Reflection 2 - Literature review

Looking back on reflection 1 and input from the facilitators, I have come to realize that I would like to bring to our students attention the fact that practical is not the subject they should enjoy the most because they can be creative at their desks/workbenches. It is something that they would be able to do with so much more enthusiasm and drive because if they interact with the theory while doing the practical, they would be able to think 'outside the box' better. It would allow them 3 dimensional thinking.

The focus of Dental Technology is the practical because a Dental Technician fabricates dental appliances. The one thing both qualified and training dental technicians tend to loose focus of is that the Theory and the knowledge of the dental materials make us better all round dental technicians. With technology I hope to enhance student learning. A difficulty would be to design appropriate learning activities for our students that would emphasis this need and assist with its development.

As stated by Veletsianos (2005) blended learning/education focuses on cognitive concerns, as how to best structure learning materials for effective and efficient retention, which we all want for our students. The activities should be student centered or it will be rendered pointless because students will refuse to interact with the technology. Activities done in class should not be duplicated using the technology but should be adapted in order for the student to be able to interact or engage with the material covered in class. The value for them to complete or participate should be clear, this view is confirmed/ acknowledged by Veletsianos, 2005.

The aim of such an endevour should always be to meet higher level objectives and outcomes. Rutherford 2010 calls the use of technology user driven social media platforms and say it can be on informal professional development. Couros (2010) also suggests that technology can be used to create a connection with the student and the current profession within your own discipline, in order to create online communities.
This would lend itself to creating an online area where past students can refer back to work that they have done or that current students are engaging with. It is important that students be introduced to the dental communities (Dental Laboratory owners and Dental Technicians), before entering the workplace. Possibly introduce the wider community to critique students (Btech, 4th year) engagement with regards to the process followed for the fabrication of a dental appliance. This could be an integral part of the students learning process, to see how other professions perceive their work and the level the quality is at. What is the value of a learning activity if it's not memorable.

Mason and Rennie (2006) also advocates putting the students needs first, possibly ahead of the context. When wanting to implement the use of technology within your teaching programme it is important to look at whether there will be adequate technical support and that the lecturer would be able to provide fast feedback to students (Tabor, 2007). By using technology as a tool to interact with students outside the classroom should also not be perceived by students as a reason to not attend class. It could serve as a tool to develop a more responsible student with better time management skills.

Glogoff (2005) recommends logging as an instructional tool which will and could promote interactivity and which is student centered. Blogging allows the participant to say what they think and to receive feedback quickly. It also promotes extended dialogue about topics dicussed in class or continues from blog posts. Blogging can be used to lead students through developmental concepts of the discipline's knowledge domain. Glogoff (2005) is also of the opinion that guest users can respond to students comments and cases presented on the blog and that this allows the student to analyse the deeper structures necessary to make sound decisions when evaluating information. It creates the concept of the community of inquiry and community practices. It can also emphasize the importance of social and peer interaction as a focus of the student group.  Blogging can be used to lead students through the foundations of that discipline in order to contextualise real experiences. The role a blog can play for me is; I am the instructor and I lead students toward identifying appropriate conceptual processes and solving real-life challenges.
It will also develop receptive learning by encouraging students to acquire information and report on what they have learned.

Conclusion:
I feel that blogging can be a valuable technological tool for the purpose I intend to use it for in which I use my expertise to guide and instruct students on information and cases they are presented with. It will allow students to partake in discussion and receive guided feedback which will aid in their progress and academic development to the appropriate level of thinking.

References:


Couros, A. (2010). Developing Personal Learning Networks for Open and Social Learning. In G.
Veletsianos (Ed.), Emerging Technologies in Distance Education (pp. 109-128).
Edmonton, AB: Athabasca University Press.


Dunlap, J. C., & Lowenthal, P. R. (in press). Learning, unlearning, and relearning: Using Web
2.0 technologies to support the development of lifelong learning skills. In G. D.
Magoulas (Ed.), E-infrastructures and technologies for lifelong learning: Next
generation environments. Hershey, PA: IGI Global.


Glogoff,S. 2005. Instructional blogging: Promoting interactivity, student-centered learning, and Peer Input. Innovate  1 (5).

Mason,R. & Rennie, F. (2006). Elearning: The key concepts. London: Routledge.


Rutherford, C. (2010). Facebook as a Source of Informal Teacher Professional Development. In
education, 16(1). Available at http://ineducation.ca/article/facebook-source-informalteacher-professional-development


Tabor,S. (2007). Narrowing the distance: Implementing a hybrid learning model for information security education. The Quarterly Review of Distance Education,8 (1), 47 - 57.

Vaughan,N. (2007). Perspectives on blended learning in higher education. International Journal on Elearning,6 (1), 81 - 94.

Veletsianos,G. (2011). Designing Opportunities for Transformation with Emerging Technologies. Educational Technology,51 (2), 41 - 46.