Fall Quarter Reflection
When I started the quarter, I was new to the learning sciences, new to edtech, and new to being a student (again). To keep my reasons for being here front and center, I set up these goals for myself at the top of my Notion dashboard for the LDT program:
🌟 to gain an understanding of learning sciences and the edtech landscape
🌟 to build design skills and practice their application to learning tools
🌟 to develop learning tools that help create student-led learning experiences
Looking back at what I’ve learned, my progress in the learning sciences was woven through multiple classes, with insights coming from seminar readings, from Technology for Learners, from observations in Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods, and, of course, from Introduction to Learning Sciences. These readings and reflections in Introduction to Learning Sciences were very important for giving me a broader perspective and context to inform my learning challenge. At the start of the quarter, I found it difficult to get specific and clear enough in my articulation of the learning challenge because I was lacking in the vocabulary and the grounding of theory. The biggest shift in my thinking about theory came from learning about the connections between learning, belonging, and identity. That overlap with psychological factors wasn’t on my radar before, and I think it will be an important element of my approach.
It’s also been helpful to gain experience with using learning theories as a tool for analysis. The biggest influence for me here was my project in Technology for Learners, which I selected to overlap with my learning challenge. This allowed me to consider that problem space from the perspective of one solution for part of that space, and to practice applying learning theories critically to evaluate learning outcomes. As we went through the phases of analysis, we also got to practice building a logic model and apply different learning frameworks. I’m not to the point where I’m ready to build a logic model for my learning tool, but I know how to approach it now, and I can apply the analysis I’ve done to critique my own thinking as I develop my design.
One of my big takeaways from Technology for Learners was that edtech companies should be developing an efficacy portfolio from the very beginning, but that most companies don’t do that. I was shocked to learn from a presentation at the EdTech Impact Summit that only about 30% of edtech companies offer any evidence of the efficacy of their products. This helped give weight to the practices I learned in Qualitative Research Methods, especially the techniques to increase validity and to awareness of one’s own perspectives and assumptions. Also, getting direct experience with collecting and analyzing data from a real learning environment and developing the claims with my team gave me a chance to practice building an argument based on evidence. This experience with research has given me confidence that I have the tools I need to go into the next quarter and effectively test my prototypes and evaluate the learning outcome critically.
I’ve also gotten much more confident in finding, reading, and evaluating research. I’ve completed two research analysis papers this quarter, one from the perspective of validity and methods for Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods and one from the perspective of learning theory for Introduction to Learning Sciences. Both of these papers overlapped with my research into my learning challenge, so I was able to use these assignments to help gather citations that might be applicable to my design. I started with the papers on the Maker Tools Lab reading list and with a survey paper that Victor Lee pointed me towards and followed citations from there to find others that might be of interest. This gathering exercise and the analysis I did on the two papers I selected helped to validate that this is a space that people see merit in, although there is limited data available.
Another important learning experience I had this quarter was in getting expert input on my learning challenge. This was uncomfortable at first, but as I gained a better understanding of the field and areas of research, that helped me to size my thoughts against that theoretical approach to see how well they fit (or don’t). It was also very helpful that I was able to practice and get advice from Angel and Robert first before reaching out to professors. Once I felt my feet were a little firmer, I really loved speaking with the professors. It was interesting how much of their feedback didn’t overlap with each, since each was speaking from their own area of expertise.
Each expert’s perspective helped to build the picture and introduced a new set of questions and readings to pursue. Speaking with Professor Krist made me think about the nuances of the work that educators need to do to engage kids and help them be successful. Professor Brown was very encouraging about the perspective of belonging, and said that while the element of creativity in my proposal is an area without a lot of research, it’s a good kind of challenge and an interesting interdisciplinary space. And I learned from Professor Lee that he’s working on a proposal related to creative problem solving in his lab right now.
My thinking on belonging as it connects to learning was also informed by my observation visits to two school makerspaces this quarter. First there was the observation and formal interviews with the robotics team coach at Castilleja School, and then a shorter informal observation of a similar robotics team at Los Altos High School. These experiences have got me thinking more about learning in informal vs formal environments, and these spaces are interesting examples of making experiences that have more structure than a typical open makerspace but without a formal classroom structure or curriculum.
Finally, some core learnings from seminar will stick with me and become tools for work in future quarters. The structure of the design journal reflections took some getting used to, but I now appreciate the practice of capturing information first and then reflecting back on it, as it really does help develop one’s thinking. And I will hold onto my enduring understanding from seminar, which I summarized in my reflect and connect exercise as:
Focus on who needs to learn what and why.
Begin with the problem, not the solution.
Technology is the tool, not the goal.