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Positive and negative benefits of e learning
Advantages and disadvantages of e-learning
Positive effect of e-learning
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Critical Evaluation of Learning Resources
The learning resource that will be examined will be the online learning supplementary material for the "Critical Thinking in Adult Education 41909" on WebCT. WebCT is the major provider of e-learning systems for higher education institutions such as university. WebCT provides a highly flexible e-learning environment that empowers institutions the ability to achieve their unique objectives. University of Western Sydney is one of the institutions which utilize the WebCT technology to provide information as a supplement to support students with their learning.
The Content
The supplement "Critical Thinking in Adult Education 41909" on WebCT provides a very good example for critical study as to whether such resource is effective or not. It is first essential to examine the content of the resource since that the information within the supplementary material is the most important. There are several criteria that must be analyzed:
The content must provide sufficient details and also aimed correctly at the intended audience, in the case of the Critical Thinking supplement, the format of the site quite simple and the language used is easy to understand. Because the course is aimed at academics, the language used is in a more formal and general terms instead of personal.
Content must be accurate, up-to-date and properly edited, in the case of this course, the course is constantly updated with notices being placed on the front page stating the latest news and instructions on the course, such notices includes the newest brief instructions about discussion group's tasks.
Course should provide links to further information about the course. In this area, this is where ...
... middle of paper ...
...tiveness as a teaching material. WebCT can provide a huge variety of resources which could be linked to a huge database of materials on the internet. However, these resources must be utilized before this course can be considered as worth-while to operate. The maintenance involves methods such as people to run and keep the records constantly and also requires lecturers to reply to questions and e-mails. Furthermore the costs involved include the cost of registering for WebCT and also the wages for the maintenance professionals who will keep the course running.
Conclusion
The certain areas of the "Critical Thinking in Adult Education" course on WebCT has been analyzed, but whether the course should be maintained should be decided through a series of processes which determines whether maintaining such a course will be too costly or not in exchange for the benefit.
The article, “Critical Thinking? You Need Knowledge” by Diane Ravitch, discusses how in the past people have been deprived from the thinking process and abstract thinking skills. Students need to be given more retainable knowledge by their teachers to improve their critical thinking skills. (Ravitch).
Colombo introduces his section on critical thinking by asking a question “Why do instructors mean when they tell to think critically?” (2). His point is that we should no just focus on the surface meaning. He uses the example of the cover of our Rereading America textbook. He says that the average student from the United States may just believe that the book only applies to the United States. When a student from anny other country in the Western Hemisphere might complain that the title reflects a discriminatory view of what it maens to be an American. Since America contains all the countries of North, South, and Central America. He goes on to explain that most think they want us to ask questions rather than just relay the text back through memorization. That kind of thinking is nearly useless in the real world. What job is there that all you do is relay data back? There are almost none of these
Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing written by; Gary Colombo, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle, Eighth Edition, published April, 2007 by Bedford/St. Martin’s, is a textbook about writing and critical thinking. In the first chapter of Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing, “Thinking Critically, Challenging Cultural Myths”, the Authors begin by setting a relatable scene of what it’s like for a college student. How a new found independence can be overwhelming, especially with regards to critical thinking, showing that what we have learned, needs to be re-evaluated and that an open mind in essential. "What Is Critical Thinking" In this section of the chapter the editors explain what it means to be a critical thinker. They explain that critical thinking is not just studying dates and facts, but rather taking those facts and examining them. The editors then proceed by explaining how having an open mind, and taking others' perspectives into account when formulating our own opinions on what the author is trying to say to us is important. A critical thinker takes all aspects into account and reflects on personal experience as well. The editors also point out that different cultural experiences bring different opinions. They suggest that we need to become active learners, continuously questioning the meaning behind everything, testing not only the theories of others but also our own experiences and analyzing the text rather than going for the obvious. They show that thinking outside the box is the epitome of critical thinking. Basically, we need to step outside our comfort zones and what we have always been taught. The editors also suggest that we need to re-evaluate our per...
Paul, R. and Elder, L., (2008). The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking-Concepts and Tools, 5th. Ed., Foundation for Critical Thinking Press: Dillon Beach, CA
22) in order to use critical thinking. The difficulty that I faced is definitely solvable. With this insightful guideline, I will become a critical thinker. Preparation is the foundation of success; it reflects on my characteristics and work ethics as a student. It also clears the road block in my mind to become a better critical thinker and is beneficial in the future. After reading the short section on what critical thinking involves, I feel that I am already a different critical thinker. I immediately began to analyze and seek additional information that would help me succeed on writing this paper assignment. Most importantly, I learned the closet meaning of critical thinking and what I need to do to become a better critical thinker.
While, at this juncture, more data needs to be collected and its significance evaluated, there is reason to think that instructors of critical thinking can, with the assistance of computer technology such as that summarized above, effectively narrow the gap between classroom and students' "external" world. Without undue invasions of students' privacy, instructors can oversee and assess their students efforts in applying critical thinking to personal living. And they can do this without ever having to leave the classroom!
The ability to reflect critically on one’s experience, integrate knowledge gained from experience with knowledge possessed, and take action on insights is considered by some adult educators to be a distinguishing feature of the adult learner (Brookfield 1998; Ecclestone 1996; Mezirow 1991). Critical reflection is the process by which adults identify the assumptions governing their actions, locate the historical and cultural origins of the assumptions, question the meaning of the assumptions, and develop alternative ways of acting (Cranton 1996). Brookfield (1995) adds that part of the critical reflective process is to challenge the prevailing social, political, cultural, or professional ways of acting. Through the process of critical reflection, adults come to interpret and create new knowledge and actions from their ordinary and sometimes extraordinary experiences. Critical reflection blends learning through experience with theoretical and technical learning to form new knowledge constructions and new behaviors or insights.
Once students graduate high school, they are a vital part of society; to help the community they will need to have the proper education. When these students enter the community on their own, they will need to possess critical thinking skills to solve difficult problems. “Schools don’t teach kids how to really think critically,” says Annmarie Neal, a psychologist and vice president for talent management at Cisco systems (Clemmitt “Critical Thinking” 315). When students leave high school and college, they will need to be able to think through tough situations. They will be given a problem, but, unlike in schools, the answers will not be as clear as multiple choice questions. Critical thinking is an important skill for students to have to enter
Critical thinking is a significant and essential topic in recent education. The strategy of critical thinking skills helps identify areas in one's courses as the suitable place to highlight, expand and use some problems in exams that test students' critical thinking skills.
What is not easily recognized is the fact that the very fabric of life is dependent on the ability to think properly and make good decisions. Improper thinking is costly in the quality of life and monetarily. The result of a critical thinker that has worked to cultivate proper thinking skills includes: the ability to ask vital questions and to identify problems with clarity. A critical thinker also collects relevant information while effectively interpreting it, thinks with an open mind, uses alternative systems of thought, and understands how to communicate while working to formulate a strong solution. In summary, critical thinking is self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking. Above all else, the standards of excellence are rigorous, and it entails the prospect of overcoming the challenge of sociocentrism and
Rudd, R. (2007). Defining critical thinking. Techniques: Connecting Education & Careers, 82(7) 46-49. Retrieved December 9, 2007, from EBSCOhost database.
I think that critical thinking is important in ever aspect of education, but I believe it’s utilized more in the field of Social Studies, where the student has to make a decision based upon primary and secondary sources to draw from. An example would be after watching a video over history the students would form an opinion. Though the use of critical thinking questions such as how does the information connect with the knowledge that the class has already learned about the subject, how might the new inform...
2. Richard, Paul “Critical Thinking: Basic Theory and Instructions Structures,” Foundations for Critical Thinking. 1977. P
Firstly, the characteristic of teachers and students in school and at university has great differences. The school teachers dismantle to translate the textbooks word-by-word from limited information-based, and whether the students understand the lessons or not, they can passively copy down the information and refers to their notes later at home and memorizes them. However, the university students are no longer allowed to sit quietly and negatively throughout the class. They are being demanded to discuss academic matters or cooperate with other classmate to perform projects. They are require to find sources, gathering information and put them into order. As Marshall and Rowland (1993, 34) pointed out, ¡¥the ability to think critically is a generic skill that are expected to acquire in the undergraduate education and transfer to daily life, future or current work.¡¦ Therefore, the tutors at university who offer not only textbook instructions but also helps students to think critically and independently by encouragement. Besides, students can choose and adjust their own learning style independently from freely choices of materials provided at university.
Abstract: Recently, there has been a rush to create web-based instructional courses. The approach that is being taken to create web-based courses is to create websites that will function as the central distributors of information and materials. Based on the format and content of the course, the student is to go through lesson by lesson to complete courses. In this paper, I address some of the problems inherent in this approach, especially with respect to 18-22 year-old undergraduate education.