Affiliation

Memorial University

Email

pmd715@mun.ca

Abstract

Recent trends in education have shown an increase in attempts to create more engaging and meaningful educational experiences. This paper will examine how the theory of communities of practice can be implemented in technology-enhanced learning environments and how it can be used in instructional design practices. This paper will also relate to how traditional learning theories such as behaviorism, social constructivism, and connectivism set the foundation for the implementation of communities of practice in an instructional design framework. Project-based learning amongst elementary school students serves as an example of how this combination of traditional and contemporary learning theories can complement the instructional design process and enhance the effectiveness of educational technology. The communities of practice theory, together with project-based learning can further be organized into the ADDIE instructional design model.

Key Words

Behaviorism, Communities of Practice, Connectivism, Instructional Design, Social Constructivism, Project Based Learning, Self Efficacy, Social Constructivism

Introduction

Advances in technology over the last two decades have allowed like-minded people to collaborate and share ideas across the globe. This paper examines how technology and instructional design can foster a high level of collaboration in an elementary school classroom. The communities of practice theory, supported by traditional learning theories, can offer an opportunity to create engaging educational experiences for students and enhance their learning.

Project-based learning will be explored as an example in which a collaborative approach on topics of high interest can potentially increase student success. The implementation of technology to achieve these goals will also be considered. Finally, the self-efficacy demonstrated by students when engaging in collaborative, high-interest activities will be considered.

Teaching Philosophy Statement

The role of a teacher is always evolving, as is the world of education and technology. Ever since starting my journey as a teacher, I have prioritized giving students the chance to work together and create new and meaningful experiences. My philosophy is rooted in showing students how to interact with kindness, respect, and wonder. Interacting with kindness and respect provides an expectation amongst students that everyone’s voice is valued and listened to. Creating a sense of wonder allows students to ask questions and provide feedback. Teaching collaboration skills is important to me because it creates a more realistic space for students to build an understanding of not only the curriculum but the world around them. Educational technology within this approach can create spaces where students can quickly and easily collaborate in an efficient and organized manner. Both traditional and contemporary learning theories align with my approach to teaching.

While Behaviorism is not a theory that I ground my teaching in, it does relate to how I set expectations for how students should act when engaging in learning activities. “Behaviorism is key for educators because it impacts how students react and behave in the classroom” (Western Governors University, 2023). Earlier in my career, I would put a large emphasis on higher-level learning goals without addressing basic expectations. Offering a small reward or positive reinforcement for interacting respectfully without prompting or temporarily restricting access to technology when misused as both ways I have set classroom expectations.

Social constructivism “regards the social practices people engage in as the focus of enquiry.” (Andrews, 2012). My teaching heavily relies on students’ collaborative nature with each other and the tools they use to explore concepts. Working in groups, having discussions, involving the community, and relating learning to current events are all ways my teaching aligns with elements of this theory. Students create their understanding through interactions with each other and the world around them.

Connectivism relates to how technology is leveraged in my teaching. A major aspect of this theory is “the ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts is a core skill” (Siemens, 2005, as cited in Power, 2023). Technology is essential in making these connections in various cross-curricular projects.  Diverse groups of students can take on a project and connect it to various parts of the curriculum and their personal experiences. Using technology to further explore and organize their ideas is a way in which students can all be included and work together to create artifacts proving their understanding.

The three traditional learning theories discussed all set the foundation for how I align my teaching with the theory of communities of practice (CoP). “Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly” (Wenger-Trayner, 2012). In my classroom, I always build relationships first and get to know the students. I strive to understand their passions and interests and design my instruction to make the curriculum more meaningful to them. Working with other students who share the same interests on projects gives them an opportunity to push each other to take risks and explore. There is increased self-efficacy when students are invested and motivated by their interests. They want to do well and master their skills because they are motivated by their own desire to learn and support their peers. Collaborative use of technology to create projects that students are passionate about is a key aspect of creating this type of learning environment. Learning goals are set so students can easily identify and work towards them. Students work together, with assistance from the teacher on how to solve problems as a collective group.

Literature Review

Communities of Practice and Traditional Learning Theories

Before students can engage in CoP, traditional learning theories must be pulled to set the stage for higher-level thinking. “CoP development requires establishing a stronger link between the lived experience of what it means to learn socially with other people” (Pyrko, 2017 p. 405). To learn socially, students must exhibit a certain mindset toward learning that can be explained by the traditional theories discussed previously. This includes knowing how to interact in a productive manner, respecting others’ opinions or prior knowledge, and having strategies to connect ideas to new learning.

Managing behavior is essential to have students engage in meaningful learning experiences and increase the efficient use of instructional time. There are opportunities to use this behaviorist approach in a collaborative way that leverages the effectiveness of technology in the classroom. One such example is “tootling” in elementary classrooms using the “Class Dojo” educational technology program. Unlike tattling, tootling “describes a procedure in which children report their peers’ appropriate behaviors.” (Dillon et al., 2019 p. 19). Students help maintain favorable conditions for learning by offering positive reinforcement to each other. Technology is used here as a means to efficiently record and present these positive interactions. Rewards can then be offered to the whole class if they achieve a certain number of these positive interactions. It was shown that there were decreases in disruptive behavior and increases in academically engaged behavior in classrooms who consistently used this method. (Dillon et al., 2019 p. 26).

Connectivism can contribute to how students effectively use technology in the classroom to link their current knowledge to the vast amounts of information found in the digital world. When working together students must know how to navigate content and create connections, rather than memorize information. In order to facilitate a learning environment using CoP students need first to understand how to use technology effectively and efficiently. This includes becoming familiar with how to ask questions and research information effectively. The practical use of this strand in the classroom is project-based learning objectives. Homanova et al. (2018) describe an example where students gained an understanding of a local dialect that was disappearing. The project was based on practical experiences they already had, and then those experiences were connected to the new content they were being taught. Students used school-owned and personal technology to connect, record and organize their ideas to create a project that achieved their learning objectives. An important takeaway from this project was that “This situation prepares pupils for a professional environment” (Homanova et al., 2018, p. 183). The CoP framework also draws from creating working groups where students, colleagues or community members work together to solve common problems.

Social constructivism also relates to the CoP theory as it relies on the sharing of knowledge from peers and outside sources. The cultural and social backgrounds of students offer valuable perspectives into how we construct a classroom community of learners. The skill of being able to be confident in sharing one’s own knowledge but remaining open-minded to different views from peers is critical to effective group work. Examples of this can be found in cross-curricular projects in science and art. Gross and Gross (2016) show an example of social constructivist ideas combined with various forms of technology when creating art projects using coding combined with traditional materials. During the project “Students learned from and with their classmates, but also differentiated projects to meet individual vision.” (p. 42) CoP also encourages students to share their different ideas with confidence, but while also combining common understandings to help each other achieve common goals.

Aligning Instructional Design with Communities of Practice

Organizing instructional time, access to information, technology, and managing assessment are all important aspects of using the CoL theory in a project-based setting. The many moving parts that make up this educational experience must be organized to make all aspects work together to their full potential. Project-based learning may seem unconventional and appear to have limited planning on the surface, but the underlying design must be carefully planned. Students will still need to have clear goals and objectives. Assessment will still need to take place to identify if the desired learning has occurred. Project-based learning builds students’ capacity to work through problems that often mirror the real world, making it a valuable educational approach. (English and Kitsantas, 2013, p. 130)

When considering the open-ended nature of problem-based learning, a proven and well-structured approach to instructional design must be taken. Instructional system design (ISD) is a proven way instructional designers can take their ideas on how they plan to teach learners new concepts and skills. The ISD known as ADDIE will be used to explain how both the traditional and contemporary learning theories discussed in this paper can be used to support project-based learning.  ADDIE is an acronym for the five phases within the design system. They are: analyze, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. (Clark, 2015)

Analyze

Instructional goals must be listed. What students should know and what steps they need to take to get there should be recorded in this step. What learning objectives will the students achieve and participate in as part of their project? The learners will also need to undergo an analysis to discover what they may already know or what prerequisite skills they should have before beginning.

Design

Assessment needs to be considered early on in the process. There needs to be a plan for assessing the learning objectives from the previous step. In the example of a group project of the students’ choice, the process they take will be evaluated here, not necessarily the content in the project. The format of the project will also be included here. If it is a multimedia presentation, what software will students use?

Development

In this step, a project-based learning experience sample should be created and shared with other colleagues for feedback. This will identify early issues and problems before further work goes into instruction planning. Materials lists will be finalized in the development stage as well. In this step, it is important to put yourself in the student’s mindset, to make sure it is clear and well-prepared from their perspective.

Implementation

Deciding how to present the project to learners will occur once the project framework has been developed and the learners have been introduced. Student grouping based on an earlier analysis will be finalized in this step. To align with the CoP theory learners should have a common interest. This step will also see the physical (or virtual) space organized to meet the project’s needs.

Evaluation

Both formative and summative assessments will provide important feedback on the effectiveness of the project. Early on in the project, it will be important to check in with students on the clarity of instructions.  Observations of student engagement are also an important aspect to monitoring the project’s performance. As the project progresses, questionnaires on the attitudes of students should be considered.

The organization the ADDIE model presents brings the project’s design into a more systematic and deliverable framework. A project that appeared to be unorganized and without clear goals now has identifiable goals, procedures, and assessments. It should be noted that these steps should be read linearly, as the feedback obtained from the evaluation period can be linked back to any stage and changed as needed, to meet the instructional goals listed in the analysis stage.

While the ADDIE model fits my ideas of CoP and project-based learning, it does have some warranted criticism. It may be overly complex for small courses or for teachers in a more traditional classroom setting. (Bates, 2015) As an elementary school teacher with a large class and a high workload due to individual needs, engaging in the ADDIE model for a unit that will only take a few weeks to complete may be burdensome. I would perhaps be best suited to someone developing a curriculum for a district, over a classroom teacher planning a passion project for their class. That being said, I believe as an organization tool in the instructional design process, it can be used by anyone successfully.

Conclusions and Recommendations

As the needs of learners evolve and educational technology advances, it is important to consider its implications on good instructional design. Traditional learning theories may seem outdated and redundant at times, but some aspects stand the test of time. The world we live in is rapidly changing, but human nature generally stays constant. This is why theories like behaviorism can still have practical applications to contemporary learning theories such as CoP. Students still need some motivators and reinforcement to be productive participants in a group of peers that share similar interests and goals. The ADDIE model has also been used for many years but still holds up as a solid approach to instructional design. It may seem rigid and cumbersome at a glance, but the same phases and overall structure can be applied to new methods of teaching and learning.

Project-based learning helps prepare students for adulthood by building collaboration skills and learning how to solve problems as a group. When projects are carefully planned using both proven teaching theories and sound instructional design, the potential for increased student learning is evident. Starting with clear learning goals and monitoring assessments through the ADDIE model can ensure open-ended projects completed by students stay on track for their intended purpose. In my own teaching practice, I have not always been successful in completing these projects as intended. Projects start out well, but the final projects (if completed) sometimes need elements added for assessment. I believe with the help of proven learning theories, and the implementation of an instructional design model such as ADDIE, I will be able to be more successful in the future.

References

Andrews, Tom. (2012, June 1). What Is Social Constructionism? Grounded Theory Review, 1(11). https://groundedtheoryreview.com/2012/06/01/what-is-social-constructionism/

Bates, T. (2015). 4.3: The ADDIE Model. Teaching in a Digital Age. Tony Bates Associates. https://opentextbc.ca/teachinginadigitalage/chapter/6-5-the-addie-model/

Clark, D. (2015). Why Instructional System Design and ADDIE? Instructional System Design: The ADDIE Model: A Handbook for Learning Designers. http://knowledgejump.com/hrd/sat1.html

Dillon, M. B. M., Radley, K. C., Tingstrom, D. H., Dart, E. H., & Barry, C. T. (2019). The Effects of Tootling via ClassDojo on Student Behavior in Elementary Classrooms. School Psychology Review, 48(1), 18–30. https://doi.org/10.17105/SPR-2017-0090.V48-1

English, M. C., & Kitsantas, A. (2013). Supporting Student Self-Regulated Learning in Problem-and Project-Based Learning. Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning, 7(2). https://doi.org/10.7771/1541-5015.1339

Gross, K., & Gross, S. (2016). TRANSFORMATION: Constructivism, Design Thinking, and Elementary STEAM. Art Education (Reston), 69(6), 36–43. https://doi.org/10.1080/00043125.2016.1224869

Homanova, Z., Prextova, T., & Klubal, L. (2018). Connectivism in elementary school instruction. European Conference on e-Learning, 2018-, 177–184.

Power, Rob. (2023).  Theories and Models of Online Learning. Everyday Instructional Design: A Practical Resource for Educators and Instructional Designers. Power Learning Solutions. https://pressbooks.pub/everydayid/chapter/theories-and-models-of-online-learning/

Pyrko, I., Dörfler, V., & Eden, C. (2017). Thinking together: What makes Communities of Practice work? Human Relations (New York), 70(4), 389–409. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726716661040

Wenger-Trayner, E., &  Wenger-Trayner, B., (2012). Introduction to Communities of Practice. Wenger-Trayner,  www.wenger-trayner.com/introduction-to-communities-of-practice/.

Western Governors University (2023). What is the behavioral learning theory? Western Governors University. https://www.wgu.edu/blog/what-behavioral-learning-theory2005.html