Prospecting the Future of Learning Technologies and Communities Roy D. Pea Global Learning...

Prospecting the Future of Learning Technologies and

CommunitiesRoy D. Pea

Global Learning Conference20 October 1998

http://sri.com/policy/ctl

1998 Global LearningRoy Pea, SRI International

Five Ecological Trends

Ubiquity of computing and communications

Visualizations of complexity

Tools for building learning communities

Pervasive project-based learning

Insatiable appetites for high-performance computing and communications


Ubiquity of Computing and Communications

Digital convergence

Communication infrastructures

Component software revolution Miniaturization, portability and cost of

computing and communications hardware


ESCOT (Educational SoftwareComponents of Tomorrow)*

A distributed network of teachers, researchers & developers creating link-able representational tools for real middle school math curricula.

Curriculum Database organizing information that links concepts, activities & technologies

Software Innovation designing pedagogically-sound re-usable, linkable components

Integration Teams composing or structuring lessons that tie components to curriculum

The ESCOT Testbed

*A new NSF grant (Pea, Roschelle, Kaput and DiGiano)


Distributed Intelligence: Role of components

Graphs, tables, calculators, geometry, simulations, equations, notepads… probably 100 or so core active representational objects that occupy parts of a screen

Enable mix-and-match, plug&play Cognitive research rationale:

• Dynamic, linked multiple representations key for deeper understanding

• Animated graphics for process history• Collaboration support• Assessment support

Leading to:• Lower cost• Better quality• More flexibility


ESCOT Goals

• Collect broadly useful, powerful components

• Link to curriculum needs

• Combine in new activities

ESCOT Teams Integrate Re-usable Components from a Shared, Web-Accessible Library into Lessons

• Teacher: Pedagogical Design

• Developer: Component Design

• Web facilitator: Web Design (and teamwork)

Geometer’s Sketchpad


John DoerrVenture

CapitalistKleiner-PerkinsMenlo Park, CA

“We are co-conspirators in the largest legal creation of wealth in human history”

“The Web is under-hyped”


Visualizations of Complexity


WorldWatcher

(Edelson & Pea)


Scientists’ Visualization Tools

Scientists’ Visualization Tools


Toward Learner-Centered Design

Toward Learner-Centered Design

Empirical studies of scientists’ tool practices Techniques: From tacit knowledge to explicit

representational properties Geographical context underlay Explicit semantic units for data Provision of semantically constrained mathematical

operations on data

General framework now encompasses over 30 public domain data sets (NASA, NOAA…)


WorldWatcher: Jan, July Surface Temperature

WorldWatcher: Jan, July Surface Temperature


WorldWatcher

It is important that learners create their own visualizations and models

Expressive visualizations: ‘coloring’ worlds

Localization activities

Interpretive visualizations: global data

Project inquiries: learner-centered explorations of patterns, driving questions


O.L.I.V.E. On-Line Library of Information

Visualization Environments

HTTP://otal.umd.edu/Olive/

Ben Shneiderman’s Human-Computer Interaction Lab, U. Maryland

His categories: temporal, 1-D, 2-D, 3-D, Multi-D, Tree, Network, Workspace


Example: 3-D Visualization

= viewing real-world objects such as the human body, buildings, or molecules for information extraction purposes

Example: The National Library of Medicine’s Visible Human Project


“Colon flythrough” of the NLM’s Visible Human

Project


3-D World Visualizations Often for scientific visualization of volumes

(rendered from real-world 3D objects)• to test scientific hypotheses

• to simulate events or processes (weather)

• to practice procedures (surgery)

Also: virtual walkthroughs of architectural or interior designs

Learning: virtual museum visits, virtual travel to historic sites such as Egyptian Pyramids, solar system simulations


Tools for Building Learning Communities

Communities of learners, communities of

practice

The future of the Net is a social place

Multi-user virtual environments

Persistent virtual worlds, shared media

spaces

Social information filtering


GeoCities: Themed Neighborhoods

HTTP://www.geocities.com


SRI’s TAPPED IN Project

(http://tappedin.sri.com)

SRI’s TAPPED IN Project

(http://tappedin.sri.com)

SRI International -- Center for Technology in Learning (Mark Schlager, Patricia Schank, Judith Fusco, Richard Goddard)

Partners are twelve K-12 teacher professional development organizations devoted to science educational reform

Goal: to develop, operate and study an easy-to-learn, multi-user virtual environment for ongoing teacher professional development

In 18 months: nearly 2000 registered users already

1996-2000 Funding:

TAPPED IN -------------------------------------------------------

MS

TAPPED IN -------------------------------------------------------

MS


Lawrence Hall of Science GEMS Room

TAPPED IN -------------------------------------------------------

MS

WebViewers

File Cabinets

Bulletin board, Whiteboard

Simulations

Guestbook Message box


Shared Sketch Pad

BobJ

Point and Click Web Window Shared Web Browsing

WebViewer

Conversation and other dynamic actions

Who and What is here (awareness)

Bulletin Board

Whiteboard

Exits to other rooms

Common Commands

Communication and Text Input Window

BOBJ says “I use the GLOBE biometrics and weather activities with my 6th grade class. The kids love them, they really view themselves as scientists Judi wants to find out more about GLOBE! BobJ projects GLOBE welcome (gw) You see the URL:http://www.globe.gov/ghome/invite.html Judi exclaims, “thanks! I see it. So from here I register for a GLOBE workshop?

Input Field

BASIC TAPESTRY USER INTERFACE ON-DEMAND FEATURES

Text Document (with URL

attachment)

GLOBE welcome (gw),


Social Information Filtering

Automated word-of-mouth 8-10 different companies including

Firefly, NetPerceptions’ GroupLens, Alexa Internet, LikeMinds

Used in systems such as amazon.com, CDnow, Sierra Online, Peapod

Prospective uses in education: SRI’s ScienceForum


Contributing Factors to Pervasive Project-Based

Learning

New learning standards (e.g., NSES, NCTM)

Findings in the cognitive and social sciences of learning

Computer tools for guiding inquiry projects, for probeware data collection, and use of Internet-accessible data sets

Paradigms such as student-scientist partnerships, tele-mentoring


Insatiable appetites for

media-rich learning


A Final Thought A Final Thought New designs occasionally lead to "fingertip

effects," a fit of tool to task so apt that it leads to precipitous social changes

What will be the fingertip effects that will come to exist for K-12 and university-level net learning?

Examples: World-Wide Web browsers for hyper-linked documents, electronic mail, fax saturation, Palm Pilot's design for pocket-size computing


Please Join Us!

Center for Innovative Learning Technologies

http://cilt.org

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