Key Discussion Point - #2

Thank you Susan, Laverne, Patrick, and Joshua to your comments on the first discussion point. But - I'm not liking the long string of comments and my inability to respond underneath yours, etc. So I start anew!

I'm working through a current 'education dilemma' and am diplomatically asking for what I need. I was talking to my daughter about the situation and she states, "It's distance learning, what did you expect - something like face-2-face?"

So ... does Vella's principles work in a distance learning setting? Can you really do an adequate needs assessment? Create safety? and accountability?

I'm really curious about this - because no matter your very best intentions, it really doesn't matter if your learners aren't checked in and engaged with the process. And if they're not tuned-in and engaged - then what? You are on-line and without the body language, tone, etc. - how do you know they are checked out?

Boy did I call that right!

I've got some downtime so I'm cruising the EDAE 692 blogs and if you've noticed on the left side I have links to almost all (?) the class' blogs. Some I renamed so I'd easily know who was who.

Anyway - Laverne has this ongoing 'ethical issues' case study (very popular.) On my link for her blog I labeled the link, "Laverne's Ethical Issues". Ya, I know why is that so special? It's the little things in life - like Patrick drumming up business for his blog. Patrick do you have a new survey? I've already voted on the Castaway survey.

It's really creative how Laverne has roped many of us in on her case study (why didn't I think of that!) It's like I knew she was so cleaver as an unfolding case study - thus why her blog link is Laverne's Ethical Issues!!! Stay tune - or better yet, hit her link!

Vella links

Being the somewhat obsessive compulsive individual I am - I have a tendency to do a lot of research on stuff. I'm usually not satisfied to just read an 'educational' textbook - I want more.

This happened with Jane Vella - I wanted more. I've posted some what I found to be interesting links to resources with Vella's 'dialogue education' in practice:

* WIC - Nutrition illustrates a clever 'recipe card' application
* Life Trek - uses a life coaching approach
* Habitat for Humanity/Latin America and Caribbean. Public Awareness Department. (September 2007) - Outlines the design steps
* Global Learning Partners - Vella's own company and a table illustrating 'How Dialogue Education is Different' between traditional training, dialogue education, and informal approaches.

New Day - New Attitude

Amazing what a good night's sleep can do for the ol' troubleshooting skills. I woke up realizing I needed to take all the formatting out of the book analysis post and start over. I'd copied the analysis from a Word document into a Google doc. I attempted to do like Amy had posted in class about uploading the file; but that wasn't happening either (the world kept spinning.)

So first thing this AM I tried something different and republished. The post now appears to have fewer additional lines (??) - but they are still there; definitely not there in the Google doc. I'm to afraid to even look at the 'edit Html'. I'm having my coffee first! Whoa - just hit something on my left-side of the keyboard and a 'developer tools' screen came up in a new window. This learning curve just continues.

Key Discussion Point

Supposing and Proposing

Vella's last chapter of her book has a question which ties this journey together and one I'd like to pose to you:

Suppose you hadn't heard about or read Learning to Listen, Learning to Teach (and many of you haven't) and you need to plan a course for adult learners. What do you do?