Evolución de la WEB

FRAMEWORK FOR 21ST CENTURY LEARNING

Which skills would be needed for the 21st century learning?
There are lots of theories related to the skills what we will needed to be part of the 21st century learning, so let's do it.
-21st Century Learning-
As we learn about this topic, i will work towards several learning objectives, and answer the following questions in this abstract/notes:

What are the theories that are realated to 21st century learning?

Why is it important for us, as teachers to understand and use these theories?

I'll talk about 5 different learning theories that can be applied to 21st century teaching and learning. I've never seen some of these theories before, but some of them was familiar to me. So let's start it!

Constructivism. 

Constructivist learning environments are filled with students that have opportunities to create their own meanings. And teachers become the facilitators, coaches, and promoters of this student centered learning.

Teachers provide content, but students are given a voice and choices in their learning. And inquiry is essential to this theory. All of the components promote strong student engagement and relevant, authentic, meaningful learning tasks.

In a classroom filled with technology, collaboration occurs digitally and in person. And digital tools can be used to present and publish material as well. Blogs, Wikis, YouTube videos, these are all examples of just a few of those tools.

Problem Based Learning. 

You can see that this theory is very similar to Constructivism. Unlike constructivist based teaching however, Problem Based Learning is a theory in which students investigate and respond to a specific and complex problem or challenge. Learning is rigorous and carefully planned and assessed over an extended period of time. This promotes high quality, authentic products and presentations.

Like Constructivism, Problem Based Learning revolves around inquiry, and the teacher plays the role of facilitator. Students collaborate and are actively engaged as they problem solve and are forced to think in flexible ways. They also use critical thinking skills in this classroom. In a classroom filled with technology, collaboration can occur digitally and in person. Digital tools can be used to support problem solving.

Cognitive Flexibility Theory.

The focuses is on learning in complex domains by using flexible thinking. And also the ability to transfer skills and knowledge beyond initial learning and into a different contexts. This is a big part of Cognitive Flexibility Theory.

When planning for instruction using Cognitive Flexibility Theory, it's important to use a wide variety of methods to present material to allow students to construct their own meanings. The theory draws on Constructivism, and case studies are often used to do this. These usually support context specific formats. These two instructional strategies help students adapt understanding to each different case, therefore constructing their own meanings. In classrooms filled with technology teachers have flexibility to find context specific learning, such as case studies.

Social Learning Theory.

(This is one my favorites because I am so in love with the Bandura's theories)
Bandura promotes the concept that learning takes place through observations, imitations, and modeling. Students observe each other, take note of successes and failures, and then model and imitate successful behaviors that they've seen. The learner is also influenced by cognition, environment, and behaviors in their environment.

Network Learning Theory.

This is based on the idea that learning takes place in connection with other people, and information, and resources. Developing and maintaining these connections and relationships are a large part of this theory. And collaboration and communication are key in supporting learning.

In both Social Theory and Network Learning Theory, online collaborative learning environments and forms are great tools for incorporating technology. Forms like Google Docs or even blogs. So let's talk about what we learned today.

Reflections

As teachers we need to know about these theories and to be so involved with them, we need to make great citizens again, and we can only do that with the application of these theories in the education. 

And, as a highschool teacher i know that the only way to make Mexico a "First World" country is teaching to the childrens  the following skills:

°Flexibility & Adaptability     °Initiative & Self Direction     °Social & Cross-Cultural Skills     °Productivity & Accountability     °Leadership & Responsibility