The New Classroom, The Virtual Hill Tribe Museum, and another new Bangkok experience.

The New Classroom, The Virtual Hill Tribe Museum, and another new Bangkok experience.

The New Classroom :Rethinking Learning for e-Learning is based on a creating tasks for students as a method of teaching. You can see the previous blog entry for more detail as to the workshop content. Essentially creating tasks takes priority over creating course content. By creating tasks you are creating rich, focused expectations with a clear method of coaching and feedback for student learning. Everything that I hear in this workshop I agree with, it has been very valuable.

Last night, when I was not sleeping I realized that the CIOS 211 Providing Computer Support course and the Information Technology Specialist Certification Review are both a form of task based learning. I do not think that either the course or the certification review are a complete implementation of the concept, but they contain the germ of the insights discussed at the workshop. When I revise my Excel course and whatever additional courses that I create I will embed tasks more deeply into my courses. You can see my previous course syllabi at http://www.faculty.uaf.edu/ffsdc/syllabus/

We went Siam Discovery center to meet with John Morris who helped create the Virtual Hill Tribes Museum. John is a deep, creative, and thoughtful person to talk with. I enjoyed sharing experiences and perspectives. His experience in the Peace Corp and in Thailand is invaluable. John has been in Thailand for seven years. I felt an affinity with John and found that the conversation re-awakened previous experiences that I had in Alaska. I highly recommend reading his blog at http://www.hilltribe.org/blogs/

After meeting with John we wandered around the Siam center area, a completely different part of Bangkok. Bangkok is amazing, I wander into new areas and see new things on every trip to Bangkok. Bangkok is a city with many semi-autonomous and unique experiences. Maybe it is easier to think of Bangkok as many cities instead of one city. For instance Seattle has one downtown, Bangkok has many downtowns, each with a slightly different focus and atmosphere. I think I could spend a year just getting to know Bangkok and its different neighborhoods and communities. No matter where we go in the Bangkok area it is always a relief to get home. I think I would be overwhelmed, even more, if we did not have an island of rural calm to retreat to.