Activity: Reflect on Past Experiences
Formal, Informal, or Non-Formal Learning and PLN
Week 6
Reflections on past learning experiences I had as an adult:
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Graduate school course (Formal learning)
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While most of my formal learning experiences were positive, a class's physically and psychologically uncomfortable nature made an interesting and exciting area of study andragogically unsuccessful. This course was 8 credit hours, requiring long lectures of 4 hours twice a week after lunch. The time was broken with a 10-minute break, usually to run to the restroom and wait for your turn, and was given by a single lecturer going over hundreds of PowerPoint slides in a monotone monologue without student engagement. For most of the lectures, it was physically painful to stay focused as the long sitting times certainly prevented competent blood circulation. As described above, significant aspects of Andragogy are autonomy, self-directed learning, sharing of experiences, engaging discussions, and collaborative activities. However, for most of the semester, these principles were only utilized a little, leading to minor engagement of students and reduced instructor-student and student interactions. Taken together, a significant number of students submitted negative evaluations upon completion. ​
Reflections on past learning experiences I had as an adult:
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Learning about obstetrics (Informal learning)
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As a first-time mother-to-be, I engaged in major informal learning that started several months before conceiving my baby. While away from a structured formal classroom environment, the current availability of information in different formats made learning about all aspects of pregnancy successful. I compiled numerous videos and books and participated in discussions with other expecting mothers, resulting in a multi-tiered approach to learning about me and my baby-to-be. You can say that I engaged in all six adult learning principles: need to know (I understood the importance and the translation of the topic to a real-life scenario), self-concept, and experience (participation in a group where several stages of pregnancy were not only delineated but offered firsthand experience is an excellent integration of Andragogy), readiness to learn, orientation to learning, and motivation to learn, as I was learning of things that I had firsthand experience or was about to.
Question
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How might your preference impact the ways in which you engage with and contribute to your PLN?
Response
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I prefer non-formal learning. Since I tend to be inclined to a mix of structured and non-structured (casual) venues to acquire knowledge, non-formal ways to pursue knowledge and collaboration within the field of Instructional Design would be to learn as much as I can about networking on LinkedIn through free ID Webinars or workshops available. Even though, for me, this is just the beginning in a new and exciting field like Instructional Design, I am open to learning through voluntary work or by independently creating scenarios in which I can attempt to build a lesson or course to solve a problem or to fill someone's need in a specific area. I could read about other people's experiences or books related to Instructional Design to expand my knowledge and pursue a certain degree of professional growth.