"Throughout the centuries there were men who took first steps down new roads armed with nothing but their own vision."
~ Ayn Rand
~ Ayn Rand
So what do I love about the nature of these three ideas? More than anything, I love that, when applied to a problem, all three taken together represent the entire universe of possibilities. We all exist in the universe of what’s possible, but often give in to the inevitable world of what’s probable. In my mind, the universe of the possible is so much more interesting. When mapped against the framework of the three ideas, I’m better able to see how far a possibility must travel to become a probability. To me, making possibilities into realities is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
No discussion of love would be complete without commenting on the word’s definition. Many people have grappled with the meaning of love, but the most perfect description I’ve ever read was coined by Robert Heinlein in the most famous science fiction novel ever written: Stranger in a Strange Land. Speaking through Jubal Harshaw, Heinlein says “Love is the condition in which the happiness of another is essential to your own” (Heinlein, 1961). Within the context of this reflection, I’m driven to bring the compelling aspects of these ideas to as many people as I can, through my words and deeds. By increasing the store of happiness in the world by illuminating possibilities through the beauty of my three ideas, I hope to increase my own happiness.
There is nothing as beautiful as a bridge. Bridges are the reason I studied Civil Engineering in my undergraduate program. My recent experience has shown me a glimpse of the big bridges I’ll eventually build in the field of educational Technology. New sets of rules developed in response to observational contemplation are the bridges over which others will tread along the way to connecting learners with knowledge.
A bridge does not need to be made of stones and concrete to be beautiful. Think about the bridge known as wireless internet – probably one of the most beautifully powerful technologies to appear in recent memory. The concept of moving information unencumbered by physical restraints is at once sublimely simple and devilishly intricate.
Ideas can serve as bridges. Consider the concept of CLAM, developed by Dr. Allison Rossett and Dr. Jim Marshall at San Diego University’s department of Educational Technology. The acronym represents learning interventions that are Contextually authentic, Learner centered, Attention riveting, and Message extending. Beyond theory and subject matter, this concept bridges several critical learning methodologies at once. I love the CLAM concept because it is an excellent bridge between the historical model of classrooms led by teachers to the new model of learners accessing knowledge when and where they need it, in the performance context, close to their work. More importantly, it applies directly to my future Coast Guard learners, who need critical information now, or property will be lost, the environment will be dirtied, and people will perish.
How can my future learners ever hope to progress if they are presented with a bridge between their ignorance and correct action at every turn? Here is where the concept of the Ladder becomes valuable. I had originally used a ratchet as my device to describe the incremental building blocks of knowledge. However, a ladder really provides a better illustration of incremental vertical movement. Movement along a ladder is completed as a series of discrete steps, with each successive step impossible without its incremental predecessor. Similarly, the acquisition of knowledge is not a continuum, but a ratcheting progression from one state of knowledge to increasingly higher states.
A tool I’ve acquired here at San Diego that I’ll keep for a while is the educational framework of I.C.A.R.E. This model is exceptional in that it can serve as an instructional ladder of various sizes within the same lesson. Single topics (“how to resize a graphic”), class sessions (“how to manipulate graphics”), or entire courses (“how to build interactive web sites”) can all be designed using the same I.C.A.R.E. ladder. The first rung “Introduce” is the base of the ladder. It may be balancing upon the top of the last ladder, or may be at the bedrock of complete ignorance. The next series of rungs is an ordered progression where the learner Connects with increasingly involved concepts, thoughts, or behaviors. The rungs above allow the learner to Apply their new skills, Reflect upon their experience (perhaps looking down to see how high they’ve climbed), and then Extend their reach (perhaps to the next ladder). I love this tool because it’s at once sublimely simple and devilishly intricate.
Finally, the concept of the Swiss Army Knife reminds me there are other tools available. The Swiss Army Knife represents the horizontal landscape covered by many bridges. In a way, the concept is a bridge between the other bridges, helping define the flat plane of possible instructional starting points. Once you’ve selected the bridge you need to move your learners across to new knowledge, the Swiss Army Knife offers you several spots along the bridge to set your ladder. Looked at another way, the knife represents all the different types of bridges and all the varieties of ladders. You might build your lesson using a foldable step ladder sitting on a suspension bridge, or with an aluminum extension ladder propped against a stone masonry bridge. The challenge for educational technologists is making sure their Swiss Army Knife has plenty of well-oiled tools. They must also not be afraid to exchange their knife for a bigger one with more tools.
I have loved the EDTEC program for its focus on building our Swiss Army Knives. Educational theory, analysis methods, design processes, development tools, evaluation material – they are all present, intertwined and densely packed in my personal Swiss Army Knife. One of the tools I’ve come to enjoy, and which has a high information density is the Performance Problem analysis flow chart from Analyzing Performance Problems (Mager & Pipe, 1983). Although the chart appeals really well to my engineering background, it is surprisingly useful, portable, and accurate in a wide range of situations. As a way to structure a problem prior to wielding the flowchart, First Things Fast (Rossett, 1999) offers valuable, distilled, procedural options.
Probably one of the best weapons in the EDTEC arsenal is the EDTEC 700 course series. Having completed three of these one-unit classes, I wish I’d gone with the maximum six. Small chunked classes accomplish two critical goals. First, they expose the students to multiple bridges: classmates, instructors, and subject matter. Second, they enable the EDTEC program to remain flexible in the face of a changing technological, ideological, and cultural landscape. These courses are the single-use pocket tools that will eventually be added to the Swiss Army Knives of the future.
Heinlein, R (1961). Stranger in a strange land. New York: Ace Books.
Hoffman, B., & Ritchie, D. (1998). Teaching and learning online: Tools, templates, and training. Retrieved on December 11, 2006, from ERIC database.
Mager, R. & Pipe, P. (1983). Analyzing performance problems. Atlanta, GA: CEP
Press.
Rossett, A. (1999). First things fast: A handbook for performance analysis. San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.
Rossett, A. (2006). Learning with clam: a tour of high value strategies. Retrieved
December 11, 2006, from http://edweb.sdsu.edu/Courses/ED795A/
Additional References can be found within the various Standards refections.
Continue to Part Three: Change 
Influential Instructor: Sean A. McCarthy
Affectionately refered to as "M.C." for the scribbled signature on his hall passes, this teacher taught me the benefits to be had from Speed and Accuracy in Mathematics (or SAM, also his initials). He'd walk in, slam his fist on the long green tables, and say "Page 109 in you workbooks, 10 minutes - SAM IT!" He also maintained that all your math knowledge settled at the ends of your hair, so the worst time to get a haircut was right before a math test. And that if you rested your head on your hand, your knowledge leaked out into the table. He taught me discipline, grooming, and good posture; all in 5th grade. Sean McCarthy refused to allow any of us to slip backwards, either in learning or in life, and showed me the power of the Ladder.