Lecture, Direct-Instruction or Talk - There's the Confusion!

In yesterday's weekly #edchat Twitter collaboration the discussion focused on the flipped classroom, where, naturally, there was quite a bit of debate around the idea of video lectures. What became apparent was the many different interpretations of the term 'lecture'. This came to the forefront for me when I offered up the idea of TED Talks as one option for learning rather than a teacher's video lecture, and someone said "TED talks are just lectures, so how is that better?"

This stumped me as I have never thought of a TED talk as a lecture, which is funny, because now, forced to think about it, I guess they could be construed as lectures, depending on your definition. Which of course has led me to this post!  Obviously, my perception of a lecture is not the same as others.

What is MY definition of a lecture?

Perhaps it's my many years of being both a student and a teacher, but for me a 'lecture' has rather negative connotations, as I envision a lecture as someone standing at the front of the room giving out information and facts that are to be written down, learned and/or memorized.  When I think lecture, I think teacher/person talking, students/people listening (or sleeping) and absorbing the information, whether that be through just listening or taking notes.  Little interaction/engagement or back-and-forth. As a student, this is what I remember most from my high school and early college days (and thankfully not so much the case in my current doctoral studies which are much more collaborative).  Think huge lecture halls with a professor talking at us.  Lecturing. Spewing information that at some point we need to regurgitate. In my mind, a lecture is a stand-and-deliver form of imparting information. Sit and get, as we say, and not terribly engaging.

Lecture is often misconstrued with direct-instruction. My definition of direct-instruction is also someone with the "knowledge" giving out information, but I think perhaps the difference might be that direct-instruction involves more how-to type information.  Many lectures involve direct-instruction components, but I do think you can have direct-instruction that is not a lecture.  For example, in math, a teacher can use direct-instruction to show the steps in solving an equation, which would not be a lecture by my definition. But, you could be lecturing on what an equation is and the different types of equations, and then show the how-to of solving an equation, which I then would construe as a lecture with direct-instruction. (Neither of which I think is a great way to teach math, by the way).

Now, back to a TED Talk.  I think that right there sums up what I see these as - talks.  Not lectures, not direct-instruction, but talks.  Which, while very similar to a lecture, also very different in my book.  A talk imparts knowledge and information but interweaves that knowledge and information with stories or contextual applications and connections. A talk makes a concerted effort to engage the audience/students.  Engagement, whether through questioning and interacting with the audience/students or simply by providing visuals or real-world applications and examples or models, is to me the difference between a lecture and a talk. There are plenty of teachers who talk to, and with, their students rather than lecture at them and to me, that makes a world of difference in learning.

Here are examples of what I am defining as lecture, direct-instruction, and talks.  Which one would you be more engaged by?

Lecture (this is LONG...but the first few minutes will give you the idea):

 

Direct Instruction:

 

Talk:



Of course, this is all my own personal take on the differences between lectures, direct-instruction and talks. In the context of the #edchat discussion yesterday about the flipped classroom, my point was that I believe there is too much reliance on video lectures and direct-instruction videos. If you are going to use the power of technology to flip your classroom, then go beyond the traditional methods of teaching and look at all possible online resources, such as TED talks, or real-world stories (see mathalicious.com for one example of this).  It's NOT the videos that make flipped classrooms effective, it's the engagement, collaboration, discovery, ownership and ability to explore anything, anyway, anytime and then come back together in the classroom to share, discuss, and learn together. So - no more lectures and direct-instruction. Start talking!

Collaboration: How do you start?

No surprise, but I am inspired to write after another great online, live professional development collaboration on Twitter with the weekly #Edchat group.  For anyone who is new at using Twitter as a means of professional development, #Edchat is a great way to get started - every Tuesday at 11 am CDT.  Just reading the conversation thread is informative, even if you don't respond yourself.  Great ideas from a wide mix of educators.

Today's topic was "If collaboration is high on everyones list as a needed skill; how do we work it into every aspect of our education system?"  There were lots of suggestions and questions - a true collaboration, where everyone contributed their thoughts, their strategies, asked great questions, all to further the discussion and work towards some solutions.  Not get a solution, but work towards strategies that can get things started, since there really isn't just one solution - every situation is different and what works in one place may not work in another. But, I think what the Twitter conversation exemplifies is true collaboration. Perhaps therefore, as this question actually came up, I should address the difference between collaboration and group work, from my point of view.  Group work, or maybe cooperative learning is often used synonymously with collaboration, but they are NOT the same.

Image from images.google.com 'collaboration'

 Group Work/Cooperative Learning: The group is working together to solve a problem, and usually each member is given a portion of the problem to separately work on and bring back to the table. Each piece from the individuals in the group comes together to create the completed solution.

Collaboration: A group coordinating their efforts together to solve a problem, but with each member directly interacting with others, creating the knowledge together, and interacting through negotiation, discussion, and listening to others' perspectives to reach a solution.

I think the key difference is the negotiation, discussion and listening that is involved in collaboration.  Collaboration to me is noisier, less structured as far as what everyone is contributing, and more flexible in it's end results. Group work/cooperative learning seems to have a much more well-defined solution or goal and vision of what the solution should look like - hence the ability to split apart the component pieces, whereas collaboration has more potential for many possible solutions and very different solutions among different groups working on the same problem or goal. As the graphic says, collaboration creates NEW possibilities, not predetermined possibilities which I think are often the end result of 'group work'.

How do you start this process of collaboration, or working together and bringing together diverse people and ideas and solutions to achieve a goal or solve a problem? This is not just a classroom process, but a school process, especially if you are trying to create a culture of collaboration. Clearly, it is easier to begin this process at the beginning of a new school year, when everything is just fresh and new so that it becomes a part of the structure right from the get go.  (Note to self: revisit this in August).  But, even though things are winding down for this school year, there are still steps that can be done to end the year on a collaborative note.  I offer one idea for both the classroom and the school at large as a way to 'test the waters' so to speak.

Classroom Collaboration Idea: Most folks are immersed in 'test review' at this stage of the game.  So - make that a collaboration.  Put students into small groups (how you design that is up to you) and have each group 1) brainstorm content/topics that THEY struggle with and think need review; 2) among the brainstormed ideas, the group chooses 1 or 2 - this involves discussion/negotiation/listening to various perspectives about which of the many topics thrown out are the most crucial, or most difficult, etc.; 3) the group, by looking at there top 1 or 2, using notes or examples, work together to identify difficulties and solutions or questions that need answering, and these are then shared with the class as a whole.  What you end up with is a very student-centered review of key topics that really need review because they come from the students.  This could be just one way to help prepare for testing that is not the traditional lecture, practice worksheet, and other similar, uninspired types of test review that are occurring these days.

School Collaboration Idea: Similar to the classroom, at the next staff meeting break everyone, including administrators, into groups (try to mix it up with different grade/content folks in a group).  Each group 1) brainstorms what they deemed as the biggest challenges for the current school year; 2) among the brainstormed ideas, the group chooses 1 or 2 - again, we get discussion, negotiation, listening and listening to various perspectives; 3) looking at the top 1 or 2 challenges, the group comes up with some ideas/strategies they think might address those challenges or that they would like to consider to address those challenges and these are then shared with the entire staff. These could then become some of the goals for next year.  It begins the conversation, let's everyone have input and starts the path towards working together.  But it's focused on specific needs that those involved experience.

 Starting small is just one way to start a culture of collaboration. 

Social Media Burnout: Are Some People Cloning Themselves?

I am exhausted.

I don't mean physically, though let's face it, I could definitely use more sleep (which could easily be solved if I stopped reading in bed). No, I am exhausted with trying to keep up with my social media outlets.  Don't get me wrong - I love tweeting, blogging, discussion forums, Linked in groups, and Facebooking (though admittedly, as my friends can attest, I am definitely NOT a great Facebook participant). But, I think the daily expectation of being social is getting to me...it's a combination of guilt that I am not posting enough, pressure to find relevant things to blog about or tweet about, and that pesky little problem of actually having a full-time job that requires some of my attention.

Those of you who tweet know how easy it is to get side-tracked reading tweets, clicking links that lead to the reading of articles and blogs. Which takes you down the path of responding to a discussion forum or a blog post. Next thing you know, two hours has passed! I am always struggling with trying to find a balance and still feel completely inept, especially as I look at some of the folks I follow and how often they tweet or blog. How do they do it?!

I know I am still a complete novice at all things social media, so perhaps I just need to find my groove or better resources to organize myself.  Thanks to my weekly participation in the #edchat live chats on Tuesday's at 11 pm CDT, I have had many in my PLN give me some great organizational suggestions (i.e. Tweetchat, Tweetdeck for example). But, I still find it overwhelming sometimes the amount of time and effort and thought that goes into staying social in a professional way. Am I just not as organized and diligent as I think or have some of these folks out there who seem to be constantly tweeting, blogging and participating in discussion forums cloned themselves?  Is there a resource that will do that?!


I write two blogs, this one, which is more personal, and then I contribute to my company blog, blog.keypress.com as well. I have two tweet accounts - again, one more personal (@vpigreenie) and then my company one as well (@keypress). I spend my early mornings basically reading through tweets and links to blogs, articles, and email briefs to get relevant news to post, deciding which ones are more appropriate for the company and which ones more appropriate and relevant to my personal, as they are different.  Related often, but different perspective. During the day I have both twitter feeds going and will read them periodically and retweet or post relevant things that come up. (As I said before, sometimes I definitely get sidetracked!) I also try to keep up with live chats such as the weekly #edchat on Tuesday's. I try to post on my personal blog 2-3 times a week, more if possible.  The company blog I post 2-3 times a month on the whole, though sometimes more. And finally, I try to contribute to 3-4 discussion forums, such as group discussions in Linked In.  If we were to take a very rough estimate of the daily time spent being 'social', I would say 2-3 hours a day, most of the bulk on my own personal time.  Add that to the 8-9 hours I devote to work, that's basically 10-12 hours a day at the computer - lordy, no wonder I am exhausted!  And somehow, on top of all this I am suppose to be writing my dissertation proposal (ha...don't even talk to me about procrastination!)

The Cloning of Karen

I would say I am a very low to moderate contributor to the social media arena. But...here's the rub. Some of the folks I follow are constantly tweeting or blogging or putting out a daily Tweet report or leading a live tweet discussion or doing a webinar or commenting on a discussion forum. I mean all day long!   Most of these very active social media folks have full time jobs, such as teaching or school administrators....how is it possible? I work from home when not traveling (which I do often) so in theory, I should have more time than they do to maintain my social presence and yet, they put me to shame. What's the trick?  Did they in fact clone themselves?  Are there resources out there that let you somehow be in four or five places on the web at once?! Do they have little elves that actually do the work for them?

All I know is I could use some help. Or sleep. (Another me may not be the best idea...trust me).  But - if anyone does have some suggestions on how to make being social easier, I am all ears! Obviously, I could stop - but that is not an option, since, despite my apparent whining and obvious burn out, I have learned more professionally in the last few months through social media than I have in a long time.  I have connected with amazing people all over the world. Not participating is NOT an option.  I just want to participate better.  Suggestions appreciated!

(Whew! One goal met ....posted at least 2 times in personal blog!)

Online Learning Communities for Teachers - Does Twitter count?

As I mentioned in my previous post I have been working on a draft of my literature review, much of which focuses on online professional development.  Online learning communities are a big part of what I have been reading about, and, as I have been involved in many online communities myself through online courses and chat forums, it got me thinking about what exactly constitutes and online learning community.  Specifically, can Twitter be considered an online learning community?  Why Twitter you ask?  Probably because I have recently delved into Twitter myself (@vpigreenie) and am slowly learning how to navigate this social media tool.

Definition from Wikipedia:

An online learning community is a public or private destination on the Internet that addresses the learning needs of its members by facilitating peer-to-peer learning. ......... In an online learning community, people share knowledge via textual discussion (synchronous or asynchronous), audio, video, or other Internet-supported mediums. 

Twitter definitely is an online community where people are sharing knowledge - via article links, video links, blog links, or just personal feedback and comments. But does it facilitate peer-to-peer learning? I guess the answer is it depends on who you follow and who follows you and what your goals are.  I can only speak from my own personal experience, and in my own Twitter environment, I feel I am learning from others and am hopefully contributing to the learning of my followers. I try to make my own tweets be informative to my followers - sharing interesting articles, thoughts, problems, ideas, etc. related to math, teaching, education policy. And, I know I am learning from those I follow because I end up reading articles and blogs that I otherwise would not be aware of and find out information and facts that I may not have been aware of.  I feel more well informed about the state of education, as those are the folks I choose to follow on Twitter.  And, I do feel that I can express my opinions to these other folks and 'share' freely.

My consensus is yes, Twitter counts as an online learning community forum, though a specific focus makes it more so.  Something to consider if there are teachers out there trying to incorporate Twitter as a learning tool.