U4a1 Bloom's Taxonomy Using Flash, create and a small instructional exercise that presents the six main points of Bloom's Taxonomy in a slide show format. The points are, in order: Remember, Understand, Apply, Analyze, and Create.

My Bloom's Taxonomy slide show in Flash can be found at the link below:

-------------BloomsSlideShow

Knowledge: memory, data, information

Comprehension: understanding, paraphrasing

Application: using, applying information

Analysis: categorizing, organizing

Synthesis: creating new structures

Evaluation: judging, critiquing

U4d1 Synthesizing Prior Learning

In all learning activities, the ability to connect prior learning to performance is always a challenge. Read Chapter 6 to understand the value of prior learning in education.

Identify how prior learning should be addressed using instructional media.

Prior knowledge should be presented sequentially; however, exercises can be utilized while learning where a task requires that non-sequential items are to be arranged to form the correct sequences. Prior knowledge can be addressed through discussions and showing previously learned material (and asking questions related to previously learned material) before, during, and after the learning presentation. Group discussions can be used to activate prior knowledge and to increase understanding of a learning topic. The correct use of visual, auditory, and verbal information can also enhance the learning experience while utilizing previously learned material and all of these techniques combined can foster synthesis of prior knowledge which can then be applied to learning new concepts.

Reference:

Clark, Ruth. (2003). Building Expertise: Cognitive Methods for Training and Performance Improvement. Silver Spring, MD: International Society for Performance Improvement.

U4d2 Knowledge Retrieval

How might you use the features of Flash or other authoring tools to design instruction to improve the retrieval of knowledge and skills from long-term memory?

Authoring tools can be used to retrieve information from long-term memory and one way of accomplishing this objective is through the use of learning objects. Learning objects are recyclable and reusable learning units or clumps, clusters, or illustrations of information which can have pictorial, verbal, auditory, animation, or interactive aspects to them.

�A Learning Object is smaller than a course, unit, or section of learning content. It is a small unit of instructionally sound content centered around a learning objective or outcome that teaches a focused concept. A Learning Object may also contain opportunities for practice, simulation, collaborative interaction, and assessment. It is also important to recognize that the structure of an LO reflects the culture and learning philosophy of a particular organization.

Learning Objects consist of three main elements:

1. instructionally sound content with a focused learning objective,

2. learner-centered rich media environments that enable the learner to practice, learn, and receive assessment, and

3. metadata or keywords that describe the learning objects' attributes, and mechanisms for communicating with management systems or other web applications.� (Heins & Himes, 2002)

Other descriptions of learning objects are:

�Learning objects are small, reusable chunks of instructional materials that can be included on course Web sites or with other digital instructional materials.� (Yacci, 2003)

�The main idea of �learning objects' is to break educational content down into small chunks that can be reused in various learning environments, in the spirit of object-oriented programming.� (Wiley, 2003)

�A stand-alone unit of instruction that generally doesn't require a pre- or post-requisite, and contains a trio of elements: a measurable objective, a learning activity, and an assessment determining whether the objective has been met.� (L'Allier, 2003)

In short, learning objects can be thought of as a sort of a la carte approach to learning.

Flash can be used to create learning objects to improve the retrieval of knowledge and skills from long-term memory when interactivity is required or when animation, color, or illustrations enhance the learning experience as they almost always do when used correctly and appropriately. These activities can stimulate learning of new material as well as cause long term memories to be retrieved within the context of learning. --- Richard

References:

Clark, Ruth. (2003). Building Expertise: Cognitive Methods for Training and Performance Improvement. Silver Spring, MD: International Society for Performance Improvement.

Cuthbert, A. & Himes, F. (2002). Creating Learning Objects with Macromedia Dreamweaver MX. Retrieved on October 25, 2004 from http://download.macromedia.com/pub/solutions/downloads/elearning/dwmx_lo.pdf

University Technology Training Center. (2003). Designing and Creating Learning Objects. Retrieved October 25 from http://training.micro.umn.edu/ShortCourses/resources/pdf/designinglearningobjects.pdf

U4d3 Flash as an Authoring Tool

As you evaluate Flash as an authoring tool, discuss:

1. How you could use Flash to gain and hold attention?
2. How Flash might aid in the design of instruction to improve encoding into long-term memory? (Recall that encoding is the transformation of information so it can be stored in long-term memory.)

As is well known in the entertainment and advertising world, it is necessary to use action -- in a medium that is capable of conveying action -- to hold the viewer's attention. Although there is a difference in the intent and approach in educational and entertainment purposes, educational techniques can learn from and use what is effective in entertainment and apply these principles to education. Of course, the techniques should be used correctly and appropriately so as to not be distracting, unnecessary, or unproductive but the techniques that have been learned from entertainment sources can be used as illustrations of principles and concepts for increasing understanding while learning new material. People always learn more completely when there is an interactive element to their learning experience and the utilization the capabilities of Flash can offer them this experience. Also, people respond to and are stimulated by action and activity which are also ways of enhancing and amplifying the learning experience. Just as someone remembers more about an event by experiencing it than merely reading about it so to does the learner retain more information when there are interactive and illustrative aspects to the information being presented to be learned. These techniques can be used in each of the four architectures of learning which are: receptive, directive, guided discovery, and exploratory learning.

Reference:

Clark, Ruth. (2003). Building Expertise: Cognitive Methods for Training and Performance Improvement. Silver Spring, MD: International Society for Performance Improvement.

Table from Patricia Lake:

U4d3 comment to Patricia:

Patricia, Your table that shows the content type (fact, concept, process, procedure, principle), graphic support, and examples is a useful demonstration of when to use graphics applications such as Flash to enhance educational experiences so I saved that information in my ED7003 file. --- Richard

U4d3 Comment (help reply) to Kathleen:

First you have to open your Flash file (.fla) with your slide show then you press Ctrl Enter to make a .swf file. Then open Dreamweaver and create the html page where your file is to go. Then with your blinking cursor on the html page where you want the image to go (probably centered) you go to the top of the Dreamweaver toolbar to find and activate Insert>Media>Flash. Then you scroll to that .swf file on the appropriate folder on your hard drive then select that .swf file and press OK. You can resize and reposition that image to place it on the page where you would like for it to be (you will not be able to see the image at that point). Save the html page and then press F12 to view that page with the image on the browser. If that is the image that you want, then after you close that page, you can upload that html page which also has the swf imbedded in it to your URL. I hope I have included all of the steps you need. --- Richard

U4d4 Learning Objects (optional) (Related activity u04s2 Understanding Learning Objects)

After completing u04s2, post any questions regarding learning objects that you might have in the discussion area.

I think that if someone publishes information or learning objects on the Internet then those items become part of the public domain and they can be used for educational purposes, as long as money is not being made from them and as long as credit is given to the source, is that correct? --- Richard