The Efficiency Model
A Learning Design
Top 10 Principles of the Efficiency Model
1.Subject matter should be carefully defined and sequenced. 2.Identification of specific, identifiable behavioral objectives 3.Efficiency can be increased by the proper use of media and tools. 4.Information should be presented sequentially in small steps, each requiring a response from the student. 5.Objectives should state the terminal behavior to be displayed by the learner, the criterion or standard by which the behavior will be evaluated, and the conditions under which the behavior will be displayed. 6.Test, teach, retest, reteach 7. ADDIE - Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation 8.Lessons should begin with simple concepts and move to the more complex, building one on the last (scaffolding). 9.Student learning should be monitored and continuously adjusted. 10.Students learn in a number of ways and the lesson planning should reflect this.
Top 10 Challenges to the Efficiency Model
1.The model can be time intensive for the instructor, depending on the sizes and numbers of the steps used. 2.Does not focus on what students learn about learning. 3.Often ignores the social aspects of learning. 4.May not adequately reflect the way students currently learn, such as from peers, television, etc. 5.Learning in this model often takes place in isolation. 6.Lessons may not always reflect real world situations. 7.Because the model is based on rigid objectives there is little room for learners to go beyond the lesson. 8.Drill and kill is often used which has been argued does not motivate students to retain information past the evaluation. 9.This type of learning is more teacher centered than student centered (e.g. teacher as designer) 10.Not all students share the same experiences, making it more difficult to standardize objectives.
Step One: Define a Learn Goal
Students will investigate social networks and decide which might be useful in networking with their future colleagues or peers.
Step Two: State Objectives
1. Given a computer and access to the Internet, the student will find four examples of social networks and will be able to present a brief description of each. 2. Given information on available social networks the student will classify these resources and evaluate their usefulness based on their own needs. 3. After having completed research, the student will be able to present his or her choices to classmates and present the rationale for their choices in a manner that makes it clear to other students.
Step Three: Sequence Instruction
1. Define what social networking is. 2. Discuss how and why we might use social networking to our advantage. 3. Define criteria for evaluating these networks. 4. Find examples of social networks. 5. Apply the previously defined criteria to our choices and eliminate those that don't meet our needs. 6. Repeat step 4 if not enough suitable examples are found. 7. Classify our choices of networks. 8. Evaluate the usefulness of the chosen resources. 9. Create a PowerPoint presentation highlighting the findings. 10. Present findings to the class.
Step Four: Determine Learning Success
Success will be determined based on students finding resources they can use in the future and on whether they were able to clearly define why these resources may be useful.
A Reflection and Critique of the Design
Top ten challenges to this design:
1. Most current social networks are not intended to be used by minors.
2. Some social networks may not be safe for use by minors.
3. Social networks do not necessarily reflect actual social situations.
4. Students may have difficulty defining criteria for evaluating these networks.
5. Students may not have the prerequisite skill of creating a presentation.
6. Social networks are used primarily by professionals and paraprofessionals, not all students will need this resource in the future.
7. By the time students need to join a social network the resource may have evolved into something different.
8. Not all students are comfortable in a social networking environment.
9. Parents may not want their children to participate and may not give permission.
10. Twitter may take over the world and everyone will present ideas in 120 letters or less, making it harder for us to "discuss" anything.
Strengths of the design:
Students these days are often referred to as the N-Genration. They are networked much more tightly than ever before. Students chat constantly through their cell phones, Twitter, Facebook, and other networks then go home and chat with people they don't even know through games on the X-boxes and Wiis. Its not a question of if these students are networking, its a question of how they are. We hear a lot about young people these days because potential employers checked out their Facebook pages and didn't like what the saw. This lesson will hopefully encourage them to make some intelligent choices.
I think my design reflects these theories in that students choose the criteria for evaluating social networking sites, apply those criteria, and then persuade others to see their choices as valid. Each can go about this slightly differently and so the lesson can be catered to the student's individual needs.
The FACTS Model of Design
Teachers as Designers: A Cinquain Poem
Designer
My mentor
Designing my lessons
Very grateful
Teacher
Teachers as Designers: A Diamente Poem
Teacher
patient, wise,
teaching, showing, testing
pointer, white board, desk, pencil
learning, seeking, growing
eager, willing, astute
student
The FACTS Model: A Summary
FACTS stands for Foundations, Activities, Contents, Tools, System. Each of these are phrased as a question and each question is a piece in a puzzle.
The F is for Foundations
Foundations refer to the understanding we expect students build over time. A strong foundation makes a strong learner.
The A is for Activity
Next we decide what activities we should choose to actively engage learners in the instruction. Things like authentic, knowledge building, constructing, and sharing activities.
The C is for Content
Then we decide on the contents of the lesson. This can be dictated by standards, or our local curriculum.
The T is for Tools
We need to choose the tools for the task, be they books, television or video, software, computer graphics, databases, telecommunications, the Internet, simulations, multimedia/hypermedia, manipulatives, or whatever.
The S is for Systems of Assessment
And finally we must create a learning assessment system. Assessment is a system rather than a single test because we must evaluate throughout the process.
My concept for this lesson has to do with a project I recently assigned my children at home. I normally teach adults, but saw an opportunity to apply this model to my children's studies and would like to further develop my plans for their self-paced learning over the summer.
I recently told my daughters, nine and seven years old, they would be exploring the idea of developing a learning portfolio on the Internet and that we would be breaking this project into chunks. My oldest daughter had already had a similar discussion with her school teacher who was concerned that she might loose touch with my daughter over the summer and wanted to keep abreast of her progress. They agreed that a blog or a learning portfolio might be a good idea. Back at home my daughters and I talked about what it means to have a portfolio and what pieces might make one up. We decided that for their purposes the portfolio project consists of three main pieces, an actual portfolio, a blog, and networking to get the word out to the right people after they have put their information online. Some preliminary subsets of these the girls agreed upon pertained to what one should put into a portfolio, where one could do so safely (kid-safe), who might need to look at their work, and how they can share their work with these people.
For this project I'd like to pull out the piece about what should go into an online portfolio and have the girls do some research to find out what kinds of portfolios are already out there and what they have in them. They should decide what criteria to use and create a rubric for it, sample some sites and apply their rubric to it, and then decide what they will put in their portfolios based on what they found.
This project will require some planning and rubric creation, research, and critical thinking to decide on the details of their own portfolios and what they should include in them.
Elementary (3rd and 5th grade in the case of my daughters)
General education, writing
Summer vacation
| Literacy |
Symbols: Students will encounter symbols on others' online portfolios. both relating to the concept of a portfolio and those related to web page navigation. Unlike in as printed portfolio where readers flip from page to page in sequence online portfolios provide navigation that allows readers to browse sections as they wish, or even skip sections. In this project students will have to identify symbols used for navigation in a number of samples and will need to decide how they will use similar symbols to guide visitors to their portfolio.
Discourse: Students will not just be looking at how online portfolios are laid out, but will also be analyzing how individuals address their audience. They will need to choose a style they like and attempt to emulate it in their own work.
Cognitive Process: Students will be participating in activities that promote research and analysis of various online portfolios and will be encouraged to create a style of their own for their learning portfolios.
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| Problem Solving |
Problem: In order to succeed in the business or academic world today one must know how to present what he or she knows to an employer, prospective college, etcetera. Students have been creating learning portfolios for quite some time, but more and more prospective employers and registrars check the Internet in addition to requesting written samples of student or employee work. The question is, then, how should one present oneself online?
Strategies: Students will create a rubric by which they will evaluate learning protfolios, find sample portfolios online, and decide what they should put into their own portfolios based on their research. |
| Knowledge | |
| Information | |
| Community |