Ray's Rants & Rambles

DONE

2005-12-06T13:41:00.000-05:00

I'm done, and now I wait for the grade...

Attractive Things work bettter...

2005-11-02T14:32:00.000-05:00

ahhh, the final reading...

I was intrigued by the author's mentioning of the notion that "being happy broadens the thought processes and facilitiates creative thinking..." So in terms of our website, we should be attempting to make the visit to them a pleasurable experience, so that the potential for "thinking" is increased...seems even more challenging for an instructional website, where you are consciously trying to teach something. I know when I know I am going into something to "learn" I am not necessarily excited about it, so it seems twice as difficult, if you're creating sites for educational purposes, to actually get them to work (that is, actually teach something).

I was equally intrigued by Norman's mention of positive affect. He mentions that when we are "happy" we are more likely to "prefer the big picture and not to concentrate upon details," and when we are in a bad mood, details come before the big picture. But what if details are what is important? Granted, its important that an individual be able to understand both details and the bigger picture...but it seems like its the author's impression that the big picture is always more advantageous...

"The designer can get away with more if the product is fun and enjoyable..." Sad to think designers would look at their projects in such a way. Yes, excitement can take attention off of flaws and missing information, but it doesn't change the fact that they still exist!

And finally...I never thought in an Instructional Design course would I read an article that would mention human feces. I'm glad that it was noted to create an automatic negative affect. It's mention certainly did in this case!

Good Website

2005-10-29T12:49:00.000-04:00

For anyone looking for a good website to surf for backgrounds...check out http://grsites.com/textures. It has thousands of customizable backgrounds that you can test, play with, adjust...its really cool. I know I am going to utilize it!

Frustrated

2005-10-29T00:29:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I am gonna say it. Why is it that no one does their homework on time...or waits until the morning of class to post blogs? I'm always WAITING, and quite frankly, its annoying the shit out of me. As if I don't have enough work to do with classes and work...I have to WAIT to do my work cuz no one else is doing theirs! Does this bother anyone else or is it just me? How am I supposed to respond to 2 blogs each week if 1) its the SAME 5 people blogging...2) blogs aren't posted til the morning of class...or 3) they're just not posted at all. You're not giving me much to work with here people!

OK, I'm done with that rant.

2005-10-28T22:08:00.000-04:00

I have to admit...getting through the last of these readings...I am so not motivated. I find it hard to believe there is only one week of class left. Where did all the time go. Well, I suppose I should quit procrastinating and actually comment on these readings, before I fall asleep...

Anchored Instruction: Why We Need It and How Technology Can Help

I too couldn't tell you of the many uses of the logarithm. I don't even know that I remember being taught about their uses. The word LOGARITHM looks familiar to me though. The authors state that "there are hundreds of cases in which information is understood as ends rather than as tools for effective problem solving..." I wonder if that is because of the way in which we are trained to find the quickest answer, with minimal work. We're all about getting the right answer...and instant satisfaction...especially when it comes to anything mathematical. At least that's how I see it. There is nothing exciting about figuring out a math equation. I just want to get it over and done with. But as we've learned in other readings, its very similar to rote memorization...it goes in one ear and out the other. You learn it for the sake of passing a test, and then its forgotten. You're not able to re-utilize it at some point in the future.

Interesting thought the author(s) raise about conditionalizing education. It's true that a good portion of the things we learn about...we never know WHY or how its applied in the real world, so we never can recall any of it when it would actually be useful. Its apparently rather important to consider the environment in which the things we are learning in the classroom will be applied in real life.

The author talks about the introduction of video, stating they are much richer and offer more for a viewer to "notice." What about what we talked about last week...aren't you potentially risking "cognitive overload?" Rather than increasing the potential for"finding relevant issues," couuld you not be risking offering too much that a viewer misses relevant ones?

2005-10-21T22:04:00.000-04:00

http://homepages.nyu.edu/~rms414/storyboard.html

My storyboard, which I have a feeling, will change.

Cognitive Architecture & Instructional Design

2005-10-19T00:29:00.000-04:00

So, I am not going to lie. After the first thirty pages of this article...I found myself more entertained by the clouds passing by outside my window than actually paying attention to this reading. REALLY? What's with all the mathematical references? Not only was I confused as to WHY they were being used...I felt really dumb, cuz I don't remember any of the proper formulas to solve any of those BASIC equations. Sort of goes back to earlier discussions of rote memorization...I guess I definitely memorized the formulas I needed to pass the tests, and then out the door went that knowledge.

So I am struggling to pull something...ANYTHING out of this article worth writing about. I grasp why reading about all this indepth cognitive "stuff" is relevant to our class...I just wish there were some way to see it in practice. I don't feel as if we'll EVER be applying ANY of what we read about in any of the sites we're creating. It seems impossible to do in 8 weeks. Furthermore, it seems impossible for ONE person to do. Its clearly a job for a whole team, who can effectively consider all realms of cognitive....ummm...what's the word...understanding?
Again, the one thing, as with every other article we've read, that came across loud and clear, is to be considerate of the learner. It seems like a rather basic concept that we as learners can only deal with two or three items of information simultaneously when required to process it...and if that's the case, why do things seem so complex and overinvolved if we already know our viewers/learners are not capable of handling it all. I dunno, it all just seems so confusing.

The one line that I did happen to catch, that I wondered about..." A large number of interacting elements for one person may be a single element for someone with more expertise." I think that is a given, as we all have varying levels of experience, but how do we cater to both?

I was also intrigued by the techniques noted for measuring cognitive load: the subjective, physiological, and the task & performance based methods. Wouldn't the results of all of these "tests" vary by user? So how accurate are they really in assessing the cognitive load, esp. considering that some of us can cognitively handle a bigger load?

So sadly, that's all I was able to pull out of the 30 pages I was able to focus on...perhaps on Friday night I will revisit the article and find something else of consequence to write about. If not, this will have to do.

Reducing Cognitive Load

2005-10-18T22:18:00.000-04:00

Right now, I wouldn't mind having my cognitive load reduced. I feel like my head is going to explode, and its only Tuesday night. And I am doing my homework for Saturday's class now. Why you ask? Well, Monday and Tuesday call for a midterm paper (my first of grad school) and a final paper proposal for the class I hate...and quite frankly, this homework is the most entertaining, least stressful...so I am getting it done now, so I can focus on papers this weekend.

Anyhow, here is my take on the Mayer & Moreno article. It was pretty straightforward, and I don't have much to say about it. I understand the importance of being cognizant (sp.?) of the capabilities of our viewers/audience...but for OUR purposes, do we really need to be concerned with this sort of overload? Since this is an introductory course (it is, isn't it?) I'm making the assumption that none of us are going to have movies or narration on our website(s). I can't imagine any of our viewers suffering from any sort of overload. But I could be wrong. It does happen. Not often, but it does happen ;)

The only thing that really struck me in the article was the solution presented to the 4th scenario. The authors mention eliminating redundancy. I thought for a moment...couldn't this "redundancy" be considered reinforcement? Isn't providing both audio and visual information a way to ensure both audio and visual learning styles are catered too? Shouldn't we be trying to market to the widest market possible? This point confused me a little bit.

Again, there was no brain science involved in this article. As has already been beaten into our heads, it's critical to have a sensitivity to your audience, and to always be considering their wants, likes and needs, particularly in cases of instructional design.

My Site with Form included...

2005-10-18T13:13:00.000-04:00

Below is the link for my website...and you can locate the "form" page underneath the UHall Council page, after clicking on "Want to Make a Proposal?" Pretty cool.

Website with Form

Chapters 6 & 9 (Bransford)

2005-10-14T20:33:00.000-04:00

Ahhhh, its Friday night. Where has the week gone? It probably got washed away, with the rest of New York City. Really, enough with all this rain. So much rain that the satellite has been knocked out and three of the residence halls (one of which I live in) has lost its cable, and will not get it back until sometime Monday hopefully...so I guess it gives me a good reason to do my homework. So here is my little summary. This reading, I understood, and I liked. I was able to draw comparisons to what we've already read, and what I am learning in other classes.
Obviously, educational goals have changed significantly in the past 100 years. I was struck by the author's disturbing analogy of students in the early 1900's, equating mass education with mass production...very much business oriented. Presenting a product. This analogy lends itself nicely to the discussion I've had in my Internship Seminar, equating the whole of higher education to a business. Students (and their parents) are buying into a product these days, not an educational experience, which I find rather disappointing. Considering web design, it too is like a business, as we need to create a "product" to satisfy our customers, because if they don't like a site, they're not going to be repeat customers.

The author talks about learner centered environments and mentions again a "sensitivity to the cultural practices of students and the effect of those practices on classroom learning." As we've learned already, a sensitivity to our AUDIENCE is going to be very important in web design.

In considering knowledge centered environments, there is a "concern for students' initial preconceptions about the subject matter." In considering web design, I wondered if it is possible for the web to be a knowledge centered environment. Do we need to assume that our site is for an introductory learner (to whatever topic) or for experienced viewers? I suppose if we know an audience already has some base knowledge or a particular skill set, then we can consider a knowledge centered environment.

The author also addresses assessment centered environments, where its critical to regularly offer feedback and constructive criticism. On the web too, we need to regularly assess the success of the websites we create, to improve upon the teaching we are attempting with our sites, and upon the learning of the viewer(s).

I was also thinking about community centered environments, and how these can be incorporated into a web site? Would a community message board be a way to integrate the community? Or blogs (like this one) where people can learn from each other?

One final thought that really stood out for me...on page 135 of the article, Stanford talks about the norm in American classrooms where there is an emphasis on always being right and contributing by talking. He also mentions the importance of teachers to "view learning from the perspective of the overall culture of society and its relationship to the norms of the classroom." Its quite striking to me how the overall culture of society doesn't seem to be taken into consideration here at NYU, or even within the scope of Higher Education. In all of my classes, in class participation is expected...we're even graded on it. And I don't think that allows for those who learn by listening and observation, and take time to think and process. It puts them at a severe, unfair disadvantage.

And that's all I have to say about that!

On Collins...

2005-10-14T17:16:00.000-04:00

Oh, the days of rote memorization…I fondly remember being able to memorize item after item for tests in elementary school, all the way up to Art of the Western World I & II in college, memorizing the artists and years in which masterpieces were created. And for all that work, what do I remember? Not a damn thing. As the author notes, memorization can be rather “empowering” And I remember being so proud that I could keep all of that useless junk in my head. I felt like I had accomplished something. Now apparently, thoughtfulness now seems to be a more important, effective manner of learning. I wonder at which point in a students education that it becomes necessary to switch from memorization to thoughtful learning. Is it subject specific? Do we need to be thoughtful when learning our multiplication tables?
I grasp all of the concepts Collins talks about in this article…the dichotomous goals for learning and all of the pros and cons for utilizing each in a classroom setting. What I fail to understand is why they always need to be seen as contradictory rather than complimentary. Why can’t there be a mix of breadth and depth when covering a particular topic or providing opportunities that sharpens both component and whole task skills?
In considering learning styles, I think it takes a seasoned educator, or at the very least, one who is invested in the true learning of their students to be able to teach to cater to the different types of learners in a particular setting. I find myself in my current job working to cater to those students who learn both visually and through auditory means. Again, as with teaching goals, there should be a conscious effort on the part of the educator to blend methods to cater to a wide variety of learners. Make available means for both natural and efficient learning. Allow for fun in the classroom, while ensuring that there are elements of seriousness incorporated into the lessons.

Its been a while...

2005-10-13T20:04:00.000-04:00

So, its been a while since I have posted.....the workload is a little out of control with all my classes...anyhow, I decoded or translated the Residential Ed. website at NYU, and below is the link for you guys to check it out...I think I did it correctly...hopefully later tonight or tomorrow I will blog on some of the readings...

http://homepages.nyu.edu/~rms414

Hope you're all staying dry!

2005-09-30T10:35:00.000-04:00

Yay! My first set of pages is up and running! Check it out!

http://homepages.nyu.edu/~rms414

Chapter 3 & 4 cont'd...

2005-09-27T20:55:00.000-04:00

Ummm...the whole part about site guides...seems a little obvious to me. Why would you not want to include at least some bit of content as to what your site holds? And is there really a difference between a table of contents, site index or site map? Aren't they all overviews of a website?

I'd never heard of the "intranet" before...and I sort of like the idea, especially since if you are designing for such an entity, you have a built in population that you know certain facts about. In this sort of case, I would imagine building a website would be considerably easier, since you know exactly who you are marketing to, and exactly what information they need to get.

I was wondering, are there "design standards" as mentioned in the article that govern web design here at NYU? If so, who establishes those?

"We seek clarity, order, and trustworthiness in information sources, whether traditional paper documents or Web pages..." I got to thinking, how do we know whether information found on Websites to be valid, real and/or accurate? And if it's not, is there anything we can do about it?

The visual design of my website is what I am most excited about (even thought I have no idea what the content will entail) With my art education background and interest in graphic design, I'm really looking forward to learning and experimenting.

The article mentions style sheets as being rendered "useless" by browser inconsistencies, and suggests opting for layout tables. Will we be learning about those?

Chapters 3 & 4 ~ Web Style Guide

2005-09-27T10:17:00.000-04:00

It seems like creating a web page is all about organization, and THOUGHT. There are lots of elements to consider, particularly in relation to the viewer. Not taking the time to think things through can seemingly be detrimental to the success of your webpage.
Considering the three types of informational structures, it was easy to liken the sequence structure to the formal type of learning we discussed earlier in class, where learning takes place progressively where a student needs to learn subordinate skills before mastering superordinate ones. Here, you cannot progress to the more advanced pages until you've gone through the introductory ones (unless you just click "next") and skip the intro :) I would also imagine that a web structure has to incorperate a lot of thought and organization to avoid simply becoming a collection of minimally related pages.

It's all about the AUDIENCE. Is it ever possible to satisfy the audience? There is just so much to consider. I never really thought about having to consider text vs. graphic images or considering how long a page takes to load. I guess I know how impatient I can be when I am waiting for something to be pulled off of the internet. It seems like a sensible approach is to incorperate a little bit of everything, to attempt to cater to every possible type of viewer of your webpage.

On WebDesign Style...

2005-09-23T16:27:00.000-04:00

So who knew creating a web site was such an indepth process? So much for writing some info and including some pictures and animations...
I had NO idea that so many people are typically involved in the creation of an educational website? Is it possible for us to play all of these roles (content experts, writers, information architects, graphic designers, etc.) when creating our own websites?

Hmmm...goals for my website? I'm not sure what I want to say to the world! What do I want to educate my audience on? I thought about doing a website for the residence hall I help to oversee, but that idea doesn't seem so exciting to me anymore. I want to do something with more depth.

Admittely not thrilled at the idea of being part of a design team or having classmates assist with or critique my design, I now understand why they play an important role in the success of my project. Not only will they be my audience, but my "assistants" :)

The site specification sounds just like an outline for a research paper, keeping you on track. And I like that... I also like the discussion of the "scope creep" and I would imagine it is part of your design teams responsibility to make sure that you're not veering too far off of your original plan. It is my assumption that we are not going to have to be concerned with a "budget" in this course, though I recognize the importance of being aware of what you do have, when creating a website for a business or client.

I've decided HTML still scares me...

In reading the second chapter of the Design Style, I never really thought much about the "who," the "what" or the "when" of a freestanding document. But I can see how frustrating it would be to come across a page in your research and not be able to figure out who actually wrote the material, what it is in specific reference to, or how old the material is!

Making a second attempt...

2005-09-22T21:40:00.000-04:00

So, before I get into the class material...I was sitting in a Leadership Team Meeting this afternoon and we were talking about the Social Change Model of Leadership Development and discussing methods for rewarding and recognizing both students and staff in a university setting, and I was so excited because I was able to reference the Response Strengthening view of learning. We discussed how rewarding and recognize the good/positive things going on in the office and within the department would encourage continued performance and behavior. It was nice to be able to see a theory put into practice :)

So, its now 9:50pm...I'm hoping I am a little more coherent and I am going to revist the two articles I did read, and see if there is anything else I can pull out of them that I didn't mention last night (or this morning, depending on your view).

I got to thinking...instructional design seems to be rather important in the confines of the classroom setting when we are considering teaching a specific group of learners. We know a groups approximate age and what learning styles exist, and that some form of assessment will be able to be utilized. But what about forms of passive education, where we don't have an audience in front of us; we don't know ages, abilities and don't have the ability to assess success (or do we?) For example...creating an educational website that anyone can access. How then do we know what methods to employ, and whether or not they will be successful? Did that make sense to anyone? It did to me, in my head...I think...

I liked how Reiser likened Instructional Design to lesson planning...considering what it is we want students to learn, the necessary conditions, and the criteria to know whether students have been successful at learning the desired objectives. As an educator and someone who has prepared lesson plans, this comparison made a lot of sense.

In considering formative evaluation and summative evaluation, I'm wondering in the case of this class, which method for our purposes will be best to use, since we only have a short period to create a site? Will we have the opportunity, once class is over, to evaluate the success, and adjust as necessary?

Looking back at my own undergraduate experience, and even to today to my graduate coursework, I can't think of any instance where technology was utilized with any regularity. I think practitioners recognize the technology, and all of its capabilities, but I wonder if there is resistance to adapt to it, and to utilize it. I don't know if there is a buy in yet, that educators believe that technology really can be used as an educational tool. Especially if they themselves have not yet mastered the medium, which involves a great deal of investment in time and energy. And as Mayer states "the way technology is used in education depends on the instructor's underlying conception of learning." And also, the "focus was on giving people access to the latest technology rather than promoting human cognition through the aid of technology..." so I don't think practitioners and educators have the know-how.

I also recognized that here in the Department of Residential Education at NYU, we utilize a system of knowledge management. We have a global share file of resources, forms, files and information available to all members of the department to use. Often within our field, forms and manuals are created and made available to all, because its not necessary to reinvent the wheel in several offices with the same job/project or objective.

Okay...I think my brain has turned to mush right about now...I'm going to go read the third part of our homework assignment, and then I will be back...

A spectacular ending...

2005-09-22T00:48:00.000-04:00

So, its 12:49am...hardly the ideal time to be posting, but its the first time I've made it back to my room since I left at 9:40 this morning. Oh the life of a graduate student. Remind me again why I signed up for this again? Started the day with an hour of office work wrapping up elections...Professional staff meeting for an hour...lunch which was interrupted by a fire drill...a walk to Weinstein to get my paycheck, which I should have gotten on Friday...more office hours til 3...an hour or so of reading for classes, a small dinner...two RA programs, UHall Staff Meeting, and to cap it all off, a suitemate mediation meeting...oh how I love those. Yet another reminder as to why I never want children!

Anyhow, onto some of this reading for class...I've read two of the three articles to this point. For some reason, I feel like they should ALL be done, since the prof. said he'll comment on them no later than Thursday...so I guess I should give him SOMETHING to read. But, then again, no one else has posted...so maybe they're all up at the same crazy hour doing the same thing I am. Maybe I will never know.

As a side note before I start...the new Ryan Cabrera CD is really good...

OK, I swear, I am starting with the important stuff....
So first I read A History of Instructional Design and Technology: Part II: A History of Instructional Design and then read Technology Applications in Education Admittedly, they were fairly difficult readings, for me anyway. I think if I had more of a psychology background, some more of it would have made sense. Particularly in the latter article, I felt like I was going around in circles, and what was said in concluding sentences of paragraphs was the ONLY sentence that made sense. The article was rather verbose and technical. But I guess I should expect that in a "technology" class.

Some things that came to mind while/after the two articles...
1. When considering the possibility of creating a website with "instructional design" focus, is there an opportunity, or a way for us to assess the success of what we're trying to teach? Obviously if there is a controlled population that has access to the website...but what if it is made available to the general public?
2. I was interested in the author's discussion of curriculum centered versus child centered education. I understand the concept of a child centered curriculum, but knowing the numerous guidelines in place within the public school system, how can something like this be implemented? It's certainly idealistic, but is it realistic? It's been my experience that it is an expectation of educators, and more specifically parents, that students (at least in elementary school) are coming home with a PRODUCT, and there are defined ways of attaining that product. It at least seems that child centered education lacks some of that definition.
3. It was funny how response strengthening was likened to cats and dogs. I thought it before the author said it. I think learning as response strengthening is acceptable for basic, necessary skills, but I don't think its an appropriate method for teaching information, or any sort of processing. I was surprised that the author states that this theory is still a driving force, and equally disappointed because in this sort of education, the student/learner plays no role in his own learning.
4.Looking at the information-processing view, I wondered, are students ever viewed as the "teacher," as having some knowledge to offer? I know at the collegiate level, this idea is sometimes expressed, but is it shared anywhere else?

Well, its now 1:25am...I don't feel like any of this is making sense...so I think I am going to go to bed, and revisit all of this tomorrow...

Welcome to my Blog Space!

2005-09-17T14:43:00.000-04:00

Day#1 ~ Class begins...