JLynn

Our latest journal assignment states:

Considering what you already know about using "small pieces loosely joined" - a
common way of describing what the writer of this article is referring to - and
your own time-management skills, reflect on what you think is needed to
effectively conduct a class using "loosely joined" media and programs - and also
while trying to keep up with the pace of knowledge in this field.

The writer referred to is Clark Aldrich and the article is Small Pieces Loosely Joined.

After reading the assignment I dutifully read this short article. Then I went back to the assignment and thought "huh?"

I just didn't get it.

Well, I did have some idea. They're talking about the way we bring pieces (large and small) together to create a whole - a whole that's either strictly defined (tightly joined) or one with ambiguous, evolving boundries (loosely joined). But how did loosely joined pieces of any size relate to time magement?

So I began googling, hoping to read something to inspire an epiphany. I wanted someone to provide me with a clear definition of this term people seemed to be throwing around. I was thrilled when I came across David Weinberger's page: Small Pieces Loosely Joined I looked around the site thinking that he was sure to have a clue what it was all about. Alas, no clear cut definition was to be found... guess he wants me to buy the book.

So after checking out what the web at large had to say, and reading through some of my classmates posts (Splindarella, Between the Pipes.) With the help of everything I read I finally came to a better understanding of Small Pieces Loosely Joined and how, when related to LMSs, it actually does relate to time management. Marc, from Between the Pipes, wrote:

Small pieces are fine as the “why” of the course, but not for the “how.” In
other words, you should not impose how something gets done unless it is an
explicit part of the course. Let students and groups decide to use Wiki’s,
but do not impose them as a document management tool.

I agree with Marc on this point. Instructors shouldn't limit the pieces of technology students can use to fulfill course requirements. By allowing them to explore and make sure of the different technologies students are bound to gravetate toward those technologies that best complement their learning styles.

Marc also wrote:

If we are contemplating any course in any field, then the concept of "loosely
joined media and programs" does not pose any problem what-so-ever. Teachers have
always been the stitching that holds multiple media together- switching from the
slide projector to the dittos, then passing around a book. The content holds the
curriculum together and the curriculum should be held together by a few big
ideas. In curriculum design the guiding principle is to join the objectives,
assignments and assessments together. Media is never mentioned except as a
medium for delivery. Of course, the instructor must weigh the goal of the lesson
and the time the lesson will take against the difficulty of the technology and
the time it will take to learn & use the technology. If the payoff is low,
students will see the technology as the lesson.

Here, I agree only somewhat. As technology advances and we move away farther from the overhead projectors and ditto of yesteryear technology is integrating itself with all areas of academic study. Technology takes on roles greater than just the medium for delivery.

Consider the study of medicine. Modern medicine can no longer be separated from the technology used for patients' care. Technology has become part of medical content. Not only does technology make up some of the pieces of modern medicine but it also makes up many of the joins that keep the pieces together.

Business education is another example of an industry that can no longer exist without the technological pieces it has entangled throughout.

But how do these small pieces loosely joined relate to time management? As Marc mentioned, it has to do with the delivery aspect of a virtual classroom. In a class utilizing the model of of small pieces loosely joined, it is extremely important for the instructors to have a thorough understanding of the technologies used for delivery. The delivery means for today's online course tend to be far buggier than the dittos and overhead projectors teachers used to contend with. Restricted by the timeframe of a class session, and the attention spans of students, teachers who desire to have students understand the day's lesson can not cloud it up technologies (including the means of content delivery) that distract.

# posted by JLynn @ 8:29 PM