Keynote: Iowa Distance Learning Association #iacon2011

Boise  State  University  

Designing for Serendipty in Educational Innovation Lisa Dawley, Dept. of Educational Technology

“I  feel  myself  ge5ng  smarter.”  

“To  innovate  is  not  to  reform”    Edmund  Burke    

                           1How  we  become  

innovators  

                                           2Importance  of  

serendipity  

                                         3Design  for  serendipitous  learning  

                How  do  we  become  educa?onal  innovators?  1

Educa?onal  Innova?on  

•  Innova?ve  breakthroughs  require  years  of  intensive  prepara?on  

•  Enthusias@c  immersion  in  a  domain  results  in  deep,  rich  knowledge  

•  New  ideas  spur  on  more  new  ideas,  networks  generate  cycles  of  innova?on  

•  Give  freedom  to  innovate    Geoff  Colvin  

How:    Deliberate  Prac?ce  &  Opportunity  

•  A  lifelong  period  of  deliberate  effort  to  improve  performance  in  a  specific  domain    Geoff  Colvin    

1.  Know  where  you  want  to  go,  and  iden?fy  next  steps  2.  Prac?ce  directly,  master  what  you  don’t  know  3.  Self-­‐regulate:  set  concrete  goals,  observe  in  ac?on,  evaluate  4.  Deepen  your  knowledge  with  mental  models  

 **Mul@plier  effect:    improvement  over  ?me  increases  drive.    Extrinsic  mo?vators  can  be  useful  in  early  stages.  

                                                           2 Importance  of  serendipity  

making  fortunate  discoveries  while  looking  for  something  unrelated  

A trip to Finland??

Serendipity  is  a  major  component  of  scien@fic  discoveries  and  inven@ons              Key  component  of  business  intelligence    

•  Penicillin  •  Silly  puYy  •  Mauve  •  Teflon  •  Scotchguard  •  Cellophane  •  Chocolate  chip  cookies  •  Christopher  Columbus  •  Grounded  theory  (paYerns)  •  Used  in  business  intelligence  

How  do  we  go  off-­‐course  when  curriculum  is  standardized,  accountable,  and  tested?  

                                                           3 3  Design  Ideas  for  

Serendipitous  Learning    

and  innova?on  

Personal  Learning  Networks  

Personal  Learning  Environment  

Why  PLNs?  •  Supports  connec?ons  among  teachers/learners  •  Supports  serendipitous  knowledge  construc?on  through  distributed  nodes  and  networks  

•  Empowers  learners  to  become  self-­‐led,  independent  knowledge  seekers  and  creators  

•  Allows  customiza?on  of  learning  paths  specific  to  individual  interests  or  needs  

•  It’s  fun  and  you  can  take  it  with  you!  

Organizing  Informa?on  in  the  Network  

Social  Network  Knowledge  Construc?on  

Construc@on  &  Crea@on  Opportuni@es  

•  Blogging/twee?ng   •  Social  media  crea?on  

Construc@on  &  Crea@on  Opportuni@es  

•  Simula?ons   •  3D  prin?ng  

•  Virtual  Worlds      

Construc@on  &  Crea@on  Opportuni@es  

Growth  Trend  in  virtual  worlds:    tweens  and  teens  

Virtual  World  Popularity  by  Age  • Poptropica  144M  • Barbie  Girls  22M  • Buildabearville  21M  

• Jumpstart  4M  

5-­‐10  

• Stardoll  94M  • Neopets  65M  • Club  Penguin  63M  • Whyville  7M  

10-­‐15  

• Habbo  200M  • IMVU  50M  • WeeWorld  40M  • Gaia  36M  

15-­‐25  

• Second  Life  25M  • Utherverse  7.5M  • eRepublic  2M  

25-­‐35  

Virtual  World  Types  by  Age  

HAND:  movement  (somato-­‐

sensorymotor  system)  

HEART:  rela@onships,  

emo@ons,  long-­‐term  memory  

(limbic  system)   HEAD:  Intellect,  decision  making,  planning,  impulse  control  (frontal  cor@cal  networks)  

•  Quest-­‐Based  Learning  

Learner  Choice  to  Demonstrate  Competencies  

3dgamelab.org!

To  sum  it  up  

•  Excellence  and  innova?on  come  through  deliberate  prac?ce  

•  Serendipity  is  a  necessary  aspect  of  innova?on  

•  Opportuni?es  for  serendipity  can  be  designed  into  learning  environments  and  curriculum  – PLNs,  content  crea?on,  learner  choice