Applications and Multimedia Resources:

Adult education has evolved along with technology. Online education is the prime delivery system for busy, responsibility filled, time starved adult lives. My own adult education experiences began with correspondence learning in the late 1990’s. Fortunately, that educational experience evolved into a high tech, online system which allowed me to complete my degrees. Without this evolution, I likely would never have finished my education. Self-study never held my interest, procrastination and distraction being my bane. Correspondence and self-study surely had its successes, but I suspect many like myself faded away without encountering the rebirth of passion for learning that I experienced when technology led the way into the new millennium of education.

 

Technology continues to entice me, to lure me further into my educational journey. An application that I believe encourages others to join into this journey is the Edmodo networking system (URL: https://www.edmodo.com/about/). Designed to create a network for students and instructors in a traditional learning environment, it is similar to an online discussion board morphed with a classroom café. Whether a traditional classroom or an online environment, Edmodo brings participants in the classroom together as a community where ideas can be shared, help asked for, and links for learning offered. This community of learners is what I was missing in my self-studies. Building a community creates an opportunity for all to learn and grow. It also offers a way for the educator to track usage patterns and both individual and group growth. These are valuable qualities to create a successful learning environment.

 

Another technology which has been responsible for my success in many learning opportunities is YouTube. YouTube as a multimedia resource is demonstrated in this URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yQfOYdCzoM&noredirect=1. This instructional video gives students specific, tangible instructions on how to access a multimedia resource. A simple, two minute presentation offers narrated audio, instructional video, and clear direction from the teacher on how to be successful. I have used YouTube in countless ways to simplify my learning processes. My own experience tells me that without these resources my own success would be greatly impaired. One of my hobbies is amateur radio. I enjoy building and installing equipment and antennas. The complexity of the projects available for application today has greatly increased due to the technology available for directions and examples. I can safely say that I have undertaken projects which I never would have been able to attempt, let alone complete, without these multimedia resources. Likewise, in my educational experience, I am not sure I would have been successful in graduate statistics without the numerous instructional videos available on YouTube. These experiences translate directly into professional educational applications. Offering students links to instructional videos, and creating my own videos of the same, allows students to learn in their time, at their pace, and in ways that make sense to them. With literally hundreds of thousands of educational videos on file, finding a resource which resonates with an individual set of experiences, cultural differences, or learning styles is an excellent way to insure a more successful learning experience for all.

 

Psychology is an area in which I have a desire to teach. Computer technology has advanced to the point where it is possible to create “virtual” simulations. Pearson Higher Education (http://www.pearsonhighered.com/educator/product/Simulations-in-Educational-Psychology-and-Research-21/9780131137172.page) offers an interactive educational psychology research program using five different virtual experiments. This is an opportunity to have students participate in an interactive virtual experiment, and then express their own experiences and conclusions. Having students write about their experiences in a discussion group format allows learners to experience each other’s perspectives, validate their own findings, and discover elements they might have overlooked. Using virtual experiments allows the same experiment to be repeated without any changes in parameters. As students choose methodology and types of analysis, results change. Student discussion can revolve around the assets and liabilities of the methods they chose. In this way, everyone is working on exactly the same experiment, but approaching it from their own personal perspective. As a group of learners works together, they can form a “best practices” approach to each virtual experiment. An additional benefit for an instructor is that the experiment never changes, each class that is taught uses the same virtual experiments and the instructor can bring collective wisdom to the discussion.

 

Disadvantages of using gaming or simulations may be that their use brings some element of impersonalization to the educational environment. Activities which may have been done with role play or other personal interactions in the past become virtual interactions. However, as technology advances, virtual technology is becoming more and more realistic and lifelike. Other concerns may be the efficacy of learners in using advanced technology, as well as the availability of computer hardware powerful enough to take advantage of the software technology. This must be considered before requiring a student to participate in a virtual experience that his computer isn’t powerful enough to reproduce. This concern, though real, is being addressed with newer, more powerful computers, at lower costs. Software developers are also aware that to realize the greatest number of potential customers, they must develop software that will work on a majority of machines. A forward thinking educator will consider his learner’s abilities and limitations, as well as their equipment’s abilities and limitations. He will then be able to offer assistance or referral as needed. The power of the Internet, as well as advanced hardware and software technology, make this exciting times for education in the 21^st Century and beyond!