Activating educators

Two goals

1. Building a community platform for supporting and activating teachers who are actually using XOs. See educators below.

2. Building a community platform for activating volunteers of various abilities and backgrounds (e.g., educators, teachers, as well as others who are interested in visiting and contributing). See developers below.

Educators

Educators: teachers currently in the field and those about to receive XOs (along w/ OLPC staff and supporting orgs)

• Emphasis: support, self-documentation, journaling/blogging, collaboration and exchange.
• To be migrated to educator wiki: XO Teachers
• Tutorials for teachers, incl.
  • MediaWiki training (take from Globaloria site)
  • How to use activities
  • How to make activities
• Teacher Activity, might incl.
  • ?
• Syndicated country/pilot blogs
• Personal user page, incl.
  • Instructions for getting started
  • Photo
  • Location/affiliation
  • Answers to questions
• Ex: http://www.mamamedia.org

Developers

Developers: teachers who want to volunteer/create lesson plans/activities.

• Need to develop Educators
• Develop companion repository/"Educational Content Management" site. Features incl:
  • Activity/lesson template
  • Rating system
  • Discussion/feedback system
  • Search/sort/tag by subject, lesson type,
  • Example activities for Activities incl. in base install
  • Idit says: You probably should start by thinking: if this is an OLPC Content Repository COMMUNITY, then who are its members now vs. later, and who do YOU want as members now vs. later. You must prioritize and create a "production rationale and development schedule" accordingly. Ask yourself: what makes sense at this early stage of OLPC deployment in the world...FOCUS FOCUS FOCUS... create and assess the usability of a prototype MODEL MODEL MODEL... and LEARN LEARN LEARN (With your communities, of course)
• Educational activity guidelines. Principles incl.
  • Constructionism. It's important to realize and emphasize that we are looking at inspiring and supporting two types of constructionist learning.
    • Constructionist learning that is specifically connected to digital learning with activities with XO laptops in user-communities within developing countries around the world.
    • Constructionist learning in these same communities, that is going on in and out of school, with or without the Laptop. IN other words, we are trying to show how find ways for integrating the laptop as much as possible to as many activitoes as possible, if it makes sense; but also, we are using the fact that we can talk to these teachers about education reform in general in this context. Become a constructionist educator - the laptop (any laptop) historically being a great object to think with about new ways of learning and teaching, a catalyst of change-thinking, and an agent of change in itself.
  • Collaboration
  • Iteration
  • "View Source"
    • Lesson plans are embedded in the actual activities, and they are written for teachers but so kids can read too.***
  • Example activities from MMM?
• Lesson Plan Jam
  • Bring educators of early childhood who have experiences integrating computers in constructionist ways, teachers who are using MaMaMedia.,com in their classrooms. Let them work in teams to build learning activities and lessons.
  • Reflection in action, guideless co-construction, platforms evaluation, etc.

Thoughts on Activities

Two kinds...

1. Digital Activities

1a. Digital Activities w/ corresponding physical activity

2. Activities that expand/enhance existing exercise

Another distinction: local activities vs. those that require internet connectivity

From Idit: We are doing two things.- Locally with the activities - a preliminary set; and on a Wiki/Web in our global MaMaMedia.org application that will arrive later because we first have to figure out how to work locally with teachers and students who are novices and do not yet have connectivity anywhere anytime...

General Issues

How to inspire teachers to contribute?

• Not all teachers are eager to contribute. We want to make sure we engage those teachers who are interested in contributing. That's an "old art."
• Even among those who contribute, we need to support and establish the right "voice." OLPC (and our work) stand for a specific educational philosophy and learning theory taste.

MaMaMedia and OLPC

Emphasis on local network activities 10 activities w/ versions and themes Aimed at K-2, computer novices We now design for Both teachers and students who are novices.

Emphasis on 3Xs. Including initial open playful engagement and exploration , combined with structure and learning values, skills, and objectives that are suitable to curriculum and relevant to culture, location and interest.

IN JUNE WE ARE LAUNCHING initial set of 3 prototype activities, each with 3 embedded lesson plans (incl. 1 that involves internet). We also develop a strategy for a Related developer wiki and educator wiki.

Lesson 1 is how to use activities. - open play exploration Lessons 2 and 3 are how to make your own. - self expression, both free creative flow as well as based on thematic curricular goals. Lesson 4-5 - Exchanges via mesh.