questions

{this is all random, exploration-focused….anything goes here and we shall see what happens!}

05/06/14 // regarding learning from videos versus learning within physical proximity

• Does physical proximity in an in-person lecture has any correlation to learning and information retention?
• Does the very fact that the speaker and listener are in the same space change anything?
• Are people just are more polite to an in-person speaker rather than a video so it looks like they’re attentive?
• Perhaps culture too plays a role in learning via video versus learning via physical proximity?
• Should culture also be considered? If so, then how can you plan for that effectively in a location neutral program?
• Can tacit knowledge be communicated via video or does the video itself diminish the subtle clues?
• Are videos even better because they dilute out any off putting personal effects of the teacher?

07/06/14 // regarding using gaming/video games as a means to promote adult learning

• It seems that many have learned language skills through gaming interactions, which makes me curious about the connection between tacit knowledge and gaming? What other skills might be taught via gaming that aren’t what isset out to learn but creep in nonetheless? How does that covert learning happens?

        impact of arts programming on community

• What impact would a community-based creative arts program have in an area that lacks an arts program within formal education?

experience/importance of hands on encounters in art-making and art-experiencing

• What is the viewer’s experience of an art object when it is encountered in a non-heuristic manner?
• Does a heuristic encounter with an art object produce a markedly different experience than a non-heuristic encounter?

the role of reflection in MOOC learning

• Does personal self reflection play a role in successful cMOOC persisters?
• Do students identify enjoying MOOCs because they give students legitimate time to self reflect on their own ideas in the name of “learning” so it’s not so much the content that is valuable but the open space to reflect?

08/06/14 // regarding the disembodied nature of online learning

• How do you communicate authentically to students that you are listening to them, that their stories have value, etc. when you’re in a fully online environment?
• So many of my own great periods of learning have come when I learn to be “fully present” in a body+mind way…how does this happen in online learning? Does it in just a different manner?
• How can we get students not just into their minds as they learn but also learning from a holistic, full body place?

10/06/14 // regarding knowledge abundance and learner awareness

• How can we bolster learner confidence so that they are empowered to proactively rather than submissively learn?
• Why are learners so reluctant to harness knowledge abundance for themselves?
• How can students be in awe of the abundance and not afraid of it?
• What is the role of networks, filters, instructor facilitation, etc?
• What does “making connections” look like to a graphic design student?

17/06/14 // regarding knowledge sense making and way finding

• In the absence of physical direction/non-verbal presence guiding, how do students know how to navigate content?
• How do we teach critical thinking and evaluation without imprinting our own bias on learners? Is it even possible? Or desirable?
• How can we help instructors see the porous nature of classroom walls (in an online space) as an asset to be embraced and not a negative?

the role of social media in arts production/participation

• How have disruptive technologies affected arts involvement throughout history–limiting artists’ desires to continue in the field or leading to an explosion of new artists joining the field–and does social media today contribute to an increase in casual arts participation leading to studying art in a more formalized setting? (this question courtesy of my MOOC-mate, Scarlet Gray Bernard)
• Are social media adopters better at sense making and way finding in an online classroom because they’ve already familiarized themselves with the networks of the web?

18/06/14 // regarding imagination and potential

• Have we gotten so stuck in proving the (already shown) “no significant difference” phenomena that we overlook the amazing potential that online learning has to transform pedagogy in ways that are totally different than face to face education?
• How would education look if instead of going from the pre-made F2F model as our default and then deviating in delivery, we started from a blank canvas? Is that even possible or preferable?
• Should every program have a historical component to it so that not only educators but also students realize the rich connection to history that computer-aided learning and DE actually have?
• How can we change our narrative from one that is all about “being new” and “innovation” to one that is instead about building on and developing with?

25/06/14 // regarding social media as a tool to augment/replace physical studio spaces as researched by Katja Fleischmann (these are her questions, not my own)

• Could Web 2.0 technologies, particularly social media, be utilized to revitalize studio culture in a contemporary sense?
• Could a study of this type (i.e. one using social medial to connect two ge0graphically diverse design programs) work when there is no cohesive cohort of students being connected, rather each student is their own “island”?
• And out of that…what, if any, part does the sense of rootedness in a physical campus hold for students? Are students who are entirely online more likely to participate less, more, or the same?
• To what extent can Web 2.0 technology in general and social media in particular can substitute face-to-face design education?
• What is the effectiveness of Web 2.0 technology in a degree delivered fully online?
• To what extend do students take advantage of the learning aspect of Web 2.0 technology?

07/07/14 // regarding shared symbols

• What role (if any) do shared physical symbols play in connecting student tribes together into safe and nurturing relationships?
• When designing a fully online program, do physical “talismans” lead students to experience greater levels of connection to each other?
• How can designers, who are so adept at creating commercial brands and tribes for commercial purposes channel their skills to create meaningful “brands for education”? And if these were created, would it influence student experience for the better?
• How do shared symbols shape learning environment?