Assignment 1: Tracing Learning Pathways
Due: 29 March, present in class (post final docs/scans using Submit Reflections Form box)
Design Research Method: Learning Ecology Interviews & Learning Pathways Visualizations
In this first assignment, we will develop a shared set of insights and produce rich portraits that depict how learning trajectories unfold over time, across formal and informal settings, and are supported by guides and resources. For this study, you will conduct brief audio interviews (10-15 minutes) with three individuals, and ask them to tell stories about when and how they developed a deep interest in a topic area. These learning portraits will chart a first person narrative that reflects on the meaning and attribution of people, places and things that influenced interest development over time. From this directed interview data, you will need to construct a "Learning Pathways Timeline" and “ Insights Board” for each individual which will highlight their learning trajectory, identify key quotes, and note features of the experience that supported interest development.
PART 1: Collecting Powerful Learning Stories
Data Collection Protocol:
Identify and select three (3) individuals who would be willing to participate in a Learning Ecology interview for your student project. You can recruit dorm mates, friends, family, relatives, or even tap people on the street. To the extent possible, try to obtain interviews that represent a diversity of learner backgrounds and interests. You can use your phone as an audio recording device, or check out a DVR (digital voice recorder) from the IDeATe lending desk downstairs. If you plan to do your interview by phone, there are many options you can use to record audio online (e.g. Google Hangouts, Zoom). Prepare a short interview script and a set of guiding questions before you start. You can use the questions below, and adapt as you see fit.
In your interview sessions, pay close attention to the—what, where, how and with whom aspects—of their stories, and listen for what is revealed about motivating life events, moments that sparked interest, the learning settings, social arrangements, technology used, learning resources accessed, supporting adult roles, and the involvement of friends, siblings and peers in the learning experience. Make sure to get your interviewees to provide details so you have rich story descriptions from which to draw insights. You can use the question prompts below to encourage them to elaborate. Also note the age, activities, learning contexts, people and resources that enabled this journey. We will use quotes and data from these interviews in Part 2 of the assignment.
After your first interview, listen to the audio and transcribe 5-7 quotes you find notable or suggestive of what supported a powerful learning trajectory and interest development for this person. Print out Learning Pathway Timeline & Insights Board template below to capture and label key learning activities and moments in your interviewee's story.
Sample Interview Protocol:
"For my Learning Media Methods course this Fall, we are conducting interviews to study interest-driven learning pathways. For this assignment, I'd like to ask you some questions about how you developed a sustained interest in something as a youth, and what resources, people, places and activities played a role.. The interview should take no more than 10-15 minutes and will be recorded. Would you be willing to participate? May I start recording ....?"
Questions Prompts:
NB: Make sure to ask questions get your subjects to name specific learning activities/events, where they took place, who was involved, and document any learning materials (e.g. books, media, tools, toys) or resources that sparked or enabled this interest to develop. You will need this "data" to complete the next part.
PART 2: Visualizing Learning Pathways
Learning Ecosystem Pathways & Insight Boards
After you have collected your learning ecology interviews, use the provided timeline template, or create your own version to show how each interviewee (3) navigated through their learning ecology. Begin by reviewing your notes and the audio. Then for each interview, try to identify an approximate age and setting where key interest development events or activities took place. Use a dot or line segment to mark down these activities/event in appropriate row ( home, school, community) and label them on the timeline. Then in the area above the timeline, add labels to represent people who are mentioned (i.e. teachers, mentors, family, peers, friends) in relation to those interest development events and activities. Next annotate the timeline using the labeled space below to mark out the learning resources, tools, and materials named during the interview (e.g. 3D printer, book, movie, microscope, game, animal, toy ... ). Now use lines to show how this person moved across his/her learning ecology coordinating resources and support to develop and deepen this interest. For reference, see the Barron et al. "technobiography" timeline example provided below from our reading.
For the Insight Board on the other side, fill out some brief biographical information (name, age, major, current occupation) and use the provided quote boxes to capture five (5) key statements you feel are defining moments in this person's story and reveal important insights. With the course readings in mind, tag each of these quotes with a label identifying how this is a feature, quality or by-product of interest-driven learning. This is a first pass at "coding" the data and looking for emerging themes and categories. There is no right or wrong.
Bring these Learning Pathway Timelines and Insights Boards to class next Tuesday (3/29) to present. Even better, send me a file/scan so we can project the timelines. We'll discuss the stories you've collected and look for groupings and patterns of features in a learning ecology that seem to support interest development and deep learning among our participants. Think about your interviewees, and your own personal experiences when you read the Barron et al. (2013) paper assigned on 3/24.
Design Research Method: Learning Ecology Interviews & Learning Pathways Visualizations
In this first assignment, we will develop a shared set of insights and produce rich portraits that depict how learning trajectories unfold over time, across formal and informal settings, and are supported by guides and resources. For this study, you will conduct brief audio interviews (10-15 minutes) with three individuals, and ask them to tell stories about when and how they developed a deep interest in a topic area. These learning portraits will chart a first person narrative that reflects on the meaning and attribution of people, places and things that influenced interest development over time. From this directed interview data, you will need to construct a "Learning Pathways Timeline" and “ Insights Board” for each individual which will highlight their learning trajectory, identify key quotes, and note features of the experience that supported interest development.
PART 1: Collecting Powerful Learning Stories
Data Collection Protocol:
Identify and select three (3) individuals who would be willing to participate in a Learning Ecology interview for your student project. You can recruit dorm mates, friends, family, relatives, or even tap people on the street. To the extent possible, try to obtain interviews that represent a diversity of learner backgrounds and interests. You can use your phone as an audio recording device, or check out a DVR (digital voice recorder) from the IDeATe lending desk downstairs. If you plan to do your interview by phone, there are many options you can use to record audio online (e.g. Google Hangouts, Zoom). Prepare a short interview script and a set of guiding questions before you start. You can use the questions below, and adapt as you see fit.
In your interview sessions, pay close attention to the—what, where, how and with whom aspects—of their stories, and listen for what is revealed about motivating life events, moments that sparked interest, the learning settings, social arrangements, technology used, learning resources accessed, supporting adult roles, and the involvement of friends, siblings and peers in the learning experience. Make sure to get your interviewees to provide details so you have rich story descriptions from which to draw insights. You can use the question prompts below to encourage them to elaborate. Also note the age, activities, learning contexts, people and resources that enabled this journey. We will use quotes and data from these interviews in Part 2 of the assignment.
After your first interview, listen to the audio and transcribe 5-7 quotes you find notable or suggestive of what supported a powerful learning trajectory and interest development for this person. Print out Learning Pathway Timeline & Insights Board template below to capture and label key learning activities and moments in your interviewee's story.
Sample Interview Protocol:
"For my Learning Media Methods course this Fall, we are conducting interviews to study interest-driven learning pathways. For this assignment, I'd like to ask you some questions about how you developed a sustained interest in something as a youth, and what resources, people, places and activities played a role.. The interview should take no more than 10-15 minutes and will be recorded. Would you be willing to participate? May I start recording ....?"
Questions Prompts:
- Tell me a story about something that sparked your interest as a kid, and how was it cultivated over time?
- How old were you when this interest emerged?
- Where did this interest develop—in a school based setting, after school program, informal learning setting (e.g. summer camp, museum, nature reserve, library) or at home?
- Did adults play a role in fostering and supporting this learning interest (e.g. parent, relative, teacher, neighbor, expert other, etc.)?
Please provide some details about who, and in what ways... - Did friends or peers participate in or influence your interests, and how?
- What learning resources were important (e.g. online courses, books, technology, tools, materials, toys…)?
- Did this interest influence a college or career path?
- Did you develop any skills associated with this interest that enabled you to gain a summer job, internship, or part-time work opportunities
- Did this interest help you build a reputation in some way, or let you be known for something?
- Were there particular events or circumstances in your life that made this topic/interest of relevance at that time?
- Are you still actively interested in this area? If no, what caused you to lose interest?
NB: Make sure to ask questions get your subjects to name specific learning activities/events, where they took place, who was involved, and document any learning materials (e.g. books, media, tools, toys) or resources that sparked or enabled this interest to develop. You will need this "data" to complete the next part.
PART 2: Visualizing Learning Pathways
Learning Ecosystem Pathways & Insight Boards
After you have collected your learning ecology interviews, use the provided timeline template, or create your own version to show how each interviewee (3) navigated through their learning ecology. Begin by reviewing your notes and the audio. Then for each interview, try to identify an approximate age and setting where key interest development events or activities took place. Use a dot or line segment to mark down these activities/event in appropriate row ( home, school, community) and label them on the timeline. Then in the area above the timeline, add labels to represent people who are mentioned (i.e. teachers, mentors, family, peers, friends) in relation to those interest development events and activities. Next annotate the timeline using the labeled space below to mark out the learning resources, tools, and materials named during the interview (e.g. 3D printer, book, movie, microscope, game, animal, toy ... ). Now use lines to show how this person moved across his/her learning ecology coordinating resources and support to develop and deepen this interest. For reference, see the Barron et al. "technobiography" timeline example provided below from our reading.
For the Insight Board on the other side, fill out some brief biographical information (name, age, major, current occupation) and use the provided quote boxes to capture five (5) key statements you feel are defining moments in this person's story and reveal important insights. With the course readings in mind, tag each of these quotes with a label identifying how this is a feature, quality or by-product of interest-driven learning. This is a first pass at "coding" the data and looking for emerging themes and categories. There is no right or wrong.
Bring these Learning Pathway Timelines and Insights Boards to class next Tuesday (3/29) to present. Even better, send me a file/scan so we can project the timelines. We'll discuss the stories you've collected and look for groupings and patterns of features in a learning ecology that seem to support interest development and deep learning among our participants. Think about your interviewees, and your own personal experiences when you read the Barron et al. (2013) paper assigned on 3/24.
- Barron, B., Wise, S., & Martin, C. K. (2013). Creating within and across life spaces: the role of a computer clubhouse in a child’s learning ecology. In B. Bevan et al. (Eds.), LOST Opportunities: Learning in Out-of-School Time (pp. 99-118). Springer Netherlands.
Insights Board Template (front/back) to print
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Learning Pathway Timeline Example
Maurice Learning Pathway (Figure 2.1) excerpted from Barron, B., Gomez, K., Pinkard, N & Martin, C. K. (2014). DOCUMENTING PATHWAYS TO DIGITAL MEDIA PRODUCTION THROUGH LONGITUDINAL AND MULTISETTING RESEARCH METHODS. The Digital Youth Network: Cultivating Digital Media Citizenship in Urban Communities, 49.