The Digital Learning Corner

Hello Friends! Today we discuss geocaching and the role it can play in active learning. Learning is often viewed as students listening as they sit neatly in rows as a teacher lectures. Active learning is different. It involves students engaged in action and thinking about what they are doing (Berek, 2022). Students engaged in active learning rely less on the teacher's knowledge and work in groups or on their own to develop skills and a higher order of thinking through synthesis, analysis, and evaluation. They also explore their own attitudes and values.  Some teachers misunderstand the idea of active learning to mean that in this student-centered approach students must engage in activities on their own without instructor intervention (Ito & Takeuchi, 2022). A study of teachers in Japan suggested the learning experience is more effective for students when instructors blend lectures with active learning activities to engage learners.  For more information about active learni...

 Do you want to create engaging electronic course content? Watch this video by Mariah Coz for some practical tips (Coz, 2019)! I recently used Articulate Rise 360 to develop a short lesson introducing myself. The tool has many benefits as well as limitations. According to Giacumo et al. (2018), most novice developers of e-learning prefer to use rapid e-learning tools that are developed by professionals. This takes the guesswork out of the design process, assists with more professional development, and provides management support. One focus of online education is the integration of interactive content (Herman & Mustea, 2016). It is most important to design the online experience to encourage interaction between the student and the content. Interaction between the teacher and the student is another priority, followed by interaction between students. Accordingly, designers and educators should consider the constraints of the software and learning management system, the demands of m...

 Hi Friends!  This week we discuss a digital tool that is often overlooked for education. What is augmented reality? Check out this video if you want to know more about augmented reality and how it is different from virtual reality.    Augmented reality learning experiences have been used for classroom education and are generally considered effective tools for improving learning outcomes (Vuta, 2020). For example, using AR learning in learning can help students learn skills many skills relating to various disciplines including mathematics, engineering, language acquisition, biology, geography, and teaching. Many students who use AR technology for learning demonstrate improved critical spatial skills (Altınpulluk et al., 2020). They also experience improvement in their practical motor skills (Spinosa et al., 2020). All research about AR for learning concluded that learners generally experienced a significant increase in motivation when engaged in AR-related learning a...

Hello Friends!  This week's topic is on a tool that can be leveraged to impact your teaching.  Microblogging occurs when an author uses a digital tool to publish a small amount of textual content on a profile page (Hadian & Froese, 2014).  Photo: Cottonbro, Pexels.com Educational researchers generally recognize the importance of social networking and interacting in the learning experience and how digital technology can facilitate it (Gao & Li, 2017). Microblogging facilitates the sharing of ideas and exchanging of opinions both synchronously and asynchronously. It can also be used to ask questions, share resources, encourage reflection, and encourage informal learning outside the boundaries of a formal classroom (Hadian & Froese, 2014). Advantages of using microblogging in formal learning environments may include more active learning, self-direction, and greater engagement of timid students. Teachers become facilitators of discovery learning and constructive l...

 Watch this week's episode of the Fabulous Finds podcast!

 Listen to this week's episode of the Fabulous Finds Podcast!