Conference:
ECER 2008
Format:
Paper
Session Information
14 SES 06, Research in Rural Schools and Communities (Part 2) Educational Strategies
Paper Session
Time:
2008-09-11
10:30-12:00
Room:
A1 318
Chair:
Janne Pietarinen
Contribution
Through many years, people living in remote areas have had to face the limitations that distributed habitation have for teaching and learning. In 2001 about 38% (Statistisk sentralbyrå, 2001) of all schools in Norway were mutigrade schools (Melheim, 1998). Very often teachers in small muligrade schools have to give a variety of lessons in all subjects, and very often there is no “subject specific expert” teacher in the school. Rural schools that are unable to attract and retain specialized teachers seems to be unable to regularly offer the same range of optional courses found in larger urban schools. The development of information and communication technologies (ICT) has changed the physical communities. Network and network learning communities have been created on the Internet using different kinds of learning technologies (Wachter, Gupta, & Quaddus, 2000).
The report presents results from a comparative study done in three countries (Norway, Ireland and British Columbia, Canada) about use of ICT as an integrating agent for connecting small rural schools together into Learning Communities. The study aims at highlighting and compares these three dimensions in the three countries:
1. The organizing of Learning Communities between rural schools
2. Teaching and learning by using collaborative learning platforms in the network between schools synchronous and asynchronous
What are the attitudes, motivations and experiences using new technology and new teaching methods among students and teachers? What kind of technology do they prefer and what kind of service are they expecting from the educational system?
Structured network learning society challenges the closed model of the traditional school. This is a open school model based on schools that academically and administratively are integrated with each other for at least part of a school day. ICT facilitate the linking of classes in schools to share teaching, learning and resources. In the open model students can study outside the traditional classroom and they can choose between courses offered from more than one location and collaborate with students in other schools. The open model challenges the traditional closed model of the school by questioning the need for employing all teachers to significant schools, rather than, in appropriate cases, some teachers being employed to networks of schools.
The study shows also project schools, small rural schools, mostly primary schools that participate learning communities with other schools by presenting project work. Their work with project-based learning and the use of technologically expressive materials – including robotics, presentation and programming software together with other schools in the project, opens the traditionally closed classroom experiences to a larger community for learning.
Formal structure of linking schools together in a learning community is found in two countries (Norway and Canada, BC). The work with the design of these ICT based learning environments has forced teachers and educational officers to consider a common understanding of “what is learning”. The study shows differences between these two countries that are very interesting when it comes to use of learning platforms. The role and the activities of the teacher and the learner in the learning process using online learning or LMS (Learning Management Systems) from a school in the network are very crucial for understanding learning.
Method
Case study
Document studies
Observations
Interviews with educational officers, headmasters, teachers and students
Expected Outcomes
This research includes a focus on learning communities with sharing of knowledge, continual professional development and school development. In this way small remote schools can be connected to supporting schools, preferably in the same region. Are teachers in one school able to include (by learning technologies) some other teachers and pupils from another school in their network? To learn more about the two models of distributed learning supported by ICT and applied in synchronous and asynchronous modes using videoconferencing and other Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) tools.
References
Melheim, K. (1998). Arbeid i fådelt skule. Oslo: Samlaget. Statistisk Sentralbyrå, 2001; Grunnskolar, etter skoleslag og skoletype. Skoleåret 2000/01 Wachter, R. M., Gupta, J. N. D., & Quaddus, M. A. (2000) IT takes a village: Virtual communities in support of education, International Journal of Information management, 20, 473 - 489
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