EDC 665--Blog 3

Melissa asks: "Think back now to a learning experience you have recently had--were the goals explicitly stated? If not, were they still clear? Were you aware of them as a learner during the learning experience?


A recent learning experience that I had was being taught to use a Mimio Board. A Mimio board is an interactive whiteboard that is able to capture any notes written on it as well as utilizing the included tools that will help teachers enhance their lessons in all subject areas. The general goal of this training was to introduce fourth and sixth grade teachers to this new technology that our school acquired. While all teachers were to be exposed to this board, no specific purpose was explicitly stated. We were not really told what things we would learn, but over the course of the training, we gradually learned all of the aspects of the Mimio board. I was not really aware of the learning goals during this experience because of the approach that the trainer took when teaching us. Much of what was taught was via direct instruction and did not give the trainees time to interact with the product. I can tell you that I know I was trained in the features, but I would not be able to perfectly use it. Practice upon training is a very important feature if you want your auidence to have retention. By having one person just show us the features of the board, I felt I was in a sales pitch instead of a training.

How would I have improved this learning experience. I would have had the trainer stop every new strategy that was taught so that way the trainees could physically relate and experience what our trainer was talking about. Giving the auidience the opportunity to experiment with the board is the best way for people to learn. While I know I will use this technology, I'm not sure how many non-technical people will use it because they are afraid.