Audio Transcript Auto-generated
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Hey, let's talk 21st century learning.
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So we ask ourselves, What is 21st century learning?
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Well, you'll find that 21st century learning as a lot
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of things.
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There's a variety of publications and authors who speak to
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21st century learning, and what you'll notice is that there
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are some main ideas that kind of centralized around 21st
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century learning those being collaboration, communication, critical thinking and creativity.
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So when we look at 21st century learning and collaboration,
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we're talking about learners working in small groups to solve
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a problem, complete a task or create a product.
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And we think about this as a naturally social act.
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When we're looking at communication in relation to 21st century
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learning, we are looking at the way in which we
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communicate with the technologies we have available.
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Today, there are a variety of different ways in which
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we can convey new information on dhe and share new
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information with others.
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And so what we're focusing on here is making an
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effort to incorporate our technologies as a creative way to
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communicate that when we look at critical thinking in relation
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to 21st century learning, really, what we're doing is talking
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about opposing open ended problems to our learners and asking
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them to analyze and assess those problems or issues and
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find creative solutions.
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Which brings us to creativity and 21st century learning.
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And Robert Epstein talks about these before ideas which are
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capturing, challenging, broadening and surrounding so using creativity in 21st
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century learning.
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We're talking about brainstorming and writing down those new ideas
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and challenging ourselves with hard problems and then broadening our
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perspective or our horizons about topics and learning about new
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and interesting things.
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And also as educators, looking at finding connections to our
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learners, personal life, to make those problems that we posted
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them a little more relevant and then also making sure
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that we surround our learners in an atmosphere that is
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inclusive, diverse and welcoming.
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Thinking further on 21st century learning, I came up with
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my own idea that 21st century learning is mobile, meaning
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basically we can learn anywhere with all the technologies we
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have available to us, so long as we have a
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charge or a signal or able to kind of collaborate
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and communicate, and that allows us to think critically and
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be creative anywhere.
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Looking at 21st Century Learning and T pack, which is
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our technological pedagogical content knowledge.
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We're really looking at the intersection there and in that
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intersection of our pedagogical content and technological knowledge.
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We have to be mindful that our learners today are
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accustomed to experiencing digital technologies.
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24 7 um, they It is a way of life
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for them rather than a tool.
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And so it's important as educators to be mindful of
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that and that when we asked students to use technologies,
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we're not asking them to use them just simply as
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a tool we're using.
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We're asking them to use the technology as a way
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to connect with their learning and then thinking about my
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Professional Learning Network in 21st century learning.
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I think that really highlights the collaborative and community of
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side of 21st century learning in that creating my professional
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learning network.
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I'm networking and communicating and collaborating with like minded um,
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or other professionals in my field of study and and
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so, you know, and doing that with, um, all the
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various technologies I have available, I think that really kind
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of centralizes around this idea of 21st century learning and
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again really highlights our ability to connect, collaborate and communicate.
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And then, lastly, looking at 21st century learning in relation
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to my practice as a teacher, I thought about my
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mousetrap car project.
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And so for this project, students collaborate because they're working
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in small groups to create a mousetrap car.
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And so they all bring their own unique ideas to
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the table, and they kind of have to take the
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best of all of each other's ideas and formalized formalize
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some kind of a design that they're going to build
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and in that they're communicating.
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But this year it's a little bit different with our
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communications because of the pandemic.
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And so one of the things I did to kind
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of accommodate students and still give them a good opportunity
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to communicate and collaborate with one another was creating a
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discussion board whether they can use as a platform to
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kind of bounce ideas off of one another, leave suggestions
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for people to read, um, and really just a place
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where they can collaborate and be creative and share.
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And then the critical thinking component of this project comes
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in that I asked students to build these cars out
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of found objects around their house.
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So what they have to do is look at the
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material that already has a given purpose and think, How
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can I use this in a way that works for
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my mousetrap car?
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So it really asked them to kind of analyze and
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assess these materials and think of a creative use.
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And then the creativity component is wonderful in that no.
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Two mousetrap, cars are ever the same.
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And I think that really highlights our students ability to,
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um, you know, provide a product of their thinking and
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their thought because we all see and hear the word
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mousetrap car the same.
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What it actually looks like to us is different.
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And that's evident in the creations.
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So I hope you enjoyed my presentation on 21st Century
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Learning. Thanks for watching.