“What is something that you have always wanted to learn to do?” I started my Networked Learning Project (NLP) by answering this question. (Click here to read my first NLP blog post.) After spending some time thinking about it, I decided to learn how to edit videos as it is a useful skill for teaching as well as my personal life. My students enjoy watching youtube videos, and I believe that well-edited video clips can be a powerful learning tool. Also, I love traveling, and I wanted to be able to make travel videos of the places I visit. Prior to working on this project, I did not know anything about video editing. I used the information gathered through multiple digital technology resources such as youtube videos and Reddit to make decisions and learn various techniques. (Click here to view some of the resources I used and my reflection on what was helpful and what was not.) Through doing some research, I learned that iMovie is a great video editing software for a novice like me and I was able to set S.M.A.R.T goals to have mileposts to guide me on my networked learning journey. The video below summarizes my Networked Learning Project (NLP). It shows my learning goals, the digital resources I used, as well as what I have learned in the past few weeks. After learning and practicing the video editing skills mentioned in my video above, I was able to create a video that highlights our school’s International Day, which is a special day to learn and embrace different cultures in the world. The video I made was shown during our school assembly and received much positive feedback. Unfortunately, I can not upload the whole video on my blog since students can be identified. However, here is a short preview of it: Learning a set of skills using only digital technology resources and from people whom I do not know was a new experience for me. I know that my students, the digital natives, are used to relying on online resources to learn something that they are interested in, and I am glad that I now have a similar experience. Gee (2018) mentioned in his article, Affinity spaces: How young people live and learn online and out of school, that powerful teaching and learning could happen in other settings beyond school (p. 1). While working on my project, I found that networked learning has several advantages and the biggest one, for me, was the wide range of choices. I had the freedom to choose what, when, how, where, and from whom to learn. It was also amazing to see people contributing ideas on specific topics to help others whom they have not even met. “Within these affinity spaces, people are fully engaged in helping each other to learn, act, and produce, regardless of their age, place of origin, formal credentials, or level of expertise” (Gee, 2018, p. 3). While learning only through the internet was fun, there were also times that I wished to be in a video editing class with a teacher who could teach me and answer my questions. It was sometimes overwhelming to go over the vast amount of information available on the internet and to choose the most beneficial ones for my project. Among the resources I used, Tutorials on YouTube were the most helpful. YouTubers modeled the whole procedures, explained their actions, and always showed the end product. Also, the suggestions and tips they provided as experts were beneficial. Bransford, Brown & Cocking (2000) mentioned in their book, How People Learn: Brain, mind, experience, and school, that in order to optimize learning “attention must be given to what is taught, why it is taught, and what competence or mastery looks like” (p. 24). (To read more about the challenges I faced while working on my NLP project, here’s a link to my second PNL blog post.) In the future, I would not only continue to develop my video editing skills but also start learning other things that I have always wanted to learn to do by using various digital technology resources. Also, I am planning to integrate networked learning Genius Hours into my curriculum by letting my students select a topic of their interest, learn about it only using digital technology resources, and present their work to others. Through networked learning Genius Hours, students will be able to develop some 21st-century skills such as creativity and communication skills. (Click here to read more about Genius Hours.) Resources: Bransford, J. D., Brown, A. L. & Cocking, R. R. (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience, and school. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press. Retrieved from https://www.nap.edu/read/9853/chapter/1 Brown, J. (2018, May 20). Video Editing for Beginners (Using Mac!) [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YQ-G3aOkK0&feature=youtu.be Gee, J. P. (2018, February 26). Affinity spaces: How young people live and learn online and out of school. Retrieved from http://www.kappanonline.org/gee-affinity-spaces-young-people-live-learn-online-school/ Juliani, A. (2016, February 8). What is Genius Hour? [blog post]. Retrieved from https://geniushour.com/what-is-genius-hour/ [u/lordover123]. (n/a). What's the best free video editing software you know of? [post]. Retrieved from https://www.reddit.com/r/software/comments/8uoief/whats_the_best_free_video_editing_software_you/ Unless otherwise noted, videos and links presented on this blog are the property of the blog owner.
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