We know the importance of helping learners
connect new formal knowledge which is often
abstract with their prior knowledge which
is typically about the real world which is
linked in the learners mind with the social
circumstances such as the people, the interactions,
the activities and so on.
We also know the challenges that learners
may face when new concepts are abstract.
An important principle to follow when we design
e-learning is to situate and contextualize
Learning to emphasize real world connections.
Before we understand this further let us pause
at a reflection spot.
Consider a physics class which also has a
lab component maybe its 7th or 8th or 9th
standard in a school.
Do you think doing physics experiments in
the lab can be considered as contextualized
learning?
Make your choice and when you are done please
resume.
One of the essential criteria for situating
and contextualizing the learning is that the
learner makes connections with real life.
So, in the case of the physics lab experiments
it could be contextualized if it is directly
connected with a real life situation, a real
life scenario that the learner is familiar
with.
A well known example is that when learners
are doing experiments with circuits, if the
experiment helps them connect to a situation
in their home where for example, a bulb becomes
very bright just before it burns out.
So, if learners are able to connect these
two situations the abstract experiment by
the knowledge about the circuit with what
happens when bulbs burn out in their homes
then it can be considered as contextualized
learning.
On the other hand if such a if learners cannot
make such connections then we cannot consider
it as contextualizing the learning.
Situated and contextualized learning can have
the potential advantage to strategically tap
learner’s prior knowledge on a given topic.
It can increase the likelihood that the learner
applies their prior knowledge and the current
knowledge in a new situation and it places
the learners in realistic settings where the
informal socially acquired ways of learning
are as valued as the formal knowledge that
they learn.
How do we implement this principle of contextualizing
the learning in an e-learning context?
One way is to use a simulation or game based
environment which we have seen earlier, but
what is important here is to provide an activity
where the learner directly applies the abstract
or scientific or formal knowledge in the realistic
scenario present in the game or experiment
or the simulation experiment.
In the example shown what we see is a blood
typing game developed by the noble media to
help; to help lay people understand the details
of work that has got Noble Prizes.
This particular game involves a scenario which
is in an emergency department in a hospital
where car crash victims have come.
The player of a game that is our learner is
a doctor and she or he has to identify the
blood type of a patient, so, that the correct
type of blood can be given during the transfusion.
In the game the player has to drag and drop
the syringe on top of the patient arm draw
some blood and then put the blood in three
different test tubes, to check the blood type.
Then the learner has to see the result of
the chemical reaction and based on it decide
the blood type.
So, this is a clear application of an abstract
concept of blood typing and recognizing the
blood type using some chemical reactions to
a situated context of an emergency room.
There is also the element of roll plane where
the learner is directly making these connections.
Another example is to use inquiry learning
spaces where an learners are presented with
a real life problem in which they have to
apply or and analyze the scientific concepts
underlying that phenomenon.
Any example of inquiry learning spaces that
we see here the scenario is what affects the
floating or sinking of an object.
The learner or the player this also has a
slight game like element goes through an orientation
phase to understand the context.
And in the next phase she or he has to do
a virtual experiment to identify the factors
which can affect sinking or floating and after
this they can create a hypothesis in the investigation
phase they do variable manipulations to test
their hypothesis and this is followed by a
conclusion phase where discussion and reflection
occur and the learner has to conclude about
the generated hypothesis.
The tools in the inquiry learning space allows
anyone to create inquiry spaces for their
own topic, for their own content.
So, based on the topic that you are teaching
there for which you are designing e-learning
content you can create activities using the
tools shown and within a context that is familiar
for your learners.
An important point for us to remember is that
contextualizing the learning is not only about
giving an example, every good instructor gives
examples.
But it is actually helping the learner connect
formal and abstract knowledge within the example
and by providing scenarios by providing activities.
So, that the learner is required to make this
connection.
As we design e-learning content using a learner
centric approach; what we need to do is to
design learning activities around a contextualized
example we need to choose the context carefully.
So, that it is extremely relevant for the
learners for whom we are designing this content
and finally, we need to design the activity.
So, that the learners are required to connect
formal abstract concepts with the real world
informal setting.
In order to do this we may need to break the
linearity in the organization of our e-learning
content and this is in fact, a good thing,
this is what is recommended.
This will enable the learner to readily move
between various parts of the e-content such
as between the abstract concepts and the real
world scenario it will enable the learner
to come back to repeatedly access various
parts of the module and return to various
elements to the previous elements that he
or she has encountered before.
All these are important for the learner to
be able to construct their own understanding,
to deepen their knowledge and to make connections.
Thank you.
