Unit 3. The Psychology of Learning Environments

Computer learning. [Online Image 1]. Retrieved on March 26, 2010 from http://web.teachtown.com/media/screen_choice.jpg

“THE PSYCHOLOGY OF LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS”

Choosing a classroom as a crucial physical learning environment and relating it with Moodle as a virtual tool for engaging learners to work collaboratively, are excellent combination to compare taking into account the 4 cognitive determinants of environmental preference and the five usability criteria to analize our Moodle course.

Physical environment CLASSROOM	Virtual environment MOODLE
Coherence	Coherence
The space where learning is taking place must be neat, should have comfortable chairs, and would be located far from noise. Besides, it would be great to have windows which could be opened given that temperature is a factor that also affects learning.	In a virtual space, it is important the use of colors and images to catch learners’ attention, of course related to the subject matter. Here, organization plays an essential role too, because the way we present topics can raise students’ interest to start participating.
Complexity	Complexity
As a first impression counts a lot, the place where the class takes place must be pleasant and encouraging, involving students in any activity the teacher proposes, because the classroom must be designed to facilitate engagement.	In a virtual class, the teacher must support students by offering a variety of resources, which might lead them towards encouraging activities, which will help them to start sharing and constructing knowledge, then memorability is vital since will help learners to remember how to access to the different toolf for developing a specific task. These activities will have to be prepared beforehand to make sure all students will participate given that this is carried out through a blended way.
Legibility	Legibility
It would be great to count on a room whit spatial density where the students and instructor can move easily. At the same time, the furniture that remains in the class can be easily to handle if the space lets it. Teachers have to give complete instructions when asking students to seek for information	Teachers must offer the learners facilities to communicate through the platform which can contribute to trained them to use a virtual environment like Moodle and it can be through an instructive (learnability) . At the same time, teachers need to bear in mind all the programs students need to use in case they are outdated
Mystery	Mystery
Given that learning is something collaboratively and it is felt lived when sharing with classmates in a f2f session the expression we show to students as a response of any act might empower students participation	Through a virtual environment is important teachers lead students towards a same goal by having them discuss and replied among themselves, developing autonomy when discussing and initiative when asking. Hence, teaching opportunities emerge. To end up In this place Satisfaction and Eficiency are raised because emotions emerge and the performance is noticed after experiencing the virtual environment.

Finally, I want to conclude with a quote that I liked a lot. Environments where learning can take place “may become a place where students love to learn, a place they seek out when they wish to learn and the place they remember when they reflect on their learning experiences.”

Learnability is one of the main concepts which was developed as soon as we started this program, at the beginning it seemed a little difficult but after practicing we have achieved proficiency in the use of this platform. Secondly, after understanding the emphasis on automous learning, we were aware about the role of the platform as a support for our classes. Thirdly, I also want to highlight the role of the memorability criteria since in our Moodle class, this has been fostered since the beginning of our course and with the daily practice we have learnt to master this course management system and the different tools it offers. Fourtly, through our experiences there have been times where we cannot get access to a specific tool or have posted where we do not have to, but after experiencing some other ¨difficulties¨ we have learn to overcome those issues which seem difficult at first sight but when practicing it becomes easy. Finally, satisfaction is gained when we feel like a fish in the ocean when using the system, so this feeling is being felt by all of us, because we already know the plaform.

¨Categories of E-learning¨

E Learning Categories. [Online Image 1]. Retrieved on March 28 from http://ruminatorsilk.blogspot.com/Categories%2520of%2520eLearning.gif

After reading the 7 categories of e-learning and related them to my personal experience these are my conclusions.

Fortunately, I have had the experience to be involved in a course both, as a student and as a teacher. Presently, as I am enrolled in the Master program we all have the schedule of the subjects which specify where it starts and when it is expected to end, so this program is well structured since the beginning until the end, explaining the assessments we need to complete. As a teacher, I of course must have my plan (syllabus) for students to let them know what to expect from the class and the dates to have them getting updated about it; last semester for my research project, I had to built up plan for carrying out my research using Moodle Platform from the university, for that reason students knew beforehand what to do and when to deliver their work. Although it was time consuming, one learns to be organized with the schedules (dates for assessment).

Secondly, as the master is focused on Autonomous Learning Environments we have had the great opportunity to be exposed to different tools for learning. Therefore, through tools like blogs, e-portfolios or webs informal learning has been introduced in order to have a dynamic way for interacting among ourselves. This way, creating a collaborative space where each one learns from the other.

Thirdly, in second semester I first met the concept of blended learning, there we had F2F sessions and online classes, in the platform we always had a wide range of resources to be used which made to have alive discussions. In my personal experience as teacher, I used to have some F2F sessions with my learners to solve doubts they could have had whit the instructions I posted in the platform.

Then, since I started the Master program, I have the chance to being involved in a community, which main goal is to have a collaborative learning for understanding certain issues related with the course through reading and personal experiences. For that reason, we were motivated to create our own learning networks which contribute to share information about a specific topic and that way to start thinking critically to built up solid concepts.

Reference

Siemens, G. (2004) Categories of E-learning. Retrieved from http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/elearningcategories.htm

Transforming Learning Environments

The British Council for School Environments (BCSE). (2009). Transforming Learning Environments Masterclass. Retrieved on May, 2010 from http://vimeo.com/3470214