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Search Results For "BHAG"

Are You Bolting a Jet Engine onto Your Horse Cart?

Dwayne Harapnuik — June 23, 2017 — Leave a comment

Source: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/4b/80/9e/4b809e7bf3d048ba8f61eef6889fcaaf.jpg

This image would be much more humorous if it wasn’t for the fact that this is an unfortunate and accurate representation of what is happening in our educational systems. Because we have been focusing on the technology and not the learning and have been attempting to gauge the effectiveness of applying today’s technology based on yesterday’s standards we are going nowhere in a hurry. Papert (1993) likened this to:

Attaching a jet engine to an old-fashioned wagon to see whether it will help the horses. Most probably it would frighten the animals and shake the wagon to pieces, “proving” that the jet technology is actually harmful to transportation. (p. 29)

Most people would chuckle at Papert’s example and ask how can anyone or any group be so naive or foolish? Yet, by trying to improve our passive traditional teacher-centered pedagogy with the application or addition of technology, we have essentially strapped a technological jet engine to our classrooms. Perhaps we should be pleased that we are at least not harming the animals (the teachers and students) and haven’t shaken our classrooms (the wagons) into pieces as the ‘no significant difference’ test results would show.

Unfortunately, we have the tendency to make similar mistakes when it comes to curriculum planning and instructional design. We all too often look to the content to be covered, update our terminology to reflect the current trends (individualized instruction, flipped classroom, blended learning, genius hour, 20% time, etc.), and then simply add in some new trendy activities to our well-established routines. We also bolt on some technology for added benefit. In minutes you have a new lesson plan, unit plan, or course plan. If you are fortunate enough to have a text book which chapter headings can be used to structure the content delivery steps—all the better.

However, if you really want to create significant learning environments by giving your learners choice, ownership, and voice through authentic learning opportunities then you have to build your courses and programs differently. You can’t just bolt on new activities to your existing curriculum. You have to look at doing things differently by using the backward design mythologies that require you to start with a big hairy audacious goal (BHAG) which you construct by imagining what your learner will look like, become, or be able to accomplish by the end of the course or units of instruction. I have outlined this process in greater details in the post, 4 Keys to aligning outcomes activities, and assessment.

Be forewarned… this is not going to be an easy process. Leon Festinger (1957) has argued that we seek or strive for psychological consistency and are motivated to reduce the cognitive dissonance that comes from dealing with contradictory information or ideas. It is not uncommon to feel psychologically uncomfortable when we are asked to do things differently than what we are accustomed. We look for ways to conform and align what we are doing with what we believe and if we can’t find this alignment we become uncomfortable. When this happens people will either change their beliefs to align with their actions or change their actions to align with their beliefs.

Fortunately, you get to choose how you are going to deal with this situation. If you are put in a position where you are asked to experiment or apply a different approach to creating your course or other units of instruction you have two choices. You can temporarily suspend your traditional content coverage beliefs about course design and adopt the new course design methodologies at the beginning of the process and then the actions of creating your BHAG and aligning outcomes, activities and assessments will fall into place and your discomfort may be limited or reduced. In contrast, if you maintain your traditional beliefs and choose to focus on content coverage you will find that you will not only be uncomfortable with the new course design process you will also not be able to create a BHAG nor align the outcomes, activities, and assessments that are so important to creating significant learning environments.

If you really want to get the most out of any learning opportunity you have to fight through the cognitive dissonance and experiment with the new ideas and processes to see if they really can make a difference. If you aren’t willing to do this with your course or unit design then you really do run the risk of bolting new more powerful ideas onto an antiquated foundation. Don’t your learner’s deserve more?

References

Festinger, L. (1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

Papert, S. (1993). The children’s machine: Rethinking school in the age of the computer. New York, NY: Basic books.

In Design, Learning 5313, backward design, COVA, CSLE, curriculum, EdTech, Learning, technology

DLL Course Goals

Dwayne Harapnuik — June 20, 2017

DLL courses and their Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAG):

EDLD 5302
Learners will take ownership and agency over the learning process and incorporate learner choice and voice in designing authentic projects that use technology innovations as a catalyst for change in their organizational setting.

EDLD 5303
The learner will prepare and submit an ePortfolio that demonstrates their mastery of the learning outcomes for previously completed professional development work (Apple Distinguished Education, Microsoft Certified Educator, Google Certified Educator, EDLD 5302, etc.).

EDLD 5304
Learners will be equipped with tools to be a self-differentiated leader who can address the inevitable resistance to change that will occur when launching innovative digital learning initiatives.

EDLD 5305
Learners will identify technology innovations and embrace them as opportunities rather than challenges and proactively use those changes as catalysts to enhance their institution or district’s learning environments.

EDLD 5313
Learners will identify and incorporate constructivist theories to create and implement significant digital learning environments.

EDLD 5314
Students will analyze and assess global educational technology innovation projects to determine what worked and what could be done better and apply those lessons learned to local innovation projects.

EDLD 5315
Learners will be able to assess the instructional impact the implementation of their innovation plans have on creating effective digital learning environments.

EDLD 5316
Learners who work in the area of educational policy and practice will be able to navigate the emerging educational and legal challenges of a knowledge society where most K-12 students are deeply immersed in online communication, having grown up as “digital natives.”

EDLD 5317
Learners will examine a variety of digital environments and other digital resources to effectively communicate with others the practical implementation and the pedagogical value for educational use.

EDLD 5318
Students will apply constructivist learning theories and instructional design principles in the development and delivery of an online course utilizing significant learning environments through selected course management tools.

EDLD 5388
Learners will effectively apply an innovative teaching practice by collaborating with colleagues to evaluate their impact on learners and design and model authentic professional learning (PL) activities that are active, have a significant duration, and are specific to their discipline.

EDLD 5320
Learners will synthesize their knowledge, skills, beliefs, and values gained through their digital learning and leadership experiences and present a comprehensive plan on how they developed into digital learners and leaders that can identify and promote innovation, create significant digital learning environments, and lead organizational change.

4 Keys to aligning outcomes activities & assessment

Dwayne Harapnuik — November 28, 2016 — Leave a comment

While the following 4 keys will be most useful to students in the Lamar University Masters of Digital Learning and Leading (DLL) but the following 4 keys will help anyone who is looking to use Finks Taxonomy to create a 3 column table to plan their course design:

Start with Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG). The BHAG will help you to envision who your learners will become at how their lives will be enhanced. The BHAG should focus more on who the students will be or become as a result of the course and not just focus on what they will be able to do.
Only use Finks Taxonomy and the provided tools (worksheets available through course BB site) and three column table and resist the urge to fall back on other methods like Understanding by Design (UbD).
Start with the outcomes and create one outcome for each of the six sections in Fink’s taxonomy. Use the SWBAT post and method for writing the outcomes.
Use the 3 column tables from EDLD 5305, 5304 and 5313 from the DLL Program Map page as examples to guide your thought process.

In Learning 3 Column table, 5313, Fink, Fink's taxonomy, outcomes

EDLD 5389 (formerly 5388) Goal & 3 Column Table

Dwayne Harapnuik — September 10, 2016

Course Goal:

Learners will effectively apply an innovative teaching practice by collaborating with colleagues to evaluate their impact on learners and design and model authentic professional learning (PL) activities that are active, have a significant duration, and are specific to their discipline.

Learning Outcomes:

Aligning learning outcomes with activities and assessment:

Learning Goals

Assessment Activities

Learning Activities

Foundational

Learners will explore and analyze why examining their thinking and talking with other teachers about the impact the learning environments that they have created is the most important thing they can do to improve their learners’ achievement.

Learners will identify and assess the challenges with existing PL efforts and identify and assess the key principles that make up effective PL.

Reflection

Analysis

Discussion

Reflection

Media

Required and Supplemental Readings Discussion

Case Studies

Application

Learners will communicate and promote the need for effective and alternative PL.

Reflection

Analysis

Discussion

Presentation/Video

Reflection

Media

Required and Supplemental Readings Discussion

Integration

Learners will identify and develop authentic PL that is specific to their discipline, their classroom, program or other specific circumstances.

Learner will develop PD resources to support their PD plan.

Reflection

Analysis

BHAG

3 Column Table/UbD

Schedule/timeline

PL Plan Outline

Discussion

Reflection

Media

Required and Supplemental Readings Discussion

Human Dimensions/Caring

Learners will analyze and assess the different roles and responsibilities in the implementation of effective PD in collaborative and self-directed settings.

Discussion

PL Plan Development

Modelling, Collaboration & Self-directed Learning

Reflection

Media

Required and Supplemental Readings Discussion

Learning How to Learn

Learners will locate, evaluate and compile web-based resources, experts and communities that will help them to develop and deploy effective digital professional development.

Full PD Plan

PL Resources

Portfolio Blog

Organize and present the strategies and plans developed in the course modules into cohesive approach.