Thoughts on Teaching and Learning Online

I have been doing some thinking about different approaches to teaching and learning online. Right now, I am very interested in experiential learning (I know, sometimes I am interested in lots of things) and how we can begin to move some of this theory into distance courses.

Although I like Kolb's model, I am drawn to Lewin's experiential model for simplicity. Lewin believed that concrete experiences form the basis to understand abstract concepts. Lived experiences, unique to each individual, inform learning by providing a groundwork or baseline for new information and knowledge. It is this lived experience that gives texture and personal meaning to new experiences.

When presented with new information, the learner draws upon lived experiences and searches for similar events or concepts. Reflection leads to tentative hypotheses about how the new information fits with existing knowledge. The learner is then ready to test these hypotheses in a new context. This test leads to more concrete experience and the ability to accept, reject, or modify the original application of previous knowledge to new information.

Although this is a simplification of the theory, I can't help but think that we already have tools in the online environment that might allow us to more fully connect with students. If blogs or discussion boards were used to share experiences that learners believe are connected to the new information - what would happen? If learners were able to read about how other classmates are trying to connect the new knowledge to previous information - what is the worst that could happen?

Metacognition (the thinking about how we think) activities requiring students to intentionally search for previous experiences and knowledge to make understanding of new information may yield some results. We often present and teach from a viewpoint that if we provide information, it is the responsibility of the student to make meaning and connections.

I wonder if the old adage about "You can't teach them until you know what they know" doesn't apply.