We spent the day at the beach! The weather was great, the kids were wild, and we did not lose any items! Success. I even did an RLOE talk from the minivan with a sleeping Aurelio! Yay! He woke up in time to say hi to attendees.
Tonight, Amada requested her nightly story. We watched the Lilly Conference online 2021 recorded session entitled “Connections, Concepts, Concrete Practice, & Conclusions: 4 C’s of E-learning” by Eugenia P. Roberts, Bradley S. Roberts, and Denise A. Mills from Midwestern University. They are all clinical faculty. I always enjoy watching how different presentation “conventions” can be from other disciplines. The presenters had animated cartoons on each slide and used a handout to emphasize the 4Cs.
The first C is connections. They suggest assigning or playing a video to prime or activate prior knowledge. For e-learning, introductions help build human connections. The second C is for concepts. Roberts stated that there are seven concepts. The first one is built-in accountability: have students Google or create a list and be ready to share. Provide choices. Each student is required to provide the assignment before the class for both warm-up and accountability. Then, Roberts mentioned they use the information to personalize the session for the students. Concept #2 is to begin with a fast pass: Eugenia Roberts mentioned having students start with a list to connect learners to what they already know and will expect to learn from the session. Concept #3 is follow the ten-minute rule, and Eugenia Roberts spoke about 10-minute segments with review time between. This could be a one-question quiz and then at the end of the session a review of all the questions. Bradley Roberts has students write down a concept they learned from that segment. The presenters paused the presentation with a fun tropical beach and boat photograph and upbeat music, prompting attendees to reflect. I want to do this!
Concept #4 is create a graphic organizer. Mills recommended emailing or posting a digital copy. Mills shared an example of a graphic organizer with a section with space for students to take notes. Mills urged us not to wait for students to write: stop and tell them that the concept you are discussing is important and you want them to record this information. Bradley Roberts asks e-learners to define acronyms, their meaning, and where they found the information as the presentation takes place. Eugenia Roberts reminded us about the history of mind maps (created in the 60s!) and using mind maps for making connections, adding images, and including symbols to become active participants in class and then have a valuable study aid. Mills uses mind maps to create classroom presentations. I loved how the presenters used cartoons that were related to the topics they presented and their presenter photographs!
Concept #5 is the 1-minute body break: a quick one-minute stretch! Concept #6 is to explore the interactive features of the technology you are using such as the chat and sharing capabilities. Concept #7 is to follow-up with an action plan: take the information and apply it.
Concrete Practice is the third of the Cs. The Roberts played an interactive myth or fact game moderated by Mills. They mentioned they have been married 42 years! It was a fun game and reviewed some of the examples and concepts they discussed during their presentation. Conclusions is the last C, and the presenters modeled that with a review. What a fun presentation! The presenters enjoyed themselves, the slides were active, the delivery was interactive, and the message was reinforced!
