogs, and websites to create connections and dialogue for analysis.\u00a0 Columbia and Clarke<\/a> (2017) provide a a supporting schematic for the action research process with reflection questions for sense-making – one that Murdoch<\/a> (2015) has also developed on personal reflections for understanding through a stream of self-chats.<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. Take action –<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          This step is kinetic and can be done on almost any scale.\u00a0 Small changes that integrate into the classroom can give the educator an organic and careful movement of transition for the phyletic evolution of their practice, while large-scale transformations can give dramatic (and perhaps chaotic) results that should be measured and analyzed for their telling (and sometimes serendipitous) outcomes.\u00a0 The action plans could also become part of an online dialogue or collaboration to gather and assess as many solutions as possible – most especially those described in the research.\u00a0 Crowd sourcing data or commentary helps the lone teacher look at new perspectives and priorities to then arrive at the plan of best fit for his or her inquiry in its unique context.<\/p>\n

            \n
          1. \u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>Reflect on the action –<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            This step is a return to the critical and creative thinking that should be a part of a professional practice.\u00a0 Offshore educators may want to present or share their data with others to see if their observations compare to that of colleagues, they may want to advance their initiative with further research, new actions, and more reflection.\u00a0 They may want to use social media in lessor and greater circles for further conversations and ideas on how to move forward, asking the questions: \u201cIs this a good change towards solving the problem? and \u201cWhy or Why not?\u201d<\/p>\n

              \n
            1. Repeat and share the process – <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>This step is one of creating a continuum for life-long learning.\u00a0 Online professionals could use the above process as a generalized template for repeating use in their career journey.\u00a0 The Offshore Educators could consider constructing a repository, either shared or individual, that could be passed along to future International Teachers.\u00a0\u00a0 They may even want to publish their learnings as an online learning module for others in similar circumstances.\u00a0\u00a0 Wikipedia offers one summative figure from Lewin\u2019s (1958) work on the action research process that readily applies to both my draft and the research of Columbia and Clarke (2017) and thus becomes indicative of the learning legacy in systems studies:<\/p>\n

              \"bolt3\"<\/p>\n

              Blended learning pathways have the potential to create authentic assets for the individual and collective movements of education.\u00a0 The cycle in this blog is drawn from my own experiences and studies, though with origins from the work of many, including Rolfe et al<\/a> (2001) – it is a testing of the open waters and asks a teacher to simply dive into action research and allow it to have a ubiquitous agenda – one that connects to his or her reality, however unique.\u00a0 The directions are limitless, and I am at once envious, of the density of the data and social links available to this new generation of educators and explorers. Become an adventurer and enter \u201ca communicative space [where the] issues or problems are opened up for discussion [within research], and when participants experience their interaction as fostering the [globalized and inclusive] expression of diverse views \u2026 (Kemmis, 2001, from Wicks and Reason, 2009). Bon voyage!<\/p>\n

              \"bolt4\"How would you frame a reflective inquiry practice for those isolated in their settings?\u00a0 Where could the BOLT professional learning modules fit into this landscape for action research?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

               <\/p>\n

              References:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

              Columbia Embury, D., & Clarke, L. S. (2017). Turning Teachers into Action Researchers in their Classrooms<\/em><\/a>. Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children<\/em>, 3<\/em>(2), 2.<\/p>\n

              Murdoch, K. OER retrieved from:\u00a0 http:\/\/www.kathmurdoch.com.au<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

              Reason, P., & Bradbury, H. (Eds.). (2001). Handbook of action research: Participative inquiry and practice<\/em>. Sage.<\/p>\n

              Sleppin, D. S. (2009). New teacher isolation and its relationship to teacher attrition. Retrieved from:\u00a0 http:\/\/scholarworks.waldenu.edu\/cgi\/viewcontent.cgi?article=1634&context=dissertations<\/a>.<\/p>\n

              Treglia, K. OER retrieved from:\u00a0 https:\/\/kristentreglia.wordpress.com\/mentions-publications-and-talks\/<\/a> and http:\/\/techtrendsineducation.wikispaces.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

              Wicks, P. G., & Reason, P. (2009). Initiating action research. Action Research<\/em>, 7<\/em>(3), 243-262.\u00a0 Retrieved from:\u00a0 http:\/\/peterreason.eu\/Papers\/Communicative%20Space.pdf<\/a>.<\/p>\n

              Wikipedia. Action Research Image. Retrieved 2017 from:\u00a0 https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Action_research<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 Attribute:\u00a0 By Matt Bond – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?curid=34814552<\/p>\n

              Wikipedia. Random Geometric Graph Image.\u00a0 Retrieved 2017 from:\u00a0 https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Random_geometric_graph<\/em><\/a>. \u00a0Attribute:\u00a0 By Rocchini – Own work, CC BY 3.0, https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?curid=19859789<\/p>\n

              Wikipedia. Reflective Practice Image.\u00a0 Retrieved 2017 from:\u00a0 https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Reflective_practice<\/em><\/a>. Attribute: By GSE843 (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons<\/p>\n

              \n

              About the Contributor<\/strong><\/p>\n

              T. A. Driedger, BSc BEd MEd
              \nEducator, Researcher, Administrator, and Learner
              \n              tadriedger@gmail.com<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

              \"Creative<\/a>
              This work is licensed under a               Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              Teacher Editorial | By T. A. Driedger In the happenstance of career pathways, I was able to interrupt my decades of teaching and leading in rural Alberta with two recent international travels, one to an Alberta accredited school in Qatar (2014) and another to a BC certified campus in South Korea (2017).\u00a0 Both offshore learning […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","filesize_raw":""},"categories":[12,7,9,13,6,4,8,10,5,20],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=319"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":568,"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319\/revisions\/568"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=319"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=319"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bolt.athabascau.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=319"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}