EXTAFR100/EXTAFR104/Embrace Experimentation
| “ | Life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better. | ” |
| —Ralph Waldo Emerson | ||
The English Oxford Dictionary defines an experimenter as "a person who tries out new ideas, methods, or activities"[1]. Experimenters are adventurers, path finders, seekers; they are inquisitive and have “an openness to try, reflect, and learn from new approaches, pedagogy, and technologies to support student learning” (Bates, 2014)[2]. Have you ever convinced yourself that you would not like a certain type of food because of the way it looked, only to find out that once you experimented with trying it, you really enjoyed eating it and now cannot imagine your life without it?
Think back to the last time you were hosting a party or an event at your home. In addition to organising the menu, a guest list also had to be created. Maybe you flip-flopped back and forth about who to invite and who not to invite. You were not sure if that guest would get along with that other guest. In the end, you experimented with inviting different people and everyone got along really well! #bestfriendsforever
What about that time your friend encouraged you to go without something? Maybe you eliminated carbs or sugar from your diet? Maybe you stopped buying material items unconsciously? Or did you forego a trip that you were wanting to take because of the impact it might cause on the environment? It is during these times that you are experimenting with different lifestyle choices!
In each of the above examples, had you not experimented with trying new ways of doing things you might never have known what could be possible.
In learning and teaching, experimenting with different content delivery modes and pedagogical approaches can help to re-invigorate a love of teaching and spark further creativity and concept attainment in learning experiences for students. In addition, experimenting with different tools can expose issues of accessibility for students. This can lead to new creative strategies in teaching that consider the experience of students from all intersections of identity. While the majority of teachers and administrators recognise that educational technology can accelerate learning opportunities, a survey in 2019[3] found that 39 percent of school staff do not have training or "adequate learning opportunities" to adopt ed tech solutions in the classroom. Thus, the experimenter module encourages you to freely experiment as a means of providing those “adequate learning opportunities” for the adoption of educational technology.
It is not necessary for you to do any of the other Extend NZ modules before doing this one. This module can be explored in any relationship to the others. The Experimenter Module is designed to integrate elements of being a scholar and curating, while collaborating in a network, who teaches for learning, using technology. Experimenting weaves throughout all of our work; it does not stop with technology-driven teaching strategies! For instance, beyond this module you could experiment with different assessment techniques. Wouldn’t it be great to find new ways of assessing students to lessen their focus on a grade to the detriment of learning?
Accessibility "is a general term used to describe the degree to which a product, device, service, or environment is available to be used by all intended audiences". Here are some resources looking at how we can experiment with pedagogy to make learning more accessible to all students:
- Accessible Education
- The importance of accessible materials in Higher Education
- Alternative assessment arrangements
- Web accessibility in Higher Education
- Enhancing Tertiary learning and teaching through technology
- Discover - An educator's introduction to the 'Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act' (AODA)
- Paving the way toward inclusion in education (UNESCO)
- Decolonising the curriculum (Resources on a wide variety of topics, curated by Stockton University in New Jersey, USA)
- Decolonising SOAS (The School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London) - Learning and Teaching toolkit
- Racial inequities in Higher Education
- We need to talk about race in Higher Education
- Racial microaggressions: Comments that sting
- ↑ https://www.lexico.com/definition/experimenter/
- ↑ Bates, S. (2014, June). The anatomy of the 21st century educator [Keynote]. Excellence in Teaching Conference, King’s College, London. https://www.slideshare.net/EdPER_talks/the-anatomy-of-the-21st-century-educator/
- ↑ https://thejournal.com/articles/2019/10/14/survey-more-teacher-training-needed-for-ed-tech-tools.aspx
